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1. Does it optimise the entire customer journey?

You probably already know that consumer expectations are impossibly demanding! But delivery doesn’t just start at despatch and end at the doorstep. You need an eCommerce delivery solution that can simplify and unify the customer experience at every touchpoint – starting at the checkout, moving to parcel despatch, all the way through the delivery journey and finally returns. Traditionally this has required multiple eCommerce delivery solutions; perhaps different eCommerce and marketplace integrations, various carrier labelling platforms and printers and then maybe a separate returns portal. But this only creates complex and disjointed view of your delivery operation. An end-to-end enterprise carrier management platform can increase visibility, accuracy and consistency throughout the customer journey resulting in greater service levels and lower operational costs.

2. Will your eCommerce delivery technology free time and reduce repetitive manual tasks?

Automation is essential for increasing efficiency and decreasing complexity especially as more channels, countries and carriers are added to the shipping mix. The level of automation you need will depend on your parcel volumes, but there are some key workflows and processes that can be simplified for retailers big and small. For example, by automating address validation, you can ensure that data entered by a customer is correct, which prevents parcels from getting lost or delayed. Automated labelling will speed up despatch and free staff from manually processing shipments. You can even automatically calculate Duties & Taxes and electronic customs documentation to help international parcels whizz through customs. At the end of the day, your eCommerce shipping solutions should make your life easy, so you can put more time and effort into selling and growing your business!

3. Can your eCommerce delivery adapt to change?

If we’ve learnt anything it’s that you never know what’s round the corner, so your eCommerce delivery needs to be able to keep up with the rapid pace of eCommerce and potential market changes. And that means it needs to be scalable and flexible. Can new carriers be added quickly and easily? Can new channels and marketplaces be supported? Can you ship abroad with ease? Don’t just think about today’s challenges but tomorrow’s opportunities. By future-proofing your choice of delivery technology, you’ll be able to maximise your return of investment and your ability to adapt.

4. Are you able to unlock new customer and delivery insights?

To keep improving and evolving, you need to be able to monitor and analyse what’s happening at every stage of the delivery operation. From pinpointing the bottlenecks to understanding peaks in demand, where you could improve the customer experience and where you could reduce costs, analytics are essential to driving greater efficiency and accuracy. When selecting a new eCommerce delivery solution, make sure it can aggregate data from multiple carriers and sources to provide that all-important 360-degree view.

5. Can your eCommerce delivery solutions be easily integrated?

eCommerce platforms. Warehouse management systems. Barcode scanners. For seamless omni-channel order fulfilment, delivery solutions need to integrate with all your other processes and tools. And these integrations need to be established and updated easily to avoid expensive development effort. But that’s just the start of the integration challenge. Your delivery platform also needs to be able to connect with carriers’ systems and online marketplaces to enable real-time order updates. By investing in a solution that enables data sharing across internal and external systems, you will be able to provide a richer customer experience.

Selecting a new solution can be an overwhelming and time-consuming at the best of times – it’s a big responsibility! But it gets even harder when the technology landscape is constantly evolving. By focusing on the business enablers rather than the system features, you’ll be able to stay focused on the needs of your users and your customers.

GFS Enterprise Carrier Management offers a complete technology toolkit that enhances every stage of the delivery journey, from delivery options at the checkout, to labelling, tracking and reporting – across all carriers, countries and sales channels – through one single integration. This gives you everything you need to streamline operational processes, boost productivity and scale as you grow. Click here to find out more.

Will Delivery Make or Break Your Customer Experience

A recent survey from IMRG found that 60% of consumers will buy again from a retailer if they were satisfied with the delivery, proving that a well-executed delivery and returns experience can boost sales and win customer loyalty – this goes goes for customers at home and away.

Delivery varies from country to country, which means customers around the world have different expectations of what makes a good delivery experience. It’s important to understand what customers expect in different regions, how each carrier works in each country, and what international eCommerce services they provide so you can pick the best and most cost-effective services for your customers.

45% of customers will abandon a purchase if delivery is not convenient. Offering a choice of delivery options can help them choose the time, day, method and price point that is convenient for them. This means it’s important that your carrier mix for each country is optimised for reliability of service, cost effectiveness and breadth of service options for the customer.

Delays are sometimes unavoidable, but you can avoid keeping customers in the dark. That’s why parcel tracking and good customer communication is crucial, especially when selling internationally where transit times can be longer. Providing regular delivery updates helps customers are able to find out the status of their package so they can track its journey improves their experience and makes them more likely to buy again.

How can you make sure delivery is optimised every time? Find out about GFS International eCommerce Services.

Cracking Global Returns

Returns are important for your international customers, as buying from a seller overseas can already feel like a risk. Having a robust and simple returns process is essential. However, international returns management can be tricky. Consumer behaviours and expectations vary from one country to the next. In Germany, returns are quite normal with 70% of fashion purchases are returned, but drop off locations are the most popular choice in France , while the Spanish and Chinese are the most likely to abandon a purchase if the returns policy doesn’t meet expectation. Make sure you understand each country you are selling to and the kind of returns policy they will expect to ensure you can compete.

When it comes to returns, Duties and Taxes can be even more of a headache. As duties have already been paid on delivery, they don’t need to be paid on the way back. However, it’s important to have the right documentation to prove that its already been paid or you’ll be at risk of additional charges or fines. To ensure that this is taken care of, use technology to generate the necessary customs relief documentation and the right kind of returns label. This guarantees a seamless returns experience for the customer and will give you reassurance that they are compliant.

GFS Global Returns Pro can automate this for you – you can see it in action here in this short demo!