Pure play retailers have no excuse when it comes to offering top-notch online experiences, they were born in the digital world and don’t have the barriers or legacies that come from years of traditional offline retail.
However, digital-only retailers also don’t necessarily have the luxury of a physical store to drive customers towards. According to Google, 88% of US shoppers research online before making an offline in-store purchase. For pure plays, there isn’t the option for this. Pure plays have to capture the mobile visitor right there and then, positioning the advantages of shopping with them right at the forefront of the experience.
Convenient delivery has become a key differentiator when it comes to people choosing between online retailers. According to MetaPack’s Delivering Consumer Choice report, 66% of consumers surveyed said they’d opted to buy from one retailer over another because the product could be delivered in a more convenient manner. 51% of shoppers said they had failed to complete an online order because of delivery options.
For Asos, mobile commerce business is booming. In October the retailer announced that 60% of its traffic came from mobile devices over the last year, while 44% of transactions were placed on mobile platforms. However that percentage could be higher if it worked harder in showcasing its delivery options. Asos isn’t the only pure-play retailer to fudge this…
Here are a few examples where digital only retailers can improve the way they highlight delivery options, and one that absolutely crushes it.
Asos
The Asos homepage on a desktop however has a clear ‘free delivery’ message at the top with a link to a list of delivery charges.
The product pages hides delivery options in a small link underneath the CTAs.
Clicking on this launches a pop-up window containing clear options and pricing.
This info should be available direct from the homepage, or listed within the product page itself. However I’m fully aware there is fight for space on a mobile screen. At the very least the product page should mention a few of the more popular options available before clicking through.
If you haven’t already checked the delivery options or pricing you may not find out until you look in your basket. Here you may be surprised to see the rather steep delivery threshold of £100.
You may also miss the fact that the free delivery isn’t added automatically, you have to remember a code to type in during checkout.
This seems designed to trip up the customer, either they may not spot it, assume it’s discounted automatically (as it normally is), or they may get to the end of the process and realise they have to skip back a few pages to get the code. Either way, this isn’t very convenient.
Firebox
This retailer similarly has no link or messages regarding its delivery options on the homepage or in the menu. The first mention of delivery is a scroll down the product page, where you’re promised free delivery but no clue as to options.
It’s not until you’ve logged in and entered your full address that you have any idea about possible delivery options.
If I was in a rush, and not testing out the site for an article on mobile commerce, there’s a good chance I would have bailed before filling in all my address details just to get to this point, where I find out that even though I’m spending more than $200 I still have to pay for local collect.
Amazon UK
Amazon has an annoying habit on its mobile site where if you want a next day or nominated day option, you won’t know the charge until the very last screen. On the product page itself, the mention of next day delivery is clear with a real-time indicator adding urgency. However that ‘details’ link doesn’t directly tell you the prices of each option.
Even when progressing through checkout, the beautifully green and obvious links don’t tell you how much they cost.
Then finally here it is on the final checkout screen.
Everybody is fully aware that nominated day delivery comes at a premium, and people are happy to pay for these ultra-convenient services, but don’t hide these prices until we’re right at the end of the journey.
Net-A-Porter
The luxury fashion retailer is one of the few that mentions on the homepage its free delivery option.
However the other delivery options are hidden behind a link on a subsequent page, and that link takes you to this unfriendly looking page and fiddly drop-down menu.
So who is doing it right? – The one example of a pure play getting its delivery messaging right is the British electrical goods retailer…AO.COM
There’s a brief message highlighting free delivery on the homepage. It hardly takes up any space and it makes the customer aware that convenient delivery is on the agenda.
This message is consistent on the product page, but changes to reveal that not only is there free delivery but it’s available seven days a week.
And look at this beautiful little touch on the product page… a calendar that clearly states the day and price as you scroll through.
ven better, AO.com offers free nominated day delivery options as long as you don’t need it in the next couple of days.
It’s a masterclass in simple, clear messaging on mobile, while keeping the customer in focus, as well as offering premium delivery options that won’t make you balk at the cost.
Written by: Christopher Ratcliff via Clickz.com/uk