Fulfillment is defined as the storing, packing, shipping and unwrapping of your products and is arguably the most important step of the entire shopping process for your customer. As online merchants, many of us tend to focus only on the website aspects on our stores and almost completely neglect the fulfillment.
Let’s think about it. Your Shopify store is all setup and you’ve tweaked your site to make sure your customers have a great experience. You’ve run a few email campaigns as well as some Google and Facebook adverts. You’re even getting a couple of sales and you’ve shipped those orders out to your customers, but what does your customer go through when they want to find out where their parcel is? How about when they unwrap their goodies? Are they impressed? Would they buy from you again?
To follow are our Top 3 Tips to help you ensure you deliver the best possible experience to your customers.
Package every parcel like a Christmas present
Spend the time and money on making every parcel fabulous and then brand that experience.
Most of your customers will anticipate the arrival of their goods. If your parcel looks like a fantastic gift and feels like a treat when they open it, you are able to brand that experience as your own and make certain they come back for more.
This might seem basic, but make doubly sure that what they ordered is in the package! Also, nobody wants bubble wrap and paperwork when they first open their parcel; write a handwritten note, put some crepe paper in the box and throw in that little fridge magnet with your logo printed on it. Make your customer feel special. Not only will they associate your business with that happy feeling, but they will continue to buy from you.
Communicate!
Nobody wants to have to follow up for a delivery, so be sure to get detailed tracking information over to your customer as soon as it has been packed and booked. If your courier supports shipping notifications be sure to enable those for your customers too, so they are constantly updated on the status of their shipment. Not only will your customer be happy to know where their parcel is, but it will save you a ton of time on calls and emails tracking parcels on their behalf.
Also, consider setting up an automated email which goes out to your customer when their parcel has been delivered to make sure they received the goods and to ask for some feedback on their experience.
Not all couriers are created equal
Many merchants incorrectly assume that the cheapest courier is the best when in fact this may not be the case. Very often, cheap couriers are cheap for a reason so choose your courier company wisely.
Your courier is an extension of your business and more than likely the only people associated with your business to meet your customers face to face. Bad service, a bad attitude, damaged parcels or incorrect deliveries will leave your customers frustrated and is a surefire way to ensure you never see that customer again. Look for a courier or solution that is reliable, notifies your customer of the progress of their delivery, can accommodate your unique needs and is reasonable on price.
It’s also key to build a relationship with your courier company. Speak to your account manager on a regular basis and make sure to tell them if they make mistakes.
Making fulfillment a pleasure for your customers is a key element to building your brand and growing your business. So don’t forget about it or get lost in the cyberspace of it all.
uAfrica.com will soon be launching uAfrica Shipping which is a service designed to help you save money on shipments, track parcels easily and send notifications out to your customers at the click of a button.
Keep an eye out for its official launch in May/June this year.
