Few online businesses can survive and flourish without the services of a trustworthy, efficient and flexible courier service, like Absolutely Couriers – which are based in London.
But how can an online business source a great courier from day one? The trick is to do some research and ask these key questions:
- Can they get the item delivered on time, every time? What is their attitude towards efficiency, speed and attention to detail? A company that prides itself on reliability won’t ever settle for an “it’ll get there when it gets there” attitude. Additionally, rush orders require rush service, so ask about VIP, express or critical delivery options. These kinds of upgraded features often guarantee pickup within 15 minutes, with the option to then drive straight to the delivery destination, ensuring the fastest possible service.
- Are they professional in attitude and appearance? Although a courier is not one of your employees when they are delivering your products they may be seen as representative of your business. So, how do they present themselves? Do drivers have uniforms, official ID and sign written vehicles? Are they courteous to customers? Have they received any inhouse training on how to comply with industry or company standards? These sorts of questions will assist you in determining whether a courier can be trusted with representing your products.
- Will they accept a range of items? You don’t want to have to use a different courier for different product sizes, so enquire about the range of items that they can accept for delivery. Do they offer bicycles or motorbikes for faster delivery in high traffic inner-city areas? Can they accept a multi-tonne product, and do they have the capabilities to then unload at the delivery destination (i.e. hydraulic tail lift, pallet trolley, etc.)?
- Will they deliver the item in the same condition they received it? No courier is going to confess to a history of damaging products during delivery, so look for companies with positive user reviews. One of the biggest customer complaints will be items damaged in transit, so if this is occurring then you’ll read about it in their reviews. If they’re not sharing customer reviews then ask yourself, why not?
Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash