Fulfilment: opening up about the pros and cons

The logistics aspect is crucial to the success of an online store, as a smooth delivery experience is essential for satisfied customers. The growing demand for faster delivery makes order fulfillment complex, causing many e-commerce companies to reach a point where they wonder if it makes more sense to outsource order fulfillment to a fulfillment company, rather than continuing to do it themselves.

In this article, we like to play open cards with you as an e-commerce company to discuss the pros and cons of outsourcing fulfillment.

The first important aspect is that for most companies it only becomes financially interesting to work with a fulfillment partner like ShopWeDo when you receive at least 10 orders daily. Of course, every webshop and every product is unique. Therefore, do not hesitate to contact us for personal advice.

Benefits

1Economies of scale
ShopWeDo has advanced systems and economies of scale, resulting in lower storage, packaging and shipping costs.
2Focus on core business
You can focus on essential aspects such as purchasing, marketing and customer service.
3Longer cut-off time
You can extend the order time to 11 p.m., which leads to higher conversions in your online store.
4Scalability
ShopWeDo grows with you. You don't have to worry about investing in additional warehouse space or staff nor to handle certain peaks.
5Even on vacation you keep sending
Even during your vacation periods, orders continue to be shipped uninterrupted.
6Personalization
Each box is individually printed "on-the-fly" with your text or logo. You can personalize it with e.g. your customer's first name, the product in the box,.... Now that's a unique unboxing experience!
7Sustainable
With our automatic packing machines, we minimize packing and padding material. No more unnecessary air and plastic.

Cons

1Reduced control
You depend on a specialized fulfillment company. This means you relinquish part of the control over your inventory and order processing. The ShopWeDo platform keeps you informed in real-time about your webshop activities. You control the inventory and order processing online instead of physically.
2Cost
Although fulfillment costs are usually favorable, they can still be a significant expense for start-ups or companies with small margins. We argue that once a certain volume is reached, fulfillment should always be a savings. We'll work with you to find that point.
3Adjustment Problems
Each fulfillment company has its own procedures and systems, which can take adjustment time to seamlessly integrate with your existing processes. ShopWeDo has so-called 'plugins' with almost all leading ERP and webshop systems on the market. We ensure that the transition goes as smoothly as possible with personal guidance.
4Possible loss of knowledge
You are less informed about your logistics process because we take full control of it. If you do have any questions, our customer service is always ready to help you further.

Want to know more about fulfillment outsourcing?

Don't hesitate to contact us. We are ready to support you in your e-commerce adventure!