An eCommerce site has to focus on customer-oriented services to stand out in the crowd. Managing, tracking, and communicating order information is now non-negotiable, no matter which industry your site belongs to. Online shoppers need to know the status of their orders.
This information includes delivery estimates, tracking numbers, and other shipping and delivery notifications. Customers who are kept informed have realistic expectations and don’t worry so much about their orders. This leaves your customer service team free to deal with other issues. Since online purchases can feel like a risk, access to delivery information gives customers peace of mind.
Since customers continue to be more demanding as they have more eCommerce options to choose from, you need to keep your conversion rate high with a site that offers them what they need. One of the most important features is order tracking. As the owner of an eCommerce site, you should no longer consider this optional.
Order Tracking: Features Your Business Needs
In eCommerce, order tracking involves both information monitoring and communication. Your site needs to set up tools to track your orders, estimate delivery times, and then communicate this information to the customer.
At a minimum, an eCommerce store’s order tracking system should include this information:
- Shipment tracking numbers
- Delivery estimation
- Updated order information
- Delay notifications
Today, customers need to see this information even when it’s not a holiday season. In today’s eCommerce environment, consumers demand to be kept informed about their orders, especially when delays might prevent their purchases from arriving on time. Customers don’t like to be kept waiting, but they’re far less likely to give your business a bad review if they are kept informed of their product’s shipping status, even if there are delays.
In addition to the above information, companies that provide order tracking services on your site can also offer their fulfillment centers to help you pack and manage your shipments. No matter which platform you use for your eCommerce services, fulfillment companies can integrate with your software to provide your customers with many convenient features, including:
- Tracking numbers and confirmation emails sent directly to your customers
- Search bars that organize and separate orders by status
- Order status notifications that include processing, shipping, and delivery estimates in real-time
They can even let you edit orders to fix incorrect or outdated information. This order tracking information improves your business by lowering your costs associated with fulfillment, satisfying your customers, and controlling your orders.
Read on to learn about the specifics of these three main benefits of incorporating order tracking features into your eCommerce site.
1. Lower Your Personnel Costs
Customer complaints can negatively affect your business in several ways. They cost money since your customer service personnel, automated responses, or online team must be paid. Whether you hire a customer service team or outsource the duties, complaints cost your site money.
With order tracking information integrated into your site and prominently displayed on your customers’ accounts, you can significantly reduce the number of customer questions and complaints. The order tracking system automatically sends customers the information they need, so you don’t have to pay personnel to do this extra work. Instead, you can save money on all the complaints and inquiries you no longer need people to answer.
By automating customer support and keeping customers informed, you can cut back on customer service personnel and save time. You’ll have more people and resources to devote to other aspects of eCommerce fulfillment and customer service.
2. Satisfy Your Customers
As mentioned, customers have become more demanding as their options for eCommerce sites have increased. Satisfying customers has become more difficult as a result, even as their feedback has become more powerful. As an eCommerce site, you should understand and fear the power of Google Business reviews, Yelp, and other feedback services. They are how customers inform each other of which sites satisfied them.
This means that by improving customer confidence, order visibility improves your entire business. Amazon is the biggest site in the world because they keep their customers informed of their orders, communicate tracking information clearly, and can keep the promise of their huge fulfillment network to deliver products on time.
With that as competition, your eCommerce site needs to learn how valuable order tracking has become for customer satisfaction. Shoppers have loyalty to give but they need to be given something in return. By keeping their order information updated, you give shoppers the chance to shift their expectations for when the item will arrive. Even if there was a delay, so long as customers are kept informed, they are more likely to leave your site a positive review.
3. Control Your Fulfillment Process
Sites without order tracking may try to “wash their hands” of the fulfillment process after an item ships. However, your site’s business and reputation are at stake even after the products leave your warehouse. With order tracking features, you can monitor your orders and promptly solve any issues that arise owing to delays, tracking, or a customer’s expectations.
With the ability to keep customers informed, you can turn them into regular shoppers. Even if a delay occurs, your prompt service, updated tracking information, and any required compensation will make your customers feel catered to. Ecommerce fulfillment is not just about perfect shipping – things are bound to go wrong, eventually. More importantly, a successful eCommerce site confronts issues and solves them for customers as quickly as possible.
This reduces the much larger issues you’ll run into with customer dissatisfaction and returns. It will also increase the trust your consumers have in your business.
The Takeaway for Businesses
As the owner of an eCommerce site, order tracking has become a necessity in the modern online marketplace. It allows your customers to view their order status, track delays, arrival times, and any other information you want to provide. This builds trust between your customers and your site, reduces costs associated with customer service, and gives you more control over your fulfillment process.
Add order tracking to your site to free up resources for other aspects of fulfillment. Satisfied customers not only leave positive feedback but also become return shoppers. To build your business for the long-term, you need to satisfy and keep your customers. Order tracking is an essential feature for businesses to add to and refine their eCommerce store to remain competitive in the modern-day.