Retailers have had to deal with unforeseen obstacles in recent months due to lockdown restrictions. Resilience is at the heart of what makes retail firms so successful, from pivoting to keep sales moving to store closures.
You've probably had to rely on new ways to sell in order to achieve true retail resiliency. You may have started offering local pickup to keep sales momentum up, even if you've never done it before.
This indicates that customers are not just adopting this new style of shopping in the face of store closures and physical separation initiatives, but are also planning for the long term. Giving customers the option to purchase online and pick up locally increases your sales potential.
What Exactly is a Local Pick Up?
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Local Pick up is an alternate shipping method for transactions that take place inside the same region, allowing buyers to buy things online and pick them up from local vendors, saving money on shipping rates. This facilitates a more efficient delivery method.
Local pickup is a fantastic method to increase sales and improve the local client experience, but it is not without its drawbacks. Adding another order fulfillment option to a store's inventory can be time-consuming and complicated.
A customer's experience can be harmed if there is a breakdown in communication with them. However, when done correctly, local pickup can help you become a genuine omnichannel retailer, better positioning your company for the future.
Let's look at the recommended practices for retail establishments if you're offering local pick up.
Things to Consider Before Offering Local Pick Up
Each new business move brings with it a slew of new considerations. Here are some of them:
1. General Logistics Strategy
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Have a plan in place for where to pick up and how you wish to market your products, depending on your sales goals. This entails having a basic understanding of your size of operations and sketching out elements like the types of vehicles and crew you'll need, as well as your target market and delivery area. Have a backup plan if at all possible.
2. Path of Delivery
Local pickup locations or start points for your delivery procedure should be established.
3. The Scope of the Delivery
Define the boundaries of your delivery activities. What is the largest radius you can go? You must determine your company's constraints as well as the capacity of your fulfillment service.
4. Timing
Your delivery doesn’t have to be on-demand or timed right away. To make your operations more effective and save money, you can batch your orders. If you're a small firm, your resources may be restricted. Therefore, you'll need to set certain delivery dates and times.
5. Communication
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Make your shipping information apparent to your customers. Maintain control of their expectations. Just because you're a small business doesn't guarantee you can respond to their demands quickly. Make it obvious when you'll be able to deliver their purchases and when you'll be able to do so.
6. Area Schedules
You can also make schedules for local pickup based on specific areas, such as neighborhoods or villages. If you're catering to a larger audience, you'll need to plan out such zones.
7. Partnerships
You're unable to do the task on your own? That should not be an issue. To increase your capacity, you can engage with third-party providers. You can also use such agreements as a fallback plan during high-demand seasons.
8. Personnel and Training
If you opt to handle the majority of the local pickup yourself, you'll need to hire and educate extra staff. They must be knowledgeable about every facet of your local delivery business and know how to communicate effectively with customers while representing your brand.
9. Technology
Additional technology can be used for monitoring and tracking purposes. Tracking tools can help you gauge the efficiency and punctuality of your deliveries.
10. Plans for Emergencies
Prepare robust contingency preparations in case of unforeseen events. When consumers are unavailable at the time of delivery, you should have a plan in place. Create a list of common circumstances and processes for dealing with them.
How to Set Up Local Pickup with Strikingly?
Image is taken from Strikingly
One of the most effective ways to start a local pickup business is to create an online store or eCommerce website. Even if you have no experience with coding, the Strikingly website construction platform can assist you in creating an online store from the ground up. To get started with your eCommerce site, follow these steps.
A. Create Your Online Store
- Sign up: The first step is to sign up for a free account with Strikingly.
- Choose a template: After you've created an account, you can choose a template that interests you. There are a plethora of options available. Personal, business, company, services, store, and a variety of other terms are among them. However, since you're going to create an eCommerce website, you'll need to start with a shop template.
Image is taken from Strikingly
- Add store: After you've chosen a template, you can customize it to your liking. The next step is to add a store by going into your site editor, click “Add New Section”, and choose the [SIMPLE STORE] section.
- Add your products: You can begin adding products to your online store at this time. Real photos of your products should be uploaded here. Don't forget to include product descriptions, payment options, shipping information, and pricing information when uploading photographs.
B. Enable In-store Product Pickup
- Select Store > Select shipping from the drop-down menu. A list of shipping alternatives can be found on this page.
- Select 'Add Shipping Option' from the drop-down menu.
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- Choose a Shipping Rule: Pickup at the Store. Fill in the essential fields for Region & Rates, Pickup Option Name, and Pickup Guidelines.
- To activate this option, click the 'Save' button.
Image is taken from Strikingly
You can go live by publishing the website once you've finished adding your products and shipping choices.
The Pros & Cons of Local Pickup
For businesses, providing local pick up services is both a burden and a profit. Here's a complete list of what you may expect if you offer curbside pickup.
Pros
- Speed: Buyers obtain their things sooner without shipping.
- Cost-Cutting: Using local pickup saves both merchants and customers money on shipping.
- Customer Satisfaction: Local delivery avoids the chance of products being damaged or stolen. This improves the customer experience while reducing merchant shipping-related difficulties.
- Omnichannel Experience: Customers may place orders online and then interact with businesses in person, reinforcing brand loyalty.
- Guaranteed Fulfillment: Local pick up assures that customers receive their orders on time.
- Inclusive: Customers who find shopping in a store difficult can have their order brought to their car by hand.
- Socially Distant: This is a crucial characteristic during covid lockdowns.
- Simple Implementation: Because click and collect delivery models make greater use of current resources, they require less operational change than delivery approaches.
Cons
- Raised Expectations: Customers want their orders to be ready as soon as they arrive. Dissatisfaction and churn might result from delays of more than five minutes.
- Traffic Delays: Both walk-in and local pickup customers want quick service. Retailers should optimize their operations to accommodate everyone at once during peak hours to avoid congestion.
- Mistaken Pick Up location: It's pretty uncommon for consumers to pick up their food at the wrong place. This can lead to frustration, which in turn lowers consumer satisfaction.
- Consumer Travel Costs: Some customers may chafe at the prospect of paying extra for gas or public transportation to pick up their goods.
Should Your Retail Store Provide Local Pickup?
If you're thinking about offering local pick up order fulfillment to your retail location, start by asking yourself the following questions to see if it's a good fit for your company:
1. Do you have the financial means to provide local pickup? Will it be managed by your personnel or will it be your responsibility?
2. Do you have any local space or parking near your store where clients can wait for you or your staff to bring their purchase out?
3. Do you have a point-of-sale system that allows you to synchronize your inventory and track omnichannel orders?
If you are sure you can perform the above and manage local pickup services successfully, it's worth testing. If you give your customers the It's worth a shot if you're convinced you can handle the following and successfully manage local collection services. Giving your customers the option to shop online and pick up at the store can help you establish stronger customer relationships and provide your retail store a competitive advantage.
Small Changes Made Today Can Have a Big Impact on the Future
While local pickup originated as a precaution to protect employees and customers, it is gaining popularity as a way to make the shopping experience more convenient for customers. We believe that as consumer behavior evolves, customers will continue to value the convenience and flexibility provided by curbside pickup services.
The process of continuous development for retail operations like yours does not end here. Local pickup is another sales channel that not only helps your business maintain sales moving now but also in the long run because COVID-19 causes you to think swiftly on your feet. Even if you hadn't planned on implementing new systems or tools, these adjustments will help your company remain future-proof and satisfy ever-changing client demands.
When you provide in-store pickup, you establish yourself as a more established brand. It may necessitate some time-consuming logistics, but clients who demand it will find it a lifesaver. Have a great time transferring your product!
