If you’re running an online store or e-commerce business, you know that fulfilling and shipping orders efficiently is a critical part of your business. If you are competing with online retailers such as Amazon, you also know that consumers have an increased expectancy of fast shipping times with great communication and limited delays. As your business grows, it’s important to ensure you are executing processes that allow for the timely delivery of your products. Here is a list of eleven basic strategies that every small business should follow if they are selling products online.
1. BE SURE YOUR WEBSITE PROVIDES A SEAMLESS, SAFE CHECKOUT PROCESS
Make sure that the checkout process on your website is seamless and safe. If your e-commerce store was built using a popular platform such as Shopify, you typically don’t have this concern. But if you have a custom-built website, then you will need to ensure your payment and checkout processes or simple and safe. Your checkout page needs to be easy and uncomplicated and your customers should feel confident that their payments details are secure. If they feel uneasy about providing payment information, it’s unlikely that they won’t follow through with an order or visit your site again.
2. CATEGORIZE YOUR INVENTORY
By categorizing your inventory, you can better determine which products are selling fast as well as the ones that are selling slowly or not even moving off your shelves. If you are managing your own packaging and shipping, consider placing top-sellers in a place that is easily accessible so the products can be packaged and shipped quickly. Moving slower selling items to the back will allow you to process orders for top-sellers faster.
3. ENSURE YOU HAVE SUFFICIENT INVENTORY DURING HOLIDAYS OR OTHER MAJOR PROMO EVENTS
When you fail to have enough inventory, most customers will look elsewhere for their products. You don’t want to run out of stock, especially during major holidays or other seasonal periods when your product is likely to sell.
4. USE SOFTWARE THAT SENDS YOU INSTANT ORDER NOTIFICATIONS
By using software that sends you instant order notifications, you’re giving your customers first-class service. This also helps in reducing inbound queries. Consider how giving customers excellent service and some additional pampering can lead to more orders, along with them recommending your business to others. Likewise, your software should also send you instant notifications after the customer has placed an order so you can immediately move into fulfillment.
5. AUTOMATICALLY TRACK INVENTORY FLUCTUATION
If you’re like many e-commerce businesses, one of the biggest problems is inventory tracking. You need to know the amount of inventory that’s available at all times so that you can successfully manage your supply chain. If you don’t have high-quality inventory tracking, expect to have delays. Even worse, you could suffer a loss from capital that’s invested in inventory. If you need a tool to manage your inventory, there are several free tools that you can use to get started.
6. APPOINT SOMEONE ON YOUR TEAM TO BE RESPONSIBLE FOR FULFILLMENT
To have a successful e-commerce business, you need help. In other words, don’t try to “wear all your hats.” Instead, designate someone on your team to be in charge of order fulfillment. If your team has too many other responsibilities, review your options with third-party order fulfillment services.
7. SHIP FROM MULTIPLE LOCATIONS
Because it is not always possible to make same-day or even next-day deliveries to every area from a central location, think about having several shipping points. This means considering branch warehouses that are located in strategic spots throughout the United States.
8. INCREASE TRANSPARENCY
Be transparent. Ensure everyone is on the same page, regarding sales activity and inventory levels, besides supplier updates and customer communication. When your business has end-to-end visibility, this increases the accuracy of order fulfillment and speeds up the process.
9. CONSIDER BUNDLING
Consider bundling your products and offering bundles to customers for products that are often purchased together. For example, people who want to buy printers may be interested in purchasing ink cartridges. By using bundling, you can save time while being organized.
10. DON’T PREPARE TOO MANY PREPACKAGED ORDERS
Even though you may want to have some prepackaged orders, don’t get too far ahead of yourself. As order requests and consumer demands change, you may find yourself with too many prepackaged orders making it harder for you to pivot when necessary. Prepackage a few orders, but base it on your average daily or weekly order amounts.
THE BOTTOM LINE
Customer satisfaction can be challenging, but offering a fast and efficient order fulfillment and shipping process is sure to bring pleasure and delight. Order fulfillment and packaging services such as Zip Ship can save you time and help you focus on growing your business while you improve your delivery service and customer service. Visit Zip Ship where you can register for a free account or request consultation to consider third-party order fulfillment services as your company grows and can no longer handle in-house fulfillment.