Boost Business by Improving Your Order Fulfillment Processes

The most vital duty of order fulfillment companies is to ensure that customers’ orders are delivered in a timely manner, free of damages and complications. Companies that falter in this task will face negative reviews, unflattering press, and potential legal issues in cases involving severe damage or arbitration from third-party organizations such as the BBB. It is imperative for order fulfillment companies to establish and execute ways to make their order fulfillment processes more efficient, less expensive, and quicker.

Implement Automation to Conserve Time and Effort

Automation is a great strategy for handling tasks that are performed repeatedly and rarely change. Whereas introducing automation to a department or process can have significant overhead, correctly-implemented automation can execute menial or routine tasks, making employees available to tackle more complex or intricate tasks. One example of utilizing automation with order fulfillment is creating a system where machines retrieve packages marked with an identifier such as a barcode or a GPS label.

Prioritize Integration in Your Order Fulfillment Process

Integration is the process of connecting assets together to form a complete system. It’s common for companies to have order fulfillment systems consisting of multiple departments and types of equipment. Implementing processes to simplify communication between the parts will reduce time, labor, and costs. A combination of IT management and employee training will lower the chances of miscommunications and other costly problems.

Location Is a Key Factor to Success

Companies that deliver directly to customers can deliver their products more quickly when they’re geographically close to their customer base. When a company targets a specific geographical area, the company should acquire or build a warehouse close to the center of the targeted area. Larger companies need to formulate a plan to erect or purchase warehouses that provide sufficient coverage for their customer base.

Keep Customers in the Loop

Companies that provide customers with transparency and means to answer their questions quickly save time for both the company and the customer, as well as increasing customer satisfaction. Order fulfillment companies should provide a web page, an app, or a similar means of electronic access that allow customers to track their orders and submit feedback.

Simplify Exchanges and Refunds

No company will have a 100% success rate, and displeased customers will seek recourse when their needs are not met. Successfully resolving a customer issue can foster loyalty and turn what could be a negative experience into a positive outcome. Instead of having customers re-ship faulty products or deliver them to a drop-off location, companies should have drivers retrieve the faulty merchandise. Refunds and credits should be applied in a timely manner; customers who pay up-front and then have to wait 10 or more business days to get their money will likely seek a competitor to meet their needs.

When a company considers ways to improve their order fulfillment processes, the main focus should be on how to improve customer satisfaction. Making tasks more efficient and quicker will lead to shorter wait times from the order completion to the delivery. Involving customers in the process and empowering them via transparency removes uncertainties and reduces the amount of time a customer has to spend trying to contact a specific department or person via email or the telephone. Optimizing order fulfillment will lead to an optimization of customer satisfaction.