Does Your Company Deliver on Time?

Do you ever find yourself reading online customer reviews of your company and wincing when a customer complains about late delivery of goods? No company is perfect, and even the most attentive delivery departments miss out now and then. What’s the best way to meet delivery schedules and keep the words late and delayed off those online reviews?

There are several strategies for achieving on-time delivery, which is one of the most common complaints that appears in public reviews. It’s an understandable concern on the part of buyers, who expect their order to arrive in good shape and on schedule. The good news is that the following techniques can go a long way toward resolving the problem.

Use Smart Fleet Management

Vehicle fleets have many responsibilities, the primary one being to transport goods to a particular location in a safe, timely manner. When you have recurring problems with drivers who don’t follow routes, get lost, or have frequent mechanical breakdowns, it’s time to revamp your strategy. Fortunately, any company that operates a fleet can use a GPS management and tracking platform to keep tabs on every vehicle in real time, prevent breakdowns with preventative reminders, and help drivers stay on course no matter how many deliveries are on their schedules.

Don’t Over-Promise

For e-commerce sellers, a common problem is making promises they can’t keep. This is especially true with scheduled delivery dates. It’s just too tempting for some merchants to promise the moon to prospective customers and offer next day or two-day delivery when it’s just not possible. Yes, you might get the initial sale based on the promise, but when the item doesn’t make it there on time, all you end up with is a frustrated buyer and someone who likely will never come back for more. The simplest way around the problem is to be realistic on your order page about when buyers can expect their goods.

Track Every Mailed Shipment

Postal tracking is one of the best ways to keep track of where an item is and when it is likely to arrive. Unfortunately, some sellers simply fail to use tracking on every mailed order. In nearly every case, the small incremental expense of paying for tracking service is a drop in the bucket compared to what you receive in customer satisfaction and on-time arrival of products.

If Late, Make it Right

What happens when one of your customers calls or emails and says they ordered an item 10 days ago and it was supposed to be there yesterday? It’s important to have a fixed service strategy for situations like those because you don’t want to risk losing business over a one-time mistake. The most effective way to handle the few inevitable late deliveries is to follow a make it right protocol. For example, when an item doesn’t show up on time, contact the buyer as soon as possible and offer a solution, like a partial refund, a discount on the next order, or overnight shipping of a replacement.