Start where the customer can’t see
In the first part of this blog series, I talked about the multi-channel retail experience and the critical prerequisite retailers need to fulfill to get started on this journey. In this post, I will explore how retailers can design their bottom line with the customer in mind.
In the context of multi-channel retailing, the expression “putting the customer at the heart of everything we do” translates into:
- Providing value for the price a customer is paying
- Providing wide choice and flexibility
- Not wasting the customer’s time
- Providing reliable delivery and support
DELMIA Quintiq’s solution enables multi-channel retailers to become more customer-centric in three stages of the customer’s retail journey: choice, delivery, and aftersales care.
More choice = fewer abandoned shopping baskets
Online shopping behavior studies indicate that customers abandon their shopping carts for two main reasons:
- They can’t find what they are looking for
- The shipping options and costs are unacceptable
If the second most cited reason is indeed unacceptable delivery terms, how should a retailer deal with the situation? Easy. Offer better delivery terms.
Let’s take an online grocery retailer as an example. His current proposition to customers is: “If you miss our delivery truck, the driver will call you, and we will figure something out.” Instead, a customer-focused retailer would offer:
- Multiple timeslots to suit the customer’s preferences
- Variable doorstep service times and costs to choose from
- The integration of additional product streams to the grocery items
Most retailers do not make such promises because they are unable to solve the complex puzzle that comes with offering such flexibility. This, in effect, discourages customer choice and leads to an abandoned shopping basket.
In this case, DELMIA Quintiq would eliminate the inability to plan a complex delivery that adheres to all customer expectations all at once. What’s more, DELMIA Quintiq would provide instant feedback on what costs the retailer would incur when serving a particular customer. If a delivery option is unacceptable (i.e. bears high costs and eliminates the profit margin), the system would instantly flag this. Thus, the retailer would know if a delivery promise is feasible and would offer it to the customer before he leaves the store/website/mobile app/kiosk empty-handed.
[Tweet “Smart planning and optimization is key to customer satisfaction”]No delivery is too complex
In 2012, 75% of UK retailers offered one to three delivery options. One year later, 50% were offering between four and seven delivery options. Today, shoppers can choose from up to nine shipping options. The wider the choice, the more complex on-time delivery becomes.
- Every order to be planned is a complex puzzle of requirements:
- Closest pick-up location – which warehouse, which store?
- Delivery location – at home, in-store, pick-up point?
- Various temperature demands, in the case of perishable items
- Various time constraints as each customer opts for a different time window
DELMIA Quintiq helps retailers unravel these puzzles for thousands of orders with:
- Allocation of branches to trips
- Vehicle configuration and capacity leveling
- Optimal route planning
- Real-time adjustments of itinerary of deliveries
Read also: How to raise your retail game with integrated planning
Going beyond the sale: Aftersales care
Customer service goes beyond the transaction; it requires advanced planning capabilities to ensure that both parties – customer and retailer – get what they have bargained for. In many cases, aftersales service is what eats up the retailer’s profit margins due to poor and inefficient handling of post-transactional requests such as returns and value-added services.
- Returns:
The expiry date has passed; size M no longer fits; the battery has failed. Whatever the reason for a product return, the retailer needs to handle it in an efficient and hassle-free manner for the customer. A collection service is one way to do it.
So how does a smart planning system like DELMIA Quintiq support a collection service? First, collection tours are planned and workloads are assigned to each tour. This is done automatically, taking into account all relevant rules and constraints (e.g. capacity, number of stops, customer time windows, service level agreements, etc). DELMIA Quintiq shows the content, assignment, number of stops, and capacity utilization of each route with opportunities for manual changes. Additionally, the system takes into account collection time windows as well as walking time per individual collection and address location in order to optimize the stops sequence for each individual tour.
Read also: 3 steps to rev up delivery and boost your customer service
DELMIA Quintiq’s application is scalable, adaptable and able to integrate new sets of constraints/business rules in the future if necessary.
- Value-added services:
The principle of smart collection planning can be applied to other value-added post-purchase services. For example, a retailer could offer his customer monthly dry cleaning of that expensive suit he’d purchased online and collected from the store. Such a special offer may considerably increase the price tag of the suit, but if the customer is willing to pay, why not scoop the additional profit margin?
Creating a customer-centric multi-channel retail experience is not about having sophisticated customer-facing technologies.It’s about having a fully transformed supply chain that is able to meet the expectations of the “I-want-it-all-and-I-want-it-all-now” customer. Smart planning and optimization technology helps you in your journey to delight your customers. Start where they can’t see and I assure you, the results will transform your business.
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