Most Indians ditch online shopping this festive season due to anticipated delivery delays & return complexities

A recent festive season consumer shopping survey by FarEye revealed that not quite everyone is ready to splash cash online. Anticipated delivery delays and return headaches are causing nearly 60% of consumers not to shop online this festive season.

The survey of 1,000 respondents in India revealed that while 41% of those surveyed plan to shop from e-commerce retailers during festive season, nearly 60% do not, due to delivery delays and returns frustrations. Of those surveyed, about 63% are abandoning shopping carts due to poor delivery terms and 54% are expecting delivery delays during festive season.

“Consumers have become frustrated with challenges associated with getting their deliveries on-time, every time, and don’t want to pay extra for returns, or for faster delivery,” said Gautam Kumar, co-founder and chief operating officer, FarEye.

Other findings showed that more than 50% of consumers reported making online returns during last year’s festive season. 87% consider easy and/or free online returns policies important when making a purchase during the upcoming festive season. And free online returns (25%), fast refund/credit (22%), home returns pickup (20%) were the top three reasons for a positive returns experience.

“Peak seasons like the festive season are some of the most critical periods for retailers to get the consumer delivery - and returns - experience right, or risk losing brand loyalty, or worse, the customer, for good. These survey findings, while not surprising, indicate the need for brands to continue redefine their last-mile delivery strategy to ensure a superior consumer experience, every time,” concluded Kumar.