Congratulations! If you’re reading this then you’re an ecommerce brand owner, entrepreneur, or have an interest in ecommerce burning in your soul! That may seem a bit dramatic, but people who get into the ecommerce industry are dynamic by nature, living every day with visions of innovation, gameplans for growth, and on the hunt for the best scaling strategy. If these identifiers are speaking your language then we have a new ecommerce term that needs to be added to your job jargon: MonkProtect. 

The simple description for MonkProtect is a post-purchase suite that helps ecommerce brands “stress less and grow more” by helping customers “stress less and buy more.” While ShipMonk as a 3PL handles the picking, packing, and shipping components of the order fulfillment process across our 12 state-of-the-art fulfillment facilities, MonkProtect handles the PROTECT part of every ecommerce order. But there is more to it that we can’t wait to share. 

So if lost, stolen, damaged, or incorrect deliveries are breaking your customers’ trust and negatively impacting your profitability, or you just want to avoid any of this in the first place, consider coming aboard the ShipMonk ecommerce experience. Our MonkProtect technology provides best-in-class post-purchase protection and extra added benefits.

Why You Need Package Protection

Are package thefts, at-risk orders, and MIA deliveries getting you down? The fact is that in a world where ecommerce competitors are waiting around every corner to take your consumers, you can’t afford to have problems with shipping negatively impact their experience with your brand.

Stat 1: “Porch pirates stole from 49 million Americans in 2022.”

Stat 2: “It takes 12 positive experiences to compensate for one unresolved negative experience.”

Stat 3: “It costs 7x more to acquire a new customer than it does to retain an existing one.”

Stat 4: 74% of 1,000 consumers surveyed said they’d experienced a product or service problem in the past year. 

Stat 5: “Only 8% of customers believe they are receiving “superior customer service.”

Enter MonkProtect

MonkProtect is a post-purchase solution by ShipMonk that lets your customers safeguard delivery of their ecommerce orders by paying a small additional fee during checkout. If an order is lost, damaged, stolen, or arrives incorrectly, MonkProtect’s Automated Claims Portal allows customers to promptly report their order’s issues and achieve faster resolutions through automated solutions. Even better? To streamline the process, claims are all managed directly within the ShipMonk App.

In short, it’s package protection (or delivery protection) at its finest. That’s not hyperbole; it’s fact. ShipMonk is the first third-party logistics provider (3PL) to offer built-in package protection opportunities for its ecommerce clients. You can get post-purchase protection from other outside sources, but they will only cover claims related to the shipping aspect of package protection, not the fulfillment aspect because they have nothing to do with the fulfillment centers where your packages were put together. Similarly, you could do business with a fulfillment center, but they wouldn’t cover package protection if something happens to your goods once they leave the building. 

ShipMonk combines the best of both worlds by having package protection built into our business model, offering the MonkProtect post-purchase suite easily integrated with our 3PL software. 

MonkProtect Features

ShipMonk is known for its advanced, evolving technology in the ecommerce industry. The trademarks of the technology we develop include: user-friendliness, seamless integration, and the ability to streamline complex processes into stress-free ecommerce brand management tools. MonkProtect upholds all these classic ShipMonk tech. values, bringing unique features to the table that entrepreneurs benefit from. The seven main highlights of the MonkPortect platform include:

1.) Package Protection for Lost, Stolen, Damaged, or Incorrect Orders 

MonkProtect protects your brand from the negative fallout and customer friction caused by lost, damaged, stolen, or incorrect ecommerce orders. 

2.) Automated Claims Portal

MonkProtect allows your customers to report any order issues through our easy-to-use portal, which centralizes and automates all your claims. All claims are instantly pushed through the ShipMonk App, alongside your orders.

3.) Additional Revenue Streams Per Order

MonkProtect isn’t an added expense for you; on the contrary, it actually creates a new revenue stream to directly benefit your bottom line. 

4.) Branded Tracking

Our Branded Tracking provides real-time status updates on delivery and gives customers direct access to the claims portal while boosting your ecommerce brand visibility and customer loyalty, making the most out of post-purchase tracking.

5.) Excellent Post-Purchase Experience

It’s clear your customers want your product; don’t let a poor post-purchase experience prevent them from coming back. MonkProtect is a full suite of tools designed to ensure a seamless customer experience from checkout to delivery.

6.) Seamless Integration with ShipMonk

MonkProtect is directly integrated into ShipMonk’s powerful 3PL software, allowing you to manage and review all your claims from the same platform you already use. 

7.) Rapid Claims Resolution and Instant Reships

MonkProtect claims are processed within 48 hours on average, automatically triggering a reship order to your customers once the claim is approved.

