Common Order Fulfillment Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

Table of Contents

1. Importance of Efficient Order Fulfillment
2. 5 Common Order Fulfillment Mistakes
3. How to Avoid Common Order Fulfillment Mistakes
4. Aligning Order Fulfillment with Your E-Commerce Goals 

It’s understandable to think that robust sales are all you need to propel your online business to ongoing success. However, a constant flow of orders alone is far from sufficient for a successful e-commerce business. Success also depends on satisfying customers’ expectations to receive their orders quickly and without incident. 

To be blunt, your success rate for package delivery needs to remain high. For this reason, optimizing the process of locating, packaging, and shipping orders to your customers is essential. This guide will help you achieve this order fulfillment objective by highlighting five common order fulfillment mistakes and ways to avoid them.

The Importance of Efficient Order Fulfillment

A recent study revealed that 85% of online shoppers will shop elsewhere after a poor delivery experience from an online retailer. A lack of reliable order fulfillment hurts logistics operations, brand image, customer loyalty, cash flow, and, ultimately, your business goals. This is why on-time and intact deliveries directly impact your online business’s success.

5  Common Order Fulfillment Mistakes

Effective marketing can quickly generate an exceptional number of online orders, especially for popular products. As your business grows, the possibility of making these four common order fulfillment mistakes increases.

1. Poor Inventory Management

No matter how big or small your business may be, locating products is essential to quickly shipping them to your customers. Without well-organized stocking or warehousing, the extra time and effort required to search for merchandise causes shipping delays and added costs.

2. Incorrect Order Packing

Packing the wrong orders triggers a costly return process, disappointed customers, and poor reviews. This mistake often stems from inaccurate product descriptions on your web store or a faulty ordering system.

3. Inefficient Packing Processes

Not packing orders properly can lead to the delivery of damaged goods, resulting in unhappy customers, costly returns, and damage to your brand. Packing mishaps are usually the result of ill-fitting packing material, untrained staff, or careless handling.

4. Overlooking Shipping Costs

Paying too much for shipping can severely cut into your profit margins and cash flow. Negotiating reasonable rates is especially challenging if you shop for shipping partners without third-party help.

5. Poor Communication

Keeping customers in the dark about order fulfillment mistakes only compounds the issue. Mishaps happen in any business, but a lack of transparency about the issue multiplies the negative impact on your customer’s experience and the potential of canceled orders.

How to Avoid Common Order Fulfillment Mistakes

As technology has been the catalyst for e-commerce growth, it can also help you avoid order fulfillment and shipping mistakes. 

• Use barcoding and scanning to track and verify orders during the locating, packing, and shipping process. You can also employ pre-shipping verification.
• Use a multi-carrier shipping solution like Shippo, which offers the lowest rates through its shipping partners. Using reputable vendors like USPS and UPS will help protect your business's reputation and limit customer service calls.
• Automate order processing to minimize human errors and speed up the fulfillment process with a multi-carrier shipping solution. 
• Keep track of inventory and orders with real-time tracking. It also monitors and regularly audits stock levels to prevent overselling.
• Create a logical inventory layout system by grouping similar products and prioritizing high-demand items. You can also implement a clear and logical labeling system to help your staff quickly find products.
• Regularly update customers' order status through email, texts, in-app chat, and website. The customer can use a tracking number that your automated shipping software generates.

Aligning Order Fulfillment with Your E-Commerce Goals

Reducing these common order fulfillment mistakes will help you advance your online business in almost every aspect. You can achieve this objective more effectively and efficiently with a multi-carrier solution. Partner with Shippo to ensure your order fulfillment operates at a peak level.