Best Pickup and Delivery Services In India for D2C Brands
800 startups in India took the route of D2C and opened a new channel for sales. For a decade, startups have relied on marketplaces like Amazon and Flipkart and are fed up with their high commissions. However, Direct to Consumer (D2C) is here to change the conventional. Targeting a $100 Bn+ Market Opportunity By 2025, constant innovation is happening across eCommerce categories.
Growth Factors for D2C
D2C gives a brand new avenue to reach to customers directly. Though customers, irrespective of the platform, expect the same delight factors and top-notch service experience provided by marketplaces. D2C players can drive customers directly to their stores if they deliver a delightful post-checkout experience. These factors include :
Delivery Experience (DX)
Amazon.in delivers shipments in 3-4 days and provides same-day and next-day delivery for Prime customers. As a D2C player, anything more than 2-5 days can lead to cart abandonment. Providing an Estimated Delivery Date (EDD) on Checkout and committing to the EDD can build a long-lasting trust factor. A reliable delivery partner becomes a mandate for D2C stores to commit to the same timelines as marketplaces.
Customer Communication
As soon as the customers place an order on the marketplace, the order confirmation screen loads up, which is mimicked by D2C players on their native Shopify and WooCommerce stores.
However, once the shipment is created, sending a tracking link to the customer gets missed by many D2C players. With marketplaces sending timely shipment updates, customers expect the same user experience in case of purchasing from a D2C brand. Ideally, tracking links, shipment updates, and changes in EDD should be communicated to the customer via SMS or Whatsapp.
Managing Returns
Around 25% of items purchased on eCommerce sites are returned by the customers, with the Apparel category having the highest share of returns. Marketplaces manage returns by their own fleet; however, in the case of D2C, brands have to arrange for another courier partner on the spot which can lead to depleted margins.
It's best to have a pickup delivery partner in advance and plan accordingly. Showing a return policy on checkout can also increase the overall conversion rate. With a successful return, it's a high chance that the customer will have a repeat order with your store and drastically reduce your Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC). Over 81% of customers say they are more likely to be loyal to the brand with the flexible return policy.
Serviceable Pincodes
With orders coming from every nook and corner of the country, it becomes essential to have a delivery partner who can serve all pin codes and provide COD (most preferred) as a payment method. To a surprise, no courier partner can serve all 27,000 pin codes. It becomes mandatory to partner with a logistics partner like Swift, which has partnered with a range of courier partners.
Ease of Integration
D2C brands must supercharge their checkout experience to show EDD in real-time. The courier partners should expose their APIs (good luck with the integration) or have a powerful dashboard to create/manage orders, shipments, NDRs, and customer communication.
It's still Day 1 of D2C
While a plethora of D2C players are promoting their offerings, true winners will have exceptional products, innovative marketing campaigns, and an outstanding fulfillment experience. We are still on Day 1 of D2C for India, and many opportunities will unfold with time. Choosing the right Pickup and Delivery Service can give you the desired differentiator for your business.
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