Fulfillment is a crucial part of running an ecommerce brand. You’ll need to improve your fulfillment strategy if you want to be successful. No matter how large or small your brand is right now, you can improve the shipping and delivery processes.
Don’t know where to start? This ultimate guide has everything you need to make your fulfillment more successful for your online business. Let’s keep reading!
What Goes into Ecommerce Fulfillment?
Let’s start by breaking down fulfillment. The process begins when a customer places an order and ends when they receive it. The in-between steps are what make up most of fulfillment. That includes inventory management, picking and packing, shipping, and delivery.
Here’s a brief rundown of all the ecommerce fulfillment steps:
- Inventory management: This step includes where all products that customers can order are stored in the warehouse. You’ll need real-time software to update you on your stock to prevent overselling and stockouts as demand changes during the year.
- Order processing: This step is when a customer places an order. Team members in the warehouse receive instructions on what they must pick and pack.
- Picking: The warehouse staff find and collect the products for the order. You want to organize your warehouse as efficiently as possible to make this step take less time.
- Packing: Team members package the order and get it ready for shipping.
- Shipping: The courier you work with takes the order and brings it to the customer. You’ll want to choose warehouses closest to the largest amount of your customers to make it take less time to arrive. Modern customers expect fast shipping options.
- Delivery: The package arrives at the customer’s home or drop-off location.
- Customer reviews: The customer might leave a review on the products they receive. You want the fulfillment process to go as smoothly as possible to get a good review. Encourage your customers to follow up with reviews in your delivery confirmation emails.
- Customer returns: Sometimes, the customer will want to make a return for a refund or another item. This step is also part of the fulfillment process because the order isn’t yet complete. You’ll need to give them clear instructions on how to complete the return, then make the process as smooth as possible to avoid unnecessary frustration.
So, ecommerce fulfillment can be very involved. You’ll want to review all of the steps in your brand’s process to see if it has any areas that you can improve.
How To Improve the Fulfillment Process
There are several ways that you can improve your ecommerce fulfillment process. In doing so, your customers will be much more satisfied. You’ll also save a lot of time and money, making it very worth your time.
Here are a few steps that you can take to make your fulfillment better.
1. Work on the Warehouse Layout
You’ll want to optimize the layout if you have control over it. How the warehouse layout can drastically impact how long picking and packing takes. The faster this step, the sooner the order gets sent out.
Start by making an improved layout that enhances the workflow in the warehouse. Try placing items that get ordered together often near each other. You should consider contacting a warehouse specialist to ensure your layout is as accurate as possible.
Zone-picking, cross-docking, and batch processing are all ways to improve the warehouse layout further.
2. Offer Customers More Shipping Options
Having more shipping options for your customers can help make them more satisfied. Most people expect three-day shipping to be an option. However, by having more choices, you won’t always need to rush the fulfillment process, and the customer will still be happy.
Generally, you want to offer standard, express, and expedited shipping. Each option has a different cost and delivery time, allowing customers to choose what they’re most comfortable with.
You can often negotiate rates with carriers to have lower shipping costs. Then, you can pass some of those savings on to your customers.
3. Use More Automation Programs
You’ll want to use more automation technology in your fulfillment process. These programs track your inventory so you always have the right amount of stock. For it to work, you must choose software that integrates well with your ecommerce platform.
Customer service chatbots can also be very helpful. They allow your team to work on other tasks while the AI answers basic customer questions.
4. Invest in Training Your Team
Lastly, you’ll want to work on training your fulfillment staff. With more training, the more efficient and reliable your team will be.
You’ll want to keep your employees up-to-date on the best fulfillment practices. You can do this through various training programs. It’s also crucial that they understand how to use all of the technology in the warehouse well.
Choosing an Ecommerce Fulfillment Strategy
Next, check that you’re using the best ecommerce fulfillment strategy. What’s best for you will depend on the size of your company, plus what you sell.
There are three main fulfillment models, including:
- Dropshipping: This model has your brand only managing the online storefront. When a customer orders, a supplier sends the products from its warehouse. Your brand doesn’t do with the warehouse and most inventory management.
- In-house: Your brand handles the entire fulfillment process, including inventory management in a warehouse. You’ll have complete control over fulfillment, but you’ll need a lot of resources to make it work. So, it’s a better option for established brands.
- Third-party logistics: This model is also called 3PL. It has you outsource all of your fulfillment to a third party. You save money and resources but lose control of the fulfillment process. Check that the third party can scale with your brand’s growth if you choose this option.
Fulfillment is Critical for Online Businesses
In short, fulfillment is crucial for every online company today. You’ll want to learn as much about it as possible to ensure your brand’s success. You can start by reviewing your fulfillment model and see where you can improve using this guide.
