To meet the challenges head-on, growing companies are turning to the unsung heroes of the online shopping industry – order fulfilment companies, also known as third party logistics companies.
Particularly in a year whereby a dramatic increase in online shopping has come hand in hand with wide scale restrictions in every workplace. Adaptability has suddenly jumped to the top of every online retailer’s list of priorities.
Every company’s online brand experience is under the microscope like never before and order fulfilment companies have been stepping in to help overcome these challenges.
“Our daily orders increased by 49%, inbound enquiries decreased by 60% and our next day delivery rate increased from 55% to 100%!”
– Prominent Ecommerce Fashion Brand Owner, 2020
Adaptability
In 2020, adaptability has been a key differentiator between companies that performed well and those that struggled with the changes. And order fulfilment companies have perhaps been better positioned than any other industry when it comes to adapting to the most recent restrictions and increases in online demand.
Their storage and warehousing facilities are configured to the highest industry standards and well-positioned with space for growth and future-planning for increases in volume. Their workforce are highly trained specialists in shipping, processing, picking and packing, and customer service. And their access to the world’s global courier network is better than almost any other individual company can manage.
Growing companies who have outsourced their order fulfilment have been able to take advantage of this adaptability, keeping up with the growth in their sales and focusing their time and attention on other value-adding areas of their business, like product supply lines, customer communication, staff safety, and their online presence.
Other benefits of outsourcing your order fulfilment include:
Time savings
One thing every growing company needs is more time. Time to focus on sales, time to focus on marketing, time to focus on product development.
Outsourced order fulfilment allows growing companies to free up all of the time (and stress!) they are investing in processing and shipping sales and focus this time on other value-adding areas of the company
Cost savings
Outsourcing order fulfilment allows growing companies to replace the considerable costs of premises, labour, expertise, health and safety and more into an all-in-one monthly expense, usually priced on a per space and per order basis.
These savings and person-hours can be reinvested across the other areas of the business to continue and to accelerate the company’s growth.
Better delivery times, rates, and options
Most order fulfilment companies have long-standing, established relationships with all of the major global couriers and are able to leverage far lower rates than are available to most individual companies.
Companies outsourcing their order fulfilment can take advantage of these lower rates as well as using this courier network to provide their customers with a choice of couriers, reduced delivery times, order tracking, later cut-off times, and next day and same day delivery options.
Storage and warehousing space
Outsourcing order fulfilment generally allows companies to relieve themselves of the considerable capital costs of warehouse space as well as higher insurance premiums.
It also allows growing companies to plan for maximising their growth in sales without the headache of having to plan for new premises every time they reach their sales outgrow their storage capacity.
Streamlined returns processing
Most good order fulfilment companies provide a smooth and efficient returns process which enables you to redistribute your returns team throughout your company while still delivering an excellent brand experience across every customer touch point.
Scalability
For every growing company, the ability to scale is crucial. With outsourced order fulfilment, as your sales grow, your order fulfilment grows right along with them, without the stress and hassle that it normally entails.
Do you need to store more stock? You can increase your storage space with a phone call rather than needing to source new premises. What if your order volume doubles in the space of a month? There’s no need to hire more staff for picking, packing or returns, your order fulfilment company has the capacity and expertise you need.
Speak To A Customer Success Manager Today
If you are looking for a quote for your order fulfilment, arrange a time to speak to one of our Customer Success Managers today. Email us at enquiries@parcelplanet.com, or call us on +353 1 902 9510 (Ireland), or +44 1 6043 00340 (UK).
