The Jason & Scot Show · with Scott Silverman and Ken Cassar · October 4, 2020 · 58 min
Summary
This episode offers a crucial look into the 2020 holiday season's e-commerce and shipping challenges. It highlights how retailers and shippers, already at Cyber Monday capacity, faced unprecedented demand due to increased online shopping spurred by health concerns. The discussion, supported by a CommerceNext survey, provides insights into consumer expectations around shipping delays and free shipping trade-offs, arming e-commerce operators with knowledge to navigate similar peak season complexities.
Key takeaways
Retailers should anticipate and proactively communicate potential shipping delays to manage customer expectations, as many consumers are willing to accept longer delivery times for free shipping.
Leverage alternative fulfillment options like BOPIS (Buy Online, Pick Up In-Store) or curbside pickup to alleviate pressure on traditional shipping carriers and enhance customer experience during peak seasons.
Invest in robust inventory management and demand forecasting systems to optimize stock levels and prevent stockouts or overstocking, especially when facing unpredictable spikes in online orders.
Study consumer behavior data to understand priorities regarding delivery speed vs. cost, informing shipping strategy and promotional offers during critical shopping periods.
Explore innovative technologies and partnerships to enhance supply chain resilience and delivery capabilities, learning from examples like Lowe's to adapt to evolving logistical challenges.
EP238- Holiday Shipageddon This holiday season will be a mixed bag for retailers. Health concerns are likely to drive many more consumers online, but can retailers and shippers, who are already experiencing Cyber-Monday levels of e-commerce handle the increased volume? Scott Silverman (@scottsilverman) of CommerceNext and Ken Cassar (@kcassar) of CassarCo join us to discuss the holiday season, including a CommerceNext survey of 1,000+ consumers, and 60+ digital retail executives to understand how aware they may be of shipping delays, trade-offs they'd be willing to make in order to get free shipping, etc. Jason wrote a related article "Holiday 2020: A Mixed Bag For Retailers" in Forbes this week The twitter thread that kicked off this discussion <a href= "https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/lowes-leverages-innovative-technology-to-
What does this episode say about supply chain & operations?
Retailers should anticipate and proactively communicate potential shipping delays to manage customer expectations, as many consumers are willing to accept longer delivery times for free shipping.
What does this episode say about retail & omnichannel?
Leverage alternative fulfillment options like BOPIS (Buy Online, Pick Up In-Store) or curbside pickup to alleviate pressure on traditional shipping carriers and enhance customer experience during peak seasons.
What does this episode say about customer retention?
Invest in robust inventory management and demand forecasting systems to optimize stock levels and prevent stockouts or overstocking, especially when facing unpredictable spikes in online orders.
What does this episode say about analytics & attribution?
Study consumer behavior data to understand priorities regarding delivery speed vs. cost, informing shipping strategy and promotional offers during critical shopping periods.
What does this episode say about supply chain & operations?
Explore innovative technologies and partnerships to enhance supply chain resilience and delivery capabilities, learning from examples like Lowe's to adapt to evolving logistical challenges.
