One of the biggest challenges that online businesses and e-commerce in general face is the rising number of failed deliveries across the board.
The Indian eCommerce scenario is a classic case in point given how rapidly online shopping has grown over the last few years.
It is true that hundreds of thousands of businesses have benefitted from selling their wares online. As courier partners reach out to untapped markets and regions, they are also witnessing record numbers of undelivered items.
Most of these are ultimately shipped back to the retailer. Often, items are lost or damaged on the way back, adding to these woes.
This reverse shipment is referred to as RTO or Return to Origin. Rising RTO percentages gnaw away at profit margins and may prove to be a stumbling block when attempting customer retention and loyalty.
Thankfully, there are some methods savvy online businesses may adopt and ensure their RTOs remain under control. One such method is NDR follow-ups.
Managing RTOs using NDR follow-ups
Following up on Non-Delivery Reports or NDRs is the primary tool online businesses have to minimize RTOs. The following are some ideas which can prove to be of great benefit.
1) Cutting down on TAT breaches:
Managing TAT (Turnaround Time) is the job of the logistics partner or shipping carrier. Based on the destination and nature of packages, carriers provide retailers with an idea of when a delivery can be attempted.
It is on this data that the business can then generate an EDD (Estimated Delivery Date) and promise their customers a feasible delivery window.
To reduce and ultimately get rid of RTOs, it is imperative that the EDD is met each and every time. Otherwise, the customer can either refuse to accept an order or shy away from ever ordering from that store again.
And EDDs can only be met on time if the logistics partner delivers on its promised TAT. This is one reason why choosing a reliable delivery partner is extremely vital.
2) Automating the NDR management process:
The days of making contact manually with the client and asking whether they are ready to receive an order before a physical delivery is attempted are gone.
It was too expensive to begin with, in any case. Instead, online retailers must implement proper NDR management software to automate the process and label an undelivered package for ‘reattempt’ or ‘Return to Origin’.
Good eCommerce NDR management software adds another dimension by fully automating the generation and dispatch of issue-specific queries to customers and resolving NDRs in the future.
3) Checking addresses:
Incomplete or outright incorrect addresses propel non-deliveries of items. The idea of ‘address validation’ comes in at this point.
Before a delivery attempt, the customers are contacted directly and asked to verify the address printed on the parcel. An NDR management system can automate this process.
A validation process is required even before dispatching an order. It is a proven way to cut down on RTOs and eventually uplift profit margins.
4) Getting a handle on fake deliveries:
Sometimes, carriers mark a shipment as ‘undelivered’ without attempting delivery. This is known as a fake delivery attempt.
Fake deliveries can be tackled through proactive customer communication and by instantly notifying carriers. However such notifications are only possible with real-time communication between carriers, customers, and businesses.
5) Using reporting & analytics:
Most NDR management systems collect non-delivery and failed delivery data to create reports that businesses can use to study delivery patterns and improve their NDR protocol. These analytics reports can usually also be customized to give them an in-depth view of the problem they are trying to solve.
6) Communicating with customers in real-time:
To ensure NDRs don’t turn into RTOs, constant communication with your customers via their preferred channels, like WhatsApp, email, SMS, and IVRS is key.
Notifying customers every step of the way including when their order is out for delivery not only guarantees customer availability but also encourages them to reach out to you if they don’t get their shipment on time.
They should also be alerted when the fulfillment is successful so that they can report fake deliveries. Real-time customer communication isn’t just great for improving loyalty, it also prevents failed deliveries.
Conclusion
These are 6 effective ways in which NDR follow-ups can help online store owners cut down on RTOs. To achieve a hassle-free NDR process while scaling up, businesses should consider using an NDR Management platform because it is equipped with all the features needed for NDR follow-ups.
While manual processes to manage NDRs and RTOs in eCommerce may make sense for new businesses, they are not built to scale. And since time is money in the world of eCommerce, it’s time to introduce automation to your business processes for continued growth and success.
