Ultimate Guide to Contactless Delivery for E-Commerce Store

These are strange times for all of us. We are stuck inside our houses; there are government-imposed lockdowns and restrictions on public gatherings, so much so it reminds us of a world that is slowly recovering from the aftermath of a zombie apocalypse!

Jokes aside, how many times have you washed your hands or sanitized your devices today? The global COVID-19 pandemic has been quite a wake-up call for people everywhere. And it has forced us to change our daily habits drastically.

Things are no different for companies around the world. The pandemic has hit business sectors like healthcare, transportation, tourism, hospitality, and e-commerce. To sustain their business, companies have had to rethink the way they operate.

Contactless delivery or zero contact delivery is a unique approach that is making all the right noise now. In fact, it has been around even before the pandemic, but its value and demand just skyrocketed post the pandemic outbreak.  

What is contactless delivery?

The essence of contactless delivery is fairly simple – no direct contact with the workers, delivery partners, and customers. This novel approach is the winning formula for struggling businesses to get back on track even in the midst of the pandemic’s chaos. By making the delivery safe while following all the safety and hygiene norms, businesses are slowly making up for the lost time. Amazon, Instacart, Walmart, and many more have tweaked their business models to accommodate contactless delivery.  

How to set up contactless delivery into your distribution channels?

With the existing digital logistics tools in place, it is easy for companies to incorporate contactless delivery into their delivery channels. The idea is to maintain end-to-end hygiene in your business premises, thereby keeping everyone in the loop safe from infection. So, how do you set up contactless delivery into your business framework?

1. Create a contactless delivery option in your website or mobile application

The first task in hand is to create or implement the contactless delivery option into your website or mobile application. During this process, you must also communicate about this option to the customer and address all their doubts and concerns. For instance, the Indian food delivery app, Swiggy is highly proactive in its efforts to establish a contactless delivery loop. Before reaching the payment gateway, its customers can opt for a zero contact delivery option.

The standard approach is to create an OnClick button. But some companies also use a text box for zero contact delivery requests. The customers have to fill out specific delivery instructions so that the delivery partners can abide by their requests.

2. Constant sanitization

Maintaining good hygiene is absolutely vital for implementing contactless delivery. And for ensuring it, constant sanitization of the business ecosystem is required. On top of it, you should also disinfect the office essentials, physical inventory, and delivery vehicles adequately. Also, the delivery agents must wear a mask and sanitize their hands and body constantly.  

Amazon has made more than 150 COVID-19 related process changes. This includes enhanced cleaning, personal protective gear such as masks and gloves to the staff, temperature checks, etc.

3. Staff training

Your staffs are the most integral part of implementing contactless delivery. They should be given special training on how to receive and deliver orders to the customers. They should understand the functionalities of the zero contact delivery system and how to communicate with the customers. One lapse in judgment from their side or lack of training can result in many confusing scenarios and can result in an adverse reaction from the customers.

4. Contactless payments

Paying cash in hand involves a physical element that is not to be entertained during the pandemic, as the infection can happen through contact. Contactless delivery leverages the potential of digital payment platforms. All you have to do is integrate digital wallets that support cashless transactions. Many digital wallets already involve functionalities like QR code scanning, ensuring maximum protection to both your customers and delivery agents. They also provide excellent transparency to payments, and if paired with the overall logistic delivery process, they provide a seamless experience to your customers.

5. Contactless proof of delivery

When your customers opt for the contactless delivery option, you need to ensure that sufficient proof of delivery is collected. There are options to track the product delivery – sending a photo of the product at the customer’s doorstep is one such method. Another method involves OTP-based proof of delivery.  Customers can also use digital signatures to acknowledge that they have received the product.

6. Temperature tracking

Constant temperature tracking is extremely important for a contactless delivery system. There is a lot of anxiety and panic among the customers, and you need to ensure those issues are addressed. By tracking the health parameters of your delivery executive, you can keep your customers feeling safe and secure.

Benefits of contactless delivery

There are numerous advantages of contactless delivery such as:

1. Ensures business sustainability

The global community is far from being completely vaccinated. And, you never know what the future has in store for us. But, one thing is for sure, the virus has taught humankind to be more careful. Personal hygiene and safety have become the main concerns for the average customer. All this points to the fact that contactless delivery is here to stay, and companies that fail to adopt it might fall behind due to customer churn and poor delivery experience.

2. Promotes digital payments

Digital payments are much more transparent and accountable. It reduces human dependencies and eliminates all inefficiencies. By promoting digital payments, contactless delivery ensures that you can improve the cash flow and shrink the billing cycle. For customers, digital payments are convenient and safe, making their experience a positive one.

3. Boost brand loyalty

With a contactless delivery option, you are conveying that you care about your customers. It helps establish a positive relationship with the customers and keeps them happy, thereby increasing brand loyalty.

4. Maximum safety of the delivery executives

Your delivery channel is incomplete without the delivery executives. Contactless delivery makes sure that your hardworking delivery executives do not get infected while performing their duties.

Summary

Customers are going to be even more sensitive about hygiene concerns in the future. Without addressing those concerns, you will not be able to stay competitive in the market. Contactless delivery presents an exciting opportunity for companies. If you haven’t implemented contactless delivery in your distribution channel, you are already playing catch up to your competitors. So stop wasting your time contemplating it and make the decision that will make the future safer for you and your customers.  

A critical component in any e-commerce store is a mobile app. Today, one cannot imagine a Grubhub or Uber Eats sans a mobile app. So if you’re just starting out in your delivery business, then the first step for you is to build an app for yourself. Now if you’re not a programming wizard, then building a mobile app might seem an uphill task.

Enter Vajro, an instant app factory that can help you build an app in less than a day. Vajro comes packed with powerful features to tailor an app according to your needs. To know more about Vajro and its features, contact us now.