What do logistics providers need to do to lock in COVID 19 ecommerce growth?

COVID19 has been the strongest driver of global and domestic online shopping growth. I recently read reports that suggest as much as 51% of people increased their online spend at domestic e-retailers during this time. In addition to this, it is reported that 33% of purchasers have also increased their spend from foreign based e-retailers. While cross border ecommerce growth has increased to a lesser extent than domestic ecommerce, I suspect that this is more likely a result of the international logistical challenges created as a result of COVID19.

 All countries are reporting significant increases in eCommerce volumes, but leading the way are Mexico and India. India has reported that ~65% of buyers are purchasing more on cross border ecommerce platforms, but that there too has been an ~80% increase of domestic ecommerce purchases as well. Mexico closely follows, with 55% buying more from foreign e-retailers and 75% buying more from domestic e-retailers. All reports indicate that there is a global expectation for this activity to continue into the future.

It is not only countries who are reporting the ecommerce boom, as all the big logistics providers have also experienced significant growth during 2020. For example, a major logistics business reported that over the course of 2020, their ecommerce volume has grown by 35% - with 50% more volume during the recent peak season.

 We all know that delivery speeds have been challenging, but recent surveys report that a strong majority of buyers have noted their preference for transparency and trust over delivery speeds. Roughly 65% of respondents noted that the most important thing for them is clear information on delivery charges. Trust in the delivery company scored second on this survey, with 50% of respondents noting this as very important.

 As an industry, this means that our priorities should be to continue to focus on service performance, but not lose sight of the importance of transparency and customer communications. Our customers understand the supply chain is not optimal in the current environment, but strong customer communication, and as much tracking as possible, will help entrench the surge in ecommerce activity.

At NZ Post we are putting a lot of energy and focus into ecommerce orchestration, including hybridised postal and commercial services, with a renewed focus on developing opportunities to utilise sea freight. We also spend a lot of energy on keeping our market up to date with disruptions. We are focused on providing a service that is targeting a permanent change in consumer behaviour. We must all ask ourselves, what might be possible if all industry players did their best to secure the customer experience and reset the current ecommerce growth as the “new normal”?