Retailers under fire: Delivery complaints surge, damaging reputations and sales

With customer frustration on the rise, retailers are finding themselves at the mercy of poor delivery practices, suffering negative reviews and reputational damage due to late or missing deliveries. The NSW Office of Fair Trading received 6103 complaints about delayed or missing retail orders last year, an increase from 4380 in 2022, and 3780 the previous year. Other states and territories are experiencing similar complaint trends.
 

Jack Amies, cofounder and CEO of eDelivery believes it is time for a change.
 

"Retailers are in the business of providing products, not deliveries. Yet they're being punished for logistical issues that are outside their direct control. Too many retailers are suffering from negative customer reviews as a result of delivery issues. Delivery is now one of the key considerations for shoppers when making buying decisions. Negative reviews not only impact reputation, they also impact sales. Our mission is to provide a solution that makes last-mile delivery seamless and reliable and addresses this pain point for retailers," Amies said.
 

"In response, eDelivery has launched its augmented, AI-powered Last-Mile Delivery platform, designed to transform the efficiency of delivery operations for retailers and delivery companies alike. The platform combines an intelligent transport management system that instantly connects with a crowdsourced driver network to reduce the number of touchpoints currently needed to get products into customers' hands.
 

"Right now, three or four different companies and technology platforms can be involved in getting a product from store to customer. Further, deliveries may need to be dropped off at two or three different distribution warehouses for further sorting, even if it was picked up just down the road from its end destination. All of this adds time and cost and increases the risk of something going wrong with your delivery."
 

With this innovative technology, eDelivery offers a full-suite, last-mile solution which tackles some of the most persistent issues in the logistics chain, including:

• Tight delivery timeframes and same-day deliveries: Using real-time route optimisation,
  eDelivery supports delivery drivers in completing more pickups and drop-offs within short
  timeframes,
• Cost efficiency: By reducing the need for extensive delivery infrastructure, the platform
  enables companies to scale deliveries based on demand,
• Customer communications: Enabling omniscient parcel delivery journey capabilities for
  retailer, delivery business and customer combined with instant communications and updates
  ensures a heightened customer experience,
• On-demand driver network: eDelivery's proprietary system utilises crowdsourced drivers,
  allowing businesses to increase their delivery capacity as needed without the complexities of
  managing a full-time fleet or requiring aggregators or broker services; and
• Affordable price points: With deliveries starting at just $9 for a point-to-point delivery within
  10km.

"This is a game-changer for the last-mile delivery sector and finally gives the opportunity for same and next-day delivery to become a mainstream option here in Australia," Amies said.
 

"Customer expectations are shifting, and the reality is that once they get a taste for same-day delivery, everything else will feel slow by comparison. Retailers that don't adopt are at risk of being left behind by those that do."
 

For businesses, eDelivery's platform means not only happier customers but also a stronger reputation, as it takes control of the last-mile process and removes the logistical inefficiencies that often leave retailers vulnerable to customer complaints. With eDelivery, companies can focus on their core business, while providing reliable, high-quality service to their customers.
 

"eDelivery is currently in the process of finalising initial onboarding processes, market testing and welcoming businesses to the platform. Full market launch will take place in late 2024, early 2025," Amies said.
 

"We are also embarking on a funding round through Birchal, an Australian equity crowdfunding platform to provide people with the opportunity to invest in eDelivery.
 

"Once launched, we will implement an aggressive national sales strategy targeting courier and delivery companies as well as wholesale suppliers and retail businesses. Once established in Australia, we will then expand into other key markets including Asia, the Middle East and Europe.
 

"The delivery sector is in the process of unprecedented growth and we aim to be a key driver for this growth, not only in Australia, but across the globe, proudly using Australian technology to underpin this burgeoning industry."
 

Statista reports that the retail delivery market in Australia is set to witness a significant increase in revenue, with projections indicating that it will reach AUD $10.68 billion by the end of 2024. Furthermore, an annual growth rate of 9.80 percent is expected, resulting in a projected market volume of AUD $17.05 billion by 2029.

https://edelivery.com.au