E-commerce And The Changing Face Of Logistics

By Author: Kamal Hasan
Total Articles: 2
Comment this article

E-commerce and consumer demands have radically changed the logistics industry. Operators have had to evolve, creating exciting possibilities for courier jobs. E-commerce has completely revolutionized consumer demand. This has resulted in the logistics industry having to become more sophisticated and advanced than ever before. Long gone are the days of visiting your local high street for products – instead, it is the online retailers who are thriving.

This switch to online shopping instead of high street shopping has also resulted in a change in customer expectation; nowadays, the consumer expects to track their purchase right through to delivery. Additionally, the delivery must always be on time, and they want the product in their hands as quickly as possible.

Positive Change

While this may sound daunting, it has resulted in exciting advances in the logistics industry and mainly how courier jobs are carried out. By embracing these changes and staying aware of developments, operators can stay ahead of the game and establish themselves as key players in the industry.

Parcel Tracking

One fundamental ...
... change in customer expectations is that they want to know precisely when they will receive their package. It seems like a few years ago that orders were placed, and consumers were happy whenever they turned up, but this is no longer the case. Nowadays, the general public expects to track their package at each stage, and they expect to be enjoying the product just a few days after they ordered it.

Parcels can be tracked by scanning them at each stage of the delivery. The customer can log on to the retailer and Transport company website and follow this process with a tracking number. Additionally, they can be informed which one-hour window they can expect their delivery in by the courier scanning their parcel once they have been arranged in the order that they will be delivered.

Same-Day Deliveries?

The consumer has also forced change through expecting much faster delivery times. This has resulted in e-commerce giants Amazon experimenting with using drones to deliver packages by air, which they claim could take just a few minutes after placing an order. As a very public experimentation/marketing stunt, it seems that the industry will soon need to offer a same-day delivery service. Those in the industry know that this is not merely a case of speeding up the current process, but instead a heavy investment in technology (such as drones or self-driving buggies) and considering different operational models. It may seem farfetched now, but many of the big players are determined to make this a possibility.

Another way in which the customer has created change is the dilemma of missed deliveries. This has seen the rise of ‘click and collect’ services where packages are sent to nearby stores, as well as casual, self-employed couriers who can take orders via smartphone.

Remaining Profitable and Competitive

Understandably, couriers feel anxiety with talks of robots flying through the air with Amazon packages, self-driving buggies navigating the streets, and self-employed delivery people. However, a business’s success relies on adapting to the times and embracing current trends. Parcel carriers can stay ahead of the curve by keeping up to date with the latest developments, training couriers to pilot drones and experimenting with new technologies. This will allow them to provide a better and faster service for their customers.

Not only this, but there will always be a demand for human courier jobs due to the need for much larger parcels and products that will need to be carried and assembled. These cases in which personal touch is so important and for which the customer will always be happy to pay provided that the service is of the highest quality.

It is a fascinating time to be a part of the logistics industry. Consumer demand has required operators to evolve business Management Articles, prompting courier jobs to be completed faster than ever.