Retail Report: Free Shipping and Other Customer-Centric Offerings Drive Holiday Sales

A new report by CFI Group and Radial underscores how retailers can leverage flexibility in fulfillment to drive revenue.

News provided by

CFI Group

Aug 15, 2017, 07:37 ET

ANN ARBOR, Mich., Aug. 15, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Retailers face a variety of fulfillment choices as they seek to maximize sales this holiday season: Should they offer free shipping? Will shoppers be willing to wait more than a couple of days for delivery? Should they ramp up contact center staff, or focus on our website's live chat feature?

To help answer these questions, Radial teamed up with CFI Group to conduct a survey of 500 online shoppers to find out what they expect from retailers during the holiday shopping season. Some of the findings on customer needs include the following:

76% will shop at a competitor's website if a retailer runs out of product.
65% are willing to purchase additional items to qualify for free shipping.
95% will wait up to five days for standard shipping.
47% will shop with competitors the next time if a retailer's shipment arrives later than expected.
14% use in-store pickup as one of their typical delivery choices.
36% prefer live chat for customer service during the holiday season.

To meet these varying customer needs, retailers must have the operational flexibility to offer a variety of fulfillment options. Inventory control, free shipping levels, standard shipping guarantees, in-store pickup options, and both phone reps and live chat must all be carefully orchestrated to deliver tailored experiences customers. And reps must be given the latitude to listen to and address specific fulfillment needs of each customer.

"It's about flexibility," says CFI Group CEO Sheri Petras. "If a retailer has all those fulfillment options available, the customer is going to be able to stay within that retail family, as opposed to shopping someplace else."

To read more about the Retail Report by Radial and CFI Group visit: cfigroup.com/resource-item/retail-report-august-2017

About CFI Group (www.cfigroup.com)

Since 1988, CFI Group has delivered customer experience measurement and business insights from its Ann Arbor, Michigan headquarters and a network of global offices. As founding partner of the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI), CFI Group is the only company within the United States licensed to apply customized ACSI methodology in both the private and public sectors. Using patented technology and top research experts, CFI Group uncovers the business drivers and financial impact of customer experience.

About Radial (www.radial.com)

Radial is the leader in omnichannel commerce technologies and operations. We enable you to profitably exceed customer expectations by taking on the complexity of your omnichannel retail business and transforming it into a seamlessly orchestrated customer experience. To bring order to ordering. To make fulfillment more fulfilling. To keep commerce clicking. When we partner with you to execute your orders, payments, fulfillment, or customer care, your promises become ours.

Media Contact:
David Baker
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734.355.8232

SOURCE CFI Group