How Grocery Stores Benefit from e-Commerce and Same-Day Delivery
Did you know that 90% of consumers shop for groceries and other household items once a week? That’s a lot of time spent in the store, especially since the average trip to the grocery store takes 41 minutes, according to the Time Use Institute. That adds up to 53 hours a year a consumer spends grocery shopping.
But the grocery landscape is quickly evolving (and certainly, the latest proof is last week’s announcement of Amazon buying Whole Foods). Consumers are increasingly doing their shopping online and the ability to do so has switched from a differentiator to a “must have” for grocery stores. What’s more is that once a consumer buys groceries online, they are far more likely to do so again in the future.
Unata conducted a survey of over 500 shoppers in the U.S. to qualify the need for grocery e-commerce (e-Grocery) in 2017. Here’s what they found:
While 19% of U.S. Shoppers bought groceries online in 2016, 31% will buy groceries online in 2017 — a 60% increase. In other words, 1 out of 3 consumers will order groceries online in 2017. Once a shopper experiences the convenience and time-savings of grocery e-commerce, they rarely go back to traditional in-store shopping.
Ordering groceries online appeals to everyone. 26% of those aged 18-29, 33% of those aged 30-44, 28% of those aged 45-59, and 21% of those aged 60+ will buy groceries online this year. The distribution across income is fairly even as well. 26% of those who earned less than $50k, 26% of those who earned $50-99k, and 32% of those who earned $100k+ opted for online grocery ordering.
With online grocery shopping comes the need for fast delivery. Consumers care about how quickly they will receive their groceries, with 24% of respondents saying they would switch grocers for the ability to have groceries delivered same-day.
Luckily, there’s a way for grocers to provide same-day delivery that’s easy and hassle-free. Partnering with a same-day delivery service for grocery delivery will appeal to your customers and increase loyalty without upending your day-to-day business.
Rather than building and maintaining your own in-house delivery fleet (costly and a liability), opt for Dropoff to handle the driver hiring, scheduling, payments and vehicle maintenance, so that you can focus your full attention on serving your customers and growing your food and grocery business.
Dropoff same-day delivery service is a reliable and professional solution. Our feature-rich API easily connects to your e-commerce site or warehouse management system so that your customers can choose same-day delivery or pre-schedule their delivery directly at checkout. With Dropoff, your customers interact directly with your site, rather than via a marketplace, so you retain your customer data and branded experience.
Once a delivery is en route, track the order on a live map and receive up-to-the-minute ETAs to know exactly when to expect deliveries.
Dropoff drivers are insured, background-checked, wear uniforms, drive branded vehicles, and have customer service experience so that the same professionalism and helpfulness your customers receive from your store remains throughout delivery.
Contact Dropoff today to learn more about how we can partner with you to offer customers a convenient and reliable same-day grocery delivery solution.