Fetchify by ClearCourse logo

6 ways to make your last mile delivery more sustainable

The last two years have bought many changes to our lives and the world of ecommerce, it is unsurprising that the number of home deliveries have increased and are expected to continue to rise over the coming years.


However, at the same time, there in an increased awareness of environmental factors and a drive towards increasing sustainability across the ecommerce and logistics industries. There is no quick fix that will take your business to net zero, every step of the process needs individual attention and optimisation. Here we’ll have a look at five changes you can implement to optimise your logistics chain, for more sustainable last mile delivery.


1. Route optimisation


A longer route means more miles which means more fuel and more time spent on the road. More efficient route planning, for the best delivery routes between the warehouse and all drop off points can provide significant savings in mileage. This will not only save time and money, but also have an impact on the carbon footprint of deliveries, helping work towards a greener overall logistics chain. Solutions like Fetchify’s GeoCoding provide latitude and longitude coordinates for each customer address which allows couriers to calculate the shortest route between all points. As well as saving the company time and money, optimised delivery routes also reduce overall congestion contributing to wider sustainability in urban areas.


2. Reconsider your packaging


The obvious thought is of course to switch to recycled or recyclable packaging, but that relates to the sustainability of your business as a whole and is a subject for another blog. When thinking specifically about your last mile delivery, there is another aspect of packaging to consider: space-efficiency.


With the race for ever-faster delivery, one-size-fits-most packaging may seem the most time-efficient solution, but every time a single item is shipped in a delivery box that could also fit a three piece set, that is dead space in the van which could be carrying more individual orders and increasing the efficiency and therefore the sustainability of the whole journey. Achieving most sustainable last mile deliveries is achieved by adjusting and tweaking at every stage of the process.


3. Parcel Lockers


One of the biggest reasons for failed deliveries is customer absence. We’ve all come home and groaned to find that “sorry you were out” note. Missed deliveries are not only extremely frustrating, they are also a waste of time and fuel for the delivery company. One solution to the problem is to use parcel lockers. These are usually situated in busy, central areas such as train stations or shopping malls and most are accessible 24/7. Customers can pick up their parcel as part of a larger trip to buy groceries or on their commute, increasing fuel efficiency of the entire delivery even further with less mileage required by that one package.


4. Real-time tracking


Lockers aren’t the only answer to the absent customers issue. Just because your customer has ordered something online doesn’t mean they have time to wait by the door all day till it arrives. Often delivery windows are several hours long or even “anytime between 9am-5pm”. Some tracking systems allow the customer to let the driver know up to the last hour whether they will be home or not which saves a failed delivery if something unexpected were to come up. But before you can make sure your clients are receiving the most accurate delivery updates, you need to make sure you are collecting accurate contact details from them at checkout, up-to-the-minute messages that are going to an incorrect phone number or email are not going to help optimise the delivery. Fetchify’s phone validation and email validation solutions plug quickly and easily into your checkout ensuring your capture only accurate and validated contact details every time.


5. Low emission delivery vehicles


Possibly the most obvious problem with last mile deliveries is the sheer number of vehicles on the road at any one moment, bringing goods to people’s homes.


According to a government survey* there were 4.1million licensed vans on the roads between 2019-2020 which racked up 5.5billion miles. 85% of that mileage was for commercial purposes.


The same study stated that only 10,400 of those vehicles were ultra-low emission vans (ULEV).


As an industry, there is still a long way to go in increasing sustainability. Route optimisation as stated above, can help reduce mileage, but switching your fleet to ULEVs or using a carrier that employs only ULEVs, will make a huge difference to the carbon footprint of your last-mile delivery.


6. Address validation


You can finesse every part of your delivery process, from warehouse to the front door, but if you captured the wrong address at checkout, even a perfectly optimised route won’t get the delivery to the right place. It is important to get in the foundations to build the rest of your sustainability plan on top of. In the case of greener last-mile logistics, your foundation has to be accurate and validated customer data.


Fetchify’s type-ahead address search and validation tool, Address Auto-Complete, provides the customer with suggestions as they type and correctly auto-fills the checkout form when they click on the right address suggestion. This not only speeds your customers through the checkout process, reducing abandoned carts, it also ensures you capture 100% accurate address data so you can get your deliveries to the right place, every time.

