What is Contactless Delivery and How Does It Work? A Comprehensive Guide

A Dropoff courier completing a contactless delivery

If you’ve ever ordered something online and had it delivered to your door, you’ve likely used contactless delivery. But what is contactless delivery? How does it work? And why should you use it? In this comprehensive guide, we will answer all of those questions and more!

Contactless delivery is a great way to get packages without leaving your home or office. Plus, it’s more secure than traditional methods of package delivery.

What Is Contactless Delivery?

No contact delivery means that goods are delivered from the distribution location to the customer without physical contact between people.

Contactless delivery typically includes the driver, the customer, and store or warehouse employees. The handoff between them doesn’t involve any physical contact either.

The Growing Demand for Contactless Delivery Solutions

A Dropoff courier pointing at a green arrow indicating growth

While contactless deliveries have been around for a while, the pandemic made medical and food delivery services necessary to use this method.

Other industries are experimenting with more ways to reduce contact between their employees and customers.

Why Should Your Business Offer No-Contact Delivery?

Here are the top 3 reasons your business should offer no-contact delivery:

  1. End-to-end sanitation
  2. Changing customer demands
  3. Safety of employees

Let’s take a deeper look into each of these.

1. End-to-End Sanitation

Implementing processes that screen employees for temperature and physical symptoms ensure that both your customers and employees have a better experience when interacting. Ensuring customer & employee safety is even easier when you offer low-to-no contact delivery.

2. Changing Customer Demands

For your business to survive and grow, it needs to change. The way customers buy things has changed a lot due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Offering contactless delivery will satisfy your customers by meeting their demands for convenience head-on.

Speaking of customer demands, the expectation for cheap shipping is also rising; that’s why customers love economy shipping.

3. Safety of Employees

A company has a moral responsibility to provide a safe working environment for its employees. Taking all necessary safety precautions while packaging and delivering goods is essential. Customers have more trust in an organization that takes care of its employees.

How Does Contactless Delivery Work?

A simple breakdown of how contactless delivery solutions work:

  1. When a customer places an order and chooses contactless delivery, the courier leaves the order at the customer’s doorstep.
  2. The courier sends a picture of the delivered order to the customer through a mobile application.
  3. After the delivery, the customer will get automatic alerts and notifications to remind them to take the order inside at their convenience.

5 Benefits of Contactless Delivery

A Dropoff courier leaning next to a large number 5

Main benefits of contactless delivery:

  1. Business adaptability
  2. Stops the virus from spreading
  3. Digitizes payment methods
  4. Improves brand loyalty
  5. Ensures courier safety

1. Business Adaptability

COVID-19 has shown businesses how important it is to have a backup plan. Even though vaccines are being distributed, it will be a long time before the global community is over COVID-19.

If your business does not provide efficient contactless deliveries, now is the time to start.

2. Stops the Virus from Spreading

One of the main benefits of contactless delivery is that it limits the amount of customer-to-employee contact that’s required to do business. In addition, it helps both your employees & customers feel safer while navigating their day-to-day lives.

3. Digitizes Payment Methods

Digital payments help businesses improve their cash flow. They help companies to find gaps in payment collection, ease audit processes and shrink billing cycles. In addition, the need for contactless deliveries has driven customers into paying for orders using digital gateways.

Moreover, digitization is one of the most impactful logistics innovations and industry trends.

4. Improves Brand Loyalty

Giving your customers a contactless delivery option sends a message that you care about them. It convinces customers that your business is willing to go the extra mile to make them happy.

5. Ensures Courier Safety

Even though many people had to stay inside to avoid getting sick from a virus, many still had to venture out daily, including delivery executives. Contactless deliveries help businesses ensure that their couriers do not contract the virus while performing their duties.

Key Features of Contactless Delivery Software

A Dropoff courier checking things off a checklist

Contactless delivery software provides a convenient and efficient solution for businesses that want a contact-free experience for their customers. 

