The new competitive advantage for online courier service

As per Microsoft, the human attention span has fallen to 8 seconds (from 12). So to be able to get the attention of the customers, the online courier services have to find a way to impress the customers in less than 8 seconds. With an abundance of options providing same day delivery, it may not be the only reason for creating customer loyalty. The courier services have to build a competitive advantage for themselves. They have to change their approach from a "solution provider" to a "service provider". 

Let us understand the evolution of building a competitive advantage.

The past was all about convenience

Many companies that came into the business their main objective was to position themselves for maximum accessibility. They offered consumers the option to book courier online. They offered courier pickup from home and delivery at the doorsteps. Whether it was a cab-hailing service or food delivery app they hyper-localized system by providing services through “zones”. But if the consumer wanted to get their things delivered it would not always fall in a particular zone. Therefore, start-ups like Pidge offered them to get deliveries done from places that are not only geographically close to the customer but also beyond the boundaries. For example, if you are living in Gurgaon you could get courier pick up and delivery is done in Delhi. Small and medium business enterprises also benefited from the services of Pidge as they were able to reach new customers in new geographic locations.

With one click consumers or businesses could get courier picked and delivered at their doorsteps. These on-demand courier services that were available anytime for consumers were based on the assumption that the new age working population of India needed convenient services that would save their time running around to get things delivered. 

The present is about convenience as well as speed

Once the consumer got used to the convenience to book courier online, they wanted more. They wanted everything delivered instantly. The consumers want a fast courier service that could make deliveries on-time. Imagine you forgot your laptop charger back home; you would not wait for 2 days for a delivery company to deliver it to you. Companies like Pidge changed the idea of on-demand delivery when they started offering 60 minutes courier pick up with instant same day delivery. You do not have to wait for days to get your delivery or travel yourself from one place to another to get items picked. You get courier pickup from home and delivered at your doorsteps through one day delivery that too at the click of a button. With technology innovations, the companies must create a platform that provides ease of placing an order as well as being able to track the status. App-based services like Pidge offer live order tracking maps along with same day delivery. The moment you have placed your order till the time your order is delivered, the consumer can track the order online through the app feature of live maps. 

The future belongs to those who can provide convenience and speed with experience

According to Gartner Marketing Survey, “89% of businesses will be competing mainly on customer experience.” Only those who can create an image for themselves can run the show. Like if we think of phones we think of iPhone, for coffee we think of Star Bucks, for pizza Dominos; similarly, the companies must create a brand image that has a recall value to the service customer wants.  

Here is how to create a remarkable experience to win customer loyalty.

Know your customers – You should not only know whom you are selling your service too but also what is his age, gender, income, and location. You must study in detail the details of how your customer spends and on what he likes to spend. If you are providing an online app to deliver things from one place to another through one day delivery, it’s important that your customer is tech-savvy and has a phone. Similarly, the problem that your service is solving must be relevant to the age group and the area. As per the National technology readiness survey, nearly half of on-demand customers are millennials. Therefore to be able to provide a service you must know who your customer is. Is your service relevant to him/her? Will he be able to purchase and cherish the service you are offering? 

Know what they want – You may have a brilliant idea but is the idea of solving the need or problem of anyone? The feasibility and viability of the idea come later, first comes the need. If you are providing same day courier service, does your customer get benefitted from it? If your customer is living in an urban area in a nuclear setup and is unable to take time out from his work to run around and get things picked or delivered; then yes your same day courier service solves his problem of the time crunch. Similarly, if your customer is a home entrepreneur and wants to reach out to a wider range of clients in new geographic locations; then your solution to her would be to provide a courier pick up from home and deliver her creations to her client. Your service adds convenience and saves her time to create things rather than figuring how to get things delivered. That’s why one of the keys to creating an experience is to study and empathize with your customer’s pain areas and to create a service that solves the problem or the pain. 

To be able to make them heard in the noise of a lot of companies selling the same service the companies must change themselves from product-centric to consumer-centric. The future will be bright for those who can create consumer loyalty through exceptional service. As per a report by Accenture 52%, consumers switched their providers because of poor service in the last year. With on-demand online courier services falling like dominos; companies like Pidge are creating their own space to provide exceptional service through convenient on-demand, safe, reliable deliveries through exceptional experience.