Bonobos, Fossil, Lowe’s Lead 2016 Excellence in Customer Experience Awards Finalists

Excellence_in_Customer_Experience_Date1-300x60KING OF PRUSSIA, Pa.–()–Multichannel Merchant today announced it has selected finalists for its annual Excellence in Customer Experience Awards. Data from eBay Enterprise + Innotrac’s SmartHub benchmarking study was used to identify the top performers in each of the award categories. The annual awards were established to recognize retailers at the cutting edge of delivery, packaging, returns, customer experience and innovation.

“To their customers, these companies are superheroes, delivering a superior experience from the order to the return,” said Ellen Shannon, chief content director and publisher at Multichannel Merchant.

Multichannel Merchant has been closely following the rapid growth of omnichannel retail, including the challenges of increasingly complex order fulfillment and inventory management across physical and digital channels, and the ever-expanding variety of delivery options. With this comes a host of customer communications requirements – all presenting opportunities to wow buyers and keep them coming back.

The categories and finalists this year include:

  • Best Packaging: Bath & Body Works, Birchbox, Duluth Trading, Macy’s
  • Best Shipping & Delivery Experience: Apple, Fossil, Sunglass Hut, Walgreens
  • Excellence in Brand Communication: Levi Strauss, The Limited, Nine West, Walt Disney
  • Best Customer Returns Experience: Bonobos, Fossil, Lowe’s, Nordstrom
  • Customer Experience Leader Award: Bonobos, Coach, Fossil, Lowe’s

Additionally, the Retail Innovator of the Year award will be presented to a company identified as a continual innovator, as evidenced by cutting-edge developments introduced by the company. Winners will be announced at a luncheon ceremony at the annual Operations Summit.

Using eBay Enterprise + Innotrac’s SmartHub study, all finalists were chosen based on data collected during the company’s test ordering process. Together, eBay Enterprise + Innotrac are a leading omnichannel operations provider for some of the world’s largest retailers and brands.

“In the beginning, the test order data we collected was used in sales conversations – in fact, over time it became a larger focus in those conversations. Now it has grown into a full study of the e-commerce industry using a standardized process. We have grown from ordering from 50 leading online retailers seven times a year, to ordering from more than 280,” said Brad Higgs, manager of SmartHub. “This year we are introducing our subscription service offering so retailers can have access to our unique data set.”

Higgs said each order is evaluated on 81 data points, from the ordering process to returns and refunds, and more than 1,700 packages were processed in 2015. The SmartHub team looks at everything from order arrival time to package condition and who delivers it, as well as email communication received before and after its arrival.

“We want to offer our congratulations to all the 2016 finalists for continuing to explore new ways of delivering consistent excellence across all facets of the customer experience,” Shannon said. “In the process they’re increasing loyalty and driving sales, raising the bar on retail innovation and inspiring others to do so as well.”

SmartHub is a sponsor of the 2016 Excellence in Customer Experience Awards. Visit the SmartHub booth 402 and the eBay Enterprise + Innotrac booth 100 at the Operations Summit. You can also hear from our experts during our “How to Up Your Game in Onmichannel Operations” workshop (11:45 a.m. – 4:30 p.m., Tuesday, April 12), and “The Big Picture: Keeping Your Omnichannel Strategy on Track” panel discussion (8:30 a.m. – 9:20 a.m., Wednesday, April 13).

About the Operations Summit

Now in its fifth year, the Operations Summit helps merchants boost productivity, cut costs and increase customer satisfaction by providing a gathering place for operations leaders to exchange ideas, tour leading DTC distribution centers and get in-depth training. It is the only conference exclusively devoted to direct-to-customer operations and fulfillment. The Operations Summit, along with the co-located Growing Global conference, covers omnichannel, logistics, customer care, warehousing, order management, global operations, cross-border selling, transportation, returns and fraud prevention.

About Multichannel Merchant

Multichannel Merchant, producer of the Operations Summit, reaches management, marketing and operations at companies that sell merchandise through multiple channels—including e-commerce and catalog. Multichannel Merchant delivers research, executive summaries, technology and supplier comparisons, tip sheets, news and resource information to help companies sell and deliver products direct-to-customer.

About eBay Enterprise + Innotrac

eBay Enterprise is a global omnichannel commerce provider that delivers order management, store fulfillment, dropship, payments, and fraud protection and risk management solutions, and fulfillment, freight and customer care services. Hundreds of retailers and brands rely on eBay Enterprise to simplify commerce, connect supply to demand, and seamlessly integrate technologies with speed and agility to increase profitability and customer loyalty. eBay Enterprise’s integration with Innotrac, has created one of the world’s leading omnichannel commerce providers. Connect with eBay Enterprise + Innotrac at www.ebayenterprise.com.

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