Global Address Validation Tool for E-Commerce Websites

Posted by arun on September 29th, 2014

Your address. You need this for items, services, and people to reach you. It is a part of your identity and is often required as an official proof of residence. Address information comes in different formats and standards for different countries. And even though globalization is on the rise, it may be awhile- if ever- that we see a single, globalized address standard. But it is vital now for e-commerce websites to be able to properly format addresses around the globe to enable accurate, efficient delivery of packages to the intended recipient at the correct address.

Global address validation tools provide a solution for the e-commerce industry to deliver their packages to accurate addresses without wasting time and money on returns, redirects, and reshipping. And, one of the biggest benefits of address accuracy? Happy, satisfied customers! The advantages of e-commerce need no explanation given their popularity and the multitude of websites and companies selling products and services online. Customers find it easy to shop and compare with a wide variety of merchants, shops, and providers to choose from. However, the shipping information provided is still the responsibility of the customer. Many times, those customers enter inaccurate or incomplete address data. The slightest typo or missed element in an address could delay delivery, or worse, prevent the package from getting delivered at all.

Today, there are many solutions available to help customers enter correct, valid shipping information. The most significant tool is cloud-based global address verification. This is an integrated suite of components that checks the location of the customer and makes the necessary corrections. It’s a win-win situation for both the e-commerce business and the customer.

Find Customer Errors                          

The most crucial part of an e-commerce transaction is the checkout. The customer must enter their shipping information. Seems easy, right? But typos will happen, transposing numbers in the address, leaving out the pre- or post-direction for the street name, forgetting to include a suite or apartment number, or using abbreviations that are not recognized by many of the parcel carriers or postal services.  Global address validation can catch those errors and make the necessary corrections or offer suggestions for a valid address.

Maintain Consistent Delivery Time

Online shoppers are a steadily-growing population and are aware of general shipping policies and delivery times. So, e-commerce businesses must be consistent in their efforts to satisfy their customers by delivering products in a timely manner. An incorrect address doesn’t allow this to happen and the results turn good, loyal customers into unsatisfied customers. Global address verification helps to eliminate these problems and ensures that all the packages are delivered to the intended recipient at the correct address - maintaining, and improving customer satisfaction levels and the user-experience aspects.

Overall Benefits of Global Address Validation Tool

• Finds and corrects typing errors in address
• Ensures accurate, speedy deliveries
• Makes searching for duplicate records an easier task
• Adds missing components such as postal codes, regions, etc
• Reduces online fraud
• Automatically matches outdated addresses with new postal address