If you operate an e-commerce store, you know how important customer order fulfillment is to the success of your business. Late orders, out of stock items, lost orders, and even slow loading website pages can affect the success of your business. With more online retailers using shipping as leverage to gain more customers, you must be able to compete with the Internet giants when it comes to great shipping prices and times. Fulfillment services for online companies are actually a great investment because it provides not only a way to ship items to your customers but can handle some of the logistics for you, too.
How Does a Fulfillment Center Work?
A fulfillment center technically stores your products and then ships it out as orders arrive. You ship pallets of your product to the fulfillment center, the center stocks your products using an indexed system, and then fills the orders and ships the products. It’s the perfect solution for online companies who don’t have the space to store their own products and don’t want to worry about contracting with a local mail carrier. Everything is documented and fulfillment services keep you updated about your orders and inventory levels.
The Cost of Using a Fulfillment Center
Each online business has unique needs, so there is never a cut and dry pricing structure. The service you use may have a general pricing structure that fluctuates based on the services requested and performed. Using fulfillment services is often a great investment because you do save money on shipping and storage. When you contract out with a fulfillment company, you often pay a monthly fee and that may or may not include your shipping costs. Your shipping costs paid through the fulfillment center will often be less than paying on your own because the fulfillment center can negotiate bulk rates.
During peak shopping seasons, you’ll be glad you have a fulfillment center working to pack and ship your products. They use teams of dedicated professionals to sort, pack, and ship, ensuring that you never fall behind on order fulfillment. If you’re trying to build a large e-commerce presence, it’s a good idea to invest in a fulfillment service that can help you keep your business competitive with larger online retailers.
