Five Red Flags to Avoid When Choosing a Final Mile Home Delivery Partner

Customer experience in the final mile has become a critical focus for companies looking to create a competitive advantage. As the final brand touchpoint in the customer journey, exceptional delivery experiences can either bring customers back for future purchases or cause them to abandon the brand altogether. In fact, 90 percent of customers are more likely to purchase from a brand again after a positive delivery experience, but 32 percent will stop doing business — even with a brand they love — after a single negative experience.

With customer expectations for positive brand interactions being so high, companies can’t afford to fail in the final mile. That’s why it’s critical to make sure final mile home delivery partners operate as extensions of the brand, treating customers as if they were their own. In the end, choosing the wrong partner can ultimately cost companies much more than money; it can cost customer loyalty.

Many partners will offer the same services, but few truly excel at every aspect of the process. After all, capability does not equal competency, and just because a company claims they can perform a certain service doesn’t mean they can do it well. Before signing on the dotted line with a final mile home delivery partner, look for these five red flags to help ensure positive delivery experiences and set your brand up for success in the final mile.

Five Red Flags to Avoid

1. Lack of visibility and real-time tracking. Visibility is a critical component of the entire supply chain, including the final mile. For companies, it helps to establish accountability and provide peace of mind that plans are being carried out as expected. For end consumers, it creates anticipation and transparency while serving as a way to alert them of any potential issues. If a partner is not able to provide visibility into the final mile for the company and/or customer, it may be a sign of deeper concerns. With the technology available today, visibility should be considered table stakes — not a bonus.
    
2. Poor communication and customer support. Potential partners should have plans in place for how they communicate to all stakeholders, including when processes are flowing as expected and when issues arise. While supply chains will always be prone to some level of disruption, being proactive in communicating when issues arise can go a long way in helping to create a resolution. If companies provide inconsistent updates, have long response times and lack customer-facing communications, these can be major warning signs that they will likely not deliver exceptional experiences.
    
3. Inflexible service models. One size doesn’t fit all when it comes to supply chains, and a potential partner that tries to force-fit a company’s needs into an existing model will likely not have the flexibility needed to grow and scale with the needs of the business. If the company has limited delivery windows, lacks value-added services to enhance the experience and doesn’t have processes in place to handle surges in demand, they will likely fail when it comes to meeting customer expectations.
    
4. Poor performance metrics. Companies should approach potential partners with established KPIs for evaluating performance. The right partner should be able to show proof of historical success and methods for measuring important KPIs, including on-time delivery rates, damage claims, Net Promoter Score (NPS) and first attempt success rate. A partner that lacks reporting and transparency or only measures data that doesn’t align with your benchmarks is likely not the right fit.
    
5. Weak brand alignment and customer experience standards. Red flags like unprofessional appearance/attire, inconsistent customer interactions, lack of training and inexperience should all be taken seriously. Delivery drivers represent the brand and should operate as an extension of it. Verifying that a potential partner provides driver and delivery training, offers branded customer communications and handles customer care and support can help to ensure that every doorstep moment creates a positive brand impression.

Your Executive Guide to Finding the Right Partner

While these five red flags can help in the process of finding the right final mile home delivery partner, there are numerous areas that companies should evaluate to make sure they identify the right fit. To help companies in the decision-making process, NXTPoint Logistics has created a Final Mile Home Delivery Executive Guide that highlights the key areas to consider, as well as the essential questions to ask when evaluating potential partners to ensure they can offer the skills, experience and service levels required to meet your company’s needs while creating exceptional customer experiences.

Whether you are assessing the performance of your current final mile home delivery partner or seeking a new one, this guide is a great first step in helping companies find the right fit.

If your company is evaluating final mile home delivery partners, our experts at NXTPoint Logistics would love to connect to discuss how we work to create exceptional experiences with every delivery. Click here to consult our experts.