6 Ways to Improve Your E-commerce Order Fulfilment Process

6 Ways to Improve Your E-commerce Order Fulfilment Proces

Many studies show that shoppers are more likely to shop with retailers again if they receive the orders within 2 business days. How quickly your customers get their orders fulfilled is vital to the continued success of your business.

Customers expect a streamlined, satisfying order-fulfilment process—and they’re willing to pay for it. How can you make sure your eCommerce order-fulfilment process is up to par? Check out these six tips to find out.

Ecommerce Order-Fulfillment Process

Optimise Inventory Management

An efficient inventory management system is how you can reduce the costs related to a sale, such as shipping.  It also ensures you have the right products in stock to meet demand. 

You can optimise your inventory management process through the following: 

  • Implementing an automated inventory management system.
  • Performing regular stock audits.
  • Implementing an automated inventory management system. 
  • Using forecasting tools to predict future customer demand.
  • Reviewing your product mix and ordering quantities regularly.
  • Reviewing your packaging and storage requirements.

Double-Check Your Deliveries Before Shipping

We cannot stress this enough: double-check the products before shipping. It is important to review the items for delivery before shipping them out. Returns are not only expensive, but it also cancels out your revenue. Here are a few ways to improve your eCommerce order-fulfilment process:

  • Double check your orders before shipping them out. 
  • Use a shipping service or software that facilitates the traffic of your shipment. 
  • Pack your products securely.
  • Update your customers on the status of the order. 
  • Respond promptly to any customer problems or inquiries.
  • Double check your orders before shipping them out. 
  • Use a shipping service or software that facilitates the traffic of your shipment.
  • Update your customers on the status of the order. 
  • Double check your orders before shipping them out. 
  • Respond promptly to any customer problems or inquiries.
  • Pack your products securely. 
  • Use a shipping service or software that facilitates the traffic of your shipment. 

Improve Relationships With Your Shippers

It’s no secret that the e-commerce order-fulfilment process can be a challenge. There are a lot of moving parts, and it can be difficult to keep track of everything. This is why it’s important to have good relationships with your shippers.

Your shippers are the people who will be handling your orders, so make sure they’re reliable. You need to be able to trust them to get your orders delivered on time and in good condition.

There are a few things you can do to improve your relationship with your shippers:

  • Communicate your deadlines clearly. Let them know immediately if orders were delivered late despite shipping them on time. 
  • Be upfront about any problems. Be direct and inform your shippers with data about issues you received from your buyers due to inconsistent and unreliable delivery.

 

If there are many shortcomings and they were not addressed despite repeated attempts to resolve them with your shipper, look for another provider elsewhere.

Make Data-Driven Decisions

Data is vital for e-Commerce entrepreneurs. Your data will give you information about what to sell, what not to sell, and where the problems are coming from. Without data, you’re operating in the dark and making decisions based on guesswork.

Using data to drive decisions will help you track key performance indicators (KPIs) related to your order-fulfilment process and make informed decisions. KPIs can help you identify areas of improvement and track progress over time.

Some KPIs you may want to track include:

  • Order fill rate: This is the percentage of orders that are successfully fulfilled. A low fill rate indicates that you’re not meeting customer demand and may need to improve your inventory management.
  • Order accuracy: This measures how often orders are filled correctly. A high accuracy rate is essential for maintaining customer satisfaction.
  • Order turnaround time: This is the average amount of time it takes to fulfil an order. A shorter turnaround time indicates a more efficient operation.
  • Shipping costs: This includes both the cost of shipping materials and the actual shipping charges. Keeping shipping costs down will significantly improve your bottom line.

Automate Where And When You Can

Automate where and when you can in order to streamline your ecommerce order-fulfilment process. You can do this by automating the following:

  • Order management systems: These systems can help you keep track of your orders and inventory in real-time, and can even send automatic alerts when an item is out of stock.
  • Shipping: Shipping software can automate the process of printing labels and calculating shipping costs. This can save you a lot of time, money, and hassle.
  • Customer communication: There are a number of ways to automate customer communication, including using automated email or SMS messages. This can help you keep your customers updated on the status of their orders without having to manually send them updates.

Be Transparent With Trade Partners And Customers

Being transparent with your trade partners and customers is important when it comes to your eCommerce order-fulfilment process. Be upfront about any potential delays or issues that could impact the delivery of their order. 

You can build trust with your customers and ensure that they are kept in the loop throughout the entire process by being transparent. Doing so helps to avoid any negative surprises down the line.