Are you a sucker for quick deliveries?
The speed at which products you've ordered online are delivered is getting faster and faster. From Amazon's next day to some companies even delivering items on the same day you ordered them, the days of waiting weeks for your face cream or new vacuum are far from over!
But, that isn't necessarily a good thing. The word of speedy deliveries is darker than you might think, and what you're about to learn could change your whole mindset on the likes of Amazon Prime.
To help you learn more, here's the scoop.
The Demand on Retailers
Let's start right at the beginning. The problems begin with certain retailers offering super-fast shipping services, including 48-hour, next day, and even same-day delivery. As more and more large retailers offer these kinds of delivery services, consumers begin to expect them.
Nowadays, it can be hard for people to want to wait for more than a couple of days for their deliveries. Remember when your delivery wouldn't arrive until 2 weeks after you ordered it? Nowadays you might not even bother.
Retailers are becoming incredibly competitive over their shipping times. They want to bring your products to you quicker than anyone else, and the problem is that consumers are falling for it, so more retailers are pressured to speed up their deliveries, creating a vicious cycle.
But none of this sounds like a nightmare, right? Well, it's about to become one. Here's why your speedy delivery isn't as great as you might think.
Large Retailers Are Monopilising the Industry
Large retailers are the companies with the means to offer super fast delivery without asking customers to pay the costs. To deliver so quickly and cheaply, a retailer needs some pretty advanced technology and organized infrastructure, which just isn't available for everyone. But, as large brands offer faster and faster deliveries, the demand from consumers increases.
This means that those smaller brands are pushed to offer the same, but in reality, that just isn't possible. They'd be stretched beyond their means and don't have the supply chain necessary for it to be realistic. So, small businesses are losing out.
Encourages Smaller Deliveries More Frequently
Super fast delivery makes it much easier for customers to order just a few things at a time. When deliveries would take a week or two, it was a much better idea to order everything you need for the future in one go. Now you just order it as you need to.
But when it comes to the environment, that's a bit of a disaster. When you consider that the freight vehicles that deliver your goods account for one-quarter of all CO2 emissions produced by transport, it's not hard to see why quick deliveries become bad!
If quick delivery is encouraging more regular online purchases, it's likely that the emissions from transport are going to increase over time. If you want to take care of the planet, that definitely isn't the way to do it.
Poorer Working Conditions
When it comes to superfast delivery and shipping, there are corners that have to be cut to make it work. One such corner is working conditions.
Large retailers offering next-day and same-day deliveries have come under fire for the way their delivery workers are treated. With the incentive of delivering as many packages as possible in the least amount of time comes to a lot of problems! Delivery drivers have been found to skip lunch and toilet breaks and drive unsafely to get your packages to your door on time.
The speed in which the parcels are being delivered just isn't sustainable at the moment. But, there are ways it can be improved.
How to Stop the Problem of Quick Deliveries
When there's a problem, there's nearly always a solution, and it doesn't change with shipping! There are ways that this problem can be solved and by learning them, you can help smaller businesses and stop the problems of fast delivery.
Here are just a few delivery tips that could make a difference:
Decoupling
By decoupling delivery and shipping, customers' expectations can be managed across industries. This could involve creative solutions such as offering a virtual product before they receive the physical version, as you can read here.
Order More at Once
As a consumer, you can decrease the number of orders you're making every week, month, or year by planning ahead. When shopping, think of not only what you need now but also what you'll need in the future and order it together. This will cut down on the number of deliveries to your home and help reduce the number of delivery vehicles on the road.
Factor in the Cost
When shopping at smaller businesses, factor the cost of delivery into your order. Expect to pay it rather than expecting not to and you'll find it much easier too! If you don't factor in the cost of delivery, it can be very tempting to opt for cheaper, super-fast delivery from a large corporation.
Shop Smart and Save the World
Whilst quick deliveries are definitely appealing, it's not hard to see that the cost is too high to validate it. From the environmental impact to the way it's damaging small businesses, super fast deliveries just aren't sustainable.
If you enjoyed this article, be sure to take a look at more on our website! We write across a range of topics, including health, beauty, and business, as well as our much-loved product lists.
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