E-commerce customer retention is no longer about offering the lowest prices or the widest variety of products. Nowadays, the key factor is whether your customers get a satisfactory experience with their online order delivery.
However, smooth e-commerce delivery is far from guaranteed. Unexpected delivery delays, address errors and the constant risk of delivery failures are still possible. And all these conditions are unpreventable and can make even loyal customers dissatisfied with the quality of service.
Despite all of this, customer dissatisfaction can still be minimized by providing real-time parcel tracking information.using tracking apps for your online store.
E-commerce order tracking is a significant tool that allows merchants and their customers to track the online order progress as well as the delivery process in real time, from the moment the order is placed to the moment of delivery.
The key purpose of order tracking is to keep customers informed and avoid unsuccessful delivery attempts. The most convenient way for merchants is to use the order tracking app that provides the customers with useful updated information on the shop page. You no longer need to send those long tracking numbers to your customers and suffer from constant requests about the location of the order since all the order tracking information is on the separate page of your website.
E-commerce order tracking is part of the post-purchase experience since customers want more than just free shipping and fast delivery. They also want to be in control of their order during fulfillment and delivery, including potential delays and estimated delivery dates.
Order tracking process stages
The parcel goes through several stages before it is delivered to customers. The order tracking system is activated directly after placing an order. The order status is updated the same way.
Order processing consists of five steps from order placement to delivery. But what actually happens during order processing?
Order placing.
The first stage of any ordering process begins when a customer places an order with your store. This includes accepting an order from a customer as well as collecting payment for it. After that, the details of the purchase will be sent to your warehouse so that you and/or your employees can start working on preparing the products for shipment.
- Order Packing.
The next stage is to start the fulfillment process. Order fulfillment begins with the picking process. And once the goods are picked, they are ready to be packed.
Packing is quite a significant stage, since it depends on the use of the correct packing materials for each product so that it reaches the customers safe and sound. Once packing is done, the order is ready to be shipped.
- In-transit status
In-transit status means that the package is on its way to its final destination. The package passes through various points before reaching its final destination. At this stage, customers start checking order tracking information regularly. That’s why it is important to provide them with the real-time package tracking information. - Out of delivery
As soon as the order reaches its final destination, it is picked up by a courier. This is when the tracking status automatically changes to out for delivery.
This is the moment when customers begin checking not only the tracking app, but also the mailbox. - Delivered.
The most enjoyable stage for both customers and sellers. As soon as the order is received by the customer, the status of the order automatically changes to delivered.
Using an e-commerce order tracking app makes it possible for both sellers and buyers to track orders at any given time. Both parties can receive real-time tracking updates. The real-time tracking system gives customers the confidence that their expectations will be met. In this case, customers are more likely to leave good reviews and recommend the service to others.
Ecommerce order tracking app makes your business more convenient when processing customer inquiries. Since customers can directly track inquiries related to the status of orders, they are no longer dependent on sellers to provide them with updates. This saves a lot of effort and time for sellers that would otherwise be spent processing requests and checking order status for each inquiry.
To improve your customer service and achieve better results we recommend you to try Parcel Trackr - a great tracking app for your Shopify store.
And now let us share with you the important things you need to do after installing a tracking app for your ecommerce.
Top 3 things to do right after installing a tracking app
- Add a branded tracking page.
Trackr app comes with a very handy feature, the ability to add a tracking page to your online store. This page allows you and your customers the possibility to track the order without third party websites and lengthy tracking numbers.
Everything you need to do is just add a tracking page to your store. And don’t forget to customize this page in your store style. You can use the same color, logo and font as your store. Thus, when customers track their order on this page, it reminds them not only about the expecting product, but also about your brand.
- Product recommendations.
You can enable product recommendations feature on the tracking page to increase selling and generate additional revenue.
The product recommendation feature can help customers find the products they are interested in, and showing relevant products to shoppers increases the likelihood that they will make a purchase.
- Set up automated email notifications and templates.
By enabling email notifications you will be able to provide your customers with automated tracking updates. This service can be enabled by you as a store owner and your customers can opt in for automated email updates on your store's tracking page to receive notifications about their order status changes.
Another useful thing here is to add a tracking link to Shopify email templates so your customers may track their package on your store's tracking page by clicking the tracking link in the email.
You may find detailed instructions on how to add a tracking link to email templates on our FAQ page.
Conclusion
As you may understand, order tracking apps are an essential part of any ecommerce business and we highly recommend you to explore all the benefits and implement the above listed tips to your business.
With the Trackr app you will definitely help your online store become more customer-focused, and therefore increase sales as well as customer satisfaction.
