{"id":3982,"date":"2019-04-01T08:00:48","date_gmt":"2019-04-01T15:00:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.numinix.com\/blog\/?p=3982"},"modified":"2019-10-24T16:23:27","modified_gmt":"2019-10-24T23:23:27","slug":"things-to-consider-when-planning-an-e-commerce-order-fulfillment-strategy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.numinix.com\/blog\/things-to-consider-when-planning-an-e-commerce-order-fulfillment-strategy\/","title":{"rendered":"Things to consider when planning an e-commerce order fulfillment strategy"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.numinix.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/e-commerce-fulfillment.jpeg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-3983\" src=\"https:\/\/www.numinix.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/e-commerce-fulfillment.jpeg\" alt=\"e-commerce order fulfillment strategy\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.numinix.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/e-commerce-fulfillment.jpeg 600w, https:\/\/www.numinix.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/e-commerce-fulfillment-300x200.jpeg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you\u2019re planning to grow your business then you\u2019re going to want to look over and possibly revamp your e-commerce order fulfillment strategy. After all, it\u2019s important to carefully plan all the necessary processes that you\u2019ll need to upgrade in order to successfully complete your customer\u2019s purchase requests. So, let\u2019s dive head-on into some of the operations you may want behind your order fulfillment strategy. <\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_80 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-grey ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"#\" data-href=\"https:\/\/www.numinix.com\/blog\/things-to-consider-when-planning-an-e-commerce-order-fulfillment-strategy\/#Whats_is_e-commerce_order_fulfillment\" >What\u2019s is e-commerce order fulfillment?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"#\" data-href=\"https:\/\/www.numinix.com\/blog\/things-to-consider-when-planning-an-e-commerce-order-fulfillment-strategy\/#Location\" >Location<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"#\" data-href=\"https:\/\/www.numinix.com\/blog\/things-to-consider-when-planning-an-e-commerce-order-fulfillment-strategy\/#Technology_integration\" >Technology integration<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"#\" data-href=\"https:\/\/www.numinix.com\/blog\/things-to-consider-when-planning-an-e-commerce-order-fulfillment-strategy\/#Shipping_costs\" >Shipping costs<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"#\" data-href=\"https:\/\/www.numinix.com\/blog\/things-to-consider-when-planning-an-e-commerce-order-fulfillment-strategy\/#Which_order_fulfillment_model_will_you_follow\" >Which order fulfillment model will you follow?<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Whats_is_e-commerce_order_fulfillment\"><\/span><b>What\u2019s is e-commerce order fulfillment?<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When it comes to owning a business the way you carry out your e-commerce order fulfillment is probably the most important thing that\u2019s backing your company. After all, having your inventory fully stocked for customers, packaging the products they\u2019ve purchased and then following through and shipping them around the world are just some of the behind the scenes processes that allow your business to thrive. Needless to say, which factors are the most crucial to consider?<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Location\"><\/span><b>Location<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Even if you don\u2019t own a brick and mortar shop, your physical location is still an essential part of your e-commerce order fulfillment strategy. If you\u2019re hoping to meet your customers delivery expectations (costs, speeds etc.) then you may want to be based closer to your target audience. For example, if 70% of your sales come from within the United States, your operation base should be packaging and shipping items from there in order to maintain cost-efficiency. If you\u2019re unable to relocate your warehouse to meet the demand, another strategic step would be to distribute your inventory to multiple locations within close proximity to your customers. <\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Technology_integration\"><\/span><b>Technology integration<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Having the most innovative technology integration with make fulfilling your e-commerce orders more manageable. There are <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.numinix.com\/installs-upgrades-c-393?utm_source=Blog_March2019_ECommerceOrderFulfillment\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">software and upgrades<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> that can be integrated with various <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.numinix.com\/shop-by-ecommerce-platforms-c-179?utm_source=Blog_March2019_ECommerceOrderFulfillment\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">e-commerce platforms<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> that can help you to manage orders across sales channels without requiring a manual upload. This means that as soon as an order is placed, the staff is then able to pick, pack and ship the items immediately to the customer. <\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Shipping_costs\"><\/span><b>Shipping costs<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you\u2019re looking to amp up your e-commerce order fulfillment strategy, you may want to consider offering <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.numinix.com\/plugins-shipping-c-381_389?utm_source=Blog_March2019_ECommerceOrderFulfillment\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">free shipping<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. While shipping costs are certainly not free for the merchant, offering nearby customers free shipping can help l<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.numinix.com\/zen-cart-plugins-marketing-c-179_250_373_161\/automatic-recover-cart-sales-dl-1157?utm_source=Blog_March2019_ECommerceOrderFulfillment\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">essen your cart abandonment rates<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and get more shoppers to check out your page. <\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Which_order_fulfillment_model_will_you_follow\"><\/span><b>Which order fulfillment model will you follow?<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><strong>In-house order fulfillment:<\/strong> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As the merchant, you will be completing each step of the e-commerce order fulfillment process on your own. This will require you to secure warehouse space, recruit staff, purchasing the necessary equipment and inventory and more. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>Third-party fulfillment:<\/strong> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This is when a <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.numinix.com\/shop-by-ecommerce-platforms-zen-cart-installs-upgrades-c-179_250_360\/module-install-zen-cart-third-party?utm_source=Blog_March2019_ECommerceOrderFulfillment\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">third-party<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> handle the timely elements, such as packaging, and shipping the orders. So, if you have no interest in managing your distribution then hiring a third-party carrier may be best suited to your business. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>Dropshipping:<\/strong> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you don\u2019t have the money to sustain a warehouse and stock it with products, dropshipping may be a method that works for your business. The merchant is never required to hold onto the products they sell, instead, the products are produced, stored and shipped by the manufacturer to the customer. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>What e-commerce order fulfillment strategies does your business use and why? Drop a comment below to share with our readers. <\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If you\u2019re planning to grow your business then you\u2019re going to want to look over and possibly revamp your e-commerce order fulfillment strategy. After all, it\u2019s important to carefully plan all the necessary processes that you\u2019ll need to upgrade in order to successfully complete your customer\u2019s purchase requests. So, let\u2019s dive head-on into some of&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":269,"featured_media":3983,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[818],"tags":[976,977,979,978],"class_list":["post-3982","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-e-commerce-platforms","tag-dropshipping","tag-e-commerce-order-fulfillment-strategy","tag-in-house-order-fulfillment","tag-third-party-fulfillment"],"modified_by":"Numinix Developer","jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.numinix.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/e-commerce-fulfillment.jpeg","jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.numinix.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3982","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.numinix.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.numinix.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.numinix.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/269"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.numinix.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3982"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.numinix.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3982\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.numinix.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3983"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.numinix.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3982"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.numinix.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3982"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.numinix.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3982"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}