With more and more people turning to online shopping over the traditional retail experience, courier businesses are becoming more and more important. Not only are people expecting to find the things they need online, but they’re also expecting to get them quickly. That’s why it’s so important that your courier business is in tip-top shape.
With this demand has come an increase in the number of courier businesses. Since the competition has increased, it’s now even more important that you make your courier business the best it can be. A great courier service will become quite popular, especially since the shipping industry is expanding year after year.
Here are six tips on how to improve your courier business, thus setting yourself apart from the competition:
1. Set up a courier website
With the world turning to online retailers more often, it’s important that you establish a web presence. One way to effectively do this is to set-up a website. This will not only help attract new customers to your business but will also give them all of the information they need about your courier business.
Your website will house a multitude of information. This includes all of the applicable pricing, delivery schedules, contact information, and much more. You can take it one step further by offering an online log-in portal to make it easy for customers to log-in and see the status of their package.
2. Promote your courier service on social media
A good technique on how to improve your courier business is to use social media. If your business is not on social media yet, it will be easy to get left behind. It’s likely that most of your competitors are on social media. If you’re not on it, you will lose the opportunity of being found through these mediums and have potential customers opt to do business with a competitor instead.
Social media also offers your business a chance to showcase a variety of content that your target audience might find useful or interesting. This could include tips on how to wrap items inside a package, behind-the-scenes videos of staff members setting packages up for delivery, and an inside look at what makes your business unique.
If you’re not on social media yet, this is one of the easiest things you can do to improve your business without spending a dime.
3. Use digital marketing for your courier
Now that you have a website and social media accounts for your courier business, take it one step further and start using digital marketing practices to further your business. For example, sending a monthly newsletter showcasing discounts, reviews, and information about your business is a great way to reach customers digitally and keep them engaged.
Digital marketing is also much more affordable than traditional marketing where you would need to have your materials printed. The various web platforms you can use for your digital marketing initiatives are for the most part free.
4. Offering customized courier products
Sure, your main business revolves around sending packages, but you can improve your business by branching out and offering things like customized products for your customers. This includes things like hats, pens, notepads, calendars, and other things that clients can have customized with their business name and logo.
Not only is this another way to get more customers to use your service, but it will make you an extra buck or two.
5. Do networking for your courier business
Every business professional and business owner can benefit from networking. More and more we are seeing apps popping-up that help you network without having to go to an in-person event. Apps like Shapr allow you to swipe through business professionals in your area. You can check out their professions and interests to find someone that you would like to network with.
Of course, there are traditional ways to network like attending events in your industry. At these events, never miss an opportunity to tell people about your business. You never know what kind of services people are on the look-out for. Even if they aren’t interested in a new courier company, they may know someone who is.
Hand out a business card, or maybe some merchandise with your business name on it. Think of something fun and inexpensive that you can bring a limited quantity of to help you stand apart from your competition.
6. Hire the right courier staff
It’s so important to hire staff that mesh well with your courier business’s vision, mission, values, and goals. You want your staff to represent your business in a positive way. This will increase the chances that they have positive interactions with both prospective customers and current customers.
When employees are driven and dedicated to the courier business, they are more likely to want to see it grow and succeed. Your employees can also help you network, help manage your website, social media accounts, and digital marketing efforts. With the right team in place, anything is possible.