How to Respond to Customers for Late Delivery: 101 Guide

As an eCommerce merchant, one of the issues you have to combat is keeping track of the shipping schedules and delivery times. According to a survey, more than three-quarters (83%) of shoppers expect regular communication about their orders.

Above all, it’s essential to understand that customers are vital to every business, and you should communicate frequently and effectively with them about delayed orders.

This blog will go over all the best practices for communicating delays to customers and shipping delay message examples so that you can create an optimized post-purchase experience.

How to Respond to Customers for Late Delivery

Communicating shipping delays to your customers is vital to creating an optimal customer experience. We’ll consider the best approaches in this section so that you know what exactly to do.

1. Set clear expectations

One of the best ways to respond to your customers is to set clear and realistic expectations, especially for order delays. Let them be aware of the challenges you might be experiencing with delivery times rather than leaving them in the dark. Overall, being practical and letting your customers know what to expect will help them build their trust and confidence in you.

For example, there is a high possibility of experiencing delays during the holiday season. This example is why you should always set clear and realistic expectations for your customers, especially during peak season.

2. Have clear communication

Nothing keeps a customer's mind at rest than a merchant who proactively communicates with them. You could practice this by sending transactional emails like order confirmation, shipping notifications, and post-purchase messages.

In the case of a shipping delay caused by technical issues, make sure to communicate the shipping delay to your customers with shipping delay emails. This way, your customers know you have their best interests at heart.

3. Follow-up with customers

Since shipping comes with many uncertainties, many issues might be beyond your control. However, customers can become agitated if you don’t keep them informed, and this is why a good customer service team can help your business.

Follow-up frequently with your customers, and let them know necessary shipping information to give them the peace of mind they need. Right from the time their goods leave the warehouse until they receive their goods, a follow-up message will keep your business thriving. Even after receiving their order, you can send a message to know if they are satisfied with their post-purchase experience.

4. Automated messages go a long way

Employing the use of automated messages will save you much stress. It will also make the customer feel cared for with regular communication. In addition, you can set the automated messages in the form of reminders to regularly update customers.

5. Offer coupon codes for future purchases

Small compensation for their stress will go a long way to make your communication more effective. For example, you can offer them coupon codes for future purchases to drive repeat sales.

Related post: 8 Reasons USPS Shipments Are Delayed

Communicating Delays to Customers Examples

In addition to proactive communications, it’s important to know specific examples of transactional emails and how they should look. We’ll consider some instances you can adopt in your business so that you can ace the post-purchase experience.

Email examples

Email marketing is a professional way to communicate shipping delays with your customers. It provides enough space to give your customers detailed information about their orders.

To start with, it’s always vital to send an order confirmation email. Be sure to include critical information such as the price of their goods, order status, shipping fee and taxes, order number, and delivery address.

In the case of a shipping delay, we suggest that you send a transactional email to let your customers know the possible time they will receive their order. Be sure to give the mail a personal and human tone so your customers feel like they aren’t communicating with a robot.

SMS Examples

Unlike the email example, you can use SMS for sending longer messages. In addition, SMS messaging comes in handy for immediate responses. Also, you can leverage the use of URL links to direct them to more detailed information, such as shipping carrier delays.

Overall, SMS allows you to give brief yet precise information to your customers.

Social media examples

Social media is another channel you can communicate delays to your customers, especially if most of your customers come from there.

Here's an example from a customer support team communicating order delays:

In addition, you can make a general post informing all your customers of whatever logistics issue you're combating and how you're working on it.

Communicating Shipping Delays with Easyship

Shipping delays can happen, but following suitable measures can help you get ahead of time while relating with your customers. The best ways to communicate shipping delays are to adopt proactive and transparent communications to help maintain a positive customer relationship.

Easyship understands that some situations can be beyond you, and to help you make headway, you can rely on our services. Some of premium shipping benefits include features like:

• Easyship Shipping Dashboard: Manage all your orders and shipping activity from our shipping dashboard. Import orders, upload CSVs, or sync directly from your eCommerce store
• Easyship Branding Suite: Easyship provides a delivery experience consistent with your brand. Add your logo and advertising materials to your packing slips, landing pages, and tracking emails
• Premium Shipping Insurance: Easyship insures packages up to $10,000 for all domestic and international shipments. This way, you can protect your packages from theft, damage, or loss

Communicating shipping delays and having proactive communications are ways to ace the post-purchase experience. So, make sure you send transactional emails or SMS messages to keep in touch with your customers.

Ready to ship? Sign up for a FREE Easyship account and get instant access to a team of shipping experts prepared to help you with all your domestic and international shipping needs.

Shipping Delays FAQ

What is a delay in shipping?

Delay in shipping means that an unexpected event has occurred in shipping certain goods, and shipments will arrive at their destinations at a later date.

What causes a delay in a shipment?

Common factors that cause delays can range from technical issues, traffic, bad weather, lost packages, among others.

What's an example of common shipping delay messages?

Social media, SMS, and transactional emails are common shipping delay messages you can send to customers.

If you found this blog informative, you may enjoy the following:

• How to Deal with Shipping Delays (and Keep Your Customers Happy)
• The Top 7 Shipping & Logistics Trends for 2022
• What is Lead Time in Shipping?