[{"@context":"http:\/\/schema.org","@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2021\/12\/15\/order-fulfillment-strategies\/#Article","articleBody":"In an era plagued with supply chain issues, order fulfillment strategies are as important as ever.\nFrom advertising to product information to confirmation email, direct-to-consumer brands are used to controlling the entire purchase process. But once the order has been confirmed, delivery and possibly even the picking and packing (for brands making use of dropshipping) is handled by a third party.\nFor brands that work hard to cultivate their relationships with their customers and make the customer journey as seamless as possible, this can induce anxiety.\nWhat is an order fulfillment strategy: Definition\nWhile the term is often thrown around, it\u2019s important to break down what a fulfillment strategy is.\nAn order fulfillment strategy is the methods, processes, and technologies that a company uses to deliver products and services to their customers.\n7 steps to success: The stages of order fulfillment\nWhile the number may vary, professionals agree there are several stages or steps to achieve a successful order fulfillment strategy:\nReceiving or accepting incoming inventory\nStorage of inventory \u2013 which can include distribution centers, warehouses, etc.\nOrder picking\nPackaging\nShipping\nOrder delivery\nReturns processing\n \nThe high cost of e-commerce returns: A trillion dollar problem\n   Marketing metrics often overlook the high rate of e-commerce product returns, which is extremely costly to retailers. As global e-commerce continues to grow, the amount of returns is expected to cost retailers more than a trillion dollars a year.  \n3 last-mile fulfillment strategies for 2022\nThere are several ways that to make sure your order fulfillment strategies go smoothly.\nHere are three fulfillment strategies for providing reliable, efficient, and even revenue-generating tracking and delivery:\nUse shipping data to provide proactive customer service\nGain insight into last-mile carriers\nSend delivery confirmation and shipping emails\n \nLast mile delivery for the post-pandemic economy\n   Last mile delivery is critical for wholesale success. Learn about fulfillment options like vending kiosks that can boost customer satisfaction.  \nGet strategic about fulfillment by taking ownership\nBrands are adding more delivery partners because they need more capacity and international reach to serve a global customer base, but this comes with additional complexities. They must determine how new carriers will integrate systems and pass essential data back and forth.\nFor example, if a customer ordered a pair of Nikes, it\u2019s unlikely they\u2019re going to call UPS when their order is nowhere to be found; after all, their relationship thus far has been with the brand.\nBeing able to close the loop with customers and have the fulfillment information they seek on-hand is a requirement to continue meeting their customer service expectations.\nBrands can get ahead of this by leveraging consistent access to shipping data from last-mile partners for proactive customer service. Leading retailers will tell consumers that their packages are delayed, instead of forcing them to hit refresh on the tracking page every hour. It\u2019s on brands to set expectations for delivery and reset them when circumstances change.\nRetailers also can get notifications from delivery partners when a package is lost or damaged so they can proactively create a customer service ticket and reach out to customers before they have to dial the customer service line in frustration.\nThe carrier network challenge\nNetworks of carriers make last-mile fulfillment strategies even more complex because sometimes they subcontract to a competitor who serves an area where they aren\u2019t as prevalent.\nFor example, UPS might pass on a package from a major brand to the US Postal Service because they are the only shipping option in a rural area.\nWhile this enables the initial delivery partner to complete this delivery for their brand partner, it makes it that much more difficult to get accurate and timely data back to the brand. Having a tight grasp of who is delivering the package and what the estimated delivery date is can help brands preserve trust with their customers.\n \nHow the postal industry can deliver connectivity in cities of the future\n   With new digital technologies intersecting and combining, the postal industry \u2013 and the organizations they work with \u2013 cannot afford to wait to begin their initiatives.  \nFulfillment strategy: Confirm it!\nOther important elements of order fulfillment strategies are shipping and delivery confirmation and tracking emails simply because customers pay attention to them.\nThe numbers say it all: Confirmation emails are opened around 60% of the time, while the average retail email sent via Mailchimp has an 18.39% open rate.\nWhen used to their fullest extent, confirmation emails can serve as an opportunity to encourage another purchase or provide educational information that deepens the consumer relationship. This must be approached in a tasteful way so that customers are receptive. It must be a soft sell (if it aims to sell at all) to be welcomed by this captive audience.\nAnd the communication shouldn\u2019t stop after the package has been delivered. Brands can reengage the customer again after the package has been delivered to ask how happy they were with the delivery. This can provide good insight into who your best delivery partners are.\nD2C brands & last-mile fulfillment\nThe rise of direct-to-consumer channels makes order fulfillment and last mile delivery that much more important. If there isn\u2019t a store to send products to, then the entire revenue of the brand relies on the ability to get products onto doorsteps as reliably as possible.\nD2C brands have to be that much more diligent about who they choose to partner with because reputation is everything when competitors are just a click away.\nThis holiday season is likely to see another spike in online shopping and many retailers have been getting shoppers ready with early Black Friday deals to avoid a rush they can\u2019t handle. Last-mile order fulfillment will be essential to both get orders to customers on time and to build long-lasting relationships that boost customer lifetime value.\nReady to get on the DTC fast track? Start HERE.","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2021\/12\/15\/order-fulfillment-strategies\/#Article_Person","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2021\/12\/15\/order-fulfillment-strategies\/#Article_Person_ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/23x6xj3o92m9361dbu2ij362-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Paul_Smith_Profile-150x150.jpg"},"name":"Paul Smith","url":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/contributor\/paul-smith\/"},"dateModified":"2021-12-29T06:05:19+00:00","datePublished":"2021-12-15T06:01:52+00:00","description":"2022 order fulfillment strategies incorporate data, delivery carrier insights, and tracking updates to boost CX, loyalty, and profits.","headline":"Order fulfillment 2022: Delivering much more than product","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2021\/12\/15\/order-fulfillment-strategies\/#Article_ImageObject","height":"630","url":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/Customer-service-trends_1200x375-1200x630.jpg","width":"1200"},"mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2021\/12\/15\/order-fulfillment-strategies\/","name":"Order fulfillment 2022: Delivering much more than product","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/","additionalType":"https:\/\/www.wikidata.org\/wiki\/Q1193236","description":"Relevant, timely information & analysis on commerce trends, both consumer-facing and B2B.","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/23x6xj3o92m9361dbu2ij362-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/themes\/hybris_foc\/assets\/images\/layout\/logo-new-2x.png?_=1","height":"96","url":"https:\/\/23x6xj3o92m9361dbu2ij362-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/themes\/hybris_foc\/assets\/images\/layout\/logo-new-2x.png?_=1","width":"500"},"name":"The Future of Customer Engagement and Experience","sameAs":["https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/a-call-for-a-better-experience\/id1479742201","https:\/\/twitter.com\/FutureOfCEC","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/groups\/4844282","https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/feed\/"],"url":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/"},"url":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2021\/12\/15\/order-fulfillment-strategies\/#Article"},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"2021","item":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2021\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"12","item":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2021\/\/12\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"15","item":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2021\/\/12\/\/15\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":4,"name":"Order fulfillment 2022: Delivering much more than product","item":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2021\/12\/15\/order-fulfillment-strategies\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]