European ecommerce retailers could unlock over €2million (£1.71million) each year by running deliveries more efficiently and improving customer experiences in fulfilment, a new study by nShift shows.

Its new report, The ROI of Delivery Management, pinpoints the four most common sources of margin leaks – abandoned shopping carts, customer service time, returns processing and failed deliveries.

It says that, when combined, these factors can erode in excess of 60% of margins on a typical online order.

The biggest margin drain was abandoned baskets for slow deliveries (24%), followed by customer service and “where is my order” (WISMO) calls (18%) and returns processing (12%). Failed deliveries can also eat up 8% of margin. 

“Retailers scrutinise every penny they spend acquiring customers, yet many still accept avoidable losses throughout the delivery journey,” Jurgen Leijdekker, CEO of nShift, commented.

“Every abandoned basket, unnecessary support call and inefficient return quietly chips away at margins.”  

“Last-mile deliveries are the costliest part of the supply chain. With the right delivery management strategies in place, businesses can increase their profits, retain customers and accelerate growth,” Leijdekker concluded.