FedEx teams up with WhatsApp for enhanced delivery updates

FedEx Express has partnered with WhatsApp to enhance its services with delivery notifications and personalised options for its customers in the Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa (AMEA) region.  

FedEx Delivery Manager International (FDMi) is the company’s interactive e-commerce delivery solution that provides customisable delivery options and alerts. 

The integration of WhatsApp into FDMi will be launched in nine markets in the AMEA region, including Australia, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). 

The express transportation company said e-tailers using the solution can offer their residential customers the ability to pick the timing and location of their deliveries to fit their schedule.  

In case you missed it: Retailers must offer sustainable delivery options or be a ‘strategic risk’

The solution will also allow customers to change the delivery address when the shipment is in transit for extra flexibility at no extra cost. 

“We know that consumers have an increasing preference for personalised delivery services,” said Salil Chari, senior vice president, Marketing and Customer Experience, AMEA at FedEx. 

Globally, WhatsApp has over 2 billion active monthly users. In Australia and New Zealand, it is used by around 40 per cent of the market.  

The instant messaging platform is also a mainstay in many countries, with 80 per cent of people over the age of 16 in HongKong, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and the UAE using it.  

In the Philippines, the app is used by more than one in four Filipinos.  

“Integrating social platforms of choice like WhatsApp into our digital solutions gives an added boost to the convenience we can offer to e-commerce customers,” Chari said. 

Recipients expecting inbound deliveries will receive a WhatsApp notification from FedEx upon shipment pickup.  

FedEx said it uses a META verified WhatsApp business account which helps mitigate the risk of recipients responding to scams perpretrated on WhatsApp using the FedEx brand.  

Recipients can message and chat with FedEx directly as well as access tracking status and re-direct options with the click of a button directly in the WhatsApp chat window. 

“This service enhancement that allows two-way engagement is another example of how we are working at the intersection of our digital and physical networks to create differentiated, customer-centric service experiences,” Chari said. 

According to FedEx, the integration of WhatsApp into FDMi will provide customers more peace of mind through the traceability of their package on their mobile device as well as an enhanced online shopping experience.

The team up with WhatsApp will also help FedEx minimise delivery attempts to recipients who may not be at home.