5 Best Practices for Effective Ecommerce Fulfillment

With such a saturated market for online enterprises, you can win the race with an efficient eCommerce fulfilment process. Customers would likely flock to you if they were satisfied with your services. They want to see you handle their orders correctly and how they arrive at the quickest times.

eCommerce is projected to expand in revenue by the trillions worldwide, showing how lucrative this sector is. For your brand to reach success, here are the industry’s best practices for fulfilling orders.

The Process

Here is a summary of how the eCommerce order fulfilment happens.

• Receiving. The seller is notified of the orders placed by their customers.
• Warehousing. Real-time inventory allows the seller to look at the availability of stocks for shipping.
• Order processing. The items are prepared and packed for shipping.
• Shipping. The carrier picks up all orders from the fulfilment centre.
• Returns processing. Refund or exchange requests from customers are carried out as needed.

Best practices for eCommerce fulfilment

Accuracy is an obligation

For online businesses, ensuring 100% accuracy in eCommerce fulfilment is a responsibility that cannot be ignored. The customer experience should be streamlined and precise from the moment they place an order. Imagine you are a customer, and you receive an item that is not what you ordered—wouldn’t it upset you?

That situation is the very reason why accuracy should always be upheld. Losing customers due to poor fulfilment practices can cause bleeding losses for merchants and B2B retailers. No matter your business size or age, wrong orders lessen your credibility in the market.

Accuracy in eCommerce takes a high level of inventory management. Therefore, it would be best to have a robust inventory solution offering real-time visibility, which could be achieved by a third-party logistics (3PL) specialist.

Free, fast, and flexible shipping

Many online shoppers consider making a purchase when they are offered free delivery. It’s a tried and tested tactic that entices buyers to avail of free shipping when they meet the minimum spend. Thus, it helps eCommerce shops to get a higher volume of sale. But, on the other hand, many shoppers are willing to pay for shipping if it reaches them faster, such as same-day or next-day deliveries.

In this aspect, free shipping is a psychological move in eCommerce fulfilment that benefits both merchant and buyer.

Create an experience

Being in the eCommerce industry means competing for attention with other brands in your niche. It’s easy to gain and lose customers, which is why building a unique and rewarding user experience is crucial when you want to win the race.

You can enhance your customer’s experience by offering small gifts like vouchers and discounts. You can also customise your product packaging to give a personalised feel of the unboxing. It’s wise to set your promises conservatively while delivering solutions that exceed their expectations.

Hire an outsourcing service

You can boost your eCommerce fulfilment process by hiring an outsourced specialist, namely a third-party logistics (3PL) provider. These firms are composed of professionals who know the sector inside and out. They offer logistics solutions that are not only efficient but also cost-effective.

Additionally, they have the resources and skills needed to handle your order fulfilment requirements. When you outsource your company’s logistics services, you will be able to focus on growing your business and performing core competencies at your best.