A new consumer survey indicates that shoppers place a high value on same-day delivery, with 54% saying they would be willing to pay for such a service. Shopper enthusiasm for same-day delivery offers an opportunity to retailers not named Amazon: 78% of consumers would be more likely to order household items from local merchants offering a same-day delivery option. These retailers can sweeten the deal with accurate Estimated Time of Arrival (ETA) communications: nearly half (49%) of consumers rated these updates as extremely important, with 44% saying they are somewhat important.
The survey, conducted in September 2019 by Onfleet, asked more than 1,000 consumers aged 18 to 65 about how the “Amazon effect” had impacted their shopping preferences. Less than 1% of respondents said they had never shopped at Amazon, with 62% saying they shopped there often. The survey revealed Amazon’s ability to raise consumer expectations for all retailers: 39% of shoppers said they expect local companies to be able to deliver household items the same day.
Same-day delivery can be an effective competitive weapon, according to Khaled Naim, CEO and Co-Founder of Onfleet. “Even when faced with something that seems insurmountable, like Amazon Prime Now, these results show that local brick-and-mortar retailers can still draw consumers away from Amazon if they can offer a well-executed same-day delivery service,” said Naim in an interview with Retail TouchPoints.
To be effective, local retailers need not only to offer an ETA message but to ensure its accuracy. Asked about local deliveries including groceries and restaurant takeout, 43% of consumers said they always received an ETA message, with 48% receiving them sometimes. However, only 18% said these messages were very accurate, with 72% rating them as somewhat accurate. More than three quarters (78%) of consumers said they would be more likely to order from a local restaurant or store if the merchant always provided accurate ETA and delivery updates.