eCommerce Market Update
Topic of the week – How Order Cut-off Times Can Impact Your Sales
If you have ever shopped on and online store like Amazon for example, you will have noticed that right above the ‘add to basket’ button, a countdown that coaxes you to purchase by a certain time in order to receive your parcel the next day. I’m sure that you have also had the experience of just missing this cut-off time and either having to wait an extra day for your parcel, or look for the product you wish to buy from another seller. This process is more common than you think and recent studies have shown that the time in which you offer these cut-off periods could be impacting your business’ sales. So when should you set your order cut-off times for, earlier or later in the day?
Firstly, it must be said that displaying no cut-off time for orders on your website is possibly the worst option, as this leads to uncertainty amongst potential customers. Although you may offer a 24 hour delivery service, a customer who places an order at 9pm the night before may have to wait an extra day due to the cut-off period for your final mile carrier. In general, whether you are offering an earlier or later cut-off time, it is best to display it on your website, as easily for your customer to find as possible to avoid ambiguity and unnecessary customer service enquiries.
Zendbox recently discovered that most businesses offering cut-off times earlier in the day, typically between 12pm-3pm leave themselves more susceptible to cart abandonment and actually losing out on sales, compared to those offering cut-off times as late in the day as possible. In fact, studies have shown that most orders are placed later in the day, and that the peak conversion rate for online stores is usually just before the cut-off time for deliveries. This is due to customers wanting to ensure next day delivery and panic ordering before the cut-off. Having this time set earlier in the day means that, although you may see a spike in conversions just before the cut-off time, throughout the rest of the day, whilst visitors to your site may increase, the conversion rate of visitors actually making a purchase declines. Due to having missed the cut-off for next day delivery, these visitors will then usually opt to look elsewhere, most likely somewhere offering next day delivery that they haven’t missed.
A study by ACLTR showed that by moving the order cut-off time later in the day, the peak conversion rate still followed just before the cut-off time, but the average conversion rate was higher throughout the day and resulted in more sales being made. However, having later cut-off times means that you need to have a well-optimised warehousing and logistics team in order to facilitate later orders and ensure that delivery is fast and efficient. Overall, having later cut-off times, not only increases sales conversions, but also results in creating customer loyalty and generating more visitors to your site. Using an eCommerce and logistics specialist like Pro Carrier is a great way to leverage later order cut-off times and ensure that your deliveries are fulfilled to your customers as fast and seamlessly as possible.
In other news
SensormaticSolutions hos now revealed its latest sustainable Acoustic-Magnetic (AM) label, the SPX AM Label. This new type of label, patent-pending, is constructed using Forest Stewardship Council Certified material, making it more sustainable for retailers. It is over 90% plastic free and is designed to make it easier for retailers to enter the sustainability market, increasing responsible practices throughout the Sensormatic Solutions manufacturing process. The label is designed with versatility in mind, and can fit on a range of packaging types, making those that were more difficult to tag, now more protected offering reliable detection and deactivation.
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eCommerce Market Stats
See some statistics relating to this week’s topics in the eCommerce market below.
Order Cut-off Time Stats
*Statistics sourced from ACLTR
That’s all for this week…
Check out our previous eCommerce Market Updates on our website below along with other insights and articles for more in depth industry news and trending topics, or get in contact to discuss some of our best in class eCommerce delivery solutions!