About Fetchify


Fetchify’s address lookup and data validation platforms cover more than 250 countries, and increases customer conversion with the fastest, most accurate customer data capture. Fetchify’s flagship products – Address Auto Complete and Postcode Lookup – reduce friction at the checkout, and also significantly increase the number of successful deliveries. Founded in 2008, Fetchify processes millions of data transactions every day for clients ranging from startups to established high-street names, and offers a full suite of data validation tools, including phone, email and bank, too.

22 Apr, 2024
Mobile continues to play an increasingly important part in eCommerce success. According to Statista forecasts, retail sales from mobile eCommerce (mCommerce) in the UK are expected to exceed £100 billion by 2025, aligning with the widespread use of mobile devices. Customers use their mobiles to investigate purchasing decisions before making purchases in-store or on a desktop, in addition to completing the entire buying journey on their mobile devices. In 2023, nearly all individuals aged 16 to 54 in the UK owned a smartphone, and mobile appears to be the preferred channel for online shopping in the country. Customers’ comfort with mobile buying is ever-increasing, and as a result, the industry cannot disregard mobile’s importance in the eCommerce market when it comes to the design and user experience of their websites. Integrating data verification software, such as address verification , can also help create the experiences that keep customers coming back. Mobile sites vs responsive sites You’ve probably seen the “m.website.com” domain before; it denotes a separate mobile website. That means the mobile version of your site is hosted on a different domain from the desktop version. Mobile websites are distinct from the desktop version of your website since they are developed exclusively for mobile devices. Responsive sites are much more inclusive for the modern-day user. Responsive websites can detect the type of device a visitor is using and automatically alter the layout of the content to fit the user’s screen size. Separate mobile sites can be more difficult to manage than responsive sites. Any updates to a single URL in responsive sites are made to that site rather than having to go in and update two distinct sites. Most crucially, a responsive site’s functionality and content are consistent across all versions. There will be no more debates over which features are best for desktop and which are best for mobile. The look and feel of the site will be consistent across the board. If the website is consistent for mobile users, they’ll be able to access all products and services wherever they are, which in turn makes your business completely accessible. Additionally, implementing address lookup software can enhance the user experience you deliver to your customers. Tips to make your website more mobile-friendly Website speed According to research, 53% of customers will abandon a mobile site that takes longer than 3 seconds to load. You can do a few things to discourage the majority of those visitors from abandoning your site due to latency. Above-the-fold components can be served while elements farther down the page are loaded in the background. This is known as lazy loading, and it’s a frequent method for hiding the true loading time. However, when it comes to using lazy loading to hide latency, be mindful. Google warns that if you use lazy loading on your mobile site incorrectly, it may prohibit Google from crawling your content. So make sure you do your homework and get it right. You can also serve smaller-sized images for mobile pages. Techniques such as srcset (which defines a set of images for the browser to choose between, and what size each image is) make it possible to display larger images on desktops while serving smaller versions of the same images on mobile devices. Because you’re offering a smaller total page, you can use this to your advantage to reduce the loading time on mobile devices. Moreover, integrating address lookup software can streamline the user experience by reducing keystrokes by 90%. Minimise forms and make use of address verification The more effort required to complete a form, the less likely users are to complete it. That’s why the first guideline of form design is to make it as short as possible and eliminate all non-essential fields. An address lookup software can make the mobile checkout process so much quicker and easier. Instead of filling in up to 6 individual fields, the customer just begins typing their address (from any point, whether they start with the town or the street number doesn’t matter) and the type-ahead address verification makes suggestions from the first character. Once the correct address has been located using the address finder software, the customer simply needs to select it, and the entire address form will be automatically populated with validated information. Optional fields Consider whether you truly need to add optional fields in your form. Determine what data you truly require rather than what you want. In a perfect world, your form would have no optional fields. By minimizing the information required from customers, especially with the aid of address finder software, you not only enhance their experience by expediting the process but also increase the likelihood of their return. Optimise your mobile eCommerce with address lookup After browsing the above knowledge to optimise your mobile experience, you should consider the many benefits of an address verification or postcode lookup software. The main benefit of using a mobile device is that it’s already right in front of you, whether you’re at home or on the commute to work. Giving customers the ability to enter their full, correct, validated address with just a few keystrokes is the perfect finish to the convenient ease of a mobile commerce experience. It is the quick-fire tool your business needs to increase conversion rates and decrease cart abandonment. And of course, another financial gain your business will receive as a result of an address finder API is a reduction in failed deliveries as the human error of entering the incorrect address will be eliminated.  