How to Strengthen Retail Deliveries with Delivery Assurance Technology

“I placed my order two days ago but still haven’t received it.”

“I was out grocery shopping and missed the courier’s doorbell. Now my package is MIA!”

As a business owner, you’ve likely heard these complaints. This is frustrating for both you and your customers.

More than 41% of customers expect to get their parcels within 24 hours, according to a recent survey. Late deliveries hurt customers’ trust, incur return costs, and damage your business’s credibility. Package thefts, difficulty meeting growing demand, and scaling your coverage areas are all common challenges to retailers worldwide.

So, how do you overcome the hurdles associated with unpredictable deliveries? The answer lies in having a strong retail delivery assurance mechanism in place.

Before exploring delivery assurance technology, let’s look at some of the prevalent hurdles for businesses in the e-commerce industry.

Challenges businesses face in the e-commerce sector

Online shopping surged greatly during the COVID-19 pandemic. Customers turned to e-shopping for nearly all their household needs, including grocery items, food delivery, medicines, home appliances, and clothing purchases.

Millions of company owners had to respond to this drastic demand surge to survive, switching focus from in-store sales to doorstep delivery. Delivering products in a safe and timely manner became crucial, as 24% of customers abandon their carts if the delivery date doesn’t match their preferred date.

Lost packages are another challenge that can occur at any delivery stage, especially if you can’t access their location during transit. Lost packages trouble businesses due to inconsistent service coverage when expanding. Geofencing protocols rely on GPS to set geographical boundaries. When mapping areas for delivery, utilizing this technology is essential for seamless deliveries.

Failure to define your service areas results in coverage gaps and an inability to deliver items. This leads to logistical delays and inventory mismanagement as your supply chain struggles to adapt to the expanded service region, increasing running costs.

Item thefts often happen in the final mile, from the warehouse to your customer, incurring massive financial loss for both retail companies and end users. In the US alone, over $19.5 billion worth of packages were stolen in 2023.

Service delays also happen if you don’t have access to quality data analysis tools to predict delivery risks accurately. These risks include weather disruptions, service bottlenecks, inventory shortages, traffic congestion, and road closures during the delivery route. Failure to account for these risks leads to inaccurate ETAs, increased customer frustration, and endangers the safety of your personnel and packages.

What is delivery assurance

Delivery assurance technology checks if an area is within your coverage region. It’s essentially an API that integrates with your e-commerce platform.

When a customer places an order, their request is forwarded to your system, containing the drop-off address, required products, and preferred pickup and delivery time. The delivery assurance API processes this data, checking whether the delivery address falls within your coverage area. You can define your coverage areas in the admin settings by specifying cities, states, and postal codes.

Once checked, the API produces a list of nearby stores that could deliver to the customer. Based on user input, it also computes the estimated delivery time and a risk score, indicating potential challenges for that location. For example, if a location is prone to traffic jams during certain hours, the risk score would reflect this delay.

The final stage is data presentation, where the estimated delivery time and cost are displayed to the customer. As this time is calculated after assessing all factors, it accurately represents the delivery time, keeping customers informed of any potential delays beforehand.

Features of retail delivery assurance technology

1. Store boundary

Checks whether the delivery address falls within the boundaries of your stores and returns a list of all stores that could deliver to the buyer’s address. It uses latitude and longitude, radius, and zip codes to define each store's eligible coverage areas.

2. Delivery Service Provider (DSP)

For retailers that don’t deliver items directly, the DSP checks which integrated partner (delivery companies, logistics partners, or courier services) can cover the delivery area.

3. Risk score

Uses predictive technology to gauge the risk of delivery to a particular location. It requires the customer’s full address, which is geocoded into exact coordinates. A numerical risk score is calculated based on location, historical data, and real-time conditions.

4. AI and ML capability

Delivery time estimates use predictive Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning technology, analyzing historical trends, provider performance, drop-off address, and vehicle route. Smart Boundaries help specify delivery coverage areas by analyzing legal restrictions, customer behavior, proximity, and traffic routes.

5. Time window assessment

Checks if delivery providers are available during the specified pickup and delivery times. Retailers usually set these times, but customers can also specify preferred days or time windows. If not specified, the system defaults to an appropriate time window.

6. Tag matching

Ensures accuracy when picking stores and providers by matching the delivery with those that have specific tags, like service types or specialties (e.g., “express delivery” or “fragile items”).

7. Caching mechanism

During peak traffic, a caching mechanism temporarily stores frequently accessed data, removing the need for processing data each time a customer makes a transaction. This improves responsiveness and reduces network delays.

Benefits of delivery assurance technology

1. Optimized operations and faster deliveries

Delivery assurance eliminates uncertainties in the delivery process. Geofencing protocols ensure deliveries are confined to the right areas, preventing wasted resources.

2. Reduced missed deliveries

Missed deliveries, which make up 8% of total deliveries globally, cost retailers an average of $17 per incident. Delivery assurance minimizes these risks, especially in the last mile, by assessing delivery challenges and provider capabilities.

3. Greater customer trust

Customers appreciate transparency and accurate estimated arrival times (ETA). With risk analysis, the displayed delivery time is a realistic estimate, factoring in possible causes of delay. SMS and email notifications can be configured for proactive communication, alerting customers when their item has left the warehouse, is picked up, or is in the final mile.

4. Competitive edge

Delivery assurance technology is straightforward to integrate with your e-commerce platform, unlocking multiple order management and customer care capabilities. Features such as customizable marketing messages, curbside notifications, BOPA lockers, and multi-SKU returns enhance your brand experience.

5. Data-focused approach

With Smart Boundaries, you can define customizable boundaries for the regions you want to cover. The technology analyzes regional factors that could impact operations, helping you identify areas with low delivery risks and greater demand. This data-centric approach ensures you tap into optimal markets and save time and resources.

Create a seamless delivery experience with Delivery Solutions

Delivery Solutions is a comprehensive retail solution that handles all e-commerce operations, including delivery assurance, post-purchase, advanced analytics, contract management, and order management. By incorporating it, you can identify bottlenecks in your retail operations and make them more efficient.

In addition to delivery assurance, Delivery Solutions offers:

• ​Curbside Pickup: 47.5% of the top 500 retail chains offer curbside pickup, allowing customers to pick items from your store from their vehicle. Geofencing and automated alerts notify store employees when customers are nearby, reducing waiting time.
• ​Lockers: With Buy Online, Pickup Anywhere (BOPA) lockers, customers can have items delivered to any secure location, reducing concerns about package theft.

The importance of delivery assurance can’t be understated. Without an effective mechanism, you’ll face challenges of missed items, eroding customer trust, and risk to reputation. By implementing delivery assurance, you position your business as a trustworthy and reliable player in the market.