Small business retailers constantly need to find new ways to compete with retail and e-commerce giants in order to draw customers and build a brand. Easier said than done, we know, but one competitive advantage small businesses have is their flexibility and speed at which they can implement new processes for last mile delivery. If you aren’t familiar with last mile delivery, check out our complete guide.
Large companies have to jump through corporate hoops and get top down approval for nearly everything. When a big retailer sees that something isn’t quite working right on the store level, it could take weeks or months to fix the issue in their supply chain. Small businesses can take advantage of their flexibility and adapt to the needs of their customers.
One area of small business that can improve and adapt is delivery solutions. If shipping and delivery is slowing your business down, here are a few tips to keep growth going.
1. Keep it simple for customers
When developing or improving your delivery system, the priority needs to focus on the customer experience. It must be affordable and easy to understand. Delivery should make life easier for your customers, not more difficult.
Customers are also a great resource to find areas of improvement. Ask your customers to answer a few short questions or pay attention to your reviews. Customers won’t be shy about sharing their opinion if you give them the space to do so.
2. Communication Is Key
Because of e-commerce, tracking deliveries has become an everyday feature for many deliveries services. Amazon, USPS, and UPS have all integrated package tracking into their delivery service to provide transparency and peace of mind to their customers.
Your business may not have the tools to implement complex software, but there are ways to manually provide updates to your customers. SMS tools such as Textline keeps your customer contacts all in one place and will allow you to text them updates when their purchase has been shipped.
It doesn’t have to be Textline, but find a service or system that works for you and helps provide your business an edge in communication for deliveries.
3. Prioritize Shipping Speed
Falling behind with your shipping and delivery orders can happen in a flash. Staying on top of deliveries takes discipline and organization. Do everything you can to make shipping speeds a high priority. A few ways to do this is to reduce paperwork behind the scenes, stay organized with your inventory at all times, and set clear expectations with your customers before the sale so you have accountability. Regardless of what product you are selling, a quick and hassle free delivery sticks in a customer’s mind.
4. Research Third Party Delivery Companies
Rising e-commerce sales and technology development have led to new services that specifically work as couriers and third party logistics partners. This is great news for small businesses because it means the burden of shipping and delivery can be contracted to vendors designed to take on retail logistics.
Bungii fits perfectly into the category of a third party delivery partner. Bungii is helping retailers optimize their b2c and b2b deliveries, along with reverse logistics processes. We provide same day delivery options, top rated customer support, and delivery tracking capabilities to help find trends in your business. Bungii is ideal for small businesses, franchised retailers, and anything in between. Visit our business support and logistics page to find out more on how Bungii can help you.
