7 tips to nail delivery experience management

Delivery starts well before an item lands on the consumer’s doorstep. It starts with the moment a customer lands on your website or app with the intent to place an order.

As such, it’s essential to design your online ordering system so it’s intuitive and frictionless. Make it easy for your customers to search for items and navigate your offerings.

Additionally, clearly display relevant product, price, and delivery information so customers know exactly what they’re ordering, the total amount, and when it will arrive. Above all, minimize the steps to purchase to encourage order completion.

Imagine you have hundreds of delivery orders coming through your website or app each hour. It’s impossible for a small staff to process, manage, and deliver all these orders without the help of a logistics management system.

When you implement a logistics management system, you automate inventory management, order processing, sorting, delivery, and tracking. This speeds up operations and ensures accuracy.

In the event that your team is too small to handle the influx of orders, partner with a third-party, white-label, last-mile delivery service (like Uber Direct) to help achieve seamless delivery.

When customers come into your store, pharmacy, or restaurant, they have the luxury of speaking directly with a human customer service or sales representative.

They can explain the fine details of what they want to a human and get exactly what they ordered. For example, if a hungry customer comes to a restaurant and wants a hamburger cut in half with no mustard, no onions, and extra pickles, the employee can write down the order, ask questions, and make sure the order is correct.

With online ordering, you don't have the luxury of a face-to-face interaction to manage all the nuances of a customer’s order. But that doesn’t mean you can’t provide the same quality of personalized service. When you build out your online ordering system, include robust customization options.

You can also partner with third-party delivery apps like Uber Eats. Uber Eats has customization functionality built in, making it easy for customers to order exactly what they want.

The modern shopper is accustomed to getting what they want, exactly when they want it. And what 72% of shoppers want is convenient delivery times.

But here’s the thing: “convenient delivery” varies from person to person. For example, one customer may want to place a lunch order in the morning and receive it at noon. Another may want to place a lunch order and receive it in 30 minutes.

While fast delivery should certainly be a priority, it’s not the only priority. Customers want options, including same-day, express, last-minute, and scheduled delivery.

Since the COVID-19 pandemic, contactless delivery has become more of a priority for consumers.

A 2023 report in the ​​Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services found that more than two-thirds of people use contactless delivery services for food and clothing. The same survey found that more than 70% of people use this service every 3 days, with 60% using it at home and 25% at work or school.

With numbers like this, contactless delivery is no longer a “nice to have.” It’s a customer expectation you may want to consider as an option in your delivery services.

Customers may get upset when they receive an incorrect or damaged order. But if you provide outstanding post-delivery support where you can rectify the customer’s poor experience, you show you care and boost your chances of building long-lasting customer relationships.

Make sure your support team is at the ready to address any post-purchase concerns. This includes answering questions, handling returns, reprocessing damaged orders, and providing refunds.

Whether customers are browsing in your store, placing orders on your website, or receiving deliveries, they should encounter a consistent brand experience. This requires uniform messaging, seamless ordering and delivery processes, and high-quality service across all platforms.

If you're offering online ordering and local delivery but lack an in-house courier service, consider using Uber Direct, which allows you to maintain your brand's look and feel while extending your reach through Uber’s delivery network.

By integrating Uber Direct with your digital platforms, you ensure that every aspect of the customer experience aligns with your brand identity. This cohesive approach not only strengthens brand recognition but also enhances customer satisfaction.