What is Connected Shipping? A complete guide
Working in e-commerce means juggling countless tasks—orders coming in, customer inquiries flooding your inbox, and of course, shipping. You know that …
18 Nov 2024
What is Connected Shipping?
Parcel delivery is a make or break moment for your customers. As a pioneer in Connected Shipping, Sendcloud connects the pieces in your shipping process to make impactful deliveries.
Conventional shipping follows a rigid, linear process—ignoring the growing expectations from consumers and the impact on business growth.
Growing consumer expectations
Fast delivery, free returns—keeping up with expectations can’t be done with a rigid setup.
Couriers impact your reputation
Couriers should be brand ambassadors. You need the right data to choose them, not just gut feeling.
Tough competition from big brands
E-commerce giants have more resources to offer unbeatable prices. You need a way to stand out.
The shipping cycle is a framework that puts your customer at the heart of your shipping strategy. It represents the continuous flow of connecting the customer journey to create impactful deliveries.
Winning e-commerce brands thrive by implementing a customer-centric shipping strategy. They don’t see shipping as a logistical necessity, but connect to couriers and tools to turn shipping into an experience that sets them apart in a competitive market.
Flexible shipping options
Consumers expect free, fast, and flexible shipping. Failing this is a top cause of cart abandonment.
Error-free order processing
Process orders accurately and quickly, so customers receive their items on time.
Ship the way customers want
Offer multi-carrier shipping methods, so customers get the options they prefer.
Timely and accurate updates
Give real-time tracking updates on deliveries and delays to keep your customers informed and happy.
Proactive resolutions for issues
Handle issues fast to prevent frustrated customers and regain their trust.
Easy, self-service returns
Let customers handle returns on their own with an automated, hassle-free process.
Select carriers by performance
Work with reliable carriers to avoid delays and damaged goods that hurt your brand.
It’s not just about moving parcels, its about connecting your operations, tools, and couriers to give you a competitive edge.
01
The consumer’s expectations are met
Online shoppers get a personalised service from checkout to returns, while the majority of touchpoints are fully automated on your end.
02
Consumers turn into loyal customers
A positive experience is the best retention strategy. Your marketing investment pays off as loyal customers buy more, more often.
03
Customers return the favor
Customers with a connection to a brand are more mindful of returns, accepting of mistakes, and more likely to leave great reviews.
04
Couriers act as a brand ambassador
The couriers you ship with represent your company through reliable, efficient deliveries and positive interactions with your customers.
Traditional shipping setups make it tough to meet growing customer expectations. And with tasks and touchpoints scattered across tools, making an impact feels impossible. Instead, Connected Shipping helps you turn shoppers into loyal customers with faster, more reliable delivery experiences. This way, you use shipping as your competitive edge to stand out in the market against e-commerce giants.
Ship with the best couriers
Connect and switch between couriers without committing to volume contracts.
Utilise every brand touchpoint
Cross-sell products during the parcel tracking and grow your social following along the way.
Make decisions with data
Your gut feeling is great, but with data you can make decisions that truly make an impact across your organisation.
Connect with customers through every delivery
Winning brands are adapting to Connected Shipping — and so can you
The secret is placing the customer in the centre, instead of the receiving end.
Surviving with Conventional shipping
Surviving brands treat shipping as an afterthought
- Use just a couple shipping methods for all orders
- Pick a courier based on the shipping rate
- Rely on couriers to deliver a great experience
- Use a scattered tech stack without data sync
- Forward shipping issues to the couriers
- Make returns difficult in the hopes to avoid them
Thriving with Connected Shipping
Winning brands put customers in the centre of shipping
- Use customer’s preferred shipping method
- Select couriers based on performance
- Use every touchpoint to connect with customers
- One centralised view to spot moments of friction
- Resolve delivery issues with the customer
- Analyse return patterns to retain customers
Ready for Connected Shipping?
We’ve got you covered.
Don’t face the rising consumer expectations alone. We’re here to guide you every step of the way.
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