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How to Create a Global Ecommerce Order Fulfillment Strategy That Works for You

With each passing year, more brick-and-mortar retailers are taking their businesses online. In 2017, ecommerce accounted for roughly $2.3 trillion in sales and is projected to exceed $4.5 trillion by 2021. Every year, ecommerce accounts for nearly 10% of retail sales, but that number is expected to grow by as much as 15% each year.Since the internet has become readily available and due to the COVID-19 pandemic, more customers than ever are shopping online rather than in stores. Ecommerce retailers have the opportunity to cash in on this rising trend by providing customers with what they really want – easy access to the products they want, fast shipments, and excellent customer service. To keep your customers coming back time and time again, you need to ensure that your orders are fulfilled quickly, accurately, and efficiently.Optimizing your ecommerce fulfillment strategy is the key to minimizing your costs while maximizing profits and meeting customer expectations. Keep reading to learn more about the challenges facing ecommerce businesses and to receive some tips and tricks for creating a global ecommerce order fulfillment strategy that works for your business.

What Challenges Do Ecommerce Businesses Face?

In the early years of ecommerce, the competition was low, products were flying off shelves, and the potential for profitability was high. Over time, technology has become more affordable, ecommerce platforms have made it easy to start an online business, and the world of ecommerce has become crowded with online retailers of all sizes. Opening and running a successful ecommerce business is no easy task, especially with monsters like Amazon controlling a significant portion of the market.Competition is one of the biggest challenges any ecommerce business has to face. Still, there are other factors to consider, particularly when it comes to planning and executing your order fulfillment strategy. Here are some of the biggest challenges facing ecommerce businesses today:

• Finding the best products to sell: With so much competition out there, the fate of your business rests in your decision of what products to market. You need to choose products in high demand without too much competition to sell with a decent profit margin.
• Reaching your target audience: Selling great products doesn’t do you any good unless you reach those who want to buy them. Creating a marketing strategy is all about identifying and reaching your target audience to drive sales.
• Generating traffic: You won’t sell anything if no one visits your site, so generating traffic is extremely important. Conversion rates fluctuate depending on your industry, so you’ll be putting in a lot of effort to generate leads.
• Engaging with email subscribers: Having an email list of subscribers doesn’t do you any good unless you actively engage with them. Only a fraction will convert into paying customers, so give yourself the best chance at converting those emails into sales by offering as much value as possible (e.g., promotions, coupons, and even exclusive content).
• Converting shoppers into customers: If you want to close a sale, driving traffic and making the most of your leads is the best way to do so. You want to give shoppers a reason to choose you over the dozens of other retailers like you that are out there. What is your unique value proposition?
• Retaining customers: Once you’ve turned a shopper into a customer, you want to keep that customer coming back. Why? Based on the research and industry you’re in, acquiring a new customer is anywhere from 5 to 25 times more expensive than retaining an existing one. Customer service and perceived value are two critical factors for higher customer retention rates.
• Achieving long-term growth: Higher sales volume doesn’t always equate with profitability, so your long-term growth strategy needs to be multifaceted. Look for ways to cut inventory costs, optimize order fulfillment, speed shipping, and reduce overhead and returns.
• Choosing the right technology: Technology is an integral part of any online business, and choosing the right tech is vital. Look for technology that will help you integrate and automate your business’s different aspects to reduce costs, improve accuracy, provide real-time insights, and boost efficiency.

Understanding and accounting for the challenges listed above is a big step toward ensuring your online business’s success. If you want your business to succeed in the long term, you need to make sure that you have a solid foundation to build from, and that means creating and executing a successful order fulfillment strategy.

What is Involved in Order Fulfillment?

Order fulfillment is the backbone of any ecommerce business. Rather than offering a particular service, you’re selling goods and products directly to the customer (aka D2C). The strategy you use to fulfill customer orders affects everything from profit margin to customer satisfaction, so it’s something you need to think about carefully.Before getting into the details about different order fulfillment strategies, let’s quickly review the various stages involved in the order fulfillment process:

• Receiving: The first stage in the order fulfillment process is receiving your inventory. If you’re filling orders in-house, you’ll be receiving or manufacturing the products yourself.
• Storage: Proper storage of inventory is vital because you need to find, access, and ship your products as quickly and efficiently as possible.
• Processing: Order processing involves receiving an order and taking the necessary steps to fill it.
• Picking: The first step in order processing picking involves gathering individual items for an order from their storage locations.
• Packing: Once items in an order are picked, they are grouped by order and packaged.
• Shipping: When the order is packaged and ready to go, it is shipped to the customer.
• Returns: Processing returns is another step in the order fulfillment process – returns may be shipped directly to you or your storage facility for processing and corrections.

As you can see, order fulfillment is a multistage process, and there is room for error every step of the way. Choosing and utilizing a solid order fulfillment strategy determines both the immediate and long-term success of your business. Keep reading to learn more about the different fulfillment options available for ecommerce businesses.

The Most Popular Ecommerce Order Fulfillment Strategies

Every company is unique, so the order fulfillment strategy that works best for one company might not be ideal for yours. Before getting into the details about choosing the correct order fulfillment strategy for your business, let’s take a look at some of the options.Here are some of the most popular ecommerce order fulfillment strategies:

1. Direct Fulfillment
2. Drop-Shipping
3. Third-Party Logistics (3PL)

Now, let’s take a closer look at each of these strategies.

1. Direct Fulfillment

Also known as in-house fulfillment, direct fulfillment is a strategy in which the business fills orders itself. This strategy is generally the starting point for smaller and at-home companies, though it also works for massive corporations with the funds to run their warehouse operations. Direct fulfillment looks different depending on the size of a business. You could be fulfilling orders from your garage or using a fulfillment center to ship out hundreds of orders a day. Here are some of the pros and cons:

Pros for Direct Fulfillment:

• You retain total control and have complete visibility over order fulfillment operations.
• You can add personal touches to your orders.
• It could save money, depending on the size of your business.
• You may not need to negotiate as many business contracts.

Cons for Direct Fulfillment:

• It takes a lot of time and energy that could be directed elsewhere.
• You could be limited in what shipping options you offer customers.
• You’ll need a lot of storage and warehousing space, depending on size.
• You might not be able to get discounts on shipping.

2. Dropshipping

This is an order fulfillment strategy in which you pay for fulfillment as your orders generally come from the vendor or manufacturer itself. When a customer places an order, it goes directly to the dropshipper who picks, packs, and ships the product on your behalf. You are then charged for that order. This strategy works well with ecommerce businesses that prefer not to own any inventory themselves, but it does require a certain degree of marketing expertise. Here are some of the pros and cons:

Pros for Drop-Shipping:

• Inventory management is non-existent since you don’t have to purchase, store, and manage inventory yourself.
• You can offer a broader range of products without worrying about space or overhead.
• Overhead costs are low due to low operational expenses.
• You only pay for products that are ordered after they have shipped to the customer.

Cons for Drop-Shipping:

• You have no control over the packaging and shipping of your products.
• You still handle customer service, so you’ll need to communicate with the drop-shipper.
• Profit margins will be narrower since you’re working with a middle-man.
• It’s challenging to establish a brand because products are owned and packaged elsewhere.
• Dropshipping is incredibly competitive, with multiple stores selling the same product.

3. Third-Party Logistics

Also known as 3PLs, third-party logistics involves handing over the details of order fulfillment to a third-party provider. Your company will still be responsible for purchasing or producing your inventory, but you’ll be relying on another company to store, pick, pack, and ship it. When your customer places an order, the order goes to the 3PL who picks the item from its storage location in their warehouse, then packages it and ships it to the customer. Here are some of the pros and cons:

Pros for Third-Party Logistics:

• You’ll have more time to devote to other aspects of the business.
• You can still access important data about your inventory and sales.
• You may benefit from reduced packaging costs and shipping discounts.
• You’ll be able to offer your customers faster shipping options.

