By now, most of us have likely made at least one online purchase, and many of us have experienced the convenience of having items delivered to a parcel locker. The effectiveness of this convenience heavily relies on the placement of these lockers. But how can parcel locker service providers use location data to strategically place them to maximise ROI and attract more businesses to use their services?
The surge of ecommerce has revolutionised most retail sectors. With 20.1% of retail purchases expected to take place online in 2024 and fewer people shopping in physical stores each year, it’s clear that online shopping is here to stay.
Especially in recent years, parcel lockers — otherwise known as package lockers, smart lockers, or shipping lockers — have gained their fair share of popularity within the online shopping sphere.
A parcel locker is a secure, automated box that allows customers to pick up packages at their convenience, typically located near homes or workplaces. These lockers streamline the delivery process, offering a flexible option for customers and centralising drop-offs to improve last-mile logistics
According to shipping giant DHL, the global market for parcel lockers is anticipated to rise from $806.6 million in 2022 to $2,073.4 million by 2030, reflecting a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 12.6 percent.
Most of these locker’s efficiency and popularity depends on their location.
So choosing the right spots to place them is essential for locker service providers.
The most reliable way to do so is through location intelligence. Through Points of Interest (POI), Sentiment and Popularity data, businesses can make informed decisions about where to place their shipping lockers to maximise convenience and usage.
In this blog, discover:
What is Location Intelligence?
Location Intelligence involves analysing geographic data to uncover insights and patterns, particularly from Point of Interest (POI) data.
POI data includes specific locations like businesses, landmarks, and services, providing detailed attributes such as addresses and coordinates.
(We have an in-depth POI data guide, available to read and download here.)
These POIs can be enriched with popularity and sentiment data, which adds layers of insight into consumer preferences and behaviours.
Popularity data acts as a footfall proxy, and measures consumer interaction frequency with a location, helping identify high-traffic areas essential for the optimal placement of shipping lockers.
Sentiment data analyses public attitudes toward locations, guiding the selection of locker sites based on positive perceptions, which is crucial for business success.
This information supports informed decision-making by revealing market trends, understanding customer behaviour, optimising locker placement based on demographic and economic factors, and improving logistical operations by identifying efficient routes and distribution centres.
Parcel locker site selection: Why location matters
Why is choosing the right locations for parcel lockers so important?
Proximity to high-traffic areas
Placing shipping lockers in areas with significant foot traffic, such as shopping malls, transit hubs, and busy residential neighbourhoods, enhances accessibility and convenience for users — helping meet the ever-increasing demand by providing convenient pickup points that enhance the customer experience. As consumers increasingly value speed and convenience, lockers located near residential areas or popular retail spots become essential.
Accessibility
Ease of access and distance are the primary factors younger consumers (often the early adopters) cited for choosing parcel lockers over home delivery.
Locations allowing users to pick up packages at their convenience means not only strategically placed in locations like supermarkets or near transport hubs, where consumers are likely to visit regularly but also considering the availability of lockers during convenient hours and their accessibility on foot or via car or motorbike (and the availability of a parking lot, as a result).
For instance, if lockers are placed in supermarkets, it’s essential that the operating hours align with consumer behaviour patterns — whether that’s the preference to pick up their packages during evening hours after work or during weekend shopping trips. Ensuring that parcel lockers are accessible during these peak times can significantly enhance user satisfaction and adoption rates.
Reduction in last-mile delivery costs
The “last mile” (final leg of a product’s journey from a distribution centre or warehouse to the end customer) typically accounts for over 50% of total shipping costs, making it the most expensive and complex part of the delivery process. Strategic placement of shipping lockers can reduce these costs significantly by centralising multiple deliveries to a single location — minimising the distance and time drivers need to travel.
Boosting delivery speed and efficiency
Smart lockers can streamline delivery routes, enabling couriers to deliver multiple packages to one location rather than making several stops. This efficiency not only reduces delivery times but also increases the capacity for more deliveries within the same timeframe.
