E-commerce – How to set up an effective delivery tracking

Published on 12 December 2022 • Reading time: 8 min read

Every online merchant experiences difficulties in maintaining quality services. In fact, a study led by the communications regulator Ofcom shows that 64% of customers reported having experienced issues with their deliveries in the past three months.

Under circumstances such as these, how can you ensure a 5-star order delivery service? How do you deal with growing customer demands for quick deliveries? How do you prevent the rescheduling of a delivery from disrupting the rest of your route planning? What systems should sellers put in place should they choose to organise his shipments themselves?

In this article, we detail how to ensure a compliant and quality delivery tracking by mobilising your own supply chain.

Timely delivery to the customer’s home is a complex process that cannot be improvised. To succeed in satisfying the recipient, you must follow precise steps and master upstream constraints, while preserving your margins. Want to save driving time and clocked miles? We’ll do an overview on how to control and optimise operations before, during and after delivery to the customer.

Table of contents

• Retain your customers with efficient delivery tracking
• What are consumer expectations for delivery?
  • Clear communication on delivery timelines
  • Allow the end customer to choose a time slot
• Reassure all parties involved
• Opt for route management and optimisation software
  • Sending notifications and geo-tracking delivery drivers
  • Live monitoring of delivery drivers to react quickly
  • Proof of delivery ensures the traceability of deliveries
• What are the advantages of optimised delivery tracking?

For e-commerce professionals, delivery tracking is the key stage not to be missed. The management of this last link in the logistics chain must be optimal. It is the guarantee of an efficient and profitable order delivery service.

Retain your customers with efficient delivery tracking

Online shopping has been growing strongly since the pandemic. Research company Statista identified nearly 60 million eCommerce users (88% of the population) in the UK. Thos demonstrates that eCommerce has become the norm for customers across the country.
According to a study led by Royal Mail on the behaviour of online shoppers in the UK, the main 3 reasons for shopping online are:

• Compare prices (53%)
• More choice (51%)
• Convenience (49%)

The key reasons for shopping online — Royal Mail

You cannot dissociate online purchases from the delivery experience, which represents the final touchpoint and, therefore, the last impression that the user will have of you.
Avoid contradicting their expectations. Save them time, reduce their costs, without affecting your margin, by optimising the cost of carriers.

What are consumer expectations for delivery?

Clear communication on delivery timelines

You understand well that if your customer chooses to order online, it is also to avoid unnecessary travel. According to the survey carried out by Royal Mail, 45% of respondents affirmed that they expect an estimated day or time of day. And 74% of online shoppers are more confident if they can track their items.
Parcel delivery management software like AntsRoute improves and speeds up shipping processes by:

• Optimising last mile deliveries
• Recalculating the routes according to the riskiness of deliveries
• Informing automatically and in real time

Allow the end customer to choose a time slot

Several unforeseen events can disrupt your client’s schedule. For instance :

• The client forgets the appointment, so set up automatic reminders by SMS or email.
• The customer is suddenly unavailable, so reschedule the route of the delivery person before going there, or retrieve the instructions to drop off the parcel to a neighbour.
• The delivery address complicates the delivery, so speak directly by phone with the carrier.

To avoid offering a second parcel delivery, which is particularly costly for your online sales business, you must ensure that the customer is present at their home at the time of delivery. For this, you must communicate with your customer at each stage of the delivery process:

• Indicate a delivery date for their planning.
• Give them the possibility of choosing a time slot to integrate it into their agenda.
• Allow them to follow their delivery driver live on a map for more peace of mind.
• Encourage them to provide you with as much practical information as possible for a successful delivery

Reassure all parties involved

Consumers sometimes express some concerns about online purchases. For instance :

• Anxious at the idea of buying a product on an online sales site that they do not know.
• Stressed to pay for an item without having had it in hand.
• In a hurry to receive it to be sure that it corresponds to what they expected.
• Annoyed by the delivery time slot which is often too long.

Supply chain professionals must ensure that:

• The parcel is delivered in good condition.
• Delivery is made on time.
• The customer is present when the delivery person passes.

For an eCommerce site or a small online store, the key to success is instant and reciprocal communication between the delivery service and the end customer.

The delivery driver must:

• Anticipate the absence of the client.
• Determine where to deposit a parcel in case of absence.
• Inform the recipient of their progress or any delay.

