Contents
- Why shipping and delivery information matters
- How useful was delivery information?
- How easy to find was delivery information?
- Delivery information and shipping policy content examples
About
I reviewed delivery content across 50 purpose-driven ecommerce sites to see how well they perform for people, planet and profit.
Overall, I found there’s plenty brands can do to improve their delivery information content. Let’s dive in…
Why shipping and delivery information matters
For people
People looking for delivery information are close to making a purchase. They need quick answers to:
- Do you deliver to me?
- When will it arrive?
- How much will it cost?
- Who will bring it?
They might also want to know:
5. What’s the impact of the packaging and delivery methods?
For the planet
Every delivery has an impact on the planet. Clear delivery information can help by:
- preventing wasted deliveries by being up front about delivery times
- showing the environmental impact of different delivery options, to let people make an informed choice.
For profit
Good delivery content directly impacts sales.
- 85% of shoppers say delivery time is the most important factor in their purchasing decision.
- Slow delivery and unexpected delivery costs are two of the top reasons people abandon their cart.
Clear delivery information can help reduce abandoned carts and increase conversions.
Findings
How useful was delivery information?
Location
Can you deliver to me?
Most sites (87%) clearly show where they deliver to on the product page or on a dedicated delivery information page.
Time
When will I get my order?
Few sites show estimated delivery dates on product pages, despite this being crucial information. Often I had to visit the delivery information page or go through checkout to find a time estimate.
There’s a reason why many mainstream retailers make this information so prominent. Amazon even put it above the buy button.
Of the purpose-driven brands I reviewed, only a few, like SunGod and Upcircle, did something similar.
Cost
How much will it cost?
Most sites show delivery costs before checkout, but some still hide this information until later.
Carrier
Who will bring it?
Only 22% of stores included details of who would deliver the order.
Impact
What is the impact of delivery and packaging?
Few sites (8%) mention the environmental impact of their delivery and packaging.
When they did, the information was often vague. Patagonia asks customers to choose standard shipping, but doesn’t explain the difference in impact between standard and other methods.
Wild said that subscriptions would include at least 3 refills to save CO2, but didn’t include any details on how much CO2 this saved.
Rapanui were one of the few to mention packaging in their delivery information.
Wild and Sea were the only brand I saw with a recycled packaging option.
How easy to find was delivery information
The majority made delivery information fairly easy to find.
- Over half (54%) included delivery information on the product page
- 44% had a dedicated delivery information page
Others spread delivery information across FAQs and help questions, making it hard to navigate and easy to miss.
A note on naming: Delivery vs Shipping
Why naming matters
The right labels help people find the information they need quickly. Use the terms that your customers are most likely to use and understand.
Definitions
The terms ‘shipping’ and ‘delivery’ mean slightly different things.
Shipping generally refers to the transport of goods, especially by boat.
Delivery means the action of delivering the goods.
In order fulfilment terminology, shipping is used for the dispatch of the goods from the retailer or supplier, while delivery is when the goods reach the customer.
In ecommerce, especially in North America, shipping is often used as a catch all for the dispatch and delivery of an order.
Current usage by retailers
- Nearly half (46%) use delivery
- Over a third (38%) used both shipping and delivery
- 17% used only shipping
Something I saw quite frequently was brands switching between delivery and shipping in ways that could be confusing. For example, in this checkout, the section is labelled ‘delivery’, yet you’re prompted to enter a ‘shipping address’.
It’s likely that sites with this problem have adopted Shopify’s standard terminology and not updated the references throughout the checkout.
UK customer behaviour
Google trends shows ‘delivery’ is significantly more popular in UK searches, especially around the peak shopping season of November and December.
Most of the biggest UK retailers (including John Lewis, ASOS, Tesco, Next and more) use ‘delivery’. This is important as people expect things to work the same as other familiar websites.
Customer reviews reflect this preference. For example, paint retailer Lick mainly uses ‘Shipping’, yet language analysis of their Trustpilot reviews shows:
- 17% of reviewers talk about ‘delivery’
- only 0.26% mention ‘shipping’
Recommendations
For UK only retailers:
Use ‘delivery’ rather than ‘shipping’. While most people will understand both terms, ‘delivery’ helps them find information more quickly.
For international retailers:
Consider using ‘shipping’ or both terms.
How to write delivery information
Improve your delivery information with content guidelines and templates.
Delivery information examples
See delivery information and shipping content examples from purpose-driven brands.
Start the week with good content
Sign up to circular for purposeful content resources and inspiration every Monday. Or read it first.