What should be the strategy of the online courier services in 2020?
The online courier service is under immense pressure because of the following reasons:
The rapid growth of digitization and how the companies adopt digital technologies to capture the growing market. According to a report by the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI), India ranks at number 2 on the number of active internet users. As per Statista, from 2015 – 2020 the number of mobile phone users is said to increase by 4.68 billion.
Great expectations in the field of technology innovation. How their technology can provide more easy and convenient solutions in the minimum time frame.
Ability to use the power of the IoT (Internet of things). As per Wikipedia IoT means "The Internet of Things (IoT) is a system of interrelated computing devices, mechanical and digital machines, objects, animals or people that are provided with unique identifiers (UIDs) and the ability to transfer data over a network without requiring human-to-human or human-to-computer interaction."
The changing demographics. Nearly two-thirds of Indians are under 35; half are under 25. By 2020, India is expected to be the youngest country in the world. With the Indian population growing younger, consumer behavior is also shifting. They would need more from their
on-demand same day courier service.
India’s large youth population and the trailing-out rapid technology growth would potentially make India the biggest consumer market and the biggest labor force in the world. These companies must learn to leverage the above factors in their favor to be able to grow and sustain that growth. The road ahead is bumpy and these companies need to speed up to match the accelerated pace.
Here are 5 steps on how they can make it big in the future.
Smart Strategy
How to leverage the ever-accelerating pace of technology innovations?
The companies need to build an app that connects consumers with service providers. On-demand courier services must provide the following features in their apps to be able to serve not only the early adopters but also not so tech-savvy consumers:
The app must be easy to operate and user-friendly. It should have simple and easy features with fewer steps involved.
The app must allow consumers to book courier online as well as track their packages live through their apps.
The app should be built on an integrated platform that helps consumers to connect with the delivery executives in real-time.
The payment should be cashless and protected for the consumers to be able to trust.
Smart Delivery
How to make deliveries faster and better?
As per McKinsey’s report "India’s urban awakening: Building inclusive cities, sustaining economic growth", by 2030 India’s growing urban population 590 million people by 2030. With the increase in the working-age population (270 million people by 2030) India will see a change in terms of difficulty to find time to travel and complete tasks that are of personal need basis. Therefore the user must be able to not only book courier online but also provide one day delivery services to instantly meet the needs. One such company that offers 60 minutes courier pickup from home through their app is Pidge.
As per McKinsey, same day delivery and instant delivery will likely reach 15 percent by 2020 and will grow 20-25% of X2C(From anyone to the customer) volume. The previously used B2C (Business to Consumer) or C2C (Consumer To Consumer) has now become X2C i.e. anyone sending anything to the customer is a bigger broader category.
As per McKinsey & Co Parcel delivery the future of the last mile
For the privilege of same day delivery or instant delivery, almost 25% of consumers are willing to pay significant premiums. And this share is expected to increase because the rising younger consumers are more inclined (just over 30%) to use same day courier services over regular delivery. So it’s time to change your courier service to a fast courier service.
Smart employees
How to have better-skilled employees?
The future is good for those who understand that the customer needs a personal touch and an exceptional experience. That lies in the hands of the delivery executives to a larger extent. Therefore companies must hire and train their delivery executives regularly to make sure each experience counts as exceptional building their brand reliability and thus building customer loyalty.
A special experience by greeted with a smile by a well-trained delivery executive will have an impact on the customer as he/she may not just give a rating based on the timeliness of delivery i.e. how fast is your courier pick up or delivery but also the experience. After all, the delivery executives are the "face" of the brand.
Smart Operations
How to create a difference?
Beyond having automated operations it is important to have a differentiator for the customers to look forward to your courier and delivery services. The differentiators can be:
Services - Exceptional services by the full-time verified and well-trained delivery executives.
Security - Creating an OTP system to ensure that the deliveries are safe like in the case of Pidge. They have an OTP when the delivery executive makes a courier pick up as well an OTP when the package is delivered.
Technology - An app with features like real-time package tracking or updated ETAs ( estimated time of arrival).
There is a need to fill the white gap between consumer expectations and services offered like delivery services receive a Net Promoter Score (NPS)6 of negative nine (-9). The top causes of dissatisfaction are high delivery prices, unavailability of same-day delivery, and late deliveries. (Capgemini).
Data-driven services
How to figure out what your consumer wants?
Getting into IoT does not help you sustain in the future. India is the most populated country and thus offers a good opportunity to research, collect and analyze data. All the important decisions should be based on the data collected. Data should be the fuel to innovate and create solutions that not only meet the existing needs but foresee how to improve lives in the future.
This has 2 levels:
Market research should be done to assess the future opportunity for one day delivery. Also, research to identify the skills required to meet these demands.
A gap analysis should be done to identify what is being offered in the online courier service domain and what can be offered. And then analyzing what skills or technology is required to fill this gap.
The younger tech-savvy population is deeply tied to mobility and connectivity and wants better food, better clothes, having more fun, well-being, and luxury. Companies like Pidge, one of the fastest courier service in Delhi NCR, have already started disrupting the industry and creating a niche to capture the needs of the changing Indian demographics. The winner in 2020 will be companies that drive their same day courier service based on the above need of the hour strategy.