If you’re still handling your own fulfilment in-house, it might be high time for you to consider a new way of doing things that will not only save you time, but will also save you money!
Third-party service providers that specialise in logistics (3PL), like ourselves, know the potential pitfalls and problems that can be associated with storing and shipping items such as promotional items, subscription boxes, and much, much more. In fact anything that an ecommerce/online business can throw at us that requires storage of goods, processing and despatch, we can assist you with to make your processes genuinely easier!
Operating your own logistics can occupy a huge amount of your time…from order processing...goods receipt…storage…picking and packing…organising shipping…dealing with returns etc. This is where supply chain experts like MRM can come to the rescue with bespoke shipping solutions tailored to suit the needs of your business. Let us do the hard work for you.
Using a third-party service accelerates the entire fulfilment process, from ordering to inventory to shipping, while also reducing your overall costs. A good provider can store, assemble, ship and trace goods to anyone, anywhere, on a fully automated basis. It sounds almost too good to be true, so here’s a simple outline of how it works:
· Goods Receipt – you integrate your ecommerce platform with our systems and bulk ship your inventory to our warehouse where it will be stored safely and securely.
· Production –staff in our fulfilment centre pick the stated items for each order, pack in the appropriate packaging and prepare for despatch.
· Despatch - your goods are despatched to the customer using carriers/postal services such as DPD or Royal Mail.
· Returns – your customers can return orders to us and these will processed as per your instructions.
By storing your products in a third-party warehouse while you’re waiting to ship them to consumers, employees, or tradeshow attendees you will be able to cut down on both storage and labour costs. When you run your own warehouse, all of the expenses—as well as any lost or damaged product—are your responsibility. When using a third-party supplier, overall fixed expenses such as these are divided and paid for by the supplier’s entire customer base, significantly reducing your overall cost. Plus, there’s no need to rent commercial property, or hire new employees.
You shouldn’t have to worry about the finer details of the shipping process. By teaming up with experienced service providers such as ourselves, you can have peace of mind that your customised fulfilment and shipping solution covers everything from receipt to assembly and shipping, making it easy to achieve and monitor success. Plus, with MRM, you’ll have access to flexible, cost-effective freight solutions by taking advantage of the preferential discounted rates we have negotiated with postal services and carriers.
Outsourcing can lift a huge weight off of your shoulders. Not only will the process cost you less money in the long run, but you should also see an increase in efficiency and improvement in your results, so you can get back to building your brand and let a third-party tackle the logistics of getting your product to your target market!
Finally, whoever you choose as your outsourced fulfilment partner, take the time to complete your due diligence checks on their GDPR compliance, data management protocols and to agree SLAs that work for both parties. Third party outsourcing is cost effective and you won’t regret it!
Do you have any questions about how we can make this work for you? Drop us a message, or give our team a call on 01858 414 777, we’ll be more than happy to help.