Logistics
This year’s winner of the competition between sectors is a bit surprising, with the Logistics sector taking home the win thanks to its own improvements but also due to the competition losing points. The biggest changes (for the better) can be seen in personalization, where the sector dominated. And rightly so, judging from all the customer reviews praising the flexibility of available delivery options. Mobile apps to personalize delivery are now seen as a matter of fact, and the only thing that seems to be standing in the way of even more stellar reviews is how different delivery men and women treat their jobs and the customers. And although the loyalty metric did drop a smidge, the sector managed to maintain a second-best NPS.
From a courier to a locker
The COVID-19 pandemic really tested the sector and started a trend of contactless delivery and an ever-growing network of self-service pick-up and drop-off lockers – something that affects customer reviews quite strongly now. A good example is Zásilkovna, the sector’s top-rated company, praised by customers for its dense network of pick-up points, self-service lockers included. The company also improved its value metric this year – thanks to a balanced ratio between price and delivery speed and quality.
PPL has achieved great improvement across all sectors including personalization, with customers praising friendly and helpful delivery drivers and the option to use self-service lockers. DPD, another delivery company, received similar praise from the customers. Contactless delivery proved a welcome change that ushered in a new level of flexibility and helped reduce the number of negative reviews caused by the “human aspect”. Companies also have Alza to thank for these improved scores since it was the e-commerce giant that helped expand delivery options with its own AlzaBoxes.
An app as a given?
What surprised us in reviews of Zásilkovna and other delivery companies was the lack of focus on mobile apps that allow customers to easily send and receive parcels – they were mentioned very scarcely or not at all by our respondents. However, customers also receive information on their parcels via email and SMS notifications, so there are two possible reasons for apps being mentioned rarely: customers now take them for granted and they are so good that nobody feels the need to comment on them, or customers automatically pick a communication channel that suits them most, so how they receive parcel information is not really that important.
Apps also allow customers to personalize delivery by changing the time, date, and address, or having it delivered to a pick-up point instead. And in case you happen to be out when the driver comes knocking, they will often leave your parcel at the nearest pick-up point – an approach that could help reduce the number of negative reviews caused by overly long or vague delivery slots that were sometimes mentioned.
Top three (scale 0–10)
“I’ve always had good experiences with the company. Just now they helped me with a package issue. And I love that you can use Z-boxes to send parcels too! Plus, they seem to be spreading more and more, at least from what I can see.”
Woman, age 31, Zásilkovna
„DPD has one of the fastest delivery options, their drivers are nice and friendly, always ready to help you carry the package without you having to ask.”
Woman, age 32, DPD
“PPL is a reliable delivery company; I never had a single issue with them, and I am happy that now there’s also an option to pick up my parcel at a pick-up point in case I’m not home when the driver arrives.”
Woman, age 35, PPL
Smart solutions
Delivery speed is the key factor of customer satisfaction in the logistics sector. Customers like to track their parcel’s location, and they want to know when they can expect it to arrive. Keeping them perfectly informed every step of the way and meeting their expectations (which have become very high) can be optimized with the use of AI.
Timeliness and the best quality
If you read customer comments about the sector’s winners, you will often see mentions of delivery speed and clear information on parcel status – so planning routes and predicting possible complications is absolutely key for delivery companies. And that’s where AI could be of use, suggesting better routes, factoring in possible emergencies and unexpected situations, and reacting to these quickly – for instance, in case of a sudden change in traffic conditions or a delivery change request coming in from the customer. In short, AI could increase the probability of the parcel arriving at the indicated time and allow companies to plan for even smaller delivery slots.
Logistics