Here are some key features to implement in your contactless delivery software:

  1. Contactless payments
  2. Proof of deliveries
  3. Compliance apps

1. Contactless Payments 

Making sure that deliveries are done without cash is essential. It helps to avoid any human contact and keeps things safe. Having card payments at the delivery time is also risky, so retailers must have digital wallet integrations to make cashless transactions possible.

Integrating a payment processing system that tracks transactions makes it easy to manage everything on one platform.

2. Proof of Deliveries 

Door-to-door deliveries are becoming more common. To ensure the delivery is complete, we need new methods of collecting proof of delivery.

Here are some methods of collecting contactless proof of delivery: 

  1. Sending a photo of the package to the customer upon delivery. 
  2. One-time-password proof of delivery. 
  3. To provide a digital signature, customers may sign on their own devices, thus avoiding contact with the delivery personnel or their device, to provide a digital signature. 

3. Compliance Apps 

Many countries have developed compliance apps that help keep track of risky exposures. The technology platform that lets customers track orders should also provide information about what protocols the courier is following.

How Do Businesses Successfully Implement Contactless Delivery?

A business owner thinking about contactless delivery

Some ways for businesses to successfully implement contactless delivery:

  1. Allow complete visibility for both couriers and the customer
  2. Use advanced technology to simplify contactless delivery operations
  3. Collect customer feedback after deliveries
  4. Partner with a 3PL to streamline contactless delivery operations

1. Allow complete visibility for both couriers and the customer

With the help of technology, drivers and customers can communicate easily. Customers can provide specific delivery instructions for the drivers. They are also able to receive regular updates on their package’s delivery.

2. Use advanced technology to simplify contactless delivery operations

Investments in contactless delivery technology will only grow stronger and change the logistics experience. Such advanced technology helps you manage the fleets and stabilize the contactless delivery operations.

Further, advanced logistics technology doesn’t only help with contactless delivery operations; it helps with managing omnichannel logistics as well.

3. Collect customer feedback after deliveries

Collecting feedback from your staff and customers about your no-contact delivery service helps guarantee a successful delivery service. Take any constructive criticism and look for ways to make improvements! You should also closely train your delivery team to follow the guidelines of no-contact delivery.

Check out our guide on the difference between shipping and delivery!

4. Partner with a 3PL to streamline contactless delivery operations

Third-party logistics providers like Dropoff are increasing their safety measures to keep their employees safe and ensure services remain uninterrupted. They provide valuable insights into the latest no-contact delivery trends, including new technologies and best practices.

Why you should let a 3PL handle your contactless deliveries:

  • A 3PL helps manage inventory, fulfill orders, and track delivery progress without face-to-face contact.
  • A 3PL provides you with the resources and expertise to ensure that your deliveries are made safely and on time.

Bottom Line

Contactless delivery is a growing trend in the logistics industry, and for a good reason. It’s convenient, fast, and secure.

If you’re not currently offering no contact delivery as an option to your customers, talk with a Dropoff expert today for help getting started.

Our easy-to-use platform and nationwide courier network make it simple and cost-effective for businesses of all sizes to offer no-contact delivery to their customers.

FAQs on Contactless Delivery

1. What is contactless delivery?

No contact delivery means that goods are delivered from the distribution location to the customer without physical contact between people.

Typically, no contact delivery includes the driver, the customer, and store or warehouse employees. The handoff between them doesn’t involve any physical contact either.

2. How to do contactless delivery?

First, the courier leaves the package at the customer’s door and notifies them via text or email when it has arrived.

Alternatively, it is possible to arrange for the customer to pick up the package from a designated location, such as a porch or garage.

Be sure to provide clear instructions on where the package is located. No contact delivery helps keep your customers and employees safe during these unprecedented times.

3. How contactless delivery works?

A simple breakdown of how contactless delivery works:

  1. When a customer orders something and chooses no contact delivery, the courier leaves the order at the customer’s doorstep.
  2. The courier sends a picture of the order delivered to the customer’s door through a mobile application.
  3. After the delivery, the customer will get automatic alerts and notifications to remind them to take the order in according to their convenience.

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