What Is Curbside Pickup and How Does It Work

Major retailers around the world are now relying heavily on curbside pickups. Although this is not a new retail service trend, it has skyrocketed in popularity since the COVID-19 pandemic, when social distancing was a must.

Projections indicate that by 2026, UK click-and-collect orders will surpass £45 billion in value.

But what is curbside pickup, why is it so attractive, and can you benefit from it as a business owner with an online store?

In the following sections, we answer these questions and more. 

What Is Curbside Pickup

Similar to click and collect, curbside pickup is a form of contactless delivery. Instead of offering customers in-store pickup, with curbside pickup shoppers can place an order online and pickup orders from a physical store with a designated curb space or pickup location. 

During the pickup process, the customer doesn’t have to go into your physical store and go through retail interaction with your employees. This naturally creates a set of advantages for both you and the consumer. 

Curbside options are popular for grocery stores, restaurants, and other retailers. 

Key Features of Curbside Pickup

In order to work, curbside pickup requires a set of features:

• Online ordering – Shoppers place their online orders via the retailer’s website or mobile app. They have the opportunity to select the curbside pickup order option at checkout.
• Designated pickup areas – Some shops have in-store space dedicated to processing curbside orders. However, most rely on curbside pickup zones that are positioned outside of the store.
• Contactless payment options – While some customers pay for the purchased products online during checkout, others will prefer to pay upon delivery. In this case, you’ll need tap to pay and a range of other contactless payment options to make payment convenient when the customer comes to pick up their online purchases. 

Note that the shifts in consumer behaviour and the interest towards online sales dramatically influence the features of curbside pickup. A lot of people prefer to buy online and pick up at retail locations instead of shopping in-store. 

Benefits of Curbside Pickup for Consumers

Statistics show that during the 2024 holiday season, 10.7% of orders (for retailers offering the service) utilized curbside pickup. The trend reached its peak on December 15th as shoppers used this fulfillment method to get their last-minute gifts.

It’s no coincidence that this delivery option is so popular among shoppers. There are multiple advantages of curbside pickup that explain its popularity.

First, curbside pickup offers time-saving opportunities for shoppers with a busy schedule. Instead of making customers wait in queues in-store or rely on home delivery services that can oftentimes experience delays and external issues, you can offer them control over their pickup. With predefined pickup time slots, they can arrive at your location and pick up their order in a matter of seconds. 

Second, curbside pickup means guaranteed delivery. Worrying about whether an order will arrive on time (or arrive at all) doesn’t have to be an issue anymore. Not to mention that risks like missing the delivery guy can be left in the past. This is especially important for consumers shopping for gifts for special occasions, food, medication, and other essential items.

Third, curbside pickup is a cheaper alternative to standard delivery options as online shoppers can enjoy zero shipping fees. You can combine going out with friends or travelling back from work with picking up your order for free. 

Finally, curbside pick offers convenience, naturally enhancing the customer experience and leading to happy customers. Even people who are less mobile can enjoy a stress-free pickup as the orders are directly delivered to their vehicle. They don’t have to worry about shopping in stores, waiting in lines, or receiving orders after days or weeks.

Advantages of Curbside Pickup for Retailers

The good news is that all the benefits of curbside pickup aren’t just limited to the customer.

Retailers can also take advantage of all that curbside pickup has to offer.

For starters, curbside pickup inevitably leads to higher customer satisfaction and brand loyalty. By offering shoppers the ability to save time, avoid lines, and enjoy convenience, you are naturally positioning yourself ahead of your competitors and are winning trust from your customers. 

As a result, you can enjoy increased sales. Empowering consumers to shop online and receive orders themselves without even entering your store can be a strong incentive for shopping. 

Retailers who utilise curbside pickup can also benefit from operational efficiency. Via this option, you are able to receive and process orders ahead of time, enabling you to streamline operations. This process makes inventory tracking much easier and eliminates the need for time-consuming interactions.

Best of all, via curbside pickup options, retailers can maximise their existing retail locations or local stores without the need for extra space. This means that they can easily target both in-store shoppers and online shoppers. 

How Curbside Pickup Works: A Step-by-Step Guide

Earlier, we briefly covered the features of curbside pickup. But how does this process work from start to finish?

Here’s a step-by-step explanation on how curbside pickup works:

1. Customer orders – A customer places an online order through your online shop or mobile app.
2. Checkout completion – The customer completes the checkout process and curbside delivery as the delivery option. They will also be able to select from the available time slots a time that is convenient for them to pick up the order.
3. Payment – The customer can either pay for their order online by credit card or another payment option or choose to pay for the purchased goods upon delivery or pickup.
4. Order processing – The merchant receives information about the placed order and can start preparing it. At this point, the customer receives a confirmation email as well as an order number and a number to call when the customer parks in the pickup designated area and is ready to receive their package.
5. Customer arrival – Once the customer parks, they will get in touch with you at the provided number. Next, the store associate brings the purchased products to the customer’s car.

It’s key to note that this process is only applicable to retail stores who have an online store or mobile app that enables online shopping. For customers to be able to enjoy this seamless procedure, you must also offer curbside pickup and have implemented all the necessary technology and processes behind it. 

Technologies Enabling Curbside Pickup

Needless to say, to be able to implement a reliable and sound curbside pickup process, you’ll need to rely on technology.

One of the most important solutions to have is an online ordering platform. It will allow shoppers to place their orders for curbside pickup through a website or mobile app. Think of this as a one centralised platform that you can count on. 

Another solution you may need is an order management system that will help you track online orders and curbside pickup orders. This software usually works with real-time order processing that guarantees orders are adequately prepared and quickly set up for pickup.

