We all want a record-breaking Peak Period right? I mean, it’s the most exciting time of the year for eCommerce businesses, but it's also when your fulfilment operations face the greatest pressure. With the surge in orders, ensuring that data is accurate and that products are picked, packed, and shipped efficiently becomes crucial to maintaining customer satisfaction and boosting profitability. Ensuring your fulfilment operations are in tip-top shape during this period can make or break your success.
In this article we’ve teamed up with Knotted Commerce, a specialist eCommerce integrations agency, to dive into five game-changing tips to help streamline and optimise your operations this peak season. From improving your order processing speed to eliminating data bottlenecks these tips (seen first-hand by eCom experts!) will ensure your business is ready to handle the Black Friday rush. Whether you're focused on in-house efficiency and/or looking to integrate your fulfilment solutions, these tips will help you deliver seamless fulfilment - on time, every time!
1. Solidify your fulfilment process.
Firstly – and most importantly the key to mastering your online fulfilment during peak period is to ensure your day-to-day eCommerce fulfilment process is bulletproof. Getting the basics down is the most important part, this includes your goods-in process, inventory management, pick and pack, dispatch and courier usage. The bread and butter of fulfilment, often referred to as “the easy stuff” (which it is far from), will be the difference between your business surviving or thriving during peak season.
Getting the right tech stack, integrations or 3PL partner ahead of time will ensure you’re already in good stead before orders come flooding in. Try automating as many processes as possible and utilising technology to minimise the chance of human-related errors. Ensuring your fulfilment process is solid now will help you put your best foot forward as we approach a key period in the eCom calendar.
2. Expand your reach with a global fulfilment offering.
Peak season isn’t confined to one area of the globe, so why is your fulfilment? One of the key tips to mastering peak period is to expand your reach beyond your national borders. Allowing customers from further afield access to your products and discounts is a fantastic way to tap into new markets and expand your niche.
But don’t rush in unprepared! Going global isn’t for the faint-hearted. There is so much to consider before expanding your reach internationally. And going it alone isn’t always the best option, working alongside the experts is the best way to ensure your transition from national to international success runs as smoothly as possible.
3. Supercharge your returns process for increased retention rates.
Over the BFCM period returns rates for eCom businesses almost doubled. In 2023 the return rate for products purchased online during the peak sales period went from the average of 17% to over 30%. With an increase in sales, an increase in returns is to be expected. But, for businesses that don’t have an appropriate returns strategy in place, this can be detrimental to revenue over this all-important period.
However, it’s not all doom and gloom. Specialist fulfilment centres, such as SCEND operate a returns management process which is specially designed to leverage your returns, turning them from a pain point into a selling point. Utilising the right technology and integrations allows a 3PL to get your return from the customer, and back into your inventory with lightning-fast precision. An often underappreciated side to fulfilment, the right returns process allows customers peace of mind when placing an order and gives brands the power to get those products back on the shelves and ready for re-selling resulting in little to no lost revenue.
4. Leverage Integration Platforms (iPaaS) to Sync Systems Seamlessly
During peak sales periods, managing the flood of incoming orders across multiple platforms can be a challenging task. This is where an Integration Platform as a Service (iPaaS) comes in handy. By integrating your fulfilment solutions with an iPaaS, you can automate the flow of data between systems, eliminating manual data entry and reducing the risk of costly errors.
Additionally, an iPaaS allows your systems to communicate in real time, meaning that inventory levels, order status updates, and shipping information are always in sync. One of the most common risks that eCom brands face during high-volume sales periods is over and underselling, something as simple as this can have devastating consequences for a brand's reputation and finances. This seamless flow of data ensures faster order processing and better visibility into your entire supply chain, enabling you to make informed decisions when stock levels are low or delays occur. With integrations in place (delivered by experts like Knotted Commerce!), your team can focus on scaling operations without worrying about miscommunications or bottlenecks, especially when time is of the essence during peak season.
5. Streamline Multi-Channel Fulfilment with 3PL Integration
Integrating your fulfilment processes with a 3PL provider, such as SCEND, can be a game-changer during Peak Periods. As orders flood in from various sales channels (multiple eCom stores, marketplaces and social platforms) handling fulfilment across all these sources can quickly become overwhelming and spiral out of control. A well-integrated 3PL system helps manage these complexities by automating and outsourcing shipping, warehousing, and inventory management for a more streamlined fulfilment process across all sales mediums - giving your business a more holistic and accurate overview of operations.
To wrap things up, optimising your eCommerce fulfilment during Peak Period is not just about surviving the rush - it's about thriving and capitalising. By solidifying your fulfilment process, expanding your reach, refining returns management, leveraging integration platforms, and streamlining multi-channel fulfilment with a reliable 3PL (such as SCEND), your business can handle the increased demand with confidence. Implementing these game-changing tips will ensure you’re prepared to meet customer expectations, keep operations running smoothly, and ultimately, boost profitability during this important time of year.
If you’d like to integrate your fulfilment solutions for Peak Periods and beyond then book in a chat with Knotted Commerce and SCEND.
Special thanks to Harry at Knotted Commerce for this excellent article.
