Today, people prefer to buy groceries from online retail stores rather than going to any local retail shops, because everybody likes the process of buying, paying and delivery of the online grocery app. After the onset of the smartphone, the online grocery industry has been growing tremendously. We generally go to a retail shop to fulfill our grocery needs. Then, we prefer to purchase them from malls where the product choices are more. But, the online grocery delivery applications has left others far behind.
Everyone is busy today and they don’t want to waste time going to retail shops, waiting there for their term to pay and bring the products on their own. On-demand grocery delivery applications have reduced these worries. We chose a product from a number of varieties, pay online or use COD as per our convenience.
In some cases, we can also exchange these products and the best part is that we get the product at our doorstep.
What sort of challenges grocery delivery applications face? How to resolve them?
Besides the convenience of the on-demand grocery delivery applications, many people do not want to visit a nearby retail shop or mall because of their love for technology and its convenience. Thus, these help in the rising of the online grocery business. Though the demand for online grocery business is growing, these face many challenges to stay competitive in the market and gain their profit from it.
Here are some challenges faced by online grocery delivery applications and their solutions:
The rising problem of storage and delivery cost
It is not easy to store and deliver perishable items like fruits, vegetables, milk, etc. These products need more investment in good storage, for example, refrigeration and right time delivery facility. Therefore, special warehouses, special delivery containers, and delivery vans are needed to deliver these perishable products fresh.
Besides these, the online Grocery delivery applications face difficulties such as delay in delivery, wrong product delivery, return, etc. The company also encounters with the whole supply chain from farms to storehouse to final customers and if it fails to handle properly, customers will search other apps and the entire business will fail. For all these things, there is a requirement for more capital.
Solution:
- Combine the just-in-time (JIT) supply system with state of the art inventory management with your online grocery store. This will solve everything, such as, minimize the storage cost, reduce wastage and you can know the requirements of the customers.
- To deliver products in time, the online grocery store should be in contact with dependable delivery service providers.
- You can also keep in contact with the local delivery network systems.
Low-Profit Margins-wearing away profits
Customers today depend on online grocery stores not only for convenience but also for getting better deals. They always search for different apps which take lower prices, deliver faster and better quality products than others. Fulfilling these particular needs become a financial nightmare for online grocers as they also invest in proper storage and efficient supply chain system.
Solution:
- Apply the asset-light business model. Hire a logistics company instead of employing your own vehicles and employees to carry the deliveries.
- Try to keep more nonperishable items in your online store. For example, personal care items, beauty products, household items, packaged foods, etc.
- Combine your online and offline grocery store for better customer experience. It can decrease your operational cost.
Inefficient and Unsystematic Delivery
Online grocery delivery application, also, faces difficulties in satisfying the customer by providing the same-hour delivery. Because, when the customer orders some grocery, he needs its immediate delivery and if there are any types of delay, he cancels the order and buys it from the local market.
Besides the inefficient deliveries, the online grocery business is also burdened with product quality, time, and delivery cost. All of these factors impose a bigger challenge for an efficient delivery system.
Solution:
If logical decision teams up with reliable hyper-local delivery service providers, the problem can be solved. Not only grocery delivery, but the other products can also be delivered at the right time with the help of the postal department as they reach every rural area of India. Therefore Amazon India is more accepted in India than others.
Another solution is delivery through drones which will happen in the near future. This has been implemented in the US and the Chinese e-commerce retailers are also using it widely. Using this system, both the customer and the on-demand grocery delivery app will be benefitted.
But to implement a drone delivery system, huge expenditure is required for infrastructure/equipment and after that, the delivery system will be flawless.
Changing consumer behavior
Though a number of online grocery stores are opening up and they always try to make their customers experience convenience and swiftness, people still like to buy grocery items from a nearby physical store. This trend is not restricted to a specific country, rather it is happening worldwide and this happens because of human behavior. Irrespective of providing different offers, online grocery apps face difficulties in attracting them towards their online store.
Solution:
Integrating both online & offline grocery shopping experience and reducing the cost of the product, you can attract more customers and increase your business. There are some strategies to increase customer experience.
- First, the customers check items online & then in the store and after that, they may decide to buy due to its quality and availability.
- Alternatively, customer places the order through online & picks up the item at the store
These two models save the delivery cost. After knowing the quality of the product, the next time the customer visits the app and order online. As the products are delivered directly to the customers’ home, they don’t have to wait long at the cash counter. Besides these, pre-order and pre-decided pick-ups also help the customer in saving time and help you save grocery delivery expenses.
Conclusion
Though the online retail market is causing a huge loss for shopkeepers, the online grocery industry has not been successful in distracting the customers from retail shops and malls. It is still in the budding stage and trying to pick up the business. Like other sectors such as electronics, fashion, home décor, etc, it will become more competent & profitable with time and the technological advancements will fuel the tempo.
Undoubtedly, the online market will be more challenging than the current trend. Every time, the online market is trying to remain competitive and enhance their pace to attract more customers towards them.
Like other sectors, online grocery markets are developing their own apps and sell the products of different companies. They follow different business strategies and adopt technologies to reach the consumer within the stipulated time period. Thus, this space is becoming mainstream with the latest technology.
