E-commerce success is all in the delivery

It had to happen in the end. “Green” has been replaced on the list of most overused terms employed to sell IT by “economic downturn”. The list of vendors prepared to reinvent their products to highlight just how much money and time they could save you, and how much more efficient they can make your staff, has reached critical mass. The world’s going to hell, but before we get there, you might as well save your firm some money and get a promotion by buying a new piece of IT kit.

Actually, can I shock you for a moment? E-commerce is doing pretty well. Among all the talk of recession, depression and economic regression, there is a success story out there, and used in the right ways, the web channel could be a godsend for retailers. It could help public-sector bodies too. Get citizens to request and pay for council services online, for example, and imagine how many drop-in centres you could close.

A recent report by affiliate marketing firm Linkshare found that shoppers are increasingly turning to the web for the best bargains or to do research before shopping in store. Sites that feature peer reviews of products are also reporting healthy rises in traffic. While 56 per cent of consumers said they are planning to decrease offline spending, only 46 per cent said the same about online buying.

The message is clear get your online store in order, preferably before Christmas, although by now it’s probably too late for this year’s festive period. Improving your online store involves a range of different factors, including a search engine optimisation strategy to ensure you rank high on Google, as well as usability, availability and performance testing. Another key consideration is the integration of online, bricks and mortar, and call centre channels.

But the mistake many in the e-commerce sector seem to make is paying too much attention to the bells and whistles on their web site and spending too little time on the back-office stuff that can make or break the business. They might not be as sexy as web design, with its Ajax this and Flash that, but supply chain management and other disciplines are just as important. You might have made the check-out process as smooth and the site navigation as effortless as possible, but if a customer’s order is left unfulfilled because you’ve run out of stock, you can kiss your next sale goodbye.

It has become something of a truism these days, but in the world of e-commerce the customer truly is king; retention is difficult when switching suppliers is so easy, and prices are so competitive. That’s when factors such as delivery become extremely important.

Industry body IMRG last year launched a new initiative ­Internet Delivery is Safe (IDIS) ­ to combat the woeful levels of delivery service provided by most e-commerce firms. Very few allow you to choose delivery times, or if they do it will come at a premium price.

Retailers displaying the kitemark have to ensure they provide clear information on deliveries before an order is placed, delivery within an agreed timeframe, and clear charges. The emphasis is on convenience and reliability.

Recently, I had the pleasure of ordering a new bed from the Co-op ­like your typical Web 2.0 shopper, I have no loyalty to this company, I just found it through Google ­ and noticed the IDIS emblem proudly displayed.

Available delivery dates were shown on an easy-to-read calendar display, three-hour time slots were offered, then follow-up phone calls to check the address, and finally a text to confirm details. It’s not rocket science, but these things could help your customer retention at a time when, as you know, we’re all headed for economic disaster. Oh, and the bed was delivered on time too, by the way.