Cons for Third-Party Logistics:

• You have reduced control over how your products are packaged and shipped.
• You’ll need to stay in close communication with your 3PL provider to ensure everything is running smoothly.
• You may not be the 3PL’s only client and could have to share warehouse space.
• Hidden fees could cut into profits depending on which order fulfillment service you pick

Choosing the Right Fulfillment Strategy for Your Business

Now that you have a better understanding of the different options for order fulfillment, you’re ready to start thinking about the best option for your business. Though the three most popular strategies described in the previous section work for most companies, you may find that a combination of different methods works best for you. You also need to think about making the transition from one strategy to another as smoothly as possible, so you don’t have to shut down operations altogether.

How To Handle Inventory Management

The first factor to consider when choosing an order fulfillment strategy is inventory. If your business designs and manufactures its products, a direct order fulfillment strategy or 3PL partnership may work best. This is because dropshipping is best for companies that don’t produce or own inventory. Your business’s size and the number of products you sell are the determining factor between choosing a direct order fulfillment or 3PL strategy. For smaller companies with a limited inventory, you may be able to handle order fulfillment in-house until your sales volume and inventory grow to the point that you have the ability (and margins) to hand over operations to a third-party provider.

Can Your Ecommerce Fulfillment Strategy Scale?

Another factor to consider when choosing an order fulfillment strategy is scalability. You need to think about the current size and state of your business and your hopes for the future. The supply chain for ecommerce stores is complex, and hiring the right experts can be time-consuming. Companies like Amazon and Nike can handle fulfillment in-house because they’ve spent billions optimizing their supply chain and sales channels. Unless you have millions in capital, it’s going to be challenging building a fulfillment network that offers Amazon Prime levels of transit times and shipping speeds.If you expect your business to grow quickly or if you hope to expand into additional markets, a 3PL provider may be the way to go. Many 3PL providers have multiple warehouses and distribution centers which can give you access to new markets without significantly increasing your costs.

Technology & Integrations

Technology is another vital thing to think about when it comes to order fulfillment. If you plan to handle order fulfillment in-house, you’ll need some kind of order management system (OMS) software to organize customer data and process orders. This kind of software can be expensive, especially for large-scale operations where different stages of the fulfillment process are automated. If you’re worried about the upfront cost to purchase this kind of technology, choosing a dropshipping or 3PL order fulfillment strategy may be best.It’s also essential to have integrations between your technology. For example, if you use a warehouse management system (WMS), it must integrate with your ecommerce platform to sync order and inventory data, so orders are processed efficiently. Otherwise, customers could add products to their shopping carts and place orders for out-of-stock products.

Providing Value To Customers

Finally, you need to think about providing your customers with the best value when choosing your order fulfillment strategy. Customers want to find what they are looking for easily, pay a reasonable price, and receive their orders as quickly and accurately as possible. For small operations where you have time to prepare and process orders yourself, direct fulfillment is a cost-effective option. For more prominent companies with extensive inventories, however, drop-shipping or 3PL fulfillment may be the best way to speed order processing, reduce errors, and offer faster as well as more affordable shipping options.There may not be a clear right or wrong answer when it comes to choosing an order fulfillment strategy. You’ll need to think carefully about your business in its current state and consider the direction you want to go in the future. Factoring in these details, along with customer satisfaction and profitability, will help you make the right choice for your business.

Tips for Implementing An Ecommerce Fulfillment Strategy

Once you’ve chosen your order fulfillment strategy, all that is left is to implement it. Unfortunately, that is easier said than done. You'll need to make the transition as quickly and efficiently as possible so there are zero hiccups in your daily operations. Here are some tips for making the transition:

• Ensure everyone is on board with the new strategy: You’ll need to make sure that everyone understands their role within the new system so the transition can happen smoothly.
• Prepare your inventory for an onboarding experience: You’ll need to prepare your existing inventory and future inventory according to the requirements for your new strategy to make the receiving process as fast and efficient as possible.
• Make arrangements for the transfer early: The key to a smooth transition is making sure that your inventory arrives in the desired location on time. Planning ensures that you’ll be able to choose a cost-effective transportation method without putting your deadline at risk.
• Work with your logistics company to make the transition as quickly as possible: If you’re transitioning into 3PL for the first time or switching to a new company, go over the process in detail with your new provider so that their staff and yours can work together to make the process as quick and painless as can be.
• Keep your customers updated and involved: Making the transition to a new order fulfillment strategy can take time, so you may have some interruption in service that could impact your customers. Keeping your customers updated about the transition is vital if you want to avoid lost sales and dissatisfied customers. Share the details with your customers and highlight the benefits they’ll see when it’s complete.

ShipHero - The Best Ecommerce Fulfillment Provider

There are plenty of ecommerce fulfillment services available today. But ShipHero stands out. We work with over 4,000 ecommerce businesses to handle fulfillment. Here are some of the benefits of working with ShipHero as your 3PL.

Offer 2-Day and Overnight Delivery

Tired of losing sales to Amazon because you don’t offer 2-day shipping? With ShipHero, you can offer 2-day delivery and overnight delivery to compete with Amazon and other enterprise ecommerce companies. With our shipping discounts, 2-day shipping can be a powerful way to improve conversion rates, make more sales, and keep your customers happy.

Distributed Fulfillment

Distributed fulfillment is a proven method to decrease shipping costs and improve transit times. For example, if you’re based in Los Angeles, the cost of shipping an order to New York is going to be much more expensive than shipping an order to San Francisco. With ShipHero’s distributed fulfillment, your inventory is split among our network of fulfillment centers. When an order is placed, it goes to the fulfillment center closest to the customer. You’ll save money on shipping costs, and orders will be delivered faster.

Integrations With Your Ecommerce Platform

ShipHero supports a wide variety of ecommerce platforms, including Shopify, Shopify Plus, BigCommerce, WooCommerce, Amazon, and others. The integrations are simple to activate and are a great option for companies selling on multiple platforms. For example, if you sell on Amazon and Shopify, we’ll handle fulfillment for orders from both platforms. All the order data is available in one platform so you won’t have to fumble through multiple apps to track everything.

Transparent Pricing

ShipHero believes in transparency. Unlike other 3PLs that nickel-and-dime you with hidden fees, our pricing model is simple and easy to understand. Our single shipping rate includes picking, packing, packaging and postage and is a flat fee for the lower 48 states and we don’t lock you into long-term contracts.ConclusionThe key to maximizing profits and efficiency with your ecommerce business is to choose the right order fulfillment strategy. The speed, accuracy, and efficiency with which you fill your orders directly impact customer satisfaction, which also impacts your bottom line. Take what you’ve learned here to evaluate your current order fulfillment strategy to see whether there might be room for improvement and, if there is, put the tips you’ve received to work.

Every year, consumers drag themselves out of a post-Thanksgiving stupor to hit the stores for Black Friday. With some stores now opening as early as noon on Thursday and offering online promotions through the following Cyber Monday, Thanksgiving has become one of the biggest commercial holidays of the year.‍

According to Amazon, the five shopping days starting with Thanksgiving itself, nicknamed the “Turkey 5,” broke U.S. records this year with consumers purchasing millions more products than they had the year before. Adobe Analytics experts have revealed that e-commerce sales alone hit a record $8 billion this Cyber Monday alone, making it the biggest shopping day in U.S. history

.Sales figures are the most obvious way to capture a glimpse of the commercial significance of holiday shopping days like Cyber Monday, but it paints a limited picture. To grasp the true scope of this shopping extravaganza, it is interesting to view the shipping data for Cyber Monday purchases.

