Courier industry specialists agree that the future of courier companies is the best integrated services. What does this mean in practice? Namely, the security of shipments, the speed and reliability of their delivery, and the possibility of ensuring sent parcels will be important. The ability to deliver parcels not only to your own hands, but also to selected points is also becoming more and more important.
Parcel lockers in the UK courier industry
It is very possible that a large part of customers will be taken over by so-called parcel lockers in the future. Many customers in the UK do not like the situation when a courier standing at their door calls them and asks them to come quickly and collect the parcel. For many customers, such situations are inconvenient and cause unnecessary stress. That is why it will be much more convenient to collect the parcel from the machine, because it can be done at any time, without adjusting to the courier’s schedule.
International parcel delivery will certainly also develop. More and more e-commerce customers need to order goods from foreign stores. It is very possible that in the near future, laws will be passed that will facilitate international shopping, both by speeding it up and by reducing delivery costs.
Price will not be the most fundamental thing for everyone
It is also worth noting that the price of services will not be the only decisive factor in the courier market. For many customers, the possibility of a simple and quick return of goods after purchasing them from an online store is definitely more important. Currently, this option is possible when using the above-mentioned parcel lockers.
The ability to change the delivery location is also becoming more and more fundamental for customers. Nowadays, people travel more and more often, and often these are spontaneous trips that were not previously planned. In such situations, many customers may need the ability to change their parcel delivery address.As you can see, the future of courier services will belong only to the best organized companies. Customers are already very demanding, and everything indicates that their requirements will increase even more in the future.
The advantages of parcel lockers in the UK
According to Swiftlane, when most people say parcel locker, they imagine the awesome parcel lockers in the UK. This association is extremely accurate, because most of us pass them on our way to shopping, home, work, or school. Their commonality is of course, a very big advantage! They are usually densely distributed, so you don’t have to look far for a point. You can even find several of them in housing estates! The large number of residents means that there is a constant need to create another point.
Parcel lockers in the UK finally allow us to both send and receive parcels, all in one place! This saves time and money for many people. Moreover, operating parcel lockers is extremely simple and intuitive. Thanks to this, even the most layman can easily cope with sending and receiving a parcel.
Everyone can also use the courier tracking option. Thanks to it, you can constantly check the entire journey of your parcel, from the moment of sending it to its delivery point. Nothing will escape your attention!
Disadvantages of parcel lockers in the UK
Although both parcel lockers have many advantages, they also have their disadvantages, just like everything else. Among the largest ones, there are, for example, parcel lockers. What does it mean? Not every parcel can be sent via parcel locker. Sometimes its weight or size may be a problem. In such a case, before shipping, it is good to find out what dimensions of parcels a given machine supports.
Another disadvantage is the fact that parcel lockers often turn out to be overflowing. At this point, the parcel is delivered to another parcel locker or parcel point, which may be inconvenient for some people because they are forced to travel additional distances to collect or send the parcel.
Parcel point and parcel locker
In addition to parcel lockers, parcel points have become equally common. So what’s the difference between them? As it turns out, it is small, at least from the perspective of the services offered. Parcel points are places usually located on service premises.
There is an employee who deals directly with customer service. Most often, all parcels that have not been delivered in a given area are stored at this point. The parcel locker itself is an automatic mechanism, which means it does not require an additional employee to operate it.
Main features of parcel lockers
Representatives of the courier service put the necessary things inside, and customers take them from there. Simply put, a parcel locker is a metal box that includes many cells of different sizes, a console panel, and a small display. The device accepts both cash and bank cards. Usually, the equipment can be seen where there is a lot of traffic. These are establishments that operate 24/7, train stations, supermarkets, etc. The device is available as long as the company that owns it is in operation.
It is noteworthy that the idea of creating such systems arose twenty years ago, and today they can be found in all major populated areas of various countries. Despite the fact that parcel terminals began appearing in European countries more than ten years ago, in our country they have become popular relatively recently. Thanks to such devices, many organizations can carry out their activities remotely.
The parcel can be downloaded and received via a specific access code, which is sent in a message when making a payment. Thus, having received the code, the client must enter it on a special display.
Stores use this method to deliver small-sized parcels, and customers prefer parcel machines, wanting to maintain confidentiality. The devices are used by delivery services, logistics companies, and postal services.
In the UK, as in other countries, a different mentality has already started to store things in separate places that are kept, and cannot be accessed except by the owner who has the password and the access key. The phenomenal parcel lockers with smart locker technology are suitably made to withstand the weather and vandalism. They have industrial quality construction and the cabinets have a long life. They also have low maintenance requirements.
The electronic components they have are highly resistant and their power supply is autonomous with photovoltaic panels. This means they can be placed anywhere, even on a mountain. Finally, you can find them in many awesome design options, a variety of colors, sizes and materials.
In an age where online shopping is booming, easy, secure and contactless parcel delivery is coming to be incorporated as a new feature in homes and businesses. With the pandemic, many understood the necessity that existed for the free distribution of products in various parts of the city and not centrally as they had been used to until then.
Thus, the combination of the new security systems and a metal locker created the breathtaking parcel lockers, which are used both for the storage and distribution of parcels. It is an ideal solution, both for citizens and distributors, and can even be placed at the entrance of the home or business.
Parcel lockers for your business
Parcel lockers have become increasingly indispensable: in fact, they are today one of the most useful automation systems for speeding up the parcel delivery and collection process in situations where the recipient is not present, facilitating certain procedures in a simple and safe way.
To take advantage of this awesome service, the customer who makes a purchase online or via telephone simply needs to select the location of the smart locker as the delivery address.
Upon delivery, the package is inserted into one of the astonishing parcel lockers, and the recipient automatically receives an email notification containing the collection instructions, along with an awesome code or QR code. It will be possible to enter the code or scan the QR code by holding the smartphone close to a touch display on site to unlock and open the designated compartment.Retail and trade companies have the opportunity to shorten waiting times in their stores and simplify the management of returns and exchanges, as goods can be delivered directly to smart lockers. This allows for the automation and digitalization of every stage of the process.
In addition to being used for deliveries, a smart locker can also be used for shipping, by booking the collection of packages by the courier directly from a dedicated app. Returns, if necessary, become quick and convenient to manage and do not involve any physical contact with other people.
Conclusion
In summary of this topic, it is worth noting that parcel lockers are a great option that we recommend using. Although you need to pay attention to things like parcel lockers’ dimensions, they also have a lot of new and interesting options that make our lives easier, such as Courier Software.
