Most German consumers prefer to have their parcels delivered to home in the mornings, according to a Hermes survey on the popularity of different delivery time-windows.
As part of its new ‘Desired Delivery’ (‘WunschZustellung’) service, Hermes Germany offers customers several three-hour delivery time slots on a day of their choice (Monday to Saturday), with a choice of 10 am–1pm, 12-3pm, 2-5pm and 6-9pm. This way, consumers can flexibly integrate parcel delivery in their personal daily routine.
The review evaluating a total of 25,000 desired time windows revealed that 60% of Hermes Germany customers choose to receive their parcels in the morning while only 15% prefer deliveries in the afternoon and in the evening respectively. The least popular time slot is midday, with only 10% preferring this option.
"More and more customers favour deliveries that they can plan and manage individually, configuring them as freely as possible according to their needs – a trend that is expected to become stronger in the coming years," explained Thomas Horst, Managing Director Sales at Hermes Logisitics Group Germany. "Retailers should also keep in mind that at least two thirds of Germans occasionally work on the weekends, at night or in alternate shifts. Especially for these people, deliveries within fixed time windows are of great benefit."
Meanwhile, Hermes Desired Delivery has become popular among well-known retailers such as bonprix, Globetrotter or Sky Deutschland. According to Horst, this confirms an industry trend. “The individualisation of parcel shipping is and remains one of the top issues of the parcel industry today and in the years to come.”
The recent survey on success factors in e-commerce by the German research institute ECC Köln confirmed that the majority (64%) of the respondents consider the indication of the exact delivery time slot very important. “Flexibility and customer participation in the delivery process are therefore key factors for winning new customers and customer loyalty,” Hermes Germany concluded.
In February this year, Hermes Germany restructured its domestic delivery services for recipients and introduced Hermes Desired Delivery which comprises three service modules. These are ‘Desired Day’, ‘Desired Time Window’ and ‘Desired Parcel Shop’ that can be additionally booked by retailers or chosen by customers complementing the standard delivery options.
Customers can choose these services in the check-out process when they place an order online and thus directly influence the delivery. Then the retailer determines whether to charge the customer for the additional services.
