Fulfillment Service

The scope of e-commerce fulfilment services depends, among other things, on the provider. The fulfilment service can include both direct logistical activities and other related activities:

• Delivery of goods from suppliers to the warehouse
• Receiving goods, checking for defects
• Storage of goods
• Picking and packing
• Delivery of orders to customers
• Acceptance of payments
• Customer service (management of returns, negative feedback from customers)
• Photo and video recording of product descriptions
• Monitoring of orders
• Call centre operation
• Informing customers about delivery via SMS, email and social networks
• Web promotion
• Creation of promotional materials: banners, branding, graphics

It is not necessary to hand over the entire logistics cycle to a fulfilment provider. Alternatively, one can commission individual services and pay for them separately.

A fulfilment service provider enables a fast logistics process, from storage to handover to the customer. Fulfillment service through outsourcing offers several advantages for those who are just starting their online business as well as for experienced merchants.

For start-ups in particular, e-fulfilment is an opportunity to avoid mistakes and financial losses in the start-up phase of the business, and to avoid negative feedback due to low-quality packaging or late deliveries.

For experienced retailers, e-commerce fulfilment is an effective way to sell at competitive prices. This is because the logistics effort affects the total cost of goods. If the logistics process is not regulated, these can be very high. Thanks to the services of a professional fulfilment provider, you can keep a better eye on them.

• Boosting online commerce: Outsourcing logistics tasks to a fulfilment provider leaves more time for other tasks, such as marketing efforts or new product launches.
• Reduced financial costs: Having a fulfilment provider take care of the storage, packaging or delivery of orders eliminates the need for the retailer to rent their own warehouse, hire additional staff, buy equipment or packaging that meets the requirements of the trading venue.
• Improved quality of service: Established fulfilment operators offer quality packaging, prompt delivery and timely handling of customer objections. Thus, the fulfilment service contributes to higher customer satisfaction. Depending on the season, the number of orders can fluctuate greatly. Proven fulfilment service providers ensure high quality even at peak times.

The bottom line: With the help of e-commerce fulfilment, online retailers can scale their business, optimise their logistics processes and expand distribution geographically to a neighbouring region or country.

Each fulfillment provider develops its individual service offering in the area of e-commerce. Regardless of the individual portfolio, these service providers are also called fulfilment centres.

Some providers only deal with basic operations; others cover the entire logistics cycle, including payment acceptance, product photography, website content, call centres and other additional fulfillment services.

However, there is one commonality: professional fulfillment service providers feature established algorithms for product preparation and cooperation with carriers. This ensures that your customers receive each order as quickly as possible.

As a rule, the fulfillment costs for services from external providers are lower than maintaining your own warehouse with permanent full-time staff.
For an efficient logistics chain, you need to choose a professional and reliable fulfillment partner.

The e-commerce market is oversaturated with offers. So how do you find the right fulfillment centre? Before you decide on an external operator, you need to calculate all possible costs and possible risks.

These factors should be considered when choosing a fulfillment provider:

• Location, size and layout of warehouses: Find out whether the technical and spatial conditions allow for the desired storage of goods, especially if you need special conditions, e.g. with regard to temperature regulations. Preferably, the available space should be large and the fulfillment warehouse should be in a convenient location. It is also important to know how secure the storage space is or how well your goods are protected from break-in or damage.
• Services offered: Ask what services the preferred operator offers beyond basic fulfillment services: these can be beneficial for your e-commerce as well. The key question is: what rates and packages does the fulfillment provider offer?
• Transparency in billing and charging: analyse how much you will pay and for what. Compare your current logistics spend with the fulfillment costs of the operator you want to hire.
• Technical options: Find out how automated the processes are for providing the fulfillment services you want. Is it possible to link the IT system to your website? Is there video surveillance in the warehouse to control the execution of collection, packing of orders, etc.?
• Delivery problems: Find out in advance the average delivery time for your orders. Clarify which courier services and transport companies the fulfillment provider works with.

Before signing the contract, you should explain your needs and specifics of the business processes in the online shop to the potential fulfilment partner. This way you can choose fulfilment services in the scope that best suits your needs. The more services the fulfilment partner offers, the better it is, because in this case you can flexibly adjust the services according to your needs.

When choosing e-commerce fulfilment through outsourcing, you should additionally check how long the company has been in the market, what references it has, what its reputation is and what kind of staff it employs. The number of employees, for example, can have an impact on the speed with which orders are processed and delivered.

It is important that the contract with the fulfillment service provider specifies the following:

• Format and deadline for submission of order fulfillment requests
• Deadline for completing the tasks specified by the fulfillment provider
• A pricing schedule or specific formula for calculating fulfillment costs for individual services
• Technical details of integration with your website or system implementation