Let’s take a closer look at some of the sales data for Cyber Monday 2018 and how it correlates with data from the top shipping carriers in the U.S.

A Deeper Look at Cyber Monday 2018

While some families spend their post-turkey hours settled into their easy chairs watching Thanksgiving Day football or sleeping off their third helping of pumpkin pie, others load the kids into the minivan as soon as they finish their last bite and head out to hit the mall.

And then there are the online shoppers. Those savvy savers who avoid the long lines, taking advantage of holiday deals from the comfort of their La-Z-Boys.

According to Adobe Analytics, Thanksgiving Day shopping totals about $3.7 billion online with Black Friday sales totaling over $6 billion. The real money is spent on Cyber Monday – what Adobe has dubbed “the largest shopping day in US history.” John Copeland, head of Marketing and Customer Insights at Adobe announced that Cyber Monday sales topped $7.9 billion with $2 billion coming in from smartphones, an all-time high.

Financial figures aside, Amazon recently released a report of the types of products that sold on Cyber Monday 2018. Across the “Turkey 5,” Amazon customers alone ordered more than 180 million items. On Black Friday alone, customers ordered over 4 million toys and electronics through the Amazon mobile app and customers around the world purchased more than 18 million toys and over 13 million fashion items over the course of the weekend.

Not only did Cyber Monday 2018 reveal a record number of sales, but Akamai has released data on conversion rates for mobile and desktop devices. Conversion rates for mobile devices averaged 2.72% with desktops averaging around 5.12%. Bounce rates were up as well, with mobile devices bouncing 34.71% and desktops 25.74%.

Cyber Monday Shipments by Carrier

Every holiday season, retailers and customers rely on shipping carriers to get their purchases where they need to go. Shipping carriers hire countless seasonal employees and offer extra initiatives like Sunday delivery to help manage the increased load. They also release shipping deadlines to help consumers make sure their domestic and international shipments arrive in time for the holiday.

During the holiday season as a whole, shipping carriers struggle to keep up with the growing number of holiday sales and the challenge peaks on major shopping days like Cyber Monday. While private carriers like FedEx and UPS shoulder a significant portion of the holiday load, the United States Postal Service takes the biggest piece of the pie.
Here is an overview of the percentage of Cyber Monday 2018 shipments divided by carrier:

• USPS – 56%
• FedEx – 20%
• UPS – 9%
• First Mile – 9%
• DHL – 6%

Cyber Monday Shipments by Country

Though Cyber Monday is widely regarded as an American commercial holiday, online purchases made on this day travel around the world. According to 2018 Cyber Monday shipping data, the majority of purchases made in the U.S. were shipped domestically but another 9 international shipping destinations made the list. Here is an overview of Cyber Monday 2018 shipments divided by country:

• United States – 94.62%
• Canada – 2.34%
• Great Britain – 1.26%
• Australia – 1.03%
• France – 0.26%
• New Zealand – 0.15%
• Ireland – 0.06%
• Japan – 0.03%
• Singapore – 0.03%
• Korea – 0.02%

Cyber Monday Shipments by State

The beauty of online shopping is that customers can purchase from any online store no matter where they are physically located. Some states carry a larger piece of the pie, of course, based on factors such as population and demographics. Here is an overview of the percentages of Cyber Monday 2018 shipments divided by state:

• TX — 13.50%
• CA — 11.30%
• NY — 6.20%
• FL — 5.40%
• IL — 4.70%
• PA — 3.40%
• OH — 3.10%
• GA — 3.10%
• NC — 2.70%
• NJ — 2.60%
• MI — 2.50%
• VA — 2.40%
• WA — 2.30%
• TN — 2.10%
• MA — 2.10%
• IN — 2.00%
• MO — 1.90%
• AZ — 1.90%
• CO — 1.90%
• MN — 1.60%
• OK — 1.60%
• AL — 1.60%
• MD — 1.60%
• LA — 1.50%
• SC — 1.40%
• WI — 1.40%
• KY — 1.30%
• OR — 1.20%
• UT — 1.10%
• IA — 1.00%
• CT — 1.00%
• AR — 1.00%
• KS — 0.90%
• MS — 0.80%
• NV — 0.80%
• NE — 0.70%
• WV — 0.50%
• ID — 0.50%
• NM — 0.40%
• NH — 0.40%
• ME — 0.30%
• HI — 0.30%
• DE — 0.30%
• ND — 0.30%
• RI — 0.30%
• MT — 0.30%
• SD — 0.30%
• DC — 0.20%
• WY — 0.20%
• AK — 0.20%
• VT — 0.20%

Each year, more brick-and-mortar businesses close their doors or take their sales online to meet their customers where they are. Modern technology has made it easier than ever for consumers to find the products they want without setting foot outside the comfort of their own homes.

As holiday sales break records year after year, however, one thing remains constant – someone has to deliver those millions of purchases. Shipping carriers make use of modern technology themselves to streamline the shipping process, and they take steps to prevent holiday delays as much as possible. FedEx hires 55,000 seasonal employees each year, and UPS hires some 100,000 over the period of several weeks while also increasing hours and extending shifts for regular employees to manage the increased holiday load.

The world of consumerism is constantly changing, and it falls on the shoulders of shipping carriers like USPS, FedEx, and UPS to carry the burden of that change. Even as the world changes, however, U.S. consumers will still expect their packages to arrive on time and shipping carriers will do their best to meet these demands. 3PL software companies like ShipHero help your business find the best and cheapest carrier shipping options.

‍*Data based on an analysis of over 100,000 shipments during Cyber Monday 2018.

Our co-founder Nicholas Daniel-Richards answered all - or, well, almost 30 - questions about ShipHero, shipping, fulfillment, and nearly everything else ecommerce-related on AMAFeed. Read the adapted text here:

What’s the main goal of ShipHero? What do you want to offer your clients ultimately?

We offer a comprehensive cloud based WMS/OMS solution that's easy to use. If you want to add a 3PL (or 3PLs plural) to extend your existing capability or outsource all fulfllment, use ShipHero Marketplace.Our goal is simple. Make it easier for ecommerce businesses to win at fulfillment.

Are there any qualifications or limitations for a business to work with you?

No qualifications - what is a fit for the business. Goes without saying it should be an ecommerce business (we have a number of customers who sell online and in store as well).If the business needs help with inventory, order management and shipping and wants to do this in-house, then ShipHero SaaS is worth a look.If the business is looking to outsource for ecommerce fulfillment, then ShipHero Marketplace is worth a look.

What should be the starting budget of startups to be able to work with ShipHero?

Brilliant question. My answer may surprise you. It depends on the volume of sales. Our software for managing your own warehouse starts at $500 a month, which will be too much cost for a business shipping a few items a week.If you're an early stage startup, shipping lower volumes, without the complexity of many products (SKUs) and the requirements of a warehouse team etc I would recommend ShipStation - they're a perfect get started solution.ShipHero is designed for businesses that are starting to see 50+ orders per day, the complexities of keeping inventory correct, want an effective method to automate order actions and priorities, keep shipping costs low, offer returns, minimize errors etc.Of course, with ShipHero Marketplace, you also have the option of just outsourcing fulfillment either partly or entirely, which is another perfect solution for when you need to scale.

Does ShipHero ship anywhere in the world? What are your shipping conditions?

ShipHero software is used to ship everywhere indeed, infact, we're constantly impressed on where products are being shipped to.While we don't "ship", we enable the process of making sure the order is fulfilled and then the correct shipping label is generated and used. Important to know that international shipping means dealing with customs which means getting all of the customs information correct.ShipHero allows you to set at a product level, the customs value, description or even if it should be included on the invoice (or not), making the international shipping process easier.

Can dropship startups also work with ShipHero?

ShipHero does indeed support drop shipping. How's that for a simple answer?

