DISCUSSION
Is UPS’s Saturday announcement a sign of deliveries to come?
Written by RetailWire Staff
Photo: UPS
People are using e-commerce more than ever, and shipping companies are trying to keep up with the increased demand for reliable and convenient package delivery. With that in mind, UPS is planning an unprecedented change to its service.
Earlier this month, UPS announced that it would offer package delivery and pickup on Saturdays. The carrier plans to expand the service's three-city pilot to 15 major metropolitan areas in April and have the new service fully implemented by the end of 2018. UPS expects that the expansion will create more than 6,000 new jobs and does not anticipate needing to invest in additional trucks, buildings or vehicles to manage the extra delivery day.
Receiving packages on weekdays can often be difficult for customers, for example, those in urban areas who live in apartments that lack a safe place to leave a package. If people who work regular weekday business hours are unable to accept packages at their business address, it may be prohibitively difficult to engage in e-commerce at all. Receiving messages stuck to the door about successive delivery attempts can cause severe customer frustration.
The service change is intended to streamline delivery in the supply chain, as well. UPS's press release noted that having an extra day to ship and receive can result in increased supply chain efficiencies.
The development could also impact staffing at companies, requiring employees to manage and handle elements of the shipping and receiving process on Saturday (if these tasks aren't automated).
Increasing customer satisfaction and managing volume are not the only factors driving UPS to make changes and pursue innovation. Amazon.com and Google have been making incursions into territory once owned solely by shipping companies.
Launching Saturday delivery is only one of the avenues UPS is exploring to meet increased delivery demand. Last month, the shipping company began piloting a delivery truck that acts as a mobile base for roof-mounted delivery drones.