E-shoppers want delivery options upfront, but don’t get them – Scurri research

There’s still a big divide between what consumer want and retailers achieve on the delivery front. A quarter of shoppers want shipping options before checkout, but only 9% of retailers deliver, according to management and post-purchase experience software provider Scurri.

Research detailed in its ‘Future of Post-Purchase and Delivery’ report further highlights the gap between retailers’ perceptions and customers’ expectations.  When asked when they think customers want regarding delivery options, retailers indicated only 6% of customers wanted this information before they start checkout. However, 22% of shoppers asked for this before the first stage of the payment process.

Additionally, while 20% of retailers surveyed said they thought 20% of customers wanted to see delivery options as they added an item to their basket, only 11% currently offered this service, highlighting a lack of understanding of the increasing importance of delivery options as a conversion driver.

Some 38% of shoppers — increasing to 43% of 45-54 year-olds – reported looking for delivery information before they started selecting items, while 51% of 18-24 year-old shoppers want confirmation of delivery options once they have added products to their shopping carts.

When asked to rank the important considerations driving their customers’ delivery choices, UK retailers identified speed (40%), cost (31%) and flexibility (27%).  When asked if delivery concerns ever prevented them from shopping online, 39% of shoppers indicated the additional cost of home delivery caused them to abandon a purchase, followed by slow delivery options (26%) and a lack of free delivery (25%).
 
Rory O’Connor, founder and CEO of shipping management firm Scurri, said: “Running second only to product assortment in the consumer’s hierarchy of needs are definitive delivery details and the reassurance that the product the customer wants will arrive when they need it. 

“The sooner retailers can introduce delivery information and choice into the customer journey the better.  Knowing exactly when and how the product they want, or need, will arrive clears important purchasing hurdles and takes the shopper one step closer to the buy button.”