Remarkable Stats Round-Up

At ShipMonk, we see the magic of MonkProtect every day when the ecommerce brands we partner with experience less stress while saving time on dealing with post-purchase issues. We opened this blog with some intense, humbling statistics that highlight the pain points of package delivery problems; now let’s flip the script and show you how our 3PL heals that with some super uplifting stats. If you still need convincing to give MonkProtect a try, consider this:

Stat 1: With a 92% claims approval rate, ecommerce merchants can reduce costly manual efforts and reshipment-related expenses.

Stat 2: By using MonkProtect, on average ecommerce merchants add $0.20 in incremental margin per order directly to their bottom lines.

Stat 3: MonkProtect works 10x faster than a manual claims processing setup while offering added revenue streams, and is seamlessly integrated with the ShipMonk platform. 

Stat 4: It takes a customer on average just 1.4 minutes to file a claim through the MonkProtect Claims Portal.

Stat 5: MonkProtect provides automated resolution and up to 120% coverage on claims regardless of the issue’s source.

Protected Item Value vs. Protected Order Value

Now that you know the brilliant benefits MonkProtect brings to the table, let’s explore more about how the platform works, what it covers, and our policies. Before we delve into that though, there are a couple key terms you need to know: Protected Item Value and Protected Order Value.

What is Protected Item Value?

PIV is the cart value of each item in an order (post-discounts), which determines the amount credited if a claim is approved. Some parameters to take into account regarding Protect Item Value are: 

• Digital items are excluded from protection.
• For items with $0 cart retail value, such as gifts, Replacement Value is used as Protected Item Value.
• It is the merchant’s responsibility to set Replacement Values for gift SKUs in the ShipMonk App. If there is no Replacement Value set in the ShipMonk App, the Protected Item Value of the gift item will be $0. 

What is Protected Order Value? 

POV is the total of Protected Item Values within an order, which determines the MonkProtect fee. Note that this excludes shipping costs paid by the customer, sales tax, and digital (non-physical) items.

MonkProtect’s Got You Covered 

To be covered by MonkProtect, an ecommerce merchant’s order must be placed within a connected online store and imported into ShipMonk. As our 3PL business model expands, our offerings continue to expand, and as a result what is covered, how it’s covered, and when that coverage kicks in is not always the same. 

As a whole though, our coverage policies are covered under two main types of claims: shipping claims and fulfillment claims. As mentioned, this is a unique benefit because ShipMonk is the only 3PL with package protection/delivery protection built natively into its systems. Other 3PLs may cover fulfillment claims, but you would have to bring in an outside provider for package protection to cover shipping claims. ShipMonk has you covered for both with MonkProtect. 

Types of Shipping Claims 

***Something happened in the delivery process***

Lost in Transit – Any package that is not delivered within a reasonable time window is presumed to be “Lost in Transit”. 

• Example Customer Complaint: “Hi, I ordered a package that was supposed to arrive within three days, but it has not arrived yet and the package is not moving according to the UPS tracking. Can you please check if it’s lost in transit and help me resolve this issue?”

Stolen (Delivered, Not Received) – Packages marked as delivered by the shipping carrier, but not received by the customer when the correct address was provided.

• Example Customer Complaint: “Hello, I received an email saying my package was delivered, but I haven’t received it yet. I checked with my neighbors and they don’t have it either. Can you please investigate if it was stolen and assist me with getting a replacement?”

Item(s) Damaged, Packaging shows Damage – The order is delivered, but the contents and/or packaging are damaged.

• Example Customer Complaint: “Hi, I received my order today, but the package was damaged and some items inside were also damaged. Can you please help me with a refund or replacement for the damaged items?”

Types of Fulfillment Claims

***Something happened in the fulfillment process***

Missing Item(s)– The order is delivered but is missing an item and/or a wrong item was delivered instead.

• Example Customer Complaint: “Hello, I received my package today, but one of the items I ordered is missing. Can you please check and help me with getting the missing item delivered or refunded?”

Extra Item(s) – The order is delivered containing all items ordered, but also contains additional items.

• Example Customer Complaint: “Hi, I opened my package today and found that in addition to what I ordered there is something that I didn’t. How do I go about getting this back to you? I’m worried about being charged for it.”

Every type of claim has different coverage situations. To better understand coverage, when a claim can be filed, what is credited, and requirements for claim processing, you’ll want to speak with a MonkProtect Pro. 

Claim Processing – How it Actually Works

Once your customers report an issue through our Automated Claims Portal, it will push in real-time into your ShipMonk App and promptly reviewed by our claims team. Once the claim is reviewed, an automatic reshipment of the order is triggered and communication is sent out to your buyers with the update and details of their incoming new order. You also have the option to refund your customers, which is the back-up option if a reship is not available. 

