When people shop online, a big part of their purchase decision is based on when the product will arrive. There might be a lot of uncertainty or ambiguity around how long it will take them to get the product, and this is part of the reason why some people shop local or so many people use Amazon Prime.

There are tools you can use to determine specific delivery times, and then to communicate these to customers directly on the website and in your live chat conversations. Integrating delivery timing eases the customers’ minds and can massively increase conversions.

At HelpFlow, we provide 24/7 live chat teams to over 100 stores. We’ve worked with clients to better communicate delivery times to their customers directly in live chat conversations and have seen massive conversion increases as a result. In this #PartnerThursday post, we’ll talk about tools to use to get more certainty around delivery times and how to use that to drive conversions.

Use Tools to Effectively Identify Delivery Time

There are tools you can use to determine specific delivery-related times, ultimately producing an experience similar to Amazon (i.e. order in the next 90 minutes to get it by Thursday).

FenixCommerce, one of our partners, is one example (here’s the link to our podcast episode featuring them: https://ecommercetownhall.com/ep3-fenixcommerce-don-vangeloff-delivery/). Their platform integrates deeply with your backend and carriers to determine the delivery time and display it to customers on the site.

We’ve seen conversion rate increases of more than 20% for clients who actively display delivery time information during checkout.

When the customer knows when they’ll get their product, it helps them make a decision about whether or not to buy now. Customers need assurance that when they spend money on your products, they will deliver on time for them.

Communicate Delivery Time to Customer

When a customer asks when their product will arrive, it is vital to be prepared to answer them. We’ve found that being able to respond in real-time and provide specific shipping information can greatly improve the customer experience and boost conversion.

Here’s an example:

• Engage with visitors through chat if they are a bit slow on their checkout process. See if they have any questions.
• If they ask about when the product will arrive, use your tools to identify precise shipping time and let them know. Be as specific as possible.
• You can let them know about potential factors that could change the timing, such as if they wait to order or if there are additional carrier delays after shipment that you’ll notify them about. But either way, having more certainty than 5-10 business days will drive a lot of conversions.

Provide Constant Updates and Notifications to the Customer

Sometimes things happen that are out of our control. Shipping might take longer than expected, there may be unforeseen issues at customs or a weather event could delay the transportation of goods. Whatever the case may be, even if it’s negative, let your customers know. They will appreciate you giving an update proactively instead of them getting informed only after they contact you.

If you’re using an integrated shipping system, it can be easy to notify the customer via email when the order has been shipped and provide a tracking number so customers know where their package is.
Tools like FenixCommerce can actually be set up to proactively notify customers if the expected delivery date changes based on things from your production warehouse all the way to the last mile delivery.

To summarize, make it easy to buy from you, and give customers certainty of when the product will arrive. Do this and more people will buy from your site.

What’s Next?

Hopefully, this has sparked some ways to drive more sales by leveraging delivery times. Here are a few more ways to drive revenue with live chat, and of course feel free to reach out book a Strategy Call to learn more about how our 24/7 live chat team can do this at a whole other level for you.

• Maximize eCommerce Upsells and Cross-Sells with Live Chat
• How to Set Up Chat Greetings to Drive Sales
• Deflect Customer Service to Live Chat