Does ShipHero ever handle goods or is everything done mainly online?

We do 2 things.1. ShipHero WMS/OMS software - you can use this to manage your own warehouse.2. ShipHero Marketplace - you can use this to find the perfect outsourced warehouse to handle the goods for you.

What inspired you to start ShipHero?

Absolute frustration when scaling ecommerce!! Why is it the sales channel has fantastic options (Shopify FTW), but inventory, orders and shipping is such a process? The challenge isn't so much when you're shipping 10-30 orders per day (not to say it's easy, but you can get away with the inefficiencies a lot more), it's more when you grow beyond that. We started ShipHero on the premise of solving the problem of going going paper, and needing to track who did what in the warehouse. There's a huge gap between paper based systems, and various apps being stitched together and a multi-million dollar enterprise platform that takes years to build. Seemed like the perfect opportunity to solve these challenges, while tackling a seemingly stale and stubborn industry.Now we're nearly 6 years in, we're tackling the issue of fulfillment overall. Sure, many ecommerce businesses are looking to manage inventory and orders better, only because they can't find a good outsource solution.3PLs are typically not great. Not great to find, not very easy to integrate with and not very transparent. Thus, ShipHero Marketplace.Our perspective is, make working with oursourced 3PLs easier (think AirBnb for warehouses!) and more ecommerce businesses owners can focus on what they do best - marketing, story telling and selling great products and services. Let someone else deal with all that fulfillment stuff!As you can tell, the passion isn't going away :)

Can you connect to an existing inventory system or does the business have to switch to yours to be able to use the service, how does it work?

Typically, the root cause of pain around inventory and fulfillment is the inventory software itself. So you want to start with a solid solution that allows you to maintain accurate inventory - which means it needs to be tied into your ecommerce channel(s), recieving, shipping process and as a double bonus - returns restocking. If you were using ShipHero, you would connect to your ecommerce stores, shipping carriers and you're ready to go as far as seeing your inventory and incoming orders (loaded from your store) as well as having the ability to ship them.Some important questions to consider when managing inventory.

• How many SKUs do you manage?
• Which ones are the most active?
• Are you barcoding? (if not, why not!?)

Do you believe that overnight shipping to international locations can be possible in the future?

Interesting thought. Obviously, factors such as distance, the destination country and product will have huge factors on feasibility. Thinking technically, it's quite possible (although customs clearance may be a bottleneck), however, not sustainable and probably very costly. This is actually a topic we spend a lot of time thinking about at ShipHero, and is one of the reasons why we believe having a mulitple warehouse strategy is the best approach. Basically, keep your product closer to your customers, reducing distance, time and cost for shipping.That said, it's quite a challenge to have your product located near your customers - especially in different regions of the world. We're obsessed with solving that with ShipHero Marketplace - making it easier to put your product around the world.We're also working an inventory forecasting feature that can take sales history, sales campaign information and forecasted demand modelling to recommend where product should be so you don't even need to figure that part out.So, in short - overnight shipping internationally is complicated, expensive and while shipments could be shipped overnight. We're betting the easier approach will be to have product located in warehouses closer to customers.

What advice would you give to brands branching out into e-com who are currently exploring shipping and fulfillment?

We see companies who have traditionally been b2b focus in the past (fewer but way larger wholesale orders, typically freight shipping) exploring or shifting to direct to consumer fulfillment. In those cases, they already have a good understanding of running a warehouse, and basically need to transform processes and figure out customer support. In most of these cases, it's about finding the right technology platform.For businesses that have not run a warehouse or dabbled in fulfillment, there's a lot a ground to cover, but it can be summed up in a few categories.

1. What is your shipping strategy? Which carriers will you be using, where are you shipping to? what are the shipments in terms of dimenson and weight. Will you be offering a free shipping option?
2. Is maintaining inventory and running a warehouse something the business wants to take on? Obviously, leasing space, hiring people, storing product etc are different tasks than marketing, selling, customer support etc. If the business wants to take this on, then it will require investment in time and money.
3. Whats the volume? If the business is indeed running it's own warehouse, then volume needs to be taken into account. Not only an average, but also what are the projected spikes, say during holiday season or during a promotion. Its important to know from a team capacity perspective and of course, warehouse space perspective.
4. How are fulfillment processes tied into customer support? Great ecommerce shipping is about responsive customer support, communication, returns, exchanges etc. This requires a customer support team that are connected with the operations of a warehouse, be sure there are defined channels of communication and processes to handle customer order changes, returns etc.

There are a bunch of fantastic write-ups on this topic, most recently Shopify posted The Beginner's Guide to Ecommerce Shipping and Fulfillment which gets into a lot more detail than me - a really great read.

How does ShipHero stand against competition? What does your company do better?

It's interesting. When we first started out, we had less features and were rather scrappy in how we looked at our offering vs the competition. Several years later, with more features and more platform ability I would say, and bear with me - we don't really have a direct competitor. Yeah, there are many apps, plugins, solutions large and small aimed at helping ecommerce businesses with inventory, or printing shipping labels, or printing barcodes - however, try getting all that running on in a single solution. Not so easy. Add on top of that, something that would give you the flexibility to work with 3PLs, not easy at all unless you build something.For inventory management, we are often finding ourselves compared to Cin7 and SkuVault. For Shipping label generation, ShipStation and Shipworks. For 3PL fulfillment, ShipBob, 3PL Central and Flex. Our approach differs from what these companies provide - but everyone has a fit, for example, ShipStation is worth consideration (at least as of writing this answer) for fresh businesses starting out and need to get a few shipments out.So yeah, I guess we have a lot of competition if you looked at the number of companies that have the word "ship" in their name! The problems we are solving for scaling ecommerce businesses who need to be smart about fulfillment and our approach seems to be something a lot of ecommerce businesses prefer, and we're thankful for that while continuing to add more value each and every day.

What are the most common customer complaints when it comes to shipping? How does ShipHero handle these complaints?

Because our customers are ecommerce businesses, we don't receive complaints from consumers buying products and wanting shipments! That said, we have seen a few common mistakes ecommerce businesses can make when shipping orders, which are easy to avoid.

1. Communication. This above everything else is key. Given the choice between something shipped 4 days with updates versus something shipped 2 days without communication - most customers would prefer 4 days. Make sure the customer recieves clear communication when an order is shipped, along with tracking information of the shipment.
2. Orders being incorrectly fulfilled. There's nothing worse than ordering something and getting the wrong items. This costs an ecommerce business time and money, as well as damage control to please the customer. Barcode scanning is an effective method to reduce errors at fulfillment.
3. Shipping Costs. Ok, this ones tough. Shipping something costs money, no matter who you are. However, if you're competing on price, then providing a free shipping option (even if that means spending more than a certain amount) means you need to understand carriers, options and costs. ShipHero is designed to do this automatically - and will find the cheapest method to ship an order.

When did you start ShipHero? How long did you have to wait before you considered it successful?

Started in my home office in the fall of 2012. It then took another 2 years or so for us to reach that point where we felt this could be a business we could grow out.Ironically, speed of success is something that we're very mindful of - in some ways we've worked hard to make sure we don't grow too fast as we don't want to drown ourselves with too many customers at once, while trying to build a product that's reliable and valuable.Everyday we're learning something new, and we feel like we're just getting started still - all good things to keep the team focused and passionate about our objectives :)

What’s the story behind the brand name ShipHero?