Environmental impact
Using shipping lockers reduces the environmental impact of the last-mile CO2 emissions by consolidating deliveries. It’s estimated that just one parcel locker annually reduces up to 13.845 kg of CO2 — that is the equivalent of having an additional 2,769 trees.
Fewer delivery trips mean lower carbon emissions, which is becoming increasingly important to both consumers and companies aiming to reduce their environmental footprint.
Choosing the right POI data provider
Find the best POI data provider today.
Read our guide to choosing the ideal POI provider here.
Essential site selection factors for parcel lockers solved with location data
1. Foot traffic
Areas with heavy foot traffic are ideal for placing parcel lockers. Examples of such locations include:
- Schools and universities: With a constant influx of students and staff, these institutions are ideal for parcel lockers, offering a convenient service for package drop-offs and pick-ups.
- Close to corporate offices: High employee turnover throughout the day makes corporate office buildings prime locations for parcel lockers, facilitating easy access to packages during work hours.
- Supermarkets: With high daily foot traffic from shoppers, supermarkets are excellent spots for parcel lockers, providing a convenient solution for customers to pick up or drop off packages while doing their grocery shopping.
- Hospitals and medical centres: Parcel lockers serve the needs of staff, patients, and visitors, providing a practical solution for package management in these busy environments.
- Shopping centres: With their continuous flow of shoppers, shopping centres are perfect for parcel lockers, combining high visibility with frequent foot traffic.
- Transportation hubs: Busy areas like train stations, bus terminals, and airports benefit from parcel lockers, catering to travellers and commuters who need to send or collect packages.
This area in Milan boasts numerous educational points of interest, including the world-renowned Bocconi University, and a supermarket. You can leverage this by collaborating with the supermarket, for instance, to place the locker there. Similarly, you could find a spot in between , as students frequently pass through the area while running errands.
Source: D / AI Locations
Using POI data enriched with popularity insights, such as our Popularity Index, helps identify the most frequented and highly rated locations for parcel lockers based on foot traffic, ratings, and reviews.
Additionally, sentiment data from our Sentiment Score allows you to gauge public satisfaction and perception, ensuring optimal placement of your parcel lockers.
2. Consumer targeting
Who makes up my target audience, and where can I find them?
While high foot traffic is crucial for the success of parcel lockers, it’s equally important that this traffic includes your target audience. To effectively place parcel lockers where your ideal customers are, you should analyse relevant data, such as consumer behaviour patterns and location-specific insights.
Detailed points of interest (POI) and location data offer valuable information for maximising market understanding. By evaluating factors like sentiment scores, popularity indices, and customer preferences tied to specific locations, businesses can:
- Strategically place parcel lockers: Identify high-traffic areas frequented by your target audience to optimise placement.
- Select appropriate locker features: Choose the right type of parcel locker mechanism (such as smart lockers, refrigerated lockers, or traditional models) based on the needs of your audience.
- Understand consumer preferences: Tailor the services offered at each location based on local preferences and behaviors.
- Enhance overall strategy: Use insights to refine and improve your placement and service offerings.
By leveraging comprehensive data and analytics, businesses can ensure that parcel lockers are positioned effectively to meet the demands of their ideal customers and maximise operational success.
3. Accessibility
Accessibility is a crucial factor in site selection for parcel lockers, ensuring that users can conveniently reach and use the lockers without unnecessary difficulty.
Key factors include:
- Availability of parking
- Proximity to public transportation
- Ease of pedestrian access
- Inclusivity — Consideration for users with disabilities or those requiring additional assistance
POI data plays a key role in assessing accessibility by providing detailed insights into local infrastructure. It helps identify locations with convenient parking, nearby public transportation options, and pedestrian-friendly access.
By analysing POI data, you can select sites that are well-connected and easy to reach, enhancing user convenience and ensuring that the lockers are situated in practical and accessible areas.
