How to address e-tailers’ location data challenge

While a completely slick, friction-free customer experience may be impossible, at least for the foreseeable future, there are steps that every retailer should be taking to speed up the customer’s time to purchase.

These steps include simplifying your cart and checkout pages, allowing alternative payment options and removing unwanted distractions that may slow down the transaction process. One of the biggest sources of friction and frustration however, is the need for the customer to input their location data. This can be a time consuming and tedious chore for the customer on one hand, but utterly essential on the other hand to ensure successful first-time delivery.

Building customer loyalty

According to global identity and location data intelligence company Loqate, a GBG solution fashion ecommerce is leading the way when it comes to capturing customer address information, speeding up this high-friction task. That’s because, in fast fashion in particular with high demand and high return rates, a slick process is essential in building lifetime value and customer loyalty.

From Loqate’s perspective fashion clients such as Reiss, Gym Shark and high-end homeware retailer Joseph Joseph are winning the location data battle by investing in solutions such as real-time address data validation and boosting conversions.

Matthew Furneaux, Loqate’s global commercial director, says: ‘Driving revenue is always number one on a retail CEOs wishlist, so that’s about capturing error-free location data quickly and conveniently so you deliver a friction-free customer journey.

Successful first-time ecommerce delivery

‘When you’ve converted a customer to a sale you then move quickly onto the operational side of the business and getting a product to a customer as quickly as possible and with a first-time delivery.

‘There’s a real balance between driving revenue and then fulfilling on an order in a way that is as cost-effective as possible. In many ways these are two sides of the same coin.’

Customers may demand a snappy checkout experience and speedy delivery, but accuracy is still the bedrock of a great end-to-end experience.

Raising delivery expectations

Matthew says: ‘Retailers are becoming a lot more aware of the importance of first-time delivery. People expect delivery to be very efficient with expectations set to next day or even same day delivery.

‘If you think about the frictionless journey which is driving higher revenues through greater conversion, locational data is key to driving very efficient operational delivery. There is a whole list of reasons why first-time delivery fails, but location data shouldn’t be part of that list. With the right tools it is easy to eliminate incorrect delivery data as a reason for failed delivery.’

Loqate customers, such as Reiss, Gym Shark and Joseph Joseph know only too well the impact incorrect address data and poor delivery experience can have on a brand. And with 78% of consumers now expecting a retailer to fix delivery problems, there’s nowhere to hide for retailers who fail to invest in slick location data capture.

 

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