Parcel - July 2008 - (Page 16)

trends TURNING U-TURNS INTO NO RETURNS Five last-mile practices that could save your sale By Will O’Shea here are many names for it: Buyers’ remorse, change of heart and post-purchase regret, just to name a few. But whatever you call it, the results are the same. Each year numerous U.S. consumers return at least one item they’ve purchased, adding a staggering amount of expense to many companies’ supply chains — as much as $100 billion annually according to Aberdeen Research Group. This expense is especially pronounced for companies that sell heavy or large items, many of which are costly to transport and difﬁcult to sell at full value once they’ve been returned. As part of a 3PL that serves many of these companies, I can’t shed much light on why some customers simply change their minds. However I can share several healthy habits that could reduce or eliminate many of the other reasons products make a U-turn. 16 July 2008 Super-Size Customer Preparation T The customer may always be right. But right doesn’t always equal accurate. Too often, people can’t predict whether the items they’ve purchased are going to ﬁt until after they’re delivered. This can pose major problems for a delivery team faced with the impossible task of getting a 27-cubic-foot refrigerator through a 28-inch doorway — or trying to maneuver an extra-long couch into an extra-short elevator. It also increases the risk of product damage if the mismatch isn’t evident until well into a delivery, when teams suddenly ﬁnd themselves in a tight squeeze. And of course, it means more product returns. For this reason, thorough customer preparation is a must. During the point of sale, product dimensions and delivery clearance requirements should be clearly spelled out. Customers also should get written instructions that remind them to measure doorways, passageways and other interior or exterior spaces that will be used during delivery — and to doublecheck whether or not the product they’ve purchased is equal to or smaller than the space they’ve purchased it for. Granted, this may result in the occasional canceled order. But considering that poorly ﬁtting products tend to get rewww.PARCELindustry.com http://www.PARCELindustry.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Parcel - July 2008

Parcel - July 2008 Contents Editor's Note What Would Augello Say? Arriving in One Piece Women in Logistics & Delivery Services Turning U-Turns into No Returns On the Mark New Products and Services Advertiser Index Wrap Up AFMS Best Way Technologies Blue Water Consolidators Cass Information Systems Distribution Management Group, Inc. Eastern Connection Endicia enVista Zsolt Design Engineering Genco Green Mountain Consulting Hasler Intravex NPI Parascript Precision Software Scancode Systems Inc. Vitronic

Parcel - July 2008

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