Small businesses and nonprofits face mounting pressure to meet rising customer expectations. Customers demand fast answers to their questions, consistently high levels of service, and to get exactly what they need, when they need it. According to the National Retail Federation, today’s customers expect “consistent and personalized interactions, quick, hassle-free transactions with real-time inventory visibility, and flexible delivery options.” This sets a high bar for any organization to clear.
To stay competitive, small businesses must reassess their approach to managing daily operations, including identifying ways to reduce the time they spend weekly on administrative tasks such as inventory management. This enables leaders to focus more on meeting rising customer expectations to achieve their growth ambitions.
The Power of the Customer Experience
Offering the experiences and services that customers demand can give businesses a competitive edge. By understanding and addressing customer preferences, businesses can differentiate themselves from competitors and attract more customers. At Walmart, we’ve seen that when our customers select faster delivery options, they tend to place larger orders, shop more frequently, and are often willing to pay more for speed and convenience. In fact, more than 30% of our customers opt to pay extra for one- or three-hour delivery windows.
Fast delivery options are not just a convenience; they can significantly impact customer spending habits. When our customers use Fast Delivery, their spending doubles. And after using it more than four times, their spending triples.
This trend extends to our Marketplace sellers. On average, sellers using Walmart Fulfilment Services see 50% GMV growth for items with ‘Fulfilled by Walmart’ and ‘2-day shipping’ tags.1
Providing the right experiences and services can significantly impact customer spending habits. When customers have positive experiences and their needs are met consistently, they are more likely to spend more and become more loyal. This highlights the importance of investing in customer-centric offerings to drive sales and growth.
Proactive Inventory Management
However, too often, small business owners and operators spend their time managing administrative tasks, such as inventory, instead of focusing on how to meet rising customer expectations and grow their businesses.
Walmart Business recently commissioned Morning Consult to survey nearly 500 decision-makers at small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) and nonprofits to better understand their needs. Most respondents indicated that sales and marketing are their top priorities for 2025. Yet they expect to spend nearly 40% of their workweek on administrative tasks, such as managing inventory, taking time away from serving customers, and driving growth.
We learned that many respondents wait until something runs out before reordering. One in three said they rely on “out of stock” alerts to trigger supply purchases. While that approach might feel efficient in the short term, it often causes avoidable slowdowns.
When key supplies run low, like cleaning products or everyday breakroom items, someone has to stop what they’re doing to deal with it. That often means placing a last-minute order, hunting for a substitute, or heading out to buy a replacement. Either way, it pulls focus from the work that matters most.
Proactive supply management helps prevent these slowdowns. Planning ahead, spreading out purchases, and sharing responsibility across the team gives businesses more control. Instead of reacting to chaotic conditions in real-time, teams can focus on work that moves the business forward. Inventory and supply management shouldn’t be an afterthought. Small business leaders should treat it as a core part of their strategy for staying competitive.
Automate Manual Processes
Meeting rising customer expectations also requires empowering your team to respond quickly to customer requests. Without the right systems in place, routine tasks such as reordering supplies, managing approvals, tracking expenses, or following up with vendors consume valuable time and attention—and all too often fall to the business owner or most senior leader. When those processes are manual, they slow down the workflow.
Automation can help. Set up automatic reorders for key items. Use shared accounts to allow multiple employees to place orders. Use mobile-friendly tools so team members can place orders wherever they are.
These ways to simplify purchasing across the business don’t require major tech overhauls; just smart, targeted changes that save time, reduce mistakes, and free your team to focus on what drives the business forward.
Customer expectations are high and constantly rising. Small businesses and nonprofits must prioritize meeting rising customer expectations to stay competitive. By investing in customer-centric strategies, such as fast delivery, proactive inventory management, and automating manual processes, businesses can enhance customer satisfaction, drive sales, and foster growth. Understanding and addressing customer needs is not just a convenience; it is a critical component of long-term success.
Ashley Hubka is the senior vice president and general manager at Walmart Business
Photo courtesy Alex Shuper for Unsplash+
