Building positive customer care services is the core of eCommerce businesses. So to provide a consistent purchasing experience to the shopper we should provide high-quality service from start to finish. The end of a purchase is not always the payment process. It is the ultimate customer satisfaction that is gained until the product is delivered on time. Here comes the role of an efficient logistics or fulfilment partner. So they also hold a crucial role in the success of a business.
Here we discuss 10 important questions that you can ask the fulfilment partners to streamline the perfect ones that suit your business platform.
10 significant questions to ask the fulfilment partners are as follows,
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Check the experience of the provider working with a similar e-commerce business
Before finalising the logistics provider make sure that they have ideal certificates. Also, working experience with a similar operation that needs logistic support. This question is crucial in the case of small eCommerce businesses who make sales very hard. If you have irregular sales pattern you should check the provider’s workflows of the inventory. In addition, check how they efficiently handle the increased demands of the business platforms. The significant features of a precise fulfilment provider are that they can easily manage, fulfil and report on the orders in the business platform proactively.
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How good is a provider’s performance metrics
E-Commerce is all about growth. So it is our duty to check whether the chosen fulfilment partner can understand the business growth perfectly. Furthermore, the providers should provide scalable methodologies and understand the workflows once the orders spike up. They should have a perfect picture in tackling the growing orders and a perfect warehouse management system. A well-maintained warehouse management system will provide great support to the operational accuracy of the business. Also, fulfilment partners must help to meet up the changing demands of the shoppers.
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Contract agreement validity
Always target short term agreements. Long term agreements are always a problem zone for business owners. They will get locked in the agreement without having the option to change the provider. Even though they provide a service which is not up to the mark the owners have to suffer. In such cases, the providers are incentivized and benefited the most. So make sure to sign an agreement that has an option to withdraw the contract if the provider’s service does not meet up the expectations.
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Providing a service guarantee
A fulfilment provider should provide a complete service guarantee that includes the inventory accuracy, order accuracy and delivery time. If they are not meeting up the guarantee then you can stop working with them. In addition, the penalties will also work better in making up the guarantees.
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Calculating and ensuring accuracy
Inaccurate accuracy is always a nightmare for business owners. As this can lead to losing customers due to dissatisfaction in their orders. So we should find a way to ensure their factors provide good accuracy. Calculating the accuracy of the service is by dividing the number of accurately picked orders by the total number of picked orders over time. By calculating the logistics providers’ accuracy you can decide their service quality and finalise the best ones in the market. Moreover to ensure precise accuracy they should provide sufficient care in each step of order management.
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How they tackle the mistakes
Before signing your agreement make sure the providers have the best mistake management. You have to talk to them about the plan and processes they use to ensure quality service. The mistakes made can be compensated in different ways but you have to confirm the way they do it. Whether they pay for the shipment of the new product, refund the cost of the item and shipping charges.
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Offering bulk order discounts
Most of the companies work with significant companies in the market such as FedEx, DHL and many more. But the question is which one provides better discounts. This can help us to utilize this money for other worthy matters in the business platform.
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Their least requirements for orders
At this point, you can clearly understand the fulfilment providers whether they are a perfect fit for your business. If they charge a concession on the pre-order fee they will have a high minimum high order requirement. In addition, they will also charge penalties if our sales fall down to the bottom line.
So always try to find a fulfilment partner or centre which charges order maximums.
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Warehouse locations
Selecting the warehouses should be according to customer sales. Always find the place where you have high sales and find a provider in the same market. So the providers can meet up the customer needs faster. Make sure you find partners who have warehouses closer to your demand areas. Furthermore, this can ensure more speedy delivery of the products.
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Supporting returns
Most of the fulfilment companies would not entertain the returns. So try to find the providers who can handle the same or make the returns to go straight to you. Avoid the returns-driven back to the fulfilment partners.
Conclusion
By walking through the article we hope that you will come up with the best fulfilment partner who suits your online business. E-Commerce is always a sturdy business which needs proactive tactics to catch up with the moving trend. So don’t focus more on the low-cost providers instead make sure you have a quality service provider.
Furthermore let high accuracy, service guarantee and precise location be your main checklist pointers to get ticks off. As in e-commerce, time is money. So make sure to make worthy comprehensive research before you finalise a fulfilment partner to avoid bad decisions.