Well, it started when we had just finished the ascent of Mount Everest and we were 2 glasses of scotch in and - oh right, that's fiction :) Ok, the real story. Myself and Aaron were fixated on the problem we were going to solve. "Make ecommerce fulfillment easy for ecommerce businesses". One of the core premises of our solution was, how can you know who in your warehouse team is awesome, and who might be slacking?Thinking about this further, a lot of what helps motivate people to do great work is recognition and to know you're making a difference. On the flip side of that, underperformers in a team can be quite toxic to the rest of the team trying to do a great job. So with this in mind, our focus was quite clear. We're going to help companies discover their best employees, while at the same time, help companies that use ShipHero have happy customers!We needed to have some relevance to our industry in the name, and the word warehouse seemed a tad boring. So after much real scotch and brainstorming, and our fair share of truly horrific ideas, we ended up with what sounded about right.ShipHero!That said, we feel our brand is not about the story of ShipHero. Because we're the software that powers great brands, the best stories about how we're solving problems are the stories of the brands using our software. It's not about us, it's about the ecommerce business owners and empoyees who get up everyday to run successful businesses. We're glad to be a part of this, to make a difference and solve some real problems. So yeah, that's our brand.

When working with ShipHero, can a company use your own customer support team too?

If you're using a 3PL from ShipHero Marketplace then yes! There are fantastic 3PLs that offer customer support for your customers.

If I want to outsource fulfillment, what company should I outsource to?

Couple of recommendations. You could start googling, researching, calling and generally spending a lot of time trying to find a 3PL (anyone who has had to find one will share the stories). Or and forgive the self promotion, you could use a new service the ShipHero team just launched to help you find an outsource fulfillment partner. Think of it as AirBnb for warehouses... https://marketplace.shiphero.com

What can business owners do to ensure their stores are secure? How can they reassure customers about the security of the site and of any transactions that occur on it?

All reputable ecommerce platforms run very secure platforms. The best companies also invest a lot of resources and time into keeping their platforms secure, and share this information so you can learn more. Here's more on Shopify: https://www.shopify.com/pci-compliantOver $123 billion dollars was spent on ecommerce sites this past quarter alone! Credit Card companies have also improved how fraud is detected and disputes are resolved. My recommendation would be to have a very easy to read policy on your security practices (if you're using Shopify, you can point to the Shopify writeup for example).

Do you have the capability to store and ship perishable items (e.g. refrigerated or frozen foods), if so, how does this compare to Amazon's fulfillment rules? If not, do you plan to expand to this in the future?

We do not have lot tracking or expiration date tracking as of this AMA! These features are in the works and planned for release later this year.

Why is it important today for sites to be both mobile and social media friendly? How can ShipHero help with both of these?

Simply put, you need to be where your customers are - both in the device they use, and the context of their user experience. You don't want to lose out on customers who may see something to buy on instgram using their mobile device, to be forced to then use another device (would they even have a desktop / laptop? prolly not) to then seperately make a purchase.Something we focused on when starting ShipHero was creating a comprehensive set of tools for mobile devices. Designed and built to look and feel like typical smart phone apps. This makes it easy to do things in the warehouse such as fulfil orders, create shipping labels, cycle count inventory, receive purhase orders or even print / scan barcode labels. By making things easier, people are less prone to making mistakes, leading to a better performing warehouse.

How can one deliver better than Amazon? What are some disadvantages of Amazon’s shipping process?

It's quite a question. "Better" comes in a few flavours. Probably the toughest area to compete with Amazon on is speed - going up against the amazing machine that is Amazon distribution centres is tough. That said. Couple of ways we are seeing customers create a better customer experience.Lets talk about speed. In order to ship fast, you need to do a couple of things.

• Have a very fast turn around time for inbound orders. Have a great WMS/OMS solution like ShipHero (I know I know, I might be a bit obsessed) which can take care of many of the typical tasks of order fulfillment. Think order priority, special instructions for the packer, shipping method etc.
• Speed up how you fulfill orders, and do this without making mistakes. This is easy with the right tools. Basically, let technology do the work for you. Use locations for inventory, batch pick (quick video on that) orders in bulk, use barcodes for picking confirmation and remove the decision points pickers / packers need to make.

Communication. Getting something in 2 days without any communication or tracking link is a worse experience vs having something delivered in 3 - 4 days with great communication. Sending a shipping notification as soon as that order is fulfilled with a tracking link is easy (especially using ShipHero of course. I am ridiculous.).Lastly, here's a big area of advantage you have over Amazon.Branded Experience.Sure, if we're buying light bulbs, general commodity type products, getting something loosely packed in a brown Amazon box is fine, because you wanted it fast and cheap. However, if you're buying something that's not the cheapest or fastest, you're most likely buying into the the brand experience.We wrote some tips on this recently - 4 ways to give your ecommerce customers a memorable unboxing experience.The basic takeway being, you have the opportunity to brand and personalize what your customer receives, make it special and not so generic. That's right, a superior experience vs Amazon, something memorable and more valuable.

What do you think are the most common mistakes online retailers make when it comes to setting up e-shop?

Two major topics on this question.1. Marketing & Sales.This is a big big subject, with many great resources out there. I recommend you looking at the Shopify blog for great insight and resources, BigCommerce also has fantastic resources (and we have a few stories on the ShipHero blog as well).2. Fulfillment & Customer SupportThis topic I can talk to with a bit more insight. Though again, check out the ShipHero Blog for some interesting insight.Most typical mistakes we see being made from a fulfillment perspective are:

1. Incorrect inventory counts. This is a basic thing, however, it's surprising how ecommerce businesses struggle with this (and why ShipHero is a great inventory management solution). It's critical you have a correct inventory count of every item you sell, as well as know when to reorder or what not to sell in the future because of lack of demand.
2. Manual Shipping. Having to decide which shipping carrier (USPS or UPS for example) or method to use (Overnight, Express?) for each order will really slow things down. Use technology (you knew it - ShipHero can do that for you) to figure out the best carrier and method for each order automically.
3. High error rate. Incorrect items in your customers orders, incorrect amounts, late orders, incorrect addresses, missing fraud purchases etc - these will all massively prevent an ecommerce business from succeeding. Prevent this with an effective OMS (Order Management System) that is digital and mobile. Use barcode scanners (we love the Socket Mobile scanners for their durability, ease of use and form factor). You should be aiming to be correct on orders at least 99.8 % of the time.
4. Unclear or confusing returns process. Make it easy for your customers to return things. Sure, some customers may not be honest about a return, but most are, and a clear and easy returns policy can a contributing factor to the sale in the first place.
5. Slow customer service and bad communication. Let a customer know when their order has shipped, with a tracking link. Use something like Intercom for live customer chat (what we use at ShipHero). Respond to customer queries, reach out to customers who are unhappy and generally be responsive. It makes a big difference when you know you're dealing with real humans who can help you with a problem or question.

What’s most challenging about building a shipping company?

Intentional or not, you raise a very pointed question in your question. What is shipping? I've been asked if I can help advise on the actual management of ships (the floaty things), of which I can't, though I play a mean game of battleship... The world of "shipping" is large and diverse - otherwise known as logistics, and there are many smart people out there that specialize in many areas.What I can talk to is both shipping as an ecommerce business (managing inventory, prioritizing order flows and of course, printing those shipping labels) or, what I would consider to be more of a Shipping company in the context of ecommerce - a 3PL.. For those interested, the wikipedia definition of 3PL.Hopefully, this is what you're asking about. So, challenges come in all sizes depending on a few factors:

• Real estate. You need to be in a great location, preferrably near a shipping carrier hub, near highways, train, waterways etc.
• People. Guess this is the same for pretty much any company you build, finding the right people who care about their work.
• Tech. You need something you can get up and running fast, doesn't require a huge upfront investment and is easy for your team to use.
• Customers. It's difficult to differentiate yourself with traditional 3PL marketing - you basically need to think about shipping and being really good at SEO and digital marketing.