Make payment methods easy Payments can be problematic for mobile users because large number sequences, such as those required for a credit card, are typically challenging to type. Instead, you may invite visitors to create an account on your website, where you can store their credit card information. Although be sure to also offer guest checkout, to avoid deterring customers who just want to get on with the transaction as quickly as possible. You may also make use of mobile payment methods like PayPal, Google Wallet, or Apple Play for customers. Offering wallets not only makes the UX smoother and simpler on mobile devices, but it also increases customers’ trust in your website, an important factor in mobile commerce. Integrating an address finder software into your checkout process can further enhance user experience by automatically suggesting accurate address options in real-time, preventing typos, missing characters and abbreviation. The Fetchify difference We process millions of data transactions weekly for thousands of clients, from small e-commerce start-ups to large household brands such as LG, Heinz and RBS. Our flagship products, Address Lookup and UK Postcode Lookup , reduce friction on checkouts, leading to increases in conversion rates, and help reduce failed deliveries and customer frustration. We are proud to offer fit-for-purpose plug-and-play integrations with most leading business software platforms. We enjoy global coverage in over 250 countries, with businesses from various industries benefiting from our address finder offering. If you’re looking to boost conversion rates, eliminate failed deliveries, minimise human errors, and provide a seamless experience for customers on your platform, then look no further than the experts in customer data validation and address verification solutions – Fetchify. The best part is you can try out our 14-day Free Trial before committing to our services. Our excellent technical and customer support team is on hand to answer your burning questions. Make sure to Get in Touch and experience the Fetchify difference – like thousands of e-commerce businesses around the globe.
15 Apr, 2024
Have your customers ever ordered something online and eagerly awaited its arrival, only to discover it was lost or delivered to the wrong address? It can be frustrating and time-consuming to deal with failed deliveries, and it's an issue that affects both customers and businesses. In fact, Citizens Advice recently reported that over 13 million people faced a delivery problem with the last parcel they received. But what if we told you that many of these issues could be prevented simply by using an address lookup software at checkout? It's true – if someone inputs the correct address at checkout, there will be fewer delivery failures. This is because delivery companies rely on accurate address information to deliver packages to the correct location. When a package is delivered to the wrong address, it not only causes frustration for the customer but also results in a loss for your business. That's where address lookup and data validation products come in. Another report by Channel X revealed that 12% of UK residents experience missing parcels, and a third of UK residents reported concerns about sending or receiving parcels due to loss or theft. By using a reliable postcode lookup and data validation service like Fetchify, you can minimise these risks and provide your customers with a better experience. Why entering the correct address at checkout is crucial Entering the correct address at checkout is crucial to ensuring a smooth delivery process. When a customer inputs an incorrect or incomplete address, it can lead to a range of problems that can cause delivery failure. For example, if a customer accidentally inputs the wrong postal code or street name, the courier may not be able to find the correct address and may end up delivering the package to the wrong location. Additionally, incomplete addresses can also cause problems. If a customer forgets to input their apartment or unit number, the courier may not be able to deliver the package to the correct recipient. Incomplete addresses can also lead to packages being returned to the sender if the courier is unable to deliver the package to the intended recipient. However, with the integration of address finder software at checkout, many of these issues could be prevented simply by ensuring accurate address input. Delivery failures caused by incorrect or incomplete addresses can lead to a range of negative consequences. The package may be delayed or lost, which can result in frustration and dissatisfaction for the customer. It can also result in additional costs for the merchant or courier, who may need to resend the package or refund the customer. Ultimately, delivery failures can damage your reputation and result in lost business. Ensuring that customers enter accurate and complete addresses at checkout is essential for reducing delivery failures. Address lookup and data validation software play a pivotal role in this process. By integrating these products into the checkout process, you can automatically validate and correct customer addresses in real-time, ensuring that the correct information is captured and reduce the risk of delivery failures. Merchants can leverage postcode lookup and data validation products to ensure accurate and complete address information is captured during the checkout process, reducing the risk of delivery failure and improving customer satisfaction. How losses are reduced with accurate address lookup at checkout When online customers enter correct delivery addresses at checkout, it can lead to several benefits that help businesses reduce