The consumer must:

• Know the fairly precise time of the appointment with real-time monitoring of the delivery vehicle.
• Be able to choose their time slot during the day.
• Inform the driver when they reschedule the delivery of their parcel.
• Specify details of the delivery in case of any particularities.

The key to success for an e-commerce site is real-time communication between stakeholders.

Opt for route management and optimisation software

These software solutions are now essential for tracking parcels shipping from the warehouse to the end customer. These tools really make the daily life of schedulers and delivery drivers much easier, while making it possible to respond to different problems:

• Reducing the environmental impact thanks to the minimising of journey times and the number of vehicles in circulation.
• Simplifying planning management for carriers and customers.
• Improving customer satisfaction with adherence to schedules and reduced delivery times.

Sending notifications and geo-tracking delivery drivers helps reassure your customers

The consumer who makes an online purchase expects to receive as much information as possible regarding the status of their order. Take the example of AntsRoute. The tool allows the automated sending of notifications by email or SMS at each stage of the delivery process:

• Confirmation of the delivery time slot with information concerning the receipt of the package.
• As soon as the driver starts their round, indication of the expected arrival time.
• Notification when the delivery driver is nearby.
• In case of delay during the delivery, updates of the ETA.
• Post-delivery, sending a receipt of a delivery slip.

Another advantage of the AntsRoute tool: the sending of a link by email or SMS allowing the buyer to validate or reschedule an appointment independently.
Thanks to this option, the customer is no longer forced to wait at home for several hours until the arrival of their goods. The communication system allows your company to offer a 5-star delivery experience to your customers and to avoid unnecessary travel for your delivery drivers.

The system for rescheduling a delivery with AntsRoute.

Thanks to the geo-tracking of orders, you can reassure your customers at all times. In case of concern, your customer can open the tracking link offered by the AntsRoute tool to determine the proximity of the driver. In the event of delays or issues, the time of arrival at the customer’s premises is updated in real-time, allowing the customer to access reliable information and organise themselves until the arrival of the parcel.

Live monitoring of delivery drivers makes it possible to react quickly in the event of unforeseen events

Due to the logistical variations of last mile, making deliveries on time is not always simple. Companies all too often receive complaints about late deliveries. To avoid these dissatisfactions, you can use delivery management software like AntsRoute, which offers effective solutions to respond to unforeseen deliveries and offer customers a flawless experience:

• Follow the progress of drivers on the field live thanks to their geolocation.
• Compensate for the absence of one of your delivery drivers by automating the assignment of deliveries to a colleague.
• Reorganise the delivery in case of traffic problems.
• React in real-time in the event of a customer’s absence or an incorrect address.

If you want to invest in a tool to improve delivery tracking, we have prepared a list of 9 essential questions to ask yourself when choosing the best route optimisation tool for your business.

Live tracking of a driver’s delivery route on AntsRoute.

Proof of delivery ensures the traceability of deliveries

In the logistics sector, proof of delivery is essential to deliver quality service to consumers. These documents reassure customers who are therefore less inclined to issue a complaint following delivery. Route optimisation solutions, such as AntsRoute, offer an electronic proof of delivery or e-POD management system. Drivers collect a lot of data in the mobile application:

• Client’s signature.
• Photos of goods received.
• can of the package barcode.
• Comment on the delivery (absence of the customer, condition of the package, etc.)

What are the advantages of optimised delivery tracking?

According to a study by the IMRG the UK eCommerce association and ParcelLab, 59% of consumers affirmed that a good delivery experience has encouraged them to order again from a retailer.

Shipping should not be the weak link in your supply chain. On the contrary, you must give this step the same importance as stocking, manufacturing, inventory management or packaging.

The use of a SaaS route optimisation tool allows information to be shared directly between stakeholders (operations manager, carriers, drivers and customers). For example, our AntsRoute software allows you to offer your customers a 5-star delivery by:

• Delivering in less than 24 hours at home and by appointment.
• Complying with the announced delivery times and the condition of the package.
• Offering eco-friendly delivery by eliminating unnecessary kilometres.
• Letting your customers follow the progress of their order by sending notifications.

Did this article make you want to know more about AntsRoute, our comprehensive delivery tracking solution? To test it for free for 7 days, go to this page!