Those being the most typical challenges, it will come down to what you're good at, have assets in, connections etc. That said, even great 3PLs (I've been lucky to work with some brilliant 3PLs while building ShipHero) struggle with finding the right customers. The warehouse space, people and tech while not trivial challenges, are easier to solve than the where do you get new customers challenge. When you're small, you will take smaller customers with lower volume. As you grow and hopefully scale, the smaller customers are harder to maintain if your processes and overheads and not super efficient.To scale, you need to reach larger customers, and you need to be more efficient with the time spent with evaluating customers. Typically, larger customers require integrations with their techology and need transparency of inventory and orders in real-time. What we've seen the smartest 3PLs do is really hone in on process and efficiency of operation. Use a platform that gives their customers access to the data they need in real-time and most importantly, solve the customer aquisition struggle problem. Turns out, that's exactly what the ShipHero team is obsessed about - we're seeing more and more individuals and existing businesses that are building shipping companies (3PLs) to serve ecommerce businesses because of the tools and marketplace created by ShipHero.

Was it ever difficult for you delegate very complicated tasks to your employees? How does put 100% trust on employees?

That's a difficult question for me to answer, I will need to delegate that. I kid! It can be difficult to delegate if the approach to delegation is more task oriented - at least in my opinion and experience.hat I mean by that is, most of us, me included, do a much better job and feel more invested when we're given objectives or tasks in areas we can own. For me at least, what has worked well is sharing the vision and goals of what you're trying to do. Instead of "can you do x", more, "we need to do x, and this is why. I need your help, can you take this on?".Of course, this also is about personality - but in most cases, giving someone a clear objective with an option to take ownership and work with you to accomplish tasks versus simply telling someone to do tasks will typically result a happier team member, better outcome and more willingness to go beyond what you originally expected.

As the company’s co-founder, how involved are you in the ShipHero business?

Fabtastic question. Myself and Aaron (other co-founder and what I like to call big brain) are very involved, we need to be as we still have so much to do. My day to day is mainly focused on answering questions on what we offer, doing demos with new leads, visiting customers warehouses and growing our team. We've built a profitable business, and are 25 people as of this moment - so there's opportunity as you scale to give team members ownership of roles and tasks.For example, this time last year I was working support chat all day. Today we have much smarter people covering support and I can focus on annoying you on #AMA along with other efforts to talk about ShipHero and help customers. ShipHero and providing value to our customers is our absolute focus.

Before ShipHero, what was your professional career like?

Firstly - "professional" seems a bit rich for me :) I've been all over the place career wise, following what seems to be the randomness of opportunity that comes your way. That said, everything I've done has been centered around technology and an early obsession with solving problems and building products. Over the years, as I've grown up (shudder the thought) that obsession morphed into what looks great and ultimately, what drives a positive customer experience.Talk about randomness though. My last full-time gig before focusing on ShipHero was working at the NBPA (National Basketball Players Association), leading the digital efforts and working with various NBA players who are very passionate and involved in technology startups.I was without a doubt, the worst basketball player around. I'll stick with building things that solve problems and bring value to people I think :)

Any tips you can share about time management? What’s the usual schedule of a company’s founder like?

Something I have honestly struggled with. Startup life, at least in my experience is about freedom to choose what you prioritize, however the struggle is what to prioritize! I start my day by writing out the key objectives I want to get done for that day. I respond to emails and have a quick 10 minute standup meeting with my team. Then, several hours seem to fly by! and before you now it, it's 2pm. I have a stop and reflect for 10 mins around this time, see how I'm doing on my objectives and get back into it. Stop around 7pm. Typically most nights there are calls with customers in other parts of the world (different timezones) and the catchup of emails etc from the day. Most nights I put a hard stop in around 10pm, and will every now and then get a glass of wine in :)One bit of advice I have is this. It's easy to work, and work you will. That said, you need to make sure you're getting some time to yourself. This does wonders for productivity and overall health. Be sure to take care of yourself! I also never bother with wifi (outrageous!) on planes, and use that time to be disconnected and either sleep or read.

What eCommerce innovations are exciting you the most these days?

It seems like there's so much happening right now that's truly exciting.What I'm excited about:

1. Closer eCommerce & Retail experiences. I was recently at a Warby Parker store in Grand Central, NY and was able to purchase one of the items I had previously abandoned in my shopping cart from a few days before. Retail and eCommerce are just 2 different channels, and it's going to be fun to see how brings bring those experiences together and make it more personal for customers no matter if it's on the phone or in a store.
2. Fast delivery! Not just 2 days, but a few hours. Sure, this is not a new concept, however, the experience is incosistent and not reliable enough for me to think of this as part of a general shopping experience. We're not far off though.
3. Better content and ecommerce options. I want to see options to buy something I like in the show I'm watching on my smarttv, or review products with VR (Shopify are pushing on this).

So many things coming - and I'm barely scatching the surface :)

How can a startup e-commence business get in touch with your company?

You can chat with us directly over at shiphero.com or shoot us an email at hello@shiphero.com

Nashua Nutrition began humbly in 2003, in a 350 square foot nutrition store inside a local gym. Today, it is a booming, multimillion dollar company housed in a 15,000 square foot facility. We sat down with owner Eric Godshall to discuss their success

1. How did Nashua Nutrition get where it is today?

Nashua Nutrition’s core customers were gym members who liked the convenience of purchasing reasonably-priced, nutritional products at the gym.  While running the small store, our founder Glenda Godshall worked hand-in-hand with a nutritionist at the gym to help people improve their eating habits and lose weight.  She used a line of medical-grade food products as part of the nutritional regime, which allowed clients to eat regularly while reducing their caloric intake and speeding up their metabolism.  As Glenda continued to counsel those seeking to lose weight, she realized how many individuals were misinformed or uneducated about safe, sustainable weight loss.

So, she decided to build a website to advertise these high-protein, medical-grade products to those struggling to lose weight.  It wasn’t long before the website was generating substantial traffic, and people from all over the country were purchasing the products online.  As business grew, Glenda brought in several more lines of medical-grade nutritional products, as well as bariatric-specific vitamins, which enabled Nashua Nutrition to become a “one stop shop” for weight loss and bariatric needs.

2. How have you approached marketing and growing sales?

In our early stages, we relied heavily on PPC ads (Google, Bing, etc.). It also helped that we focused on providing the lowest price and superior customer service!  Additionally, to remain competitive in our rapidly growing market, we have started adding value to our customers’ experience through social media, informational blogs, and loyalty programs. By implementing these programs, we are becoming a weight loss and bariatric resource for information as much as an ecommerce store.  When a customer comes to our site to receive valuable information, they are more apt to purchase from us. We want our customers to be loyal to us as much as we are loyal to them.

3. What have been your challenges, and how did you adapt as Nashua Nutrition grew?

As I imagine is typical of any small business, we’ve had our fair share of challenges and obstacles. They’ve ranged anywhere from restrictive vendor policies to not having adequate space for expansion.  When we started to outgrow our warehouse, we would try to minimize the floor space needed. This was done by staggering our ordering, optimizing our box deliveries, and getting creative on stock picking locations.  When we would hit an obstacle, we always found a way to adapt to the situation. Constant monitoring of our industry, it’s trends and competition, have allowed us to keep in touch with our customers’ needs and fulfill them to the best of our ability.

4. Have you noticed any change in customer expectations when it comes to shipping orders over the past several years?

Absolutely.  With the invention of Amazon Prime, customers are expecting to get free shipping and 2 day delivery. In order to try to compete in the Amazon world, we have lowered our free shipping minimums and use expedited shipping methods when it makes sense.

5.   You recently moved and now have a new warehouse along with a store. What made you choose Shiphero?

We realized that the systems we were using were antiquated and were not allowing us to work efficiently.  Since we moved to a much larger location, we knew that our existing methods and software wouldn’t work. We were looking for a single system that could handle all aspects of our warehouse and order fulfillment.  After much research we came across ShipHero which turned out to be the perfect fit for our company.

