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With more than 70% of online shoppers choosing to pay for orders after delivery, cash on delivery is a necessary evil for eCommerce businesses. While offering this payment mode helps remove the barriers during checkout and increase sales, it puts online brands at a much higher risk of issues like return-to-origins (RTOs) where consumers can simply decline the order at the time of delivery or cancel it while in transit. A simple cancellation of a cash on delivery (COD) order results in the business incurring additional costs of forward and reverse logistics, order processing, packaging and repackaging, quality checks and an increased risk of product damage. The disadvantages of cash on delivery to businesses are plenty.

But when consumers prefer COD, how do businesses encourage prepaid orders?

The answer to a win-win here is Partial COD by GoKwik.

What Is Partial COD?

Partial cash in delivery or Partial COD is the industry’s first payment method, introduced by GoKwik, that addresses the challenges of both the consumers and businesses. With this payment method, a consumer can choose to pay for a certain amount of the order digitally and the rest in cash at the time of delivery. Meanwhile, online brands get a sense of assurance and the chances of them recording RTOs reduces significantly.

Also Read: Navigating the COD Challenges: How eCommerce Brands Can Thrive

What Are The Benefits Of Offering Partial COD?

Online businesses have been moving back and forth between offering cash on delivery to their audience or completely removing it in order to reduce the risk of bad purchases and RTOs. Here, Partial COD taps into the best of both payment methods, reducing the barriers to an online shopper making a purchase.

Reduce Purchase Anxiety – Since a shopper is paying only some of the order amount upfront, partial COD helps keep their purchase anxiety at bay. They still feel much in control of the order in case it does not meet their expectations and creates a safety net around the purchase.
Secure Confirmed Orders – When a consumer pays for an order partially, it is a sign of commitment towards wanting the product. This helps businesses secure confirmed orders vs leaving them at the risk of change in consumer preference at the point of delivery.
Recover Potential Losses – Even if a consumer declines an order at the point of delivery, with partial COD the business has recouped some amount associated with it. This helps them assign that amount towards the additional costs they typically have to pay for through their cash flow for reverse logistics and other processes.

What Is The Impact Of Partial COD On Orders?

GoKwik is introducing online brands to the benefits of this new payment method. As we start to enable partial COD for consumers across different audience segments, we’re seeing the following impact on business growth:

15-20% uplift in conversion rate
20% increase in prepaid conversions
~55% reduction in cash on delivery-led RTOs

Simply put, we’re noticing that with Partial COD in place, brands don’t need to remove cash on delivery entirely to control their RTO on orders. And that consumers are actually comfortable paying partially for an order up front. In fact, it’s a value add in further enhancing customer payment journey.

Do You Need Partial COD?

If you ask us, cash on delivery is a naturally opted for payment method and it’s not going anywhere – nor are the risks associated with it. Partial COD helps you address these risks and still be able to cater to consumer preferences. The good thing is that partial COD is extremely easy to configure if you’re already using GoKwik’s Kwik Checkout. With no additional integrations or set up required, you can get started with Partial COD in no time.

Conclusion

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AUTHOR

Suhag Vamja

Head of Product Marketing @ GoKwik

AUTHOR

Suhag Vamja

Head of Product Marketing @ GoKwik

Suhag spearheads D2C growth strategies at GoKwik, focusing on e-commerce optimisation, conversion funnels, and sales enablement. Based in Bengaluru and an MICA alumnus, he excels in crafting GTM playbooks and marketing campaigns tailored for D2C brands.

Partial Cash On Delivery (Partial COD): Your Tool To Uplift Prepaid Conversions

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Read this blog on your favourite platform

What Is Partial COD?

What Are The Benefits Of Offering Partial COD?

What Is The Impact Of Partial COD On Orders?

Do You Need Partial COD?

Conclusion

Suhag Vamja

Suhag Vamja