Supported by parcelLab
Summary
It is an interesting year to publish the IMRG Consumer Home Delivery Review. Inevitably, many of the consumer responses have been influenced by the wider health crisis that turned the world upside down in 2020.
On a basic level, the coronavirus pandemic meant more people were at home to receive deliveries than ever before, while rendering less important some of the convenient fulfilment options that have grown in popularity in recent years. A buzz-phrase of 2020 was “contactless delivery”, as retailers and their carrier networks did their bit to fulfil goods to people’s homes in the safest way possible.
Previous promises about rapid delivery, quick returns turnarounds and up-to-date parcel tracking were impacted by dwindling resources in warehouses and sorting offices across the UK. Consumers had to accept their orders might be delayed, and they were given longer to hold on to unwanted items as shop closures impacted reverse logistics.
This research provides a useful barometer of customer perception, but it is essential to understand that this does not necessarily correlate with actual behaviour. As we all know by now, what a consumer says they are going to do isn’t necessarily how they actually proceed in their actions.