To be able to receive payments safely and conveniently, you’ll also need mobile payment and POS integrations. Make sure that your solution is capable of providing integrations with POS systems and mobile payment options that can support contactless transactions. 

Having a customer relationship management tool can also be helpful, especially when it comes to managing customer data and making personalised offers when it comes to your curbside pickup service and online shopping in general. 

More advanced retailers can also explore options for geofencing and GPS tracking. This will make it much easier to detect when shoppers have arrived at the designated curbside pickup area via GPS. Through automatic check-ins and proximity-based alerts, you can make the pickup experience even better, without having to ask the customer to contact you upon their arrival. 

Implementing Curbside Pickup: Best Practices

To enjoy maximum results and make curbside pickup work, there are several tested and proven best practices.

Here are the most important tips we recommend:

• Always start with a curbside pickup plan – Curbside pickup isn’t as easy as it sounds. Just like anything business-related, it requires research, analysis, and a step-by-step plan. Think of how you’ll inform customers about your curbside pickup options, how many of your locations will support this form of pickup, how many employees you’ll need to involve in the process, and more.
• Customer notifications – Make sure you have reliable options to notify customers when they can come pick up their order. In most cases, this is done via pickup time slots at checkout. However, if you are not able to provide details on the customer’s order or curbside collection at checkout, think about putting in place email notifications, SMS notifications, or order alternatives. 
• Research the optimal parking spots in advance – As noted above, sometimes, the retailer’s parking lot will be so busy that it would be impossible to designate nearby parking spaces for curbside pickup. Before launching your curbside pickup services, make sure that you have enough space to execute the process once the customer arrives.
• Use digital marketing techniques to build awareness for pickup availability – In order for customers to use your curbside pickup service, they’ll need to be aware of it. Make sure to advertise this option across your social media channels, email newsletters, website, and other channels.
• Relying on parcel lockers – If you’re expecting high demand for this service, you may want to streamline curbside pickups via electronic parcel lockers that can guarantee efficiency. 

Overall, think of your curbside pickup service as a strategic choice to improve customer convenience and satisfaction. Therefore, approach it as a business decision that requires being informed, prepared, and ready for any scenario.

Challenges and Solutions in Curbside Pickup

So far, we’ve only covered the positive side of curbside pickup. 

However, there are also a set of challenges worth mentioning. 

In most cases, curbside pickup is only available at some of the retailer’s locations. This is mostly due to limitations around the availability of designated parking spots. As a result, consumers can find it confusing or difficult to understand where they can take advantage of this service. Mixed availability can lead to customer dissatisfaction so it’s key to inform shoppers in advance to avoid such risks.

As noted above, physical stores often lack the available space to build parking spots that are specifically allocated for curbside pickup. Oftentimes, retailers choose to use general parking spaces for curbside pickup, which may lead to serious challenges like unavailability, disputes, and even legal conflicts.

Not to mention that staff management is also a key problem to address. It’s a common challenge for retailers to ensure that they have enough coverage for processing and loading products into customer’s cars. 

There’s also the big question of whether an employee should be tasked with covering both curbside pickup orders and in-store orders or whether retailers should have designated teams for curbside pickups. The right answer ultimately depends on demand and how well you can forecast your curbside pickup orders.

In addition, even when retailers provide pickup time slots, there’s no guarantee that customers will arrive on time. This could create congestions and space blockages, which can seriously disrupt your normal business operations. 

Moreover, there are safety concerns related to curbside pickup in cases where the process is not thoroughly planned and executed. 

Finally, it’s worth noting that curbside pickup overall reduces in-store shopping. This could mean missed opportunities for last-minute purchases and additional revenue. 

Integrating Curbside Pickup with Other Sales Channels

In today’s retail space, consumers expect an omnichannel shopping experience. This makes it vital for retailers to integrate curbside pickup with other existing sales channels in order to stand out from the crowd and satisfy existing customer demand.

Luckily, with the vast range of technological solutions that retailers have access to today, this is not as challenging as it sounds.

For instance, you can achieve this integration via an omnichannel order management system, which connects all of your sales channels into one. You can use this solution for real-time inventory updates, order statuses, and delivery options. 

Let’s say a shopper places an online order and wants to take advantage of your curbside pickup. The system can route the order to the nearest store, notify the retailer that it should be prepared for delivery, and notify the customer when it’s ready. 

Equally important are things like a unified inventory management system, in-store and online sales channel integrations, and payment systems that enable a smooth and safe customer experience no matter where they chose to pay. 

Conclusion 

Although curbside pickup gained popularity during the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s here to stay. By offering convenience, affordability, time savings, and more, it has unquestionably won the hearts of consumers around the world.

For retailers with an online shop or mobile app, curbside pickup presents enormous opportunities to streamline the delivery process, boost customer satisfaction, and achieve higher levels of brand loyalty

Frequently Asked Questions

Which retailers typically offer curbside pickup?

Major retailers like grocery stores, electronics shops, home improvement stores, and department stores often offer curbside service. Additionally, many smaller local businesses have also adopted curbside pickup, especially in response to shifts in consumer behaviour during the pandemic.

Is curbside pickup different from in-store pickup?

Yes, these two terms are different. With curbside pickup, customers remain in their vehicle while store staff bring the order to them. In contrast, in-store pickup requires customers to enter the store and retrieve their items from a designated counter or area.

How do costumes pay for a curbside pickup order?

Payment for curbside pickup orders is typically completed online when placing the order. Retailers may offer contactless payment options such as tap to pay or mobile wallets through their apps, allowing for a completely touch-free experience.