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In today’s fast-changing consumer world, shipping delays are not considered acceptable and can significantly harm an online store’s brand reputation. However, on the other hand, it is sometimes unavoidable due to several reasons. Even though companies handling ecommerce shipping in India spend a lot on improving the speed of their services, there is always the possibility of delays happening. So, how can you handle the stringent delivery times that your customers want? In order to understand let’s delve deep into the topic of delivery delays in ecommerce.

Causes of delivery delays

In order to understand how to avoid delays in delivery, you need to first establish that causes of these delays. While there have been rare cases where the delay was partly due to the customer’s mistake, in most cases it is the online retailer or their ecommerce courier service that was to be blamed. Some of the most common causes of delivery delays are:

• Documentation errors – incorrect addresses, incomplete order details, and insufficient order information are some of the mistakes that come under this category.
• Technical failure – if your ecommerce business relies on inefficient hosting companies, chances are that your website may experience frequent system failures. These may cause delays in responding to orders and subsequently lead to delays in delivery.
• Issues in logistics – the inability to handle higher orders and deliveries can be a hurdle for small businesses – especially with in-house ecommerce shipping in India. That is why it is almost imperative for SMEs to outsource their delivery services to third-party logistics companies.
• Bad weather – sometimes weather problems like heavy rain, foggy conditions and hailstorms can play a role in causing delays in deliveries.

How can delivery delays affect your business?

Apart from the above-mentioned reasons, there are several other factors that may cause delays in deliveries. Whatever be the reason, frequent delivery delays can significantly affect your ecommerce business in a negative manner. Therefore, it is necessary to discuss with your ecommerce courier service and act on the causes of these delays to avoid losing valuable customers. While most customers may pardon a rare case of delivery delay, frequent delays in delivery is likely to make them lose trust in your brand. It is not just the reputation of your brand that is at stake, but also the retention rate of your customers.

First time shoppers are unlikely to order again from your brand if they experience a delay in delivery. Similarly, loyal customers are also likely to think twice before relying on your brand again if they face frequent delivery delays. Therefore, instead of losing out on profits and your reputation, it is advisable that you avail the services of a third-party service provider for your ecommerce shipping in India.

How to avoid delays in deliveries?

There are several ways in which you can avoid delivery delays. Depending on your business model, you can use either one or multiple such strategies combined in order to achieve the desired results. Some of these include:

• Update your inventory: over time you will realise that some of your products are more popular than others. Which means that keeping those products regularly updated in your inventory is a smart way to make sure that a customer doesn’t have to wait a long time for the product.
• Set a maximum/ minimum: setting a minimum delivery time for your ecommerce courier service will let you focus on your orders accurately. Set a delivery time that is realistic and practical and does not put much pressure on you. However, it should also not be long enough to be discouraging to the customer.  
• Arrange your warehouse: as you gain more experience, try to gather insights on most popular products and high traffic locations. Working on that data, you can formulate an arrangement for your warehouse that will facilitate ease in dispatch. For instance, you can place popular products in easily accessible locations. This can reduce the dispatch time for your ecommerce shipping in India.
• Prepare in advance for peak season: holidays and festival seasons often witness an increase in sales. In order to attract customers during this time, most businesses focus on offering discounts and promotional prices. However, most couriers may be overbooked or not working during holidays. Therefore, it is imperative that you make alternative arrangements to ensure that the products are delivered in time. Look for the services of multiple couriers or rely on a logistics aggregator platform like ShipKaro that will provide you with the services of multiple ecommerce courier services.
• Depend on the automated logistics platform: automation can help in reducing delivery times to a very large extent. An efficient automated software can sync orders from multiple platforms and easily generate shipping labels for each individual order. This not only simplifies the process but also reduces the possibility of manual errors.
• Rely on a logistics aggregator platform: availing the services of an aggregator platform for logistics will help you compare the services of different couriers and choose the most convenient option for your business. This will not only ease your delivery service but also make your ecommerce shipping in India affordable. Hiring an aggregator platform has numerous benefits. It improves business focus, lowers operating costs, improves scalability and most importantly, reduces delivery delays. With an aggregator platform, you need not purchase separate automation software for logistics neither do you need to worry about delivering goods during peak seasons.

In conclusion, the best way to avoid delivery delays in an affordable manner is to rely on an aggregator platform for logistics. ShipKaro is one of the leading logistics aggregator platforms in India and provides integrated services with multiple ecommerce courier services. By working with ShipKaro, you will not have to worry about delivery issues and can utilize that time to expand your core business.

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