As e-commerce sites continue to spur the online shopping trend, more and more consumers are becoming increasingly comfortable shopping without ever visiting a physical store. One of the remaining obstacles that has kept customers attached to brick-and-mortar locations is the fact they get to interact with a product before ever making a decision on whether to purchase. Although this is most common among fashion brands, many e-commerce retailers recognize this as a limitation. However, with the growth of try-before-you-buy online shopping, the opportunity to allow customers to interact with the product before purchase has finally become a reality. (more…)What are the Benefits of Try Before You Buy Fulfillment?
As e-commerce sites continue to spur the online shopping trend, more and more consumers are becoming increasingly comfortable shopping without ever visiting a physical store. One of the remaining obstacles that has kept customers attached to brick-and-mortar locations is the fact they get to interact with a product before ever making a decision on whether to purchase. Although this is most common among fashion brands, many e-commerce retailers recognize this as a limitation. However, with the growth of try-before-you-buy online shopping, the opportunity to allow customers to interact with the product before purchase has finally become a reality. (more…)
What to Expect From Your Fulfillment Service Provider
What should you expect from your fulfillment service provider? The short answer is, it depends on what you are asking your fulfilment service provider to get done. Nowadays, fulfillment services are sophisticated enough to do much more than simply store, pick and pack products. But if that is all you require them to do—then your expectations should be quantified. However, if you are planning to use your fulfillment services as a trusted part of your operation, one that is essential to customer service and contributes to your bottom line—then you can and should expect a lot more. What Exactly Does...
How to Overcome Common Holiday Fulfillment Challenges
As anyone operating in the e-commerce business can tell you, holiday order fulfillment can be among the most stress-inducing times. You have strict deadlines, huge influxes of demand, and potentially inclement weather slowing travel on the road. And this is among the most important times for your business as order volume spikes dramatically—failing to meet delivery deadlines could lose recurring customers and revenue year after year. And this year, all these challenges are only being exacerbated by COVID-19 and supply chain interruptions. But the good news is that these peak season fulfillment challenges are predictable (COVID notwithstanding) and, therefore, can...
11 Common Mistakes Rookies Make with Direct Mail Marketing
Direct mail is a tough means of marketing to master, and many fulfillment companies have burned the midnight oil trying to get their direct mail copy, graphic content, and mail packaging structure right so they appeal to audiences. But more importantly, there are some mistakes to avoid, and doing so can save you time and money while making your business more successful. Below are six of the most common mistakes that you need to avoid in your direct mail marketing activities, especially if you’re a rookie to the field: (more…)Why Logistics Efficiency is Important to Manufacturers
Now more than ever, the opportunity for logistics efficiencies is present for retailers, in particular for those in e-commerce. With manufacturing steadily making its way back to North America, companies can apply a combination of technology and improved operation procedures to cut costs, improve delivery times to customers, and increase margins on overall profitability. (more…)
How to Avoid the Warehouse Bottleneck
When talking about production flow, "bottlenecking" refers to certain points where everything slows down compared to the activity that preceded it. A simple example would be a conveyor belt that delivers products down to where packers box and ship them. If the conveyor belt delivers more product than the packers can handle, the result is a bottleneck as everything slows down to match the speed of the packers. In terms of warehouse efficiency, bottlenecks are highly undesirable and impact productivity and morale. Causes of Bottlenecks A bottleneck happens whenever a given point on the chain can't handle the volume flowing...
The Effects that Rising Shipping Rates Will Have on e-Commerce in 2017
Every year sees rising shipping costs as a result of both inflation and the shipping carriers making changes to try and optimize their profitability. On the plus side, these rate increases will help the carriers continue to grow and improve service. On the down side, you will be paying more. What Are the Rate Increases for 2017? All of the major shipping carriers, FedEx, UPS, and USPS, will have shipping rate increases going in to 2017. Depending on the exact service and provider, the rate increase will vary but it is generally between a 3.9% (from USPS) and 5% increase...
How a Fulfillment Company Can Boost Online Auction Sales
Selling products online has become a business for many entrepreneurs. Popular auction sites such as eBay have made it possible for even the solo business person to possibly make a living through online sales. Once you take on that responsibility, however, you must be ready to fulfil customer demands—and that means order fulfillment services. For individuals or companies with just a few employees, fulfillment services for auction sales can be difficult. Even small businesses sometimes have a hard time managing inventory with demand and figuring out a system in which they can effectively store and deliver products to their customers...How to Improve Warehouse Productivity
Managing warehouse fulfillment requires handling labor, freight, and inventory; three pieces with numerous factors. Properly managing, storing, and shipping goods is important not just for organizational reasons, but for profiting purposes as well. Any method that can improve your warehouse's productivity or efficiency benefits the people that ship to you and those that you ship out to. Consider these methods when looking for ways to improve warehouse fulfillment productivity. (more…)
Same-Day and On-Time Delivery in e-Commerce Fulfillment
Same-day delivery is exactly what it sounds like: the ability to get a product to the customer within 24 hours of the order being placed. It's a growing form of e-commerce fulfillment that big players like Amazon have been investing in. What Do Customer Think About Same Day Product Delivery? Although all customer groups show a preference for same-day product delivery services, an overwhelming 64% of Millennials are more likely to take same-day options when available. This youth trend extends to families as well: 63% of families with children under the age of 18 lean sharply towards same-day delivery options....