losses. Here are a few ways this can happen: Fewer failed deliveries When the customer's address is correct, it’s more likely that the delivery will be successful. This means that the package won’t need to be returned to the seller due to an incorrect or incomplete address, reducing the risk of failed deliveries. Reduced shipping costs Failed deliveries can be expensive for businesses, as you may need to pay for the package to be shipped back and then re-shipped to the customer once the correct address is obtained. By integrating an address finder tool and reducing the number of failed deliveries, you can save on these extra shipping costs. Improved customer satisfaction When a customer receives their package on time and without any issues, it can lead to increased satisfaction and loyalty. In contrast, failed deliveries can result in frustrated customers, negative reviews, and a damaged reputation. By incorporating a postcode lookup software and ensuring that the customer's address is correct, you can improve the overall experience for the customer and reduce the risk of negative feedback. Reduced fraud risk Correct addresses can also help reduce the risk of fraud. By validating the customer's address at checkout using an address finder tool, businesses can ensure that the package is being shipped to an existing address. This can help prevent fraudulent orders and reduce the risk of chargebacks. In a nutshell, entering correct delivery addresses at checkout can lead to significant benefits for both businesses and customers. The Fetchify difference Fetchify offers fast, accurate and intuitive customer data verification software to help businesses save time, work even smarter and deliver a superb customer experience. Data verification products help you reduce failed deliveries and boost checkout conversion, too. These are also easy to integrate with most leading business software platforms through plug-and-play integrations – such as Magento, BigCommerce, and WooCommerce. This means that businesses can easily incorporate Fetchify's products into their existing systems without having to make significant changes to their workflow. Failed deliveries can be a significant issue for businesses, resulting in lost revenue and frustrated customers. However, by using address finder and data validation software like Fetchify, businesses can ensure that their customers' addresses are accurate, reducing the possibility of failed deliveries. With easy integration with a variety of platforms, it's a solution that's accessible to businesses of all sizes. We process millions of data transactions weekly for thousands of clients, from small e-commerce start-ups to large household brands such as LG, Heinz and RBS. Our flagship products, Address Lookup and UK Postcode Lookup , reduce friction at checkout, leading to increases in conversion rates, and help reduce failed deliveries and customer frustration. We enjoy global coverage in over 250 countries, with businesses from various industries benefiting from our address finder offering. If you’re looking to boost conversion rates, eliminate failed deliveries, minimise human errors, and provide a seamless experience for customers on your platform, then look no further than the experts in customer address data validation and postcode lookup solutions – Fetchify. The best part is you can try out our 14-day Free Trial before committing to our services. Our excellent technical and customer support team is on hand to answer your burning questions. Make sure to Get in Touch and experience the Fetchify difference – like thousands of e-commerce businesses around the globe.
08 Apr, 2024
As an online business owner, you know how important it is to capture accurate customer data during the checkout process. Not only does it help with shipping and billing, but it can also help with marketing efforts in the future. However, manually entering information can be a hassle, and even minor typos can lead to failed transactions and lost sales. E-commerce entrepreneurs know how important it is to have a smooth and seamless checkout process. The last thing you want is for potential customers to abandon their carts due to a cumbersome and frustrating checkout experience. One of the most significant factors that can cause customers to abandon their carts is the hassle of filling out long and complicated forms during checkout. This is where Fetchify’s address lookup and data validation solutions come in to play. Fetchify can help increase checkout conversions with its range of fast, accurate and intuitive data verification products. With various integrations for the leading eCommerce, CRM, and software platforms, streamlining your checkout process couldn’t be simpler. Our software products include global address auto-complete, UK postcode lookup, geocodes, eircodes as well as phone, bank, and email address validation – ensuring that the customer data you collect is accurate and up-to-date. Let’s dive into some details of how Fetchify can help to increase your web conversions. Reduce the Hassle of Form Entry We all know how tedious it can be to fill out long checkout forms, especially on mobile devices. With our address finder , you can reduce keystrokes by up to 90%, making the checkout process faster and easier for your customers. Not only does this save your customers’ time, but it also reduces frustration and increases the chances of completing a purchase. Fetchify’s address lookup helps businesses capture the most accurate addresses at checkout while reducing the time and effort it takes for customers to enter their address information, resulting in faster and more accurate order fulfilment, reduced cart abandonment rates, and increased customer satisfaction. Validate Email Addresses Email marketing is an important part of any business’s marketing strategy, but it’s only effective if the email addresses are correct. Fetchify’s email address validation helps ensure that the email addresses collected during