Parcels carrier UK Mail is helping eBay merchants to get their goods delivered through the ‘click
& collect’ partnership between the e-commerce marketplace and the Argos chain of high street
stores.
eBay partnered last July with Argos in a large-scale ‘click & collect’ initiative,
enabling buyers to choose an eBay Collection Point at one of over 650 Argos stores across the UK,
as an alternative to home delivery.
According to UK media reports, the scheme has handled more than one million orders to date.
The two companies apparently plan to extend it to a ‘click & drop’ solution, enabling sellers
to drop off the order at the eBay point and let the store handle wrapping and shipping to the
buyer.
UK Mail explained that once a sale has been completed, the eBay shipping systems have been
adapted to incorporate the ‘click & collect’ option within the current shipping process. If a
buyer specifies they wish to use the ‘click & collect’ option, eBay systems will automatically
overwrite the recipient’s home address with those of the nominated Argos store.
The solution will enable delivery to be made within 72 hours, incorporating the sellers
handling time. UK Mail is one of a selected range of carriers providing services for eBay,
collecting from merchants and delivering to the required Argos stores.
The ‘click and collect’ functionality, which has been rolled out across thousands of eBay
sellers, is free and also incorporates both evening and weekend option. An email and text messages,
quoting a unique collection code reference, are sent to the buyer once the goods arrive at the
designated store and a seven day collection window exists, after which the goods are returned to
the sender.
According to UK Mail, once fully operational the new solution should help to improve the
delivery experience for buyers, enabling them to choose a convenient alternative to home delivery
and eliminating the need to wait in for the postman / courier to arrive.
Carriers will also benefit from improved first time delivery performance and conveniently
located delivery points.
