The Secret to Delivering an Exceptional Shipping Experience

It’s no secret that the trend of increased online spending shows no signs of slowing down. Consumers spent more than $4.28 trillion in e-commerce marketplaces in 2020, up 27% from the prior year. As online shopping and e-commerce continues to grow, so do consumers’ expectations for an excellent customer experience.

For small and medium-sized businesses, every moment counts. And thanks to high customer expectations and $151+ billion¹ in annual sales at stake, it’s not a matter of if SMBs should prioritize great shipping experiences for their customers, but a matter of how.

Consumers have come to expect exceptional customer experiences from retail giants and SMBs alike, with 37% saying they are unlikely to buy from an SMB again if they experience issues in the shipping process. Nearly three quarters of survey respondents (74%) in a recent consumer poll commissioned by UPS Capital reported lost or damaged packages, and 12% reported theft after delivery. Consumers expressed moderate to high levels of frustration with persistent cases of porch piracy (55%), wrong merchandise deliveries (54%), lost packages (52%), damaged packages (49%) and delayed packages (45%).

For large retailers and marketplaces, it’s easier to absorb the cost of reshipping if an order is wrong, lost or damaged. But for SMBs, shipping mishaps can be detrimental to a business. And with 60% of SMBs stating they had to file at least one claim for shipping mishaps in the last year, it’s more important than ever to prioritize great shipping experiences for customers.

But there is a brighter side to shipping. SMBs can delight consumers and make up for potential lost sales by choosing to insure their shipments and protect the shipping experience as a whole. A positive customer experience from purchase to delivery can transform a one-time purchase into a loyal customer, making it more important than ever to deliver a stellar shipping experience.

InsureShield™ shipping insurance by UPS Capital Insurance Agency, Inc. helps level the playing field against retail giants, enabling SMBs to provide timely assistance, expedited reshipments and fast claims payments. Accessible wherever SMBs operate, InsureShield shipping insurance is customizable to fit the needs of a growing enterprise.

With InsureShield coverage, SMBs can:

Don’t wait to deliver exceptional shipping experiences to your customers. Customize your solution today with InsureShield InstaQuote.

¹ Unless otherwise noted, all figures are based on the 2021 Post-Shipment Experience Study, a compilation of two independent surveys conducted by Evalueserve and Dynata in March and April, 2021, respectively, on behalf of UPS Capital Insurance Agency, Inc.

² Figures are based on aggregate insurance claim payment data collected by UPS Capital Insurance Agency, Inc. during the period of four consecutive fiscal quarters ended March 31, 2021. Individual results may vary.

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