the checkout process are accurate and valid. This reduces the likelihood of bounced emails and increases the chances of successful email marketing campaigns. By reducing friction through email address validation, streamlining the checkout process, and ensuring accurate customer data capture, we help increase conversions in the checkout process. Every sale, and all increases in your conversion rate can have a significant impact on your bottom line. Reduce Friction and Human Errors Friction in the checkout process can be a major barrier to completing a sale. Our address lookup and data validation products help to reduce friction by streamlining the checkout process , making it easier for customers to complete their purchases. The less friction there is, the more likely customers will complete their purchase and become repeat customers. Fetchify’s address verification software uses real-time address finder and geocoding to help customers quickly and easily fill out their address information during checkout – thus reducing friction effortlessly. When a customer starts typing their address into the form, our address verification software suggests, in real-time, complete and verified addresses. This allows customers to select their address from a dropdown menu instead of typing it out manually – lowering the likelihood of human error like typos, missing characters and abbreviation. Purchase Faster with Address Lookup In today’s fast-paced world, every second counts, especially when it comes to making a purchase online. A slow and tedious checkout process can lead to frustration and cart abandonment, ultimately affecting your business’s bottom line. Time really is of the essence when it comes to completing an online purchase. Fetchify’s address verification and data validation products can help speed up the checkout process, reducing the chances of cart abandonment. The faster the checkout process, the more likely customers are to make a purchase. Manually entering an address during checkout can be time-consuming and frustrating for customers. Our address finder functionality reduces the number of keystrokes required to enter an address. This will ensure that customers can quickly and easily find their address and complete the form with just a few clicks. With Fetchify, you can reduce the time it takes for your customers to enter their details during checkout, ultimately leading to a faster purchasing process. Speed of Checkout vs Conversion Rate The Baymard Institute found that on average, an e-commerce cart abandonment rate is about 70%. The study found that among the top reasons for cart abandonment, a lengthy and complicated checkout process was a leading cause. A study by Google revealed that 53% of mobile site visitors would leave a page that takes longer than three seconds to load. A slow checkout process can be a major contributor to this and negatively affect conversion rates. This is further illustrated by research conducted by Kissmetrics, who discovered that every one-second delay in page load time could result in a 7% reduction in conversions. Essentially, these studies reveal that even small improvements to the checkout process can significantly impact sales – the longer it takes for a customer to complete a purchase, the more likely they are to abandon their cart. Fetchify’s address finder and other data validation products like email address validation can help speed up the checkout process, reducing the chances of cart abandonment and increasing conversion rates. The Fetchify difference With global e-commerce sales projected to reach over $6.9 trillion by 2025, online businesses that can streamline their checkout process are likely to see significant revenue gains through increased conversions. It is clear that a faster and simpler checkout process can be a major driver of sales and conversions for e-commerce businesses. By using a service like ours to streamline the address verification and data validation process, businesses can significantly reduce the time it takes for customers to complete their purchases and improve the overall checkout experience. Reducing the time it takes for customers to enter their information will undoubtedly improve your conversion rate and ultimately boost your sales. Your business will benefit from a more efficient and precise user journey, with happier customers, a greater rate of successful deliveries, and a remarkable increase in sales from returning customers. We process millions of data transactions weekly for thousands of clients, from small e-commerce start-ups to large household brands such as LG, Heinz and RBS. Our flagship products, address lookup and UK postcode lookup , reduce friction on checkouts, leading to increases in conversion rates, and help reduce failed deliveries and customer frustration. Moreover, with our email address verification , you can improve the quality of your data and prevent invalid or incomplete account registration. We are proud to offer fit-for-purpose plug-and-play integrations with most leading business software platforms. We enjoy global coverage in over 250 countries, with businesses from various industries benefiting from our address verification offering. If you’re looking to boost conversion rates, eliminate failed deliveries, minimise human errors, and provide a seamless experience for customers on your platform, then look no further than the experts in customer data validation and address finder solutions – Fetchify. The best part is you can try out our 14-day free trial before committing to our services. Our excellent technical and customer support team is on hand to answer your burning questions. Make sure to get in touch and experience the Fetchify difference – like thousands of e-commerce businesses around the globe.
Workplace Depot Warehosue
19 Sep, 2023
"I don’t think we could be without Fetchify now. It’s an essential part of our business – particularly as we grow." – Steve Needham, Purchasing Manager
Show More
Share by: