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Fetchify & SportsOnline increase checkout completions for 12 years not out

"Fetchify makes the checkout process so much quicker. You know how impatient people are and every time they go to a checkout and have to type everything out you risk losing them. " – Jamie Harvey, Managing Director

Established in 1999, SportsOnline is a family-run business selling cricket and hockey sports equipment internationally from www.cricket-hockey.com as well as a bricks-and-mortar shop and warehouse in Wiltshire, UK.


They launched their first online shop in 2000, one of the first cricket and hockey specialists to be online, they’ve grown exponentially to one of the world’s largest cricket and hockey retailers, dispatching tens of thousands of orders worldwide every year. They also produce their own highly successful cricket and hockey equipment range – Funky. Famed for their service and expertise, it’s no wonder there’s a great match with Fetchify.


Having installed Postcode Lookup from CraftyClicks (the previous name of Fetchify) in 2008, they recently updated to Fetchify’s global solution, Address Auto-Complete, as they grow internationally with sales to Australia, New Zealand, US, Netherlands and Germany in particular.


Fetchify is installed via a plugin for their eCommerce platform, PrestaShop, which they run completely in-house.


Fetchify helps SportsOnline achieve:


  • Increased conversion rates from a faster checkout
  • Improved overall customer service due to fewer addressing errors
  • Reduced customer frustration and wait times
  • Reduced administration issues caused by shipping


The challenges


Prior to installing Fetchify, SportsOnline were frustrated by the amount of customer-led data errors in address entries. These issues have been resolved by installing first the Postcode Lookup and then the Address Auto Complete plugins ensuring only verified addresses can be input.


"The amount of people who type the wrong postcodes and then three days later ask, “Where’s my order?” is surprising. Put that with mistyping house numbers as well – it was not good. It’s always easier when you can select it, isn’t it."


Another challenge easily solved was how to continue when SportsOnline decided to upgrade their eCommerce platform to PrestaShop. A phone call was made to Fetchify to find our ready-made plugin for Prestashop already created and ready for instant use. Fetchify have ready-made plugins for most major eCommerce platforms and they can be easily customized for non-standard use.


"After 12 years of use, SportsOnline have never had to contact Fetchify for technical issues. The only time we’ve made contact was for the original install and then update for PrestaShop. Nothing goes wrong with it!"


How Fetchify helps


Fetchify is a pioneer in SaaS address lookup and data validation solutions and offers a range of data verification solutions.


Address Auto-Complete is a simple plugin that is easy to install and supports your online customers to ensure their address is correct every time. It also speeds up the checkout process.


The key benefits delivered by Address-Auto Complete are:


Addresses are easy and fast to add to registration or order pages

The source of addresses updates daily for accuracy

Fetchify verifies the address for accuracy and correct postal formatting


Results, return on investment and future plans


Having used the automatic address completion plugin tool from Fetchify, SportsOnline have enjoyed a greater number of checkout conversions – faster and easier address entry for buyers which means a better conversion to the payment stage.


A recent conversion to the PrestaShop eCommerce platform and greater international sales required a change to the international version of Address Auto-Complete to cater for their buyers all around the world.


"We’ve never received a customer complaint about address entry since installing Fetchify. It’s only increased our conversion and given us less admin to do!"

About Fetchify


Fetchify’s address lookup and data validation platforms cover more than 250 countries, and increases customer conversion with the fastest, most accurate customer data capture. Fetchify’s flagship products – Address Auto Complete and Postcode Lookup – reduce friction at the checkout, and also significantly increase the number of successful deliveries. Founded in 2008, Fetchify processes millions of data transactions every day for clients ranging from startups to established high-street names, and offers a full suite of data validation tools, including phone, email and bank, too.

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Ireland’s postcode network, Eircode, was established in July 2015. A seven-character alphanumeric postcode is known as an Eircode. Every Eircode is specific to a mailing address and its area. In Ireland, almost 35% of properties share their address with at least one other residence, making it very difficult to locate a specific address. Unlike in other nations, where postcodes establish a group of addresses, each home and commercial postal address in Ireland is allocated an individual Eircode, aiding in address verification . Eircodes, like postcodes in other nations, aid the shipping and postal industries in locating accurate addresses. The Routing Key, the first three characters of the Eircode, specify the postal region associated with a building or property’s postal address. In Ireland, there are 139 separate postal regions. These postal areas are not limited to a single county and may cross over county lines. How do Eircodes work? A Routing Key and a Unique Identifier are the two elements of an Eircode. Three characters make up the Routing Key. The significant post town associated with a business or property’s postal address is identified by this sequence of numbers and letters, facilitating address lookup. All Eircodes issued to locations within that postal region have the same Routing Key characters. Each unique identification is distinct and specific to your residence or business. They aren’t in any particular order. This is to avoid a situation where a new building is built between two old ones, and the code sequence is disrupted, necessitating the changing of all Eircodes in the region. Except for the postal districts in Dublin, which have had their current postal codes translated into a routing key format such as D03, D12, and D22, the letters are not related to a county or city designation. What is the difference between Eircode and Postcode? Postcodes and ZIP codes are numerical and alphabetical sequences that symbolise groups of people in specific geographical locations. Companies can use postcodes for a variety of key use cases because they are a strong resource of demographic data. However, they frequently encompass several dwellings, making it more difficult to locate a customer’s proper location if homes are named rather than numbered. This challenge underscores the importance of address verification . Eircode, on the other hand, assigns a unique identity to every property in Ireland, making it easier to locate residences and companies, especially in rural areas. Why use Eircodes for deliveries in Ireland? The increase in online shopping is excellent news for online retailers, but with a higher rural population than the EU average, precisely locating clients in Ireland can be difficult. Any company delivering goods in Ireland must have Eircode data. Those who use the address lookup software with Eircodes add-on to collect clients’ addresses should expect to see: A reduction in failed deliveries It’s obvious that incomplete or inaccurate delivery details will result in failed deliveries. Eircode gives another level of concrete data to help drivers deliver correctly and on time, hence enhancing the brand image. Customer experience If your address lookup software can’t locate their address, Irish customers are likely to abandon their transaction. Making the checkout process as simple as possible and providing extra data sets like Eircode would not only improve the customer experience, but also satisfy customers and increase conversions for your brand. Reduced costs As a business, providing proper delivery details to your courier operator ensures that you won’t be held accountable for unsuccessful deliveries. Some couriers will only cooperate with retailers who supply confirmed addressing data or will give them a discount if they do. Address lookup with Eircode validation from Fetchify ECAF (Eircode Address File) and ECAD (Eircode Address Database) can now be added to the Fetchify Address Lookup as one of our premium data sets to guarantee accurate address verification and validation within Ireland, resulting in quicker checkouts for customers and accurate delivery addresses for drivers. To activate Eircodes on your Fetchify account please contact your account manager or our Customer Service team to ensure seamless address verification . The Fetchify difference We process millions of data transactions weekly for thousands of clients, from small e-commerce start-ups to large household brands such as LG, Heinz and RBS. Our flagship products, Address Auto-Complete and UK Postcode Lookup, reduce friction on checkouts, leading to increases in conversion rates, and help reduce failed deliveries and customer frustration. We are proud to offer fit-for-purpose plug-and-play integrations with most leading business software platforms. We enjoy global coverage in over 250 countries, with businesses from various industries benefiting from our address verification offering. Make sure to Get in Touch and experience the Fetchify difference – like thousands of e-commerce businesses around the globe. The best part is you can try out our 14-day Free Trial before committing to our services. Our excellent technical and customer support team is on hand to answer your burning questions. Make sure to Get in Touch and experience the Fetchify difference – like thousands of e-commerce businesses around the globe.
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