When it comes to managing businesses, logistics hassle could pose to be a big challenge. There are a lot of moving parts in the business and order fulfilment comes at the top of the list. Any delay in receiving the orders, quality of packaging those orders serve a crucial part of how well you are representing your brand to your customers. Without a prudent fulfilment system, you might start losing out on your trusted customers and your profitability and credibility can suffer.
Being in the industry for over 2 decades, we have seen a lot of businesses suffer the same kind of problems. So, do not worry, whether you are an industry veteran or you are just selling your first product, the problem of fulfilling order on time remains a perpetual problem with all sorts of businesses.
We have highlighted some of the common problems and have tried to give the best possible solutions for them:
Delay in shipping/delivery:
In this fast world, consumers are expecting their orders reach their door as soon as possible. In a recent representative survey conducted by McKinsey in Germany, Sweden, and the UK, 50 percent of respondents indicated that they would be willing to pay same-day delivery costs up to €7 for a €59 purchase, indicating that they are willing make more purchases together to receive the products on the same day. Additionally, Same Day delivery combines the convenience of online shopping with retail as they are receiving the orders products immediately.
So, if you are struggling to deliver your products on the same day, then you are losing out on a lot of consumers there!
The first step would be to hire a pick & pack and delivery company who you can entrust with your customers and products. Make sure the deliveries are timely and reaches safely to your customers.
Location of fulfilment centre
The delivery chain works very simple. The nearer your fulfilment centre is to your customer, the quicker your delivery becomes. That is why we see big e-Commerce companies keep setting up multiple fulfilment centres across the globe. If you are selling across the country, you need to make to sure that your fulfilment centres are in all directions to make your deliveries quicker. The best way to do is to hire a delivery service provider who can carry your products and deliver to your customers’ door safely and timely.
Need for global fulfilment centre
If you are selling globally, the effect multiplies by the number of countries you are delivering to. The world is your oyster and truly, businesses have adapted to this phrase to the tee. There are many businesses who are selling products in multiple countries. In this situation, one needs to be very careful of strategically building a logistics channel that is meticulous in taking the customer request (orders) and then streamlining it into multiple companies, matching it against the stock and making sure you are delivering to your customers timely and safely.
A fulfilment provider with multiple warehouses in different countries can ensure this type of meticulous service to get your products quickly to your customers. Its best to partner with a fulfilment provider who has the capacity of making not only speedy deliveries for you but comes at an effective cost as well.
Using a complex fulfilment software
You already have a lot on your plate and last thing that you would want is to have a complex software for fulfilment! Be mindful to catch complication at the nascent stage of implementing a software to your system as it can slow down the entire business and frustrate both customers and employees.
Damaged products
In 2018, the three leading U.S. couriers (USPS, UPS, and FedEx) delivered approximately 13.5 billion packages. Of those, 11% were damaged or mis-delivered. That is nearly one and a half million lost or damaged goods!
This can have major consequences in the form of sending replacement products/engineers to repair, offering heavy discounts on next orders, spending labour on additional Customer services, managing the returned products, losing loyal customers and referrals and much more harm to the brand.
We believe that accidents happen, but our aim should be to minimise these hiccups as much as possible. It is best to opt for a reliable and reputed logistics company to make sure that you are making your deliveries effectively and efficiently.
We have tried to summarise some of the basic but universal problems that we have seen with our customers. If you have any questions/queries regarding our Pick and Pack services, please feel free to email/call us directly.
email: info@udsww.com, Call us: +44 20 8848 3308