我在日博备用网站商业公司的新职位, 我可以做一些我喜欢的事情——支持电子商务公司的全球扩张. 经历所有的起起落落, 挑战, 和庆祝活动, 我知道经营一家电子商务公司就像坐过山车一样. So being able to support companies on that journey feels almost like a duty rather than a job. 这是我必须要做的事情,我对此充满激情. 如果我分享我的经历, 好与坏, 能支持任何公司成功吗, 太棒了!
我第一次在国外工作一个月后,已经有48次送货上门了, I feel confident enough to write a few lines about my experience with e-commerce in the US.
有超过10件商品没有同时送达
We live on a dead-end street so there is no point in walking down our street unless you are visiting one of the houses, 在康涅狄格一个安静的居民区,只有大约30只. Our realtor assured this was a calm and safe street for dogs and children where they could run around safely and play. 然而, 事后看来, I do not think she had a good view of the logistics patterns when she made those promises. Without exception, there is a delivery truck on our street every time I look out the window. 这主要是联邦快递(FedEx)的常见嫌疑人, 联合包裹, 或DHL, 偶尔还有我以前不熟悉的当地公司. 每周有几次,我看到当地邮局的一辆小白车经过, 但它只在典型的美国邮箱前停留了一秒钟,然后继续前进. 较大的包裹是由其他运营商提供的.
The first thing that struck me was that an order of 10 products is never delivered all at once! Items are delivered to the entrance now and then throughout the day in multiple different deliveries and often with a lot of air inside each package. 直接发货或非统一仓储似乎是标准做法.
方便就是一切
在为厨房订购物品时,花一点时间考虑一下你需要什么. 很多不同的东西,比如煎锅, 一个烤面包机, 刀, 锅, 砧板, 银器, 午餐盒, 还有很多其他的事情. 是的,我知道有入门包,但不是所有的东西都在一个入门包里.
有些东西是一起发的,有些东西是一个一个发的. 然而, 当你在门廊上有一个装在鞋子大小盒子里的土豆削皮器时, 你真的会开始怀疑这种产品对环境的影响... 还有亚马逊和土豆削皮器品牌的盈利能力. 不幸的是, the big e-commerce platforms in the US seem to be far away from the 可持续性 thinking of their Nordic counterparts.. 方便(至少是预购)就是一切.
对实体店的影响
欧洲电源插座的适配器似乎是我们家里永远需要的. 剃须刀, ipad, 电脑, 移动电话, 电动牙刷, and pretty much everything else you use on an everyday or occasional basis now rely on them. It felt like such a stupid product to order online so buying it in the nearest town was the natural option, 但是对话是这样的:
你好,你们在美国有欧洲设备的适配器吗?
-你开什么玩笑? 你必须在亚马逊上买到……(非常恼火的表情)
Walking out I almost felt a little ashamed for asking such a dumb question in an electronic hardware store larger than most stores in 日博备用网站. 愚蠢的我. 电子商务确实改变了这里的实体零售.
回报率充满敌意,但也有例外
然而, when it comes to returns, it seems items must be handed in at a physical store of some sort. 订单数量不够退货. You need to do a pre-filled return form online and then show the barcode to the cashier at the return desk. 而且你绝对不能退回打开的盒子. 回报感到敌意.
But of course, there is always an exception, one supplier delivered broken glasses and plates. 我拍了照片并记录下来,然后日博备用网站了客服. I was positively surprised when the answer was that she did not even need to see any pictures, I was instructed to give away broken items and that replacement products were already on their way to my home. 这次经历很棒. 不过我还是想知道谁会从盘子里的碎片中受益.
服务是功能性的,而不是令人愉快的
通过电子邮件提供客户服务是没有希望的. 电话线的等待时间很长. Chat bots are everywhere and despite their limitations they are probably the best way to contact customer service. 我不喜欢它. 我觉得和毛绒玩具泰迪熊谈论我的需求很可笑. 我只是不确定他的经验在我正在浏览的类别中是否足够. 我也不喜欢他对我该说什么的傲慢的建议. Chat bots are still some ways off from passing the Turing test and I want to chat to a real person. 但说实话, quite often the Teddy bear or one of his avatar colleagues manage to provide the information I need. 服务是功能性的,而不是令人愉快的.
客户体验中有些东西是不存在的. My sense is that many rely on too many third parties in their value chain to provide a good experience. And the Nordics have gotten further in digital solutions related to delivery and returns, 而平均而言,在更大程度上优先考虑客户服务.
尽管如此:美国的电子商务规则
然而,美国在送货上门速度快、送货准确性高方面胜过北欧国家. Only one of our deliveries has been lost, strangely enough, three 96-gallon bins disappeared. Apart from that everything has arrived within a couple of days and most of the time already the next day. The ever-present nature of the delivery trucks makes me think of when you land with an airplane on a clear day near a big city and see all the cars like small ants, 这几乎不像是真的. 就像我出演了电影《楚门的世界.
When the large electronic store in town refers to an e-commerce competitor as the only place to buy what I am looking for - and when you find out that your favourite local grocery store, 全食超市, 有大量的有机和素食选择, 属于亚马逊, 你会意识到这个世界和我习惯的世界相比有点颠倒了.
Despite a couple of bad experiences and right or wrong, so far, e-commerce rules in the US. 几乎不值得去商店, 即使你知道了, 店员叫你回家打开笔记本电脑. Wide assortment and strong logistics somehow beat a relatively poor post-purchase experience.