Sustainable Parcel Delivery: Quick Tips for Ecommerce

In a study by the World Economic Forum, over 50% of online shoppers cite concerns about the environmental impact of eCommerce. What’s more 38% are willing to help address the problem by paying more for low emission deliveries. Sustainable parcel delivery is fast catching consumer’s attention. But how do eCommerce businesses tap into this growing sentiment without the risk of losing their customers to competitors?

Adding a premium on parcel deliveries sounds excellent in practice, but few customers have the willpower to resist free delivery offers.

Read on to learn how eCommerce stores can tackle sustainability within their parcel delivery process without compromising business performance.

Delivery Tech

With the same-day delivery services market projected to grow by over 20% each year. Even the largest shippers have lost the power to slow down the demand for faster delivery.

Delivery technology like SmartConsign are designed to address the challenges of shrinking delivery times. From aiding order processing to multi-carrier management – these systems are essential to modern eCommerce shipping management.

They can also help businesses tackle sustainability by providing rich data to inform decisions throughout every stage of the parcel’s journey. For example, DHL, one of several carriers integrated on the SmartConsign platform, offers a ‘Green Plan. The solution calculates the most efficient route using delivery patterns and travel times.

The trick is having access to these carrier solutions from a single touch-point. Parcel delivery software enables this process effortlessly. Shippers load all their carriers onto the system, set rules and automatically process labels without accessing individual accounts. 

SmartConsign Multi-Carrier Management Dashboard

For unbiased shipping rates, sign up for a carrier-agnostic solution. Carriers on these systems do not pay a fee, so their rates are neutral. Overall helping to take eCommerce and suppliers within the order processing journey a step further in realising sustainable parcel delivery goals.

Use Packages That Are the Right Size

A lot of waste comes from using excessive packages to ship products. Amazon is often exposed for its packaging failures and in most part, they can withstand the criticism. But for most eCommerce businesses that level of consumer ridicule can cause serious damage to the brand’s reputation.‘Egregious Packaging‘ is a Reddit thread populated with consumers’ packaging fails.

Source: Reddit

Paying attention to packaging choices and using fewer plastics can help businesses reduce their environmental impact. As well as minimising waste, lighter delivery vehicles can be used and thereby help reduce carbon emissions. 

Bonus Shipping Packaging Tips

  • Using the same packaging twice helps reduce waste and is often more convenient for the consumer. Double-sealed mailers or zip-locked bags are hassle-free solutions, especially when the product needs to be returned.
  • Replace the plastic with paper-based packaging, which is recyclable and cost-effective. In the Paper and Packaging board study, 63% of people surveyed perceive a brand that uses paper packaging to be higher quality. When choosing paper-packaging solutions look for FSC-certified packaging products. 
  • Consider using biodegradable materials made from corn starch and sugarcane for single-use packaging.
  • Explore alternative protective packaging solutions such as those made from mushroom fibre. They are more sustainable than styrofoam.

Apply the Most Effective Tips for Sustainability Shipping

We hope we have piqued your interest in how your parcel deliveries can become more sustainable. As consumer sentiments towards sustainability continue to evolve making small changes now can make a world of difference.

To learn more about new shipping trends and sustainable practices, feel free to reach out and talk to our shipping experts. Email: sales@smartconsign.io

How to Choose the Best Shipping Software

The global logistics industry is predicted to be worth $12 bn by 2027. With so much stock moving between retailers and customers, you need to be sure your shipping is working well.

Choosing the right shipping software is one way to help managed costs and your logistics. But with different options available, how do you choose the right software for your business?

Read on to learn what questions to ask when choosing shipping logistics software.

Does the Shipping Software Do the Basics Well?

At its most basic, logistics software needs to improve your productivity and efficiency. It’s designed to save money and keep your customers satisfied.

It’ll perform plenty of functions, such as warehouse functions like picking, and even transportation.

So ask yourself these questions when you’re looking at software.

Don’t be afraid to look at a package of solutions, rather than a single model you use for every client.

Can It Provide Analytics of Data?

More data passing through electronic systems give better opportunities to analyse such information. Having software that uses analytic tools gives you better insights through regular reports.

It’s all part of the ‘Big Data’ revolution. 90% of the world’s data was generated in the last two years.

Your software can harness the power of Big Data to help you grow your business. The software can spot patterns faster than human operators. So your reports might start providing solutions to problems instead of just highlighting the issue.

These recommendations can help your business make better, and faster, decisions about the entire business process.

Does It Offer Integration?

You can choose between plenty of stand-alone software solutions. But because of the moving parts involved with shipping logistics, you may need more.

You’ll need either one suite that covers all functions. Or you’ll need a series of stand-alone solutions that integrate. Alternatively, you’ll need your solution to integrate with those of your partners.

The software needs to extract data from the process in order to make decisions. Maybe it needs to change the warehouse dispatches to keep stock levels up. Or it might slow down to build stock levels / speed up to reduce stock?

Will This Software Address Pain Points?

Introducing new software can introduce its own problems. You don’t want to cause issues if it’s not necessary.

So you need to be sure that you know exactly what problems the software is going to solve. By evaluating where your current pain points are, you’ll be better able to choose the right solution for you.

If you’re looking for the cheapest way to ship, you need software that excels at that. But if stock management is more of an issue, that’s where your new software needs to place its focus.

Now You Can Choose the Best Shipping Logistics Software

The world of shipping logistics doesn’t need to produce headaches. By evaluating exactly what problems you need to solve, you can find the right software for you.

If you’re looking for a partner to help solve your shipping problems, then why not get in touch? We can discuss how to get you moving today.

SmartConsign integrates with all major carriers and sales platforms: