Streamlining order fulfilment process for shipping success in ANZ

While 2020 saw brick-and-mortar retail businesses buckle under the strain of social distancing and stay-at-home orders, the number of purchases being made online skyrocketed. A study by Inside Retail found that the ANZ e-commerce market experienced five years worth of growth in just six months from March 2020.

Traditional retail businesses found they could keep revenue flowing by focusing their efforts online. At the same time, they also realised that managing an e-commerce business comes with its own challenges and requires a different set of tools.

If businesses had any chance of staying afloat in this new climate, they had to adapt fast. Some of the biggest hurdles they faced were developing strategies to keep up with customer demand and order fulfilment.

In response to these challenges, ShipStation has released a new Ebook, Streamline Your Order Fulfilment Process: How to Optimise Your Shipping for Success, supported by BigCommerce and First Move Digital. 

The Ebook is targeted towards e-commerce business owners in Australia and New Zealand and aims to put the developments of the past 14 months into perspective. It’s packed full of practical advice on how to manage a successful e-commerce business in 2021 and beyond. 

The growing role of technology partners

One of the Ebook’s key findings concerns the growing role that outsourced service providers play in e-commerce.

Faced with the massive changes brought by the pandemic, businesses had to find ways to offer their customers an exceptional online experience and fast.

By employing a technology partner for important parts of the business such as order fulfilment and digital marketing, e-commerce owners free up time to focus their energies on growing their business.

Order fulfilment presents a perfect example of how technology partnerships can give business owners room to breathe. An effective fulfilment operation is crucial to e-commerce, and it generally represents the last touchpoint with the customer.

However, in order to have fulfilment processes running smoothly, it requires the oversight and integration of many different components, including the management of the orders coming from the e-commerce platform, coordination of multiple carriers, and reliable communication with the customers to ensure they’re across the status of their order. This is precisely what shipping automation can help retailers achieve, without having to manually perform these time-consuming tasks.

In addition to freeing up time and resources, a streamlined order fulfilment operation can boost efficiency, reduce shipping errors, and improve the overall customer experience.

The benefits will be felt most keenly during peak season when many retailers find themselves overworked, under-resourced, and unable to keep pace with customer demand. Those with an established and streamlined fulfilment operation will be able to step back from the technical processes and enjoy the increased revenue.

All eyes on peak season 2021

This Ebook arrives just as retailers are gearing up for this year’s peak season.

As the past 14 months have reminded us, change is the only true constant. Only by being agile enough to roll with the punches and stay on top of emerging trends can e-commerce businesses survive and thrive.

Download ShipStation’s Ebook for more information on creating seamless order fulfilment.