In Focus: Achieve Last Mile Excellence by Handling Your Logistics Teams Better

Since online shopping has come into the picture, the e-commerce industry has been on a high-growth trajectory. North America has been the primary global driver of overall e-commerce growth, second only to China. According to Statista, revenue in the e-commerce market is projected to reach $1trillion in 2022 and users are set to grow to 408.7 million by 2027. This growth is paving the way for the expansion of the last-mile market by 14.85% in the continent.

Retailers and other industry players in North America can benefit immensely from this trend, if they play their cards right. Locus’ own Walter Heil, SVP Developed Markets, led the “Gain Competitive Advantage by Unleashing Your Logistics Excellence” webinar session to demonstrate how retailers and other industry players can take advantage of this growth rate by leveraging technology to understand customer behavior and achieve positive business outcomes.

Takeaways from the webinar:

Omnichannel retailers’ focus: Consumer expectations are ever-evolving and retailers must keep pace with these changes. Delivery time, shipping costs, friction-free cancellation and returns are some of the many factors that consumers won’t compromise on and will likely switch brands if these expectations aren’t met.

Last-mile delivery is key: On-time, in-full last-mile delivery is the key to success for retailers and other industry players. Customers prioritize timely deliveries above everything when it comes to online shopping. Industry players need to take advantage of this massive growth in the last mile and e-commerce market by addressing the challenges in the last-mile with the help of advanced analytics and automated delivery.

Importance of first-attempt delivery: First attempt delivery rate (FADR) is one of the most important metrics for retailers to measure their success in the last mile. If you want repeat customers, your first delivery attempt must be flawless. From ordering to delivery and providing them with a friction-free delivery experience, you need to follow through and make sure that you don’t fall through the cracks. Adhering to SLAs and delighting customers remains a pipe dream without leveraging the right technology.

Customized delivery experiences: Speedy delivery isn’t enough to please your customer; you need to give them control over the delivery options. Implementing a customized slot-based delivery system into your current operations and displaying multiple delivery slots—regular, premium, sustainable— will lead to a more convenient delivery experience for your customers.

Prioritize driver experiences: Whether you are a retailer or a courier company, adherence to your promised SLAs is in the hands of your fleet. Equipping your drivers with the right tool is vital to the success of your last-mile delivery. An application that provides drivers with the information on priority tasks, exact location of the customer and show proof of delivery can be greatly beneficial.

Locus’ state-of-the-art dispatch management software can help retail, e-commerce and CEP companies ace last-mile delivery and improve customer experience and ROI. Locus has enabled over 650 million+ deliveries, saved over $200 million in logistics costs, and serviced over 400 cities across the globe.

Reference:

https://www.statista.com/outlook/dmo/ecommerce/north-america

https://www.technavio.com/report/last-mile-delivery-market-size-in-north-america-industry-analysis