The global e-commerce industry is expected to reach close to 8 trillion USD by the end of 2026. Now that’s a huge number! Delivery partners will be the lifeblood of this industry – after all, they will be the face of the company to the customer! A seamless delivery experience with timely deliveries is the most important metric for organizations to track.
However, unprofessional/criminal conduct, poor communication, and slippage due to damaged/missed deliveries are also causes for concern.
There have been multiple examples of partners of food delivery apps behaving in inappropriate ways of being impersonated by criminals/predators. From delivering half-eaten food to even assaulting customers and theft, social media is rife with horror stories of such kind.
Hence, onboarding the right delivery partners is increasingly important. A comprehensive onboarding process not only ensures that delivery partners are reliable and safe but also enhances customer satisfaction and loyalty.
This blog post aims to outline the necessary layers of checks and best practices for a reliable onboarding system, ensuring your eCommerce business runs smoothly and efficiently.
The importance of a comprehensive onboarding process
A detailed onboarding process is crucial for delivery services for several reasons. Firstly, it ensures that all delivery partners meet the required standards and are equipped to handle the responsibilities of the job. This involves identity verification, background checks, and ensuring they have the necessary credentials in place, such as vehicle insurance or clearance certificates.
The impact of a comprehensive delivery partner onboarding process on safety and customer satisfaction cannot be overstated.
Safety checks protect both the delivery partners and the customers from potential harm, while a well-structured onboarding process helps build a team of competent and trustworthy delivery partners. Ultimately, a comprehensive onboarding process leads to increased efficiency, reduced operational risks, and improved customer retention.
Businesses encounter multiple pain points while setting up their onboarding process.
- Slow TAT: Currently, most businesses follow a manual onboarding process which is extremely slow, leading to partner drop-off during the onboarding stage itself. This is counterintuitive for the businesses that are looking to fulfill peak hour demands by onboarding new delivery partners quickly.
- Manual onboarding: Delivery partners have to visit a physical center, present relevant documents for background verification (BGV), which is a long process that results in long TAT and an overall bad experience for the partners as well.
- High tech dependency: Getting the tech teams to create a new onboarding journey is a time-consuming process, which means losing more business to the competitors!
Not surprising then, that delivery partners choose platforms that have better onboarding experiences.
While looking to upscale, organizations need to follow stringent onboarding practices to ensure:
- Reduced risk & liability: Thorough checks mitigate the risk of theft, property damage, and legal issues, saving the company significant costs.
- Enhanced customer experience: Reliable deliveries and professional interactions build customer trust and loyalty, leading to repeat business.
- Improved operational efficiency: A well-trained delivery network optimizes delivery schedules and minimizes delays, leading to cost savings.
However, e-commerce organizations struggle with these processes.
The following are essential checks in any delivery partner onboarding process:
- Identity verification: Collect and verify documents that ascertain the identity of the partner. Ensuring the delivery partner is who they claim to be by verifying government-issued IDs.
- Background verification: Performing checks for addresses, valid licenses, vehicle registration, and insurance are non-negotiable. These not only protect the e-commerce company from liability in case of accidents but also help validate the driver’s fitness to drive/ride
- Legal history check: Stringent and exhaustive criminal history checks are needed too. With an increasing focus on customer safety and package security, these checks go a long way in saving the company from potential bad press and eroding trust.
IDfy has been working with leading players in the ecommerce industry to support their delivery partner onboarding process
Some solutions we’ve presented are as follows,
- QR code-based onboarding journey initiation
- Automated OCRs and verifications to reduce form-filling
- Integration with different government databases for faster background checks
- An integrated onboarding platform that can be plugged into the client systems
However, the fast-paced nature of the industry requires a one-stop solution, or a holistic platform to bring about a transformation.
We at IDfy have solved that problem with IDfy360 – a platform that solves all the onboarding problems that organizations generally face. And more!
In the short term, IDfy360 helps organizations operational efficiency in terms of reduced time, cost, and partner drop-offs.
Onboard a platform that onboards the best partners
A well-defined onboarding process with thorough checks isn’t just about ticking boxes; it’s the foundation for a successful and reliable delivery network. While in the short term, it helps create operational efficiency in terms of reduced time, cost, and effort, in the long term it contributes to brand-building and positive customer experience too.