Dec 18, 2023

Modern customer expectations are a product of unprecedented supply chain challenges and ongoing technological advancements within the past decade. It seems that with every passing year, shipping timeframes grow shorter. At the same time, labor pools grow and shrink within different parts of the supply chain all at once. Resources such as manufacturing materials, fuel, and even technology tools have all been subject to shortages in the last three years alone, impacting fulfillment rates and product availability. Despite all these challenges, supply chains remain committed to maximizing customer satisfaction. In this last year, we have witnessed the rise of many adaptable solutions and technologies aimed at improving customer engagement, such as:

• Direct-to-customer shipping
• Real-time order tracking
• Transparent traceability with temperature sensors for food distribution
• Accelerated product movement with robotics
• Artificial intelligence to predict purchase patterns

The list can go on and on as solution providers engineer ground-breaking systems to navigate challenges. However, as technology matures, customer expectations evolve. For example, automated data capture has helped speed up order picking, enabling warehouses to fulfill orders within a few hours. As a result, same-day shipping has become a differentiator among brands. With 99% of stores intending to offer same-day shipping by 2025, it is safe to say new demands will emerge as companies strive to stand out from each other. Keeping this in mind, let’s dive into the anticipated customer expectations for 2024.

What Do 2024’s Customers Want?

1. Personalized Service - Customers are searching for experiences tailored to their individual needs and preferences. Supply chains must be flexible in meeting these demands, prioritizing accurate stock counts and communication within omnichannel fulfillment to meet expectations. Now more than ever is the time to migrate away from pen-and-paper tracking since these rarely support personalization efforts as they cannot accommodate real-time visibility and maximized accuracy.
2. Product Transparency – In today’s globalized world, consumers want to know where their products come from. Government entities further support this trend by instituting tracking regulations to verify a product’s quality and safety. As a result, manufacturers and distributors may be expected to note a product’s place or origin, storage environment, temperature, composition, and time spent in transit.
3. Lightning-Fast Shipping – As mentioned before, demand for faster shipping is continuously increasing. In addition to same-day shipping, companies are also offering delivery within hours or directly to the customer’s address. Studies indicate that 54% of omnichannel consumers revisit brands with clear delivery expectations, requiring distribution centers to be both fast and accurate.
4. Reliable Security for Their Data – The cyberworld is full of new possibilities and dangers, and consumers are well aware of this. It is estimated that 81% of consumers will avoid brands after one data breach. At the same time, over 2,000 cyberattacks happen per day. Consequently, supply chains must secure data transactions and communication channels to prevent accidental leaks and attacks.

Related: Discover four ways you can maximize data security in the warehouse.

5. Free Returns – Consumers return up to $761 billion worth of products each year. At the same time, 81% of consumers expect free returns and may abandon a purchase if they cannot do so. Businesses must find a way to lower correctional costs and prevent returns in order to protect profitability.
6. Commitment to Sustainability – It is no surprise that more consumers and businesses expect supply chains to be environmentally friendly and sustainable. This means that businesses will need to reduce their carbon footprint, use recycled materials, and implement green practices such as reducing e-waste production and choosing efficient energy consumption. Sustainable practices may also help reduce operational costs by eliminating wasteful workflows and freeing budgets to implement customer-centric solutions.
7. Knowledgeable Customer Service – Between product availability and shipment timelines, consumers expect your teams to know everything and anything about their orders at any given time. A positive customer service experience boosts loyalty. On the other hand, 60% of consumers disregard a brand after one negative experience.

Related: See why customer service is crucial for effective order fulfillment.

8. Home Delivery for In-Store Purchases – One emerging customer experience trend is the demand for direct-to-customer shipping from in-store purchases. This requires unbroken communication between a store’s POS system and the warehouse to coordinate order delivery based on captured data. Advanced connectivity systems prevent cart abandonment and increase customer loyalty.

Top Strategies to Help Boost Customer Engagement

Supply chains are under increasing pressure to provide a seamless customer experience while remaining efficient and cost-effective. Fortunately, new technologies and tools can help warehouses meet these challenges and boost customer engagement. A few methods include:

• Developing micro-fulfillment centers – Last-mile expenses have continued to compound as fuel prices increase. Therefore, companies are now reconverting retail spaces into warehouses and distribution centers in urban areas to cut down transportation costs and accelerate delivery.
• Implementing RFID visibility – Real-time data systems will become indispensable in the coming year to connect teams and customers with accurate stock counts and delivery timeframes. By using RFID tags on products and equipment, warehouses can improve inventory accuracy, reduce errors, and speed up order fulfillment, accelerating fulfillment, which enhances the customer experience.
• Deploying a distributed order management (DOM) system – Order management systems have already earned their place in the modern supply chain by providing insight into the fulfillment process from the moment an order is submitted. DOM systems go a step further by empowering teams to distribute orders across multiple warehouses to select centers closer to customers, reducing shipping costs and speeding up fulfillment.
• Tailoring your network to preserve unbroken data sharing – Management software requires reliable networking to properly diffuse data across parties. Therefore, it is highly beneficial for modernizing businesses to optimize their network infrastructure to include new, adaptable channels and eliminate slower signals. An agile network will also be vital for communication outside of the four walls.
• Modernizing picking with hands-free and voice technologies - Voice-picking technology uses spoken commands to guide warehouse workers through the order-picking process. When coupled with hands-free data capture, voice-enabled systems can save about 2-3 seconds per pick while improving accuracy rates for fewer returns.

Customer experience trends are a prime example of how supply chain challenges set a foundation for new opportunities. Decision-makers know to anticipate new consumer expectations along with the ones discussed today. That’s why proactive optimization is one of the most efficient ways to meet consumer expectations without disrupting productivity. Reach out to our automation team to learn how you can enhance your operations with technology systems that set you a step ahead of demands.