What Is ECommerce Fulfillment?
ECommerce fulfillment is essentially when an online business ships its products to its customers. For instance, when you buy something off eBay, they have a system in place to get you your product as soon as possible. ECommerce fulfillment also involves inventory management and returns.
Your eCommerce fulfillment system could be mailing packages from your house. It could also involve massive centers and warehouses across the country. Maybe you do it in-house. Maybe you outsource to another company. It all depends on your business’s needs.
Having an efficient system is more important than ever, now that two clicks of a button can send packages across the country or even to the opposite side of the world in meer days. When people expect 1 hour shipping times, it can be hard to keep up with customer demands.
Studies show that the most common reason online customers abandon their cart (not including customers who were just browsing) is because the shipping, taxes, and fees were too high. A lot of customers have also abandoned their carts because the shipping times were too long. This highlights the importance of keeping shipping costs low through an efficient eCommerce Fulfilment system.
DCS will handle eCommerce fulfillment for you. If you’re spending all of your time packing boxes or if you’re getting orders in higher volumes than you can handle (a good problem to have), DCS can help.
What’s the Difference Between a Fulfillment Center and a Warehouse?
A fulfillment center is a hub from which you send off your goods to your customers. This is not the same thing as a warehouse. A warehouse is where you store goods for a long period of time. A fulfillment center is where you send them from. Thus your product will spend a long time at a warehouse but only a short time at a fulfillment center. This changes the way both need to be designed and used.
If your business is large enough, it may need both fulfillment centers and warehouses, but smaller businesses may only need one. Contact DCS and we can help you evaluate your business’s needs to determine what’s right for you. We have 35+ years of experience helping businesses like yours.
Where Do I Build My Fulfillment Cent?
ShipBob, an eCommerce fulfillment company, recommends that you keep your fulfillment center close to your customers, not necessarily close to you. Some business owners build their centers near them, but they should build them near their customers instead. This will save you money on shipping costs. Use the zip codes and addresses from your orders to determine where you should build your fulfillment center. Building closer to your customer base will save money in the long run.
Also, a rural center might not save you money. The cost to buy such a center may be cheaper if it’s in the middle of nowhere, but you will have higher shipping costs than if you built it closer to your customer base. Therefore you will lose money in the long run. Urban centers might save you money even if they’re more expensive to buy. This requires careful evaluation and forethought.
How Do I Choose an ECommerce Fulfillment Company?
DCS Innovations will run your ECommerce Fulfillment system, working with you to optimize your system so that your customers will get their packages on time.
Our services include:
- Design Consultation
- Warehouse Controls Systems
- Warehouse Execution Systems
- Returns
- Shipping Systems
- 24/7 Client Support
If you spend all your time shipping packages, our company can free you up for more important tasks. We’re here to protect your reputation with your customers, to give them the best online shopping experience possible.