Most claims will be reviewed, processed, and resolved within a few days. For claims to be processed, the ecommerce merchant or customer must provide all required information when filing the claim. MonkProtect will not process the claim until all required information is received. If there is insufficient documentation, MonkProtect will communicate with the ecommerce merchant or the customer (based on the MonkProtect settings selected), requesting the information needed to process the claim. If the requested information is not provided within 7 calendar days, the claim will be closed.

If a claim is closed, the ecommerce merchant or customer can open a new claim as long as the claim is still within the allowed policy timeline. If the claim is approved, the ecommerce merchant will be issued a credit. That credit is visible in the bi-weekly invoice within the ShipMonk platform. The ecommerce merchant can then resolve customer claims with one of the below options:

How You’re Covered $$$

This is important only for internationally fulfilled orders, which ShipMonk does a lot of with our Canada, Mexico, and ShipMonk Europe locations. If this parameter applies to your ecommerce brand, MonkProtect charges will be in the local currency of the fulfillment center that completed your order. For example:

• Orders fulfilled from warehouses in the U.S. will have MonkProtect fees charged in USD.
• Orders fulfilled from our U.K. warehouse will have MonkProtect fees charged in GBP.

With MonkProtect, international charges are based on applying a fixed currency exchange rate to USD pricing. On every ecommerce merchant’s bi-weekly invoice, all charges will be converted to the merchant’s local currency (e.g., USD for U.S. based merchants).

 

What Isn’t Eligible for MonkProtect Coverage?

At this time, MonkProtect does not cover digital items (i.e. those that do not require physical fulfillment and shipping). You will not be charged for protection of digital items as they are excluded from Protected Item Value. MonkProtect also does not cover costs if a customer is dissatisfied with an ordered product. 

As part of ShipMonk company policy, MonkProtect reserves the right to deny claims that are determined to be fraudulent. And if ecommerce orders are shipped via untrackable shipping methods (i.e. shipping methods that do not provide a tracking number or tracking information), MonkProtect reserves the right to reject claims related to those orders as well.

Opting In!

MonkProtect charges based on the Protected Order Value of each order. With MonkProtect’s Toggle Opt-in protection, the customer will be charged based on the cart value at checkout (post-discount), excluding shipping costs paid by the customer, sales tax, and digital items. All charges are accounted for in the ecommerce merchant’s bi-weekly invoice within the ShipMonk platform. 

With Toggle Opt-in, the total cost is charged to the customer at the time of purchase. Meanwhile, with the All-Orders protection, ShipMonk will charge the ecommerce merchant for the package protection of every order we fulfill. It is at the merchant’s discretion to build the cost within their pricing structure.

Pricing and Revenue 

Every ecommerce merchant is unique, and our coverage policies respect that. The value of coverage is dependent on the SKU(s). For example, ecommerce orders over $2,500 in Protected Item Value are covered up to $2,500. The best way to see how MonkProtect weighs and categorizes cart value, cost to buyer, cost to merchant, and revenue per order, is to discuss your specific ecommerce products directly with a MonkProtect expert. By filling out our specialized quote request form, we can tailor our responses to your ecommerce brand’s needs. Fill it out today to get all your answers about buyer and merchant package protection. 

Cancellation

We’ve designed MonkProtect to automate and simplify the customer post-purchase experience for our ecommerce merchants. However, our merchants may choose to cancel MonkProtect service at any time.

The Marvel of MonkProtect

Are you paying as much attention to your customer’s post-purchase experience as your website’s conversion rate? You should be. Making sure customers are happy after clicking BUY is just as important as getting them to click in the first place. MonkProtect has your back for that part of the process. 

Ecommerce merchants who utilize MonkProtect drastically reduce effort in claims management by allowing customers to self-report issues via our Automated Claims Portal. This maximizes the efficiency of your Customer Support resources by focusing them only on unique cases that require manual review, saving you time to dedicate to other areas of your business. All the while, this first-of-its-kind post-purchase suite allows ecommerce brands to utilize onsite tracking vs. shipping carrier page tracking to increase branded impressions. 

In summation, MonkProtect can:

• Enhance customer experience
• Save your support team resources and time
• Increase repurchase rates 
• Convert repeat order status visits
• Creates new revenue streams 

MonkProtect Your Ecommerce Brand Now

These days, package protection/delivery protection is no longer considered an optional add-on like ketchup to a burger. In order to protect your buyer’s experience and ecommerce brand’s reputation, you need to ensure safe delivery to your customers. This is the new norm for ecommerce merchants looking to stay competitive. ShipMonk has you covered in this complex area with MonkProtect.

Getting every ecommerce order perfect every time is challenging. Packages can get lost, damaged, or even stolen upon delivery, and none of that may be an ecommerce merchant’s fault. Our ultimate post-purchase suite allows you to keep up with industry standards and command your customers’ post-purchase experience. Contact a MonkProtect expert today to learn how MonkProtect can boost your brand, save you time, and protect your post-purchase experience!