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How E-Commerce Sellers Are Facing The ‘Amazon Effect’ Head-on  

The 2018 holiday season has arrived with full steam, and internet sellers are feeling the pressure to deliver – in every facet – during a year of unprecedented growth. With online sales topping $108 billion in 2017, there’s nary an inch of breathing room for sellers hoping to cash in on every penny of revenue potential.

Merchants know that nothing kills the holiday spirit quite like a missed or delayed delivery, meaning reaching Amazon-level logistics solutions is a prime focus for most. Keeping in mind the company spends a reported $21 billion in shipping costs alone per year, fighting the so-called “Amazon Effect” can feel like an intimidating task to smaller and mid-sized enterprises.

Fighting the Amazon Effect: Amazon spends $21B per year on shipping

For retailers focused on parcel-sized deliveries, the typical players can often provide adequate coverage, making way for speedy, affordable shipping using their already-streamlined solutions.

Big Items, Big Challenges Against Amazon

Retailers focused on larger-than-parcel deliveries, however, may feel left out in the cold as they search for a final mile delivery solution that leaves little room for disappointment. For example, furniture and home furnishing sales represent one of the fastest growing segments of e-retail with $115 billion in sales last year, however, buying these items online still involve the typical hurdles of high cost and slow delivery speed.

In fact, nearly half of online buyers of oversized items say high delivery costs would cause them to look elsewhere for the same item.

half of buyers look elsewhere due to high shipping costs

Who can blame them? Tacking on an extra, hefty shipping charge, coming from an unfamiliar source with questionable reliability seems like a painful dose of icing on the cake when you’re already shelling out the cost of significant, large item.

Final Mile Solutions Against Amazon

Ultimately, the solution for large-item shipping for online sellers will come from partnering directly with providers who can provide reliable, full-service solutions that delight customers at every turn.

E-commerce brands simply need to focus on technology and innovation in their logistics stream. While not every seller will be able to reach Amazon-levels of speed and affordability, customers seeking these large items are often willing to wait a little longer and pay a little more when it comes to the items they truly want in their home.

By bringing transparency and insight to the shipper’s end of the transaction, any seller can successfully take on the effect Amazon has had on the shipper psyche overall.

Brands like Wayfair are finding innovative solutions to take on the Amazon Effect, such as a tracking feature that both keeps delivery teams accountable, and eager customers in the loop. While massive yearly shipping budgets can certainly solve many common logistics problems, finding the right platforms and providers is a more efficient, realistic fix for most.

The uShip Fix Against Amazon

Staying in your customers’ good graces doesn’t have to mean outspending or outsmarting Amazon.

Our solution provides in-home, fixed-rate, white-glove delivery solutions via our nationwide network of feedback-rated carriers, for large items, with low, predictable pricing that includes insurance. With reduced delivery costs and shorter transit times, our network of providers helps large-item e-commerce sellers to improve online sales while turning more shoppers into buyers.

Our e-commerce partners also enjoy the ease of a single point of contact within uShip, giving them an easily-accessible human to help keep things moving smoothly every step of the way.
Fighting the Amazon Effect with the uShip solution

With no end in sight for the red-hot online furniture market, sellers can’t afford to miss out on the customer satisfaction that comes with fast, reliable delivery that keeps customers updated every step of the way, and even generates revenue from logistics operations.

Happy customers, affordable shipping, reliable carriers. It all adds up to one happy holiday season for all and a whole lot of continued customer loyalty.

 

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