When you ask people what they want from an online shopping order, nearly all of them will prioritise fast shipping. After all, who wants to wait a long time when they’ve ordered something. But for small businesses in particular, this can pose a number of challenges:
- How can we be sure we have enough products to ship quickly?
- How do we get parcels sent out as soon as possible?
- How do we ensure that items can be picked and packed in such a short window?
- How can we avoid letting the customer down?
While these challenges may sound difficult, they can be overcome and lead you to a successful business where next day deliveries can be done with ease.
Provide next day delivery on the most popular items
One option is to limit the range of items you offer next day delivery on.
Choosing a limited range, ideally of your most popular products, will mean that you can simply keep some extra stock of these items, ready for dispatch. You could even have a corner of the warehouse for these products, so picking is easy and they can be packed, labelled and despatched before you know it.
Finding a reliable delivery firm
It’s also important to find a delivery company that can deliver and won’t let you down. You should look for final mile delivery companies that can take the product direct to the customer’s door, offering a premium service for those who are willing to pay for it, or who are buying expensive goods. Nobody wants to deal with an unreliable firm and with the headaches this can cause, so work with a firm with a great reputation. To further streamline the delivery process and ensure parcels reach customers even faster, partnering with platforms that offer loads for truckers can optimize transportation efficiency, making it easier to manage and expedite shipments.
Simplify the packing process
Another way you can speed things up is to make packaging easier. Work with your packaging company to find simple, fast ways to get items ready to ship. You need to ensure that things are well packed to avoid damage, then ensure they are secure for transit, which for most items, shouldn’t take long at all.
Make sure you have enough staff
You should also make sure you have enough staff who are working on picking and packing to ensure things go out in time. Most couriers have a cut off for collection, which means you need to ensure your order is ready for when they arrive. If you don’t have enough staff, you might miss the deadline, and people need to know to prioritize these deliveries above other orders.
If you are thinking of offering next day deliveries, then now is a good time to set up this kind of service. Many people now expect to get next day as an option at checkout, whether they have to pay for it or it’s free, so it’s important that you consider integrating this service. It’s not difficult to do, especially if you start off with a limited range of products, and could potentially bring in lots of new customers and give you a big advantage over the competition.