6.  Is there a particular ShipHero feature that has been especially helpful for you?

There are 3 core features that have greatly increased our efficiencies and savings:

1. Shopify Integration for Live Inventory: Previously, we had disparate systems that didn’t “talk to each other.”  This required us to constantly monitor inventory levels manually. If we saw something was running low, we would have to put a counter on an item in an effort to prevent overselling.  This was a time consuming and often inaccurate process. Now that we have ShipHero, our inventory is live so there is no longer a need to manually add counters to our inventory. And, with the new reserve functionality, we have a buffer to prevent any potential backorders.
2. Picking Efficiencies: Before ShipHero, we were using a server-based WMS system and used our point-of-sale to scan our products out of inventory.  Our pickers had to pick orders individually (which involved walking throughout the warehouse to pick a single order). Now, with Shiphero we are batch picking 8 orders at a time; using iPads and Socket Scanners; and snaking through the warehouse just once.  Our picking errors have dropped dramatically, and the pick rate has increased substantially. Before ShipHero, we were able to ship about 325 orders in a day.  Since using ShipHero, we are easily shipping 475 a day - with time to spare.  We estimate that with our current resources, we will ship 600-700 orders in a day.
3. Shipping Rate/Carrier Shopping: Before ShipHero, we almost exclusively used FedEx for all shipments over 1lb. USPS was only used for Priority Mail items under 1lb, which was only a few packages a day.  Since implementing ShipHero, we are utilizing the “Cheapest” rate functionality to save on shipping charges. Now, we are sending approximately half of our order via USPS and saving money on each shipment.

7.  What's your vision for the next 2 years? How will you expand your business?

To continue expanding our product offerings as well as our sales channels.  We see some major shifts in the weight management industry and we plan on being on the forefront of these changes.

8. What advice would you give ecommerce merchants that want to scale their businesses?

Keep up with current technologies.  By using newer technology such as ShipHero, we have been able to greatly increase our efficiencies and cost savings.Eric & Glenda Godshall combined their skill sets and founded Nashua Nutrition.  Both Eric and Glenda have a strong interest in fitness, weight management and exercise in addition to Business Management degrees.  With Eric’s prior IT experience and Glenda’s nutritional counseling experience, the husband and wife team built Nashua Nutrition into a market leader in the weight loss and bariatric consumer segment.

Originally posted on Startup Nation image credit The Radio ScoutBecause customers have come to expect fast, free shipping for nearly everything (thank you, Amazon Prime), e-commerce startups are under a lot of pressure to meet these expectations. And, while there are several things that they can do to compete, e-commerce merchants can encourage repeat visits by exceeding their customers’ expectations in other ways.One effective tactic is to create a memorable “unboxing” experience. If you are familiar with this e-commerce term, you may envision YouTube videos of excited influencers opening packages with drama and flair, enticing their viewers to purchase the same items with a coupon code listed in the comments. And, while this is definitely an effective marketing tool, it is not what we are referring to here.Creating a memorable unboxing experience for your customer is important because it is just that: an experience.Our memories are based on our experiences, and they define our beliefs, opinions and feelings. So, if a company can create a memorable (and positive!) experience for its customers, it begins to establish a relationship resulting in future purchases and customer loyalty – both of which are essential for lasting success.Retailers like Amazon offer customers what they need, when they need it. When you order a package of light bulbs because you don’t want to put on pants to go to CVS, they arrive in two days, in a branded box, with several plastic bubbles to ensure they arrive in tact. It’s great for your utilitarian needs.But, let’s say you want to splurge on something a bit more special. Maybe you are looking for a set of unusual earrings that you can’t find at the department store or a finely-crafted belt that your old-fashioned dad would deeply admire. When emotion and desire drive a purchase decision more than the utilitarian “need,” user experience becomes an essential component.When a customer invests the time and effort to search for the perfect gift, it’s an emotional process. So, if the merchant you purchase from acknowledges this by making the purchase special, perhaps by adding a few sheets of tissue paper or red ribbon on the box, you feel grateful. You will remember this experience (and it’s not because you saved a few bucks or because your order came a day earlier than expected).This is the kind of experience you want to create for your customers; one that impresses them, that they will share with others, and that will keep them coming back to your e-commerce shop.Fortunately, there are several ways to do this:

Design clever packaging

Don’t take the Amazon route and tape a cardboard box with branded tape. Instead, stamp the box with a memorable graphic, cover it in playful text, or mark cutouts that enable customers to repurpose the box in fun or useful ways.Once the customer opens the box, impress them with custom packaging. Startup company, Sheets and Giggles,does this by placing all orders in cloth knapsacks made out of the same eucalyptus fabric that their bedsheets are made from. By doing this, they demonstrate pride in their product, care for the customer’s interaction with the product, and a generous spirit that is rarely found among companies focused primarily on the bottom line.

Personalize the box and/or the contents

Whether you acknowledge them as first-time or return customers, include your customer’s names on the materials in the package or show some personality. This can be done by using messaging like, “Nice to meet you” for a first-time customer or “Hello again!” for a return customer.The key to adding that extra touch at scale is to keep it simple. As long as it’s relevant and it comes across as authentic, it will elevate the experience of your brand every time.

Surprise them with unexpected gifts or tchotchkes

Everyone appreciates a promo code for a future order, but few of us are delightfully surprised by them. Instead, we toss them into a coupon drawer where we (usually) forget about them. But, if you have ever purchased something from an Etsy seller, chances are pretty good you were charmed to discover various unexpected items included in your order, such as quirky magnets, fun stickers or unusual candies. The previously mentioned Sheets and Giggles also make their customers feel special by including at least one unexpected gift with each order, such as sleep masks, slippers, T-shirts and coasters. They also occasionally include a more expensive item, such as a robe. Imagine how you would feel if you received such an unexpected bonus in your order!

Include a story about the creator or the origination of the product

Telling a story about humble beginnings or about an unusual place where the product came from builds rapport with the customer. The item is no longer an item in a box, but rather, it has a history and a life.Another tactic is to include a detailed “inspected by” note in the box, which also humanizes the process necessary to get the product to the customer. Some e-commerce entrepreneurs have claimed that doing this reduces their number of returns, because customers are less likely to complain about a package that was inspected prior to shipping.Some retailers have done so well with their packaging that the package itself is worth something. An obvious example is Tiffany’s, the blue boxes of which are often found listed on eBay. But whether or not a retailer’s packaging finds intrinsic value, it’s experiential value is undeniable and an indispensable component to an online startup’s efforts in retaining loyal customers.Nicholas Daniel-Richards is the co-founder of ShipHero, a cloud based software platform for desktop and mobile designed to manage inventory, fulfillment, shipping and returns for growing businesses.

Originally posted on Home Business Magazine

Small business owners are faced with a difficult decision when it comes to reaching a larger audience online: either they can invest valuable resources in marketing in order to drive customers to their ecommerce store, or they can opt to sell on marketplaces where customers go already.

There are several marketplaces that retailers can utilize in order to reach new customers and increase their online sales. These range from targeted niche platforms such as Jane or Etsy, to all-encompassing behemoths such as Amazon, Walmart and even Ebay. While most of us are aware of Amazon and Walmart’s online presence, Amazon undeniably dominates ecommerce. However, Walmart has been investing millions to improve it’s online marketplace and is the most likely outlet to compete for Amazon’s clients. Still, many retailers default to using the Amazon marketplace without considering Walmart as a viable option to sell their goods.

However, there are several downsides to going this route. Amazon not only charges the retailer to list the items (unless the seller plans to post fewer than 40 listings), but they also take a percentage from every sale made. These costs can quickly add up, especially if a seller lists a large number of products on the site.

