The vast majority of shoppers have little faith in the ability of retailers to deliver their shopping on time. Interesting stats from a consumer survey carried out by Epitca, include;
•Just 33% expect that last minute orders will arrive on time.
•40% don’t trust the retailer to deliver on time, but are willing to give it a go.
•27% expect last minute orders to be late.
Sometimes delivery times are out of retailers hands, especially when reliance is put on the Royal Mail – heavy snow around this time of year also contributing to many of the delays.
So apart from choosing a reliable courier, how can retailers use SMS services to avoid customers being disappointed this year?
“Order in time for Christmas” notification – You probably already have a database of your customers mobile numbers, send them an SMS message to let them know when last orders are being taken for Christmas.
Order despatch confirmation – Let your customer know when their item is on its way.
Journey updates – Send your customer status updates of where their item is – especially if you know it’s going to be late.
Specify delivery times – If you’re able to inform your customer of the time frame when their item is likely to arrive, there is a much greater chance that they’ll be in – no need to redeliver.
If a delivery is late, be reactive – Send your customer an text message apologising, you could also send them a discount code for their next order.
The key to avoiding customer disappointment is to provide clear and concise information to your customers, without promising what you can’t deliver. Sending text messages is a cheap and effective way to make the whole process run more smoothly.
