Ocado launches SMS reminder service for busy customers

In 2007 alone, over a thousand customers completely forgot about the fact that they had booked an Ocado delivery.

From next week, customers will receive an SMS reminder on the day of their delivery. It will be sent at a sociable hour and will include details of the driver's name, van type ('cabbage', 'apple', 'courgette', 'onion', 'strawberry' and 'lemon') and registration number as well as details of any missing items.

Ocado co-founder Jason Gissing says, “Over two thirds of our customers work and roughly the same proportion have children so they are some of the busiest people in the country. It's easy to understand why they occasionally forget that we're due to deliver. Whilst most people genuinely forget because their busy, we have had situations where customers admit to more creative reasons for not being in when we show up - from being whisked off on romantic getaways to organising deliveries of their own in the labour ward.

“Although Ocado's rate of missing items is the lowest in the industry with just one in every 8000 items being unavailable, we know it can be a big inconvenience if important things, like nappies or a vital cooking ingredient, aren't included in a delivery. The SMS alert will enable our customers to plan around this eventuality.”