Case study: Why is online order tracking so important for an e-commerce business?
A case study about how we revamped the order tracking experience at Ounass.
At Ounass, customer experience is the key focus for the business. Part of that experience comes down to reliability and predictability around Order Management. As Ounass continues to drive the luxury online retail shopping landscape, online order tracking has become increasingly critical to its success. It is one of the most important factors because it allows Ounass to serve its customers with accurate shipping information.
Providing customers with accurate shipping information and tracking updates lets them know that they can trust and depend on Ounass, both of which are crucial to customer retention. It is a powerful way to improve the customer’s shopping experience.
What is the definition of order tracking?
Order tracking allows you to monitor all of your online orders and shipments and to communicate the order status to your customers at any point in time. It is composed of features like shipment tracking, estimated delivery dates, and frequent updates on the order status.
What kind of problems were our customers sharing?
What are other E-commerce stores doing?
We looked at Net-a-Porter and Farfetch on how order tracking is working on their platform. While comparing the two, I preferred how granular Net-a-Porter is with the details they share with the user vs Farfetch.
We also had a look at 2 local E-commerce stores based in Dubai: Noon and Namshi. The screenshot on the left is from Noon, which has more granular shipping details unlike Namshi on the right.
What was the order tracking experience on Ounass?
When we first designed the order tracking detail page, our intention was to release a manageable feature. The information was divided into Ordered, Shipped, and Delivered. The user was given the option to track their shipment in detail from the moment the tracking information was generated (Track my shipment would open a web view redirecting the user to the 3rd Party Logistics’s website).
However, what we observed is, in some cases, the tracking number was not always generated. We also did not have a system in place in which we would be able to communicate with users if their order was going to be delayed or split into multiple shipments. So, for example, if an order was not delivered on time, we would see a spike in complaints related to late delivery.
What are we trying to solve?
For the customers:
- The user should have visibility of a clear system that can inform them of the status of their order at that given moment.
- The user should be informed well in advance if their order is going to be delayed.
- The user should be informed if an item from their order is going to be delivered separately and how that would impact delivery estimates.
- The user should always expect their order to be delivered within the timeframe promised by the business.
For the business:
- Reduce the number of customer complaints.
- Reduce cost to the business. Dealing with customer complaints or inquiries can get expensive in the long run.
- Automate order tracking systems. The fewer calls the customer care team receives the more they can focus on other services.
The Solution
What are the key changes?
- Timestamps are highlighted and aligned to the left.
- Each primary order status is identifiable by its unique icon.
- For every primary status, there are micro statuses related to that order.
- We removed “TRACK MY SHIPMENT”. The user now has access to all order-related details on our platform.
What happens if an order is facing a delay?
The user will be greeted with a message on their order detail page that their order may face some delay in delivery. The same message will be highlighted on the order tracker.
What happens if one of the items gets canceled?
It rarely ever happens, but there is an edge case where an item in your order can get canceled. A common reason for cancellation is that the item went out of stock at the last minute just after the user completed his transaction.
In the event a cancellation occurs, we update the order tracker. The user can click on the ‘i’ icon or the item thumbnail to understand the reason for cancellation. The system is also automated to initiate a refund for that item. If payment was done via a cashless method, a refund is transferred to their respective payment medium. For cash on delivery orders, the total payment summary is adjusted accordingly.
What happens in the case of a return request?
On the same order tracker, the user can see the journey of their return request. The return journey is broken into 3 key statuses: Return requested, Items received, and Refund processed.
If the user wants to see the full history of the order since creation they can always click on the show full history link.
How are we splitting the order?
If items from a single order are going to be delivered separately, the user is informed immediately before they make the purchase. The user also has the choice to select from available delivery time slots, selecting when they want the different items to be delivered. As soon as the transaction takes place, the order is split into multiple orders with their own unique tracking information.
What are the other channels for communication?
- Email: When an order is shipped, an email is triggered simultaneously to the customer.
- SMS: 2 statuses are triggered - arriving today, and on the way.
- Live Tracker: If you are a customer in Riyadh or Dubai, an SMS with a link to the live tracker is sent when the order is out for delivery.
What was the impact of the solution?
Prior to releasing the feature in June 2021, the number of cases related to Status and Delivery queries was averaging around 20%. Post-release, over the period of 3 months by September 2021, we observed the queries reduced by 50%. As per our data from May 2021, 46% of the calls answered by the customer care team were related to order tracking issues. By September 2021, that number reduced from 46% to 4%! Postorder delivery NPS comments also showed a notable reduction in feedback related to delivery issues.
It is evident from the data the new solution impacted the customer experience in a positive way and at the same time benefitting the business. Safe to say we managed to
- Help our customers meet their delivery expectations
- Bring more satisfied loyal customers
- Reduce the support time and the cost to the business.
