Sashank RavindranathYou don’t need major issues such as packages getting lost or damaged, even small incidents like a ‘delivery exception’ can create unexpected roadblocks that disrupt the smooth journey of a package to its destination and pose a challenge for your e-commerce businesses.
With the excitement of sales and fixation on issues like late deliveries and lost packages, delivery exceptions tend to be often overlooked. However, their impact on customer satisfaction, operational efficiency, and overall business reputation is profound as they have the power to hurt your customer relationships and lead to increased costs.
To better handle the delivery exception, we’ve come up with this article that starts with the basics: what do they mean, why do they happen, and what can you do about it?
What Does a Delivery Exception Mean?
A delivery exception occurs when a package deviates from its planned delivery route due to unforeseen circumstances. These disruptions can range from minor delays to complete delivery failures.
A package in transit is exempted from delivery, i.e., marked as a ‘delivery exception’ at the hands of the shipping carrier when it faces any hindrance that makes it take longer than expected to reach your customers’ doorstep.
In simple terms, this indicates to the recipient that:
- The package has crossed its intended delivery timeline
- This is not a case of a delay at the hands of the carrier
- The courier will deliver the package soon (based on the reason for the exception).
We’ll break down delivery exceptions further to get a better context.
Why do delivery exceptions occur?
We discussed how exceptions are predictable and happen due to external influence in most cases. But how exactly? Here’s how.
- Failed delivery attempts – Also known as missed drop-off. Deliveries are marked incomplete due to the recipient’s or an adult’s (in case of special deliveries) unavailability at the drop-off location to sign and receive the package
- Address-related issues – Incorrect, incomplete, or ambiguous addresses can also lead to failed delivery attempts and subsequent delays. For instance, when the address on the label is unrecognized or is at an undeliverable location, etc
- Man-made causes – Packages are prone to be damaged at sorting facilities and at times, the carrier would abstain from making the delivery citing this
- Customs delays – International shipments are subject to customs clearance procedures, which can be time-consuming and prone to unexpected delays
- Natural disasters – Severe weather conditions such as earthquakes, hurricanes, wildfires, blizzards, or heavy rain can disrupt transportation networks and cause the package to be held back at the facility to safeguard
- Carrier-related problems – Issues with the shipping carrier, including lost or misplaced packages, vehicle breakdowns, or labor shortages
- Federal holidays – When carriers refrain from making deliveries on particular days due to federal holidays in the country of origin or destination.
- Peak season challenges – Increased order volume during holiday periods or promotional events can strain shipping resources, leading to longer delivery times
These are some of the most frequent reasons behind the carriers getting an exemption from fulfilling the delivery. They are valid and in many cases, you can choose to ignore them with so much as a “It’s just one day, the delivery will be made tomorrow“.
However, can you afford to do that? is the question. And that question is what led e-commerce businesses to take the initiative to address delivery exceptions for more reasons than one.
Why is it Important For E-Commerce Businesses To Address A Delivery Exception?
The consequences of delivery exceptions extend beyond mere inconvenience for the customer. They can have a ripple effect on various aspects of an e-commerce business:
- Increased WISMO inquiries – Even when the delivery exception is minor, the customer who isn’t aware of it constantly bombards your support reps with WISMO calls that consume all of their time
- Customer dissatisfaction – Frequent delays or failed deliveries that come along with delivery exceptions also come with the potential to erode customer trust and loyalty, leading to negative reviews and social media backlash. In the long term, this can lead to a drop in customer satisfaction metrics such as retention rate and lifetime value
- Return processing challenge – When delivery exceptions are due to damages or undeliverable packages necessitates a possibility for the customer to opt for a return that can complicate inventory management
- Operational inefficiencies – Delivery exceptions result in frequent re-deliveries from warehouses or returns that can disrupt shipping schedules and operations
- Financial losses – Ultimately, returns-related costs (processing costs and refunds), unwanted support tickets, increased labor costs, and acquisition costs due to delivery issues can significantly impact a business’s bottom line
The cost of delivery exceptions for your business is evident. Therefore, it is important to handle them effectively. To make things easier for you, we’ve also come up with some of the best ways for you to handle delivery exceptions.
How To Handle Delivery Exceptions?
Most e-commerce businesses take this myopic approach of resolving delivery exceptions only when your customers are impacted by them. However, given the high expectations of today’s customers, it doesn’t matter how quickly you solve it because the damage is already done. Therefore, all you have to do is comply with your customers’ expectations — solve delivery exceptions even before they become an issue.
Through integrated solutions and metrics, you can be proactive when it comes to handling delivery exceptions and thereby set them up for a great delivery experience.
Handling delivery exceptions: The aftermath
Let’s assume the delivery exception happens, what now?
- First, promptly acknowledge the exception by informing your customer about it. You can then follow up with clear and transparent communication regarding the nature of the exception by rerouting or rescheduling deliveries based on convenience to manage customer expectations.
- Have a strategy early in place for delivery exceptions, i.e., develop clear guidelines for customer support and operational teams to make adjustments and handle things as effectively as possible.
- If the exception is major, possibly due to packages that are lost or damaged, then you need to consider implementing shipping insurance into your existing business practices.
Preventing delivery exceptions from occurring in the first place
Delivery exceptions can happen due to external causes and at times inevitable. But that doesn’t mean you do nothing about it. As an e-commerce merchant, you have the power to cut down exceptions in occurrence.
By implementing proactive issue resolution strategies, you can not only reduce delivery exceptions but also unlock new opportunities to reduce costs and improve customer experiences.
- Start by informing potential delivery exception-causing incidents such as carrier strikes, federal holidays, weather-related issues, etc. on your homepage and product page to let customers know that their orders might face issues and avoid disappointments.
- Leverage data and evaluate the performance of different shipping carriers to select reliable partners with fewer cases of delivery exceptions and a strong track record of on-time deliveries.
- The next step involves making use of real-time tracking to identify potential issues even before they happen and take proactive measures to rectify them.
- Extend the capabilities of real-time tracking data by keeping customers informed about shipment status and potential exceptions.
- In times like peak periods like the holiday season, you need to anticipate an increase in order volume and adjust staffing, inventory levels, and shipping capacity accordingly.
Bottom Line
While delivery exceptions are inevitable occurrences, addressing them promptly is not only possible but also essential for ensuring a positive delivery experience. By acknowledging and resolving issues quickly, you can effectively minimize customer frustration, maintain trust, and uphold their reputation for reliability and customer-centricity.
Also, don’t forget to prioritize proactive communication through shipping notifications and branded tracking pages to turn delivery exceptions into opportunities that strengthen customer relationships and foster long-term loyalty.
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