In today’s competitive retail landscape, retaining customers and building loyalty are crucial goals for businesses. Customer ‘stickiness’—the ability to keep your customers coming back—has become a key metric. Achieving this requires more than just meeting expectations; it demands a focus on strategies to delight your customers, maximising customer experience.
Customer satisfaction involves meeting customers’ expectations during their buyer journey with your company. In contrast, customer delight is defined as exceeding customer expectations to create a positive and memorable experience with your brand. Customer delight is about going above and beyond for your customers, putting them first in every decision. Whilst the terms are often used interchangeably, they have inextricably different meanings for businesses.
If customers are left unsatisfied or undelighted it can be detrimental to a brand’s reputation. Retailers must consider the entire customer experience, from purchase, to delivery and beyond! A staggering 94% of consumers said they would blame the retailer directly for a poor delivery experience, regardless of whether the delivery is outsourced or not. Therefore, all elements of the customer experience should be designed with the customer in mind.
This blog will dive into five game-changing tips that retailers can adopt to ensure their delivery process not only satisfies but delights their customers, making their brand experience memorable and encouraging repeat business:
Providing clear and accurate tracking information is essential for building trust with your customers through transparency. Research shows that 90% of customers will check the status of their parcel at least once following their purchase. Incorrect or unclear tracking information can significantly harm the customer experience leading to frustration and unsatisfaction.
On the other hand, offering accurate tracking can build excitement with your customers. In-fact, 88% of customers consider real-time shipment tracking a crucial factor for a positive customer experience. By ensuring your tracking information is precise and up-to-date, you can keep your customers informed, reduce anxiety about their order, and foster a sense of anticipation and trust in your brand.
In today’s retail landscape, customers expect personalisation, with 78% stating they would be frustrated by an impersonal experience.
To truly delight your customers, it’s important to go beyond simple personalisation tactics such as including a first name in an email subject line. Instead, offering deeper personalisation through tailoring product recommendations to purchase history or offering personalised discounts based on customers’ wish-list items, for example, is key to offering truly personalised experiences, showing customers that you care about their preferences and tastes.
When it comes to delivery, personalisation could take the form of customised fulfilment. Leveraging data to understand what they are buying, where they are buying it and what they have brought previously, can enable retailers to offer the best delivery options for the customer, without them asking, creating a truly bespoke experience. Offering ‘instant’ or same-day delivery can also support this, making the service feel more personal by reducing the time gap between the shopper interacting with the store, and receiving their products, making the service feel more personal and immediate.
Surprising your customers during their buyer journey is a powerful way to delight them, and ensure they remember your brand, through creating an unexpectedly positive user experience.
Providing value-added offerings that customers truly appreciate is key to making your surprises relevant and impactful. For instance, 74% of consumers say they’re more likely to purchase again from a company after receiving same-day delivery on an item, and 47% of US customers said they have paid extra for same or next-day delivery. Therefore, upgrading your customers to next-day or same-day delivery for free is an excellent way to surprise with added value.
Whether you offer free next-day or same-day delivery, include samples in their parcel, or send them a discount code for their next purchase, these thoughtful gestures will exceed their expectations and encourage them to return. By consistently surprising your customers with added value, you can create memorable experiences that foster loyalty and keep them coming back for more.
The returns process is a critical component of any retail organisation’s operations. In 2023, the return rate during peak season was 15.4%. Ensuring this is a seamless process, is key to building a positive customer experience and increasing brand loyalty. A poor returns experience can significantly impact future shopping decisions, with 74% of shoppers agreeing it affects their choice to shop with a merchant again, and 55% abandoning purchases due to inconvenient return policies.
To create a convenient returns process, consider the returns period and locations. Delighting your customers with fast refund processing, discounts for product exchanges and offering free return delivery can increase their brand loyalty significantly. Up to 79% of individuals expressed a desire to return items with no extra charge, and providing this option can increase repeat business by up to 45%, increase overall sales and enhance customer loyalty.
Going the extra mile for your customers can involve establishing clear, two-way communication channels across all touch-points. Providing transparent updates from the purchase until the product is delivered enhances confidence and trust in your brand. Actively seeking customer feedback and addressing any negative experiences shows that you value their opinions and are committed to improving their experience.
Opening up communication channels across multiple platforms, including social media, simplifies the process for your customers and ensures they can reach you in their preferred way. This not only helps to delight your customers but can support building a bank of social proof to encourage more customers to use your services.
By prioritising clear and open communication, you create a positive and engaging customer experience that fosters loyalty and trust, ultimately driving more repeat business.
In the ever-evolving and competitive retail landscape, delivering an exceptional customer experience is paramount to retaining customers and building loyalty. By focusing on delighting your customers rather than just meeting their expectations, you create memorable experiences that keep them coming back.
Implementing the five game-changing tips discussed in this blog can significantly enhance your delivery process:
By prioritising these strategies, retailers can exceed customer expectations, enhance brand loyalty, and encourage repeat business. Delighting your customers at every stage of their journey not only strengthens your brand’s reputation but also drives long-term success in a highly competitive market.
Leverage a network of reliable couriers to get your items moving instantly, whether it’s a simple A to B delivery or a complex multi-drop route. With DeliveryApp, you enjoy real-time tracking and instant proof of delivery, all in one user-friendly platform. This ensures your same-day deliveries are efficient, hassle-free, and completely transparent.
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