Next Day Parcel Delivery Reaches Record High

In May 2018 the use of next day delivery services reached record highs, accounting for 37% of all UK delivered orders according to data from IMRG, the UK’s online retail association. Next day and day-specific deliveries have increased steadily over the past few years, driven by the emergence and growth of ecommerce and online retailers. With more competition around, start-ups, SMEs and established online sellers are having to do more to attract and retain customers.

More Choice, More Demand

There’s now more choice than ever for consumers looking to buy products online. From clothes to food, books, furniture and so much more, there are hundreds of places to purchase all such items and more. With a greater choice of ecommerce and online retailers, each one needs to do more to stand out against its competitors and offering next day delivery can be one such perk. Plus, if all your competition are offering next day delivery, you need to as well. 

Consumers have become more demanding in what they expect when ordering items online too. The lack of a next day or day specific delivery option can result in lost sales and consumers looking elsewhere. Therefore, the growing offering and demand for next day delivery is being met by both online sellers and consumers alike.  

The Rise of Ecommerce and Fulfilment

Online retail parcel delivery order volumes were also up 14.8% year-on-year in the UK during May 2018, which can partly be attributed for next day deliveries increasing in the same month. This also demonstrates a move towards faster fulfilment, as companies compete in what is a more complex overall retail environment.

Fulfilment services are also benefitting from the growth of next day deliveries and being used by more ecommerce and online retailers. These provide a much quicker and more efficient way for many to process orders, pick, pack and distribute deliveries, rather than relying on a longer chain that is more likely to get held up.

Challenges and Solutions

With more next day delivery orders being made, it adds extra pressure to ecommerce and online retailers to get their products out quickly. For larger ecommerce companies like Amazon, this shouldn’t be much of an issue given the size of their workforce and with distribution centres across the world. Yet the same data found that in May 2018, on time delivery performance hit its lowest level in the history of the Index at 88%.

Strong volume growth and pressure can mean many companies struggle to meet the demand, resulting in late deliveries and the potential loss of customers. For this reason, it’s important to use reliable parcel delivery services to ease the process and meet your orders.

Future of Fast Deliveries

The future of deliveries looks set to change in many ways, with drones, self-driving cars and robots. One of the main advancements that is already happening is the development of faster methods of delivery. Next day delivery just isn’t enough for some consumers and with rising expectations and demand to get products ordered in their hands as soon as possible, various ideas are being tested out.

These range from same day delivery options, with items left in lockers at a local shop that can be opened with a code emailed to the consumer, to potential drone deliveries of small packages. Then there are plans for same day deliveries to consumers’ cars or homes, with smart-lock technology that allows the delivery person to access them while the customer is at work. Of course, these present many security challenges, but greater convenience and speed looks to be driving the delivery and ecommerce sectors together. 

Get started with Whistl if your business is in need of delivery solutions or fulfilment services, by filling out our online contact form.