Before that, the process of company deliveries was largely hidden from the customer's eyesight. While there were no empty shelves in the store, the logistic problems in the company were not felt by the average recipient. Minor supply chain bottlenecks were treated with understanding. It's different today.
Logistic problems in the company and image problems
Many business owners ignore logistical problems in the company for a long time, believing that it is an internal matter of the company. Why bother with it when nobody sees it outside and making changes is so tedious? In fact, just like that minor technical issues often translate into the largest number of customer complaints. This is all the more important as online shopping and delivery play a greater role, which saw record growth last year. Among the most common complaints about the company, customers mention problems with the shipment. It is worth remembering that the blame for the mistakes of the courier company is usually placed on the shop where they shopped.
Can marketing affect logistic problems in the company?
It may seem that the issues related to logistics have no marketing significance. Meanwhile, it is enough to recall the home pages of the largest clothing stores. Often it is free or very cheap delivery and returns that attract customers.
Other ideas on how you can use logistical considerations to support your marketing:
- the right photos from the warehouse or the back room build the atmosphere in front of you putting the product on the gutterk;
- traceability of deliveries is increasingly desired by customers;
- Today, customers even want to know what the products are packed into. Companies boast, for example, that they do not use plastic;
- In the last year, sales of products that were previously quite difficult to buy online, such as heavy appliances, fresh products or alcohol, have soared. Show your customers how they are stored and shipped. Lack of knowledge and awareness prevents you from buying.
Communication strategy based on these types of elements may be more effective than you think. Before launching a campaign, it is worth learning about the logistics problems of Polish entrepreneurs in your industry and customer expectations. This makes it easy to define what the problem is.
For example, the Zalando shopping platform has perfectly captured that most people do not want to order clothes online, fearing the responsibility associated with a missed purchase. The return procedure and the high shipping costs of a heavy coat or regularly ordered clothes were also scary from the customer's point of view. The company coped with this by offering free shipping and a simplified return procedure, which have become its hallmark.
Do you offer excellent logistics services?
Let's tell your customers about it!
Many people who know the logistical problems of Polish companies would be afraid to order clothes in another store. However, they trust that the process at Zalando will be simple and fast. Itself solving problems in the company concerning logistics, it can be an element of the marketing message, as was done by, for example, companies that reduced the consumption of plastic in packaging, boasting about it in social media.
Logistics problems in the company and tracking shipments
An element that customers expect more and more often is the ability to track their order. Companies that stop informing the client about the progress after the payment are made are treated with suspicion. Tracking the shipment is also a response to logistics problems in the company, if you have not fully controlled the stage of your deliveries before. However, what is especially important, they can also be used as an element of marketing. Impersonal, vague explanations from courier companies can annoy customers. For example, InPost has a different strategy. Cheerful communication shows the journey of the package as an adventure, and allows the customer to count down when the item is at its destination. In fact, there is still a lot to come up with here.
For example, games come to mind in which the customer, while waiting for his package, can play the role of a courier himself or drone delivery truck. There has probably not been a courier company yet that would offer live tracking of the parcel via a camera previewed on the delivery truck. The future belongs to such solutions, while increasingly marginalizing the role of the suppliers themselves. The delivery drones that appear here and there may be a response to the logistical problems of Polish companies, especially in the area of fast, local deliveries of light products.
Logistic problems of Polish enterprises and automation
Those who have not yet started to define logistics problems in the company and implement strategies often fear that they will not be able to cope with the changes. Meanwhile, it may turn out to be very simple and that it translates into real savings in the company! This especially applies to process automation where previously the employee had to be responsible for everything. In the era of Amazon and other large stores' dominance, it's impossible to compete by manually filling in the labels and sending each package separately at the post office.
Below are some ideas on how to introduce automation to the company's operations and reduce some of the basic logistics problems faced by Polish entrepreneurs:
- signing a contract with a courier company and negotiating individual terms (favorable delivery times, assistance in packing, etc.),
- system for printing warehouse and shipping labels,
- intelligent and active packaging that helps to preserve and control the freshness of products,
- automatic tracking of stock and replenishment of deliveries,
- automation of orders from contractors,
- barcode scanning.
As the example of InPost shows, process automation does not have to mean that logistics in the company will lose its human face. If you need to schedule mailing sequences or branding shipping communication to your customers, please contact us.