The significance of on-time delivery for B2B businesses

With supply chains on all scales disrupted by recent global events, supplier confidence is at an all-time low. As a result, continuity of supply has been brought into even sharper focus for those businesses that rely on raw materials and ingredients. In this blog, therefore, we explain the significance of high standards of reliability and on-time delivery in the business-to-business sector.

On-time delivery is a vital part of customer service. It can be the difference between sustaining your revenue streams or facing a constant battle to secure sales. Indeed, with customers forming the most important part of any business, customer service is either an organisation’s biggest strength or its biggest weakness.

The logic is straightforward. Effective customer service, or in other words, enhanced customer satisfaction, results in loyalty, repeat sales, long-term custom and a stronger reputation. This then has a knock-on effect as current customers are more likely to recommend the company’s services to others and bring in new sales. Due to these principles, a quality delivery service is often a priority for most businesses.

In today’s climate, though, this objective is even more important. Poor delivery times can lead to irreparable customer relationship damage, which businesses cannot afford during a global pandemic and an uncertain post-Brexit future – especially in the digital age where customers have more options available at the click of a button. The key to maintaining good customer relationships, then, is through consistent communication and on-time delivery.

Delivering on-time and in-full requires rigorous attention to detail through each stage of the production process – not just efficient transportation of the finished product. 

Delivery standards are of equal importance in both sectors, but there is a crucial difference between the two – the distinct effects of poor delivery in each sector. This makes more sense through a comparison:

If the customers of a B2C brand receive something late, they might be frustrated and vow to shop with a different brand in future, but it has not impacted the customer’s day to day life and/or income. With a B2B company, however, it does. A late B2B delivery directly impacts the efficiency of their customer’s production process, which subsequently affects how much profit the customer can make. This top-level effect can be broken down into the below process:

• Material shortage to the production process which slows or stops the production process, meaning every step beyond that is also impacted
• Delays to the manufacturing schedule and therefore order fulfilment
• Extra labour costs incurred by waiting time
• Costs of amending the production line, where possible
• Additional shipping costs where scheduled transport has been missed or delayed and last-minute changes have to be made
• Customer service team spending time dealing with impending customer complaints
• Potential loss of business

The Ragus identity has been built on our commitment to upholding excellent customer service in every way, with delivering on-time and in-full forming a crucial part of this service. While there are always factors outside of our control, these can be reduced by building good relationships with staff, suppliers and reliable transportation providers.

We provide orders in bulk, meaning we are sourcing, manufacturing, and delivering large quantities of pure sugars and syrups to customers across the world at any one time. To do this successfully, we must pay close attention to detail and effectively communicate with all stakeholders, from suppliers to customers.

Effective order management is underpinned by highly knowledgeable staff with extensive industry experience. Their commitment to the highest levels of customer service is the key reason why Ragus exceeds expectations with industry-leading delivery performance. Orders are scheduled meticulously, and our customer service team are always flexible in their efforts to help each customer achieve their unique objectives.

Ragus delivers 97% of its orders on-time and in-full. To learn more about our products, please contact our Customer Services Team. To see more sugar news and updates, continue browsing SUGARTALK and follow Ragus on LinkedIn.