4. Partnership opportunities
Partnership opportunities can significantly enhance the effectiveness and reach of parcel locker installations.
Collaborating with local businesses, institutions, or property owners can provide mutual benefits and drive greater usage. POI data can identify potential partners by revealing key businesses and facilities near potential locker sites, such as retail stores, shopping centres, or office buildings.
By partnering with these entities, parcel locker providers can leverage their existing customer base and high foot traffic to increase visibility and usage. Sentiment data can further guide partnership decisions by highlighting businesses or locations with positive community feedback, ensuring collaborations are well-received. By strategically aligning with local partners, providers can boost the utility and success of their parcel locker network.
5. Safe and secure areas
Location intelligence can pinpoint the best sites for parcel lockers by combining sentiment, popularity, and POI data.
Sentiment analysis helps identify locations with positive public perceptions, while popularity data reveals high-traffic areas, contributing to greater safety and visibility. POI data further highlights reputable and frequented sites, such as gas stations, which are often busy and conveniently located.
For instance, a business might select a popular gas station with positive sentiment and high traffic to place a parcel locker. This ensures the locker is situated in a secure, easily accessible, and well-travelled location, enhancing both security and customer convenience.
This gas station in Milan boasts a high sentiment score — making it a viable choice for a parcel locker. In fact, it already has a Punto Poste parcel locker.
6. Competition analysis
Competition analysis is crucial for identifying the presence and impact of rival services in your chosen locations for parcel lockers.
By assessing competitors, you can determine market saturation, understand their strengths and weaknesses, and find opportunities to differentiate your offering.
Evaluating factors such as the number of competing parcel lockers, their locations, and customer feedback helps in selecting sites where you can effectively capture market share and meet unmet needs.
This strategic approach ensures you position your parcel lockers in areas with optimal potential for growth and success.
A birds-eye view of some of the parcel lockers in Milan. The larger the circles on the map, the greater the concentration of Points of Interest (POIs).
Source: D / AI Locations
7. Proximity to warehouses and business partners
Proximity to warehouses or partner businesses is vital for optimising last-mile delivery, overall efficiency, and sustainability.
Locating parcel lockers near warehouses or key business partners streamlines the final delivery phase, reducing delivery times, fuel consumption, and carbon emissions — enhancing both operational efficiency and environmental impact.
It also boosts collaboration by increasing visibility and convenience for customers who frequently visit these locations.
Using POI data helps identify ideal sites close to your warehouses and business partners, ensuring that your parcel lockers are strategically placed to support efficient, sustainable delivery and improve accessibility.
Empower your sales team with the right data
Location intelligence is essential for businesses looking to boost their sales and operational efficiency.
By analysing POI data, sentiment insights, and popularity metrics, companies can pinpoint the best locations for parcel lockers, ensuring they’re placed in areas with high foot traffic and positive public sentiment.
This data-driven approach empowers businesses to focus their efforts on sites with the highest potential for user engagement and operational success. It also allows them to strategically position their resources and adapt quickly to market trends, enhancing their competitive edge and driving better sales outcomes.
Finding the perfect spot for parcel lockers made easy
Data Appeal simplifies the process of selecting ideal locations for parcel lockers with our comprehensive POI data. We offer detailed information, including addresses, GPS coordinates, and social channels, enriched with sentiment and popularity insights for each POI. With coverage of over 251 million POIs in 180 countries, our data helps pinpoint the best spots for lockers.
Our Popularity Index predicts traffic patterns, peak times, and seasonality, offering detailed analysis down to 500 x 500 meters. With up to 5 years of historical data and full GDPR compliance, it supports informed decision-making.
Additionally, our Sentiment Score evaluates customer feedback to assess POI performance against industry standards, considering factors like safety, quality, and price. This helps you choose locations with positive customer perceptions and stay competitive.
Start making data-driven decisions today.
Contact us for more information.
