We are living in fast times. We want fast internet connections, fast entertainment, fast services. Unfortunately, this is what your shoppers are used to. They also expect fast delivery for their shopping. If you find it difficult to live up to the expectation of offering lightning-fast delivery without affecting your margins, you should know there is a better way.
§1. The expectation of delivering yesterday
When shopping online, shoppers expect most products to be delivered within the next day or maximum within two or three days. These expectations have been set by retail “giants” such as Walmart or Amazon. In order to meet their audience’s desire for convenience and “speed”, these big retailers have made some extreme delivery commitments.
For example, Amazon Prime offers its members “One-Day Delivery”. This is the default delivery option for millions of products; delivery is also free for some of the items. Another big US retailer, Walmart, promises delivery within two days when an order is placed before 2 p.m. Such promises can be made and respected only by the shops that have complex logistics, large payrolls, and the capacity to keep big stocks.
Unfortunately, these commitments are changing customer expectations. Since shoppers have been “spoiled” with lightning-fast deliveries, they will expect any online shop to offer something close to that.
§2. The challenge of delivering yesterday
How do these established retail players meet these fast delivery times? Two requirements need to be met in order to make fast delivery possible:
§2.1 High investment in inventory.
For a shop to offer next-day delivery, it needs to make upfront investments in large stocks. This means that a lot of the shop’s money will be “trapped” in inventory. Additionally, a shop will also need a complex logistics network that is geographically close to all the shoppers.
§2.2 Cost-effective contracts with delivery companies.
Fast delivery requires expensive and usually large volume contracts with delivery companies so that they will do priority handling for the last-mile delivery (to the shopper).
Both of these conditions are challenging due to the high financial investments needed and the management efforts involved.
§3. Get back to normal delivery times with personalized jewelry
Instead of investing in large stocks of mass-produced jewelry, you can choose a more creative approach. Customers are still willing to wait more - for the right products. A consumer study performed by Deloitte has found that 48% of consumers are willing to wait longer for a personalised product.
48% of consumers are willing to wait longer for a personalized product.
Personalized products are special. They allow the shopper to embed something about their feelings and lifestyle in them. And that is never a fast and easy process. Even big brands selling gadgets or fashion take their time when it comes to personalized products. When you choose to personalize your purchase, the typical delivery time is 7-10 business days, instead of the 2-5 business days it takes to receive an non-personalized product.
This makes perfect sense as shoppers know that making something “special” takes time.
The same rule applies to personalized jewelry. The shoppers will expect to receive their order in weeks instead of days. A delivery time of 1-2 weeks is considered very fast. Since the purchase is personalized, the shopper will no longer feel the need to look around for a better delivery time. A personalized piece of jewelry is special and is worth the wait.
Would you like to find out more about how personalized jewelry can help your online shop?