Regardless of the niche retailers serve, finding new and innovative ways to serve their customers has become more crucial than ever. More importantly, providing opportunities for customers to shop and place orders from anywhere has become increasingly essential to a business’s long-term success.

Options for taking orders online or by phone are as plentiful as options for delivering customer purchases. Consumers have grown accustomed to curbside pickup and timely at-home delivery for meals. For retail purchases, unless located within a major metropolitan area, customers don’t have access to same-day delivery from online retailers. This void creates an opportunity for local retailers to gain an edge over their larger chain competitors and rethink how they serve their local communities.

On-demand same-day delivery has typically involved investing in a fleet of trucks and hiring a team of drivers—not likely in the budget for smaller retailers. But times have changed. The use of third-party services, such as Uber, can provide local businesses with affordable same-day delivery options. Typically, the business would pay a flat-rate dispatch fee of less than $2 an order and a fee to the delivery service of $6 to $8 for deliveries within a three-mile radius. Square offers information on how to set up local delivery for small businesses.