In e-commerce, the user experience can be broken down into two main parts. The first is the purchasing experience, which depends on the platform on which the transaction takes place, generally a marketplace in France or an online store. The second is the post-purchase experience, based on delivery. This second phase depends on a large number of criteria; some logistical, such as preparation and dispatch; others marketing, such as what we’ll be dealing with in this article, e-commerce tracking notifications.
What is an e-commerce follow-up notification?
Parcel tracking is nothing new to e-commerce – in fact, it’s become a standard feature. The level of detail is not always the same, but in most cases, you receive at least an order confirmation e-mail and often a carrier code to track your package. However, this is no longer enough to offer a satisfactory customer experience, and you don’t keep in touch with your buyers if they track the package on the carrier’s site (DHL, Colissimo, etc…). That’s where personalized notifications come in.
They enable you to keep control of the entire post-purchase process by letting you choose what to send and when, and thus maintain the link with your end customers. Control your customer satisfaction by notifying users at key stages, and build loyalty with branded content integrated into notifications.
How does e-commerce follow-up notification improve the post-purchase experience?
Consumers appreciate when online retailers innovate to create a more convenient shopping experience. Personalized notifications enable a seller to reinforce its brand image with its customers while keeping them informed of the status of their order, thereby reassuring them, increasing their overall satisfaction and, consequently, the loyalty rate. According to an IFOP survey, 88% of consumers consult online reviews before making a purchase, and 36% give priority to 1-star reviews. It’s easy to imagine the damage caused by negative reviews. Properly informing buyers also helps reduce the number of calls they make to the after-sales service.
Follow-up notifications are also a good way of keeping in touch with your customer. In addition to the customer satisfaction aspect we’ve already touched on, their marketing aspect is not to be overlooked. The open rate of follow-up e-mails is much higher than that of a cold mailing, so it’s an opportunity to showcase your brand image and secure future sales, at a lower cost.
The best time to let consumers know that they can use notifications to track the progress of their order is just after the order has been validated.
We’ve seen what personalized notifications are and why you should use them, but now we need to know when to send them. From order preparation to final receipt of the parcel, there are many stages involved.
When should I send an e-commerce follow-up notification?
As previously stated, the post-purchase phase involves many stages. Once the order has been placed, it is directed to a warehouse where a picker will first pick the products, then pack them before entrusting the parcel to a carrier. Once dispatched, the parcel may pass through several sorting centers before finally being available at a collection point or for home delivery. This already represents a significant number of steps, but they can be broken down into an even greater number of order statuses. Read more about this process in our article on optimizing order picking. So, is it worth warning the consumer every time?
Here are the order statuses available in Shippingbo :
- Awaiting payment: If the chosen payment method requires a delay, let the user know that the order has been registered and is awaiting validation.
- Cancelled: Whether it’s your initiative, the customer’s or due to a payment error, it’s crucial to notify the customer that the order has been cancelled. It’s a good idea to personalize the message to encourage the user to repeat the purchase.
- Out-of-stock sales should be avoided, unless the customer knows that he is pre-ordering a product that is currently unavailable. In this case, displaying “Waiting for stock ” provides the right information about the status of the order. See our article on automating stock management to optimize your e-commerce performance.
- Routed: If you have several warehouses or use a network of logisticians, you need to route the order to the right warehouse.
- To be prepared: Order received, products in stock, awaiting preparation.
- In preparation: The order has been processed.
- Shipped: The package has been handed over to a carrier.
- At a collection point: The parcel has been delivered and is waiting to be picked up.
- Delivered: The order has been delivered to the address indicated.
- Invoice generated: The requested invoice has been issued.
Of course, these are the possible notifications, and you can choose which to activate, or not. It’s best not to overload the user with those that won’t speak to them, so we advise you to send messages for the following stages: cancelled, in preparation, dispatched, at collectionpoint/delivered. The rest of the stages are visible from the solution’s back office, and can be used internally to accurately track orders and analyze your logistics processes. Notifications are set up and sent from Shippingbo’s OMS solution.
Order management system Shippingbo for automatic notifications
The logistics chain for an e-commerce order is long and contains many stages, often foreign to the end customer. Personalizing notifications means breaking the opacity of the logistics chain and enabling consumers to understand that their order has not been abandoned, and that just because it hasn’t been shipped yet doesn’t mean it hasn’t been processed.
Buying online remains a worry for many users, as they pay for a product that they don’t get back immediately. There’s nothing worse for them than receiving an e-mail when the order has been validated, then no further information, and not knowing when, or even if, the parcel will arrive. Reassuring them becomes a key point. A customer who has peace of mind when placing an order is a satisfied customer, and customer satisfaction is an essential condition for the success of an e-tailer, thanks in particular to the rules of the major marketplaces.
Take the case of Amazon, the world’s most widely used marketplace, which sets customer satisfaction criteria for its sellers (ratings, volume of returns, etc.). If you fail to meet these criteria, your products may be temporarily or permanently withdrawn from the marketplace, representing a major loss of sales. What’s more, personalized notifications also act through their content. Choosing what to send and when to send it can seem like a lot of work, but Shippingbo offers you the optimum solution with automatic notification according to set rules. Boost loyalty with branded marketing content integrated into messages.
Don’t wait any longer, access our complete guide to SMS: how to use it and set it up simply!