Another drawback is the issue of returns. Amazon makes a profit just from the items being listed and sold, so if a customer returns an item, it is at no cost or loss to Amazon. Amazon has built an experience aimed at the customer, not the seller, making it difficult for sellers to manage customer expectations, even when it comes to a returns policy that favors the customer. This means that customers are able to return items months after they purchased them – sometimes for no discernible reason – at the expense of the seller.

Many retailers have also encountered cutthroat competitors on Amazon, who often resort to a myriad of unscrupulous practices in order to derail others successfully selling similar products. These range from posting bogus negative reviews to undercutting a competitor on price by offering counterfeit items. These practices run rampant largely because Amazon has such a low barrier to entry into it’s marketplace. Sellers don’t go through any kind of screening process in order to participate, needing merely to sign up prior to listing their products.

These are just a few reasons that many retailers have started to look elsewhere to post their listings – and one viable platform is the revamped Walmart.com. Walmart.com is the third largest internet retailer and it’s ecommerce sales are projected to surge 40% this year. The retailing giant has also spent billions on ecommerce fulfillment centers and boasts over 110 million unique visits a month. And, many retailers will find that the Walmart marketplace is simply a better place to sell their products. Here’s why:

• Walmart doesn’t charge a listing fee. Amazon charges $39.99 a month just for retailers to list items (individual seller listing less than 4 items accrue this charge, however) Both marketplaces do charge ” referral fees” for each item sold, averaging around 15% depending on the item.
• Less competition. Walmart has a drastically smaller product selection compared to the “Everything Store,” which also means that sellers can enjoy a less crowded marketplace with fewer competitors. In fact, retailers with products in less popular categories find that they sometimes have the room to themselves – a luxury tat.
• Their screening process ensures reputable sellers. While it is infinitely easier to sign up and sell on Amazon’s marketplace, Walmart’s more involved admission process also helps weed out any of those cutthroat sellers who resort to unethical practices in order to derail their competition. Admittedly, the screening process takes time and effort, but the payoff is worth it for those who want to sell alongside creditable retailers.
• Retailers have more control over returns. While Amazon favors the customer and requires sellers to adhere to certain guidelines when handling returns, Walmart allows retailers to determine how they want to deal with product returns. This allows sellers the opportunity to resolve the issue and to reduce the number of returns resulting from fickle or unnecessary customer whims. While Amazon will require retailers to issue a full refund without gathering any information from the customer and doesn’t require the buyer to return the item, Walmart allows sellers to ask the customer to return the product prior to offering a refund, or to resolve the issue in other ways.

Admittedly, the Walmart audience doesn’t entirely overlap with Amazon’s. Depending on your product, this can be the determining factor for whether or not you use Amazon’s marketplace to sell your items or opt for affiliating with Walmart. However, retailers whose products are buried under thousands of competing products will find the newcomer’s space amenable to increased sales and reduced competition.

Originally posted on Startup Nation.4 Ways to Etsy-fy Your Customer ExperienceThere are two types of online shopping experiences: the fast and free necessity purchase - often completed on the Amazon app while waiting in a long line behind several couponers - and the personalized boutique purchase. The shopper seeking the first option just wants to buy their product and receive it as quickly as possible. But the shopper that is seeking the latter type of online experience often ends up on sites such as Etsy, a marketplace that features handmade, personalized, or otherwise difficult-to-find items created by skilled artisans. Customers looking for this experience are not so concerned with shipping fees or fast delivery because they are paying for craftsmanship and personalized care. Much like receiving an unexpected handwritten thank you note from your niece in the mail, these shopping experiences make you feel connected to the person or store that you purchased from. And as a result, you remember the store and return to buy again - or you may tell the stranger next to you at the checkout line about your experience.Since it can be a challenge for small businesses to compete with the fast, free shipping that most online customers have come to expect (link to previous Startup Nation article), one viable option is to “Etsy-fy” your customer’s experience. The sellers on Etsy are masters at making their customers feel special, whether by including quirky extras to each package, wrapping the items in unusual wrapping, or adding a handwritten note expressing their gratitude for every order. Etsy sellers have proven that, no matter the product or the size of your company, each package can be personalized in order to build strong relationships with your customers. And when you build this type of connection, you increase the odds that you will inspire customers to return to your store.Return customers are more valuable than new customers for a couple of reasons. For one, they don’t cost as much, needing far less in marketing efforts to return to your store. They are also more likely to purchase during holiday seasons and spend more per order, because you’ve established a relationship built on trust. For this reason, it is crucial for ecommerce businesses to invest in personalizing shipments. Even more established companies can effectively do this by automating the personalization process so that fulfillment and shipping are not delayed.A few ways you could “Etsy-fy” your customer experience:

• Combine a personalized greeting or welcome note with a special come back offer. Welcome new customers to the family. As customers, we identify brands as an extension of our own values or persona; so this simple message establishes that identity with new customers. You can continue to build your relationship with repeat customers by offering them related products that acknowledge their regular purchases. Including a promotional or discount code for another purchase builds loyalty further.
• Personalize the package based on the order. Knowing what a customer wants or is interested in vastly increases the chances of a repeat purchase - and it can also increase the size of the typical repeat order. If you shop at places like CVS, you’ve likely received receipts that feature custom-chosen coupons for products that are similar to the ones you have previously purchased. These stores have tracked your purchases in order to provide you with incentives that are personalized to your preferences. In the same way, ecommerce owners can also use platforms like ShipHero to track their customers’ purchases in order to generate personalized incentives. These can be sent either via email or as promotional inserts featuring other products related to the contents of the order.
• Include a handwritten note using 3D printers or outsourced companies.

In a digital world, the personalized note stands out as a unique and special feature. That handwritten note included in your order - most often from the Etsy store owner you just purchased from - adds to the magical moment when you open your box! It isn’t just an order you placed online - fulfilled and sent by robots - it’s an experience thoughtfully created by an individual who is actually grateful to have created it for you. Such an experience leaves an impression. But obviously, it is not possible for most larger-scale businesses to include handwritten notes in order to recreate this impression. So, smart ecommerce companies have tried to emulate this experience in a couple of ways. Some opt to employ businesses that actually handwrite notes to customers! While this may not be a viable option to include with all of your orders, it is possible to do this for specific products or perhaps for repeat customers. Another option for ecommerce businesses wanting to include handwritten notes is to use 3d printers or even dedicated handwriting printers (https://www.axidraw.com/) to recreate notes that look like they were written by hand.

• Personalize the order by adding unexpected surprises.

There are a number of factors you can use to personalize a box “unopening experience.” Add elements such as colored tissue paper, a simple novelty toy, or even an extra treat (when was the last time you received an order with a surprise chocolate bar!?). To make sure you can scale these kind of tasks for each order shipped, create simple rules that are easy for the packer to follow. For example, you can use a specific packing material color based on the order shipping state or include an item based on the day of the week the order will arrive at the shipping address.It doesn’t take much, but finding a way to add just a little something special to your orders can make a huge impact in the number of return customers your store receives, and in turn, the number of sales your store makes.Nicholas Daniel-Richards is the co-founder of ShipHero, a cloud based software platform for desktop and mobile designed to manage inventory, fulfillment, shipping and returns for growing businesses.

Originally posted on Entrepreneur.com on 4/19/18.Small business owners are faced with a difficult decision when it comes to reaching a larger audience online: either they can invest valuable resources in marketing, or they can opt to sell on platforms that most people use regularly, such as Amazon. On Amazon, ecommerce owners can make their items available to a massive audience that they would never be able to reach under normal circumstances.However, there are several downsides to going this route. Amazon not only charges the retailer to list the items (although sellers listing under 40 products can do so free of charge), but they also take a percentage from every sale made. These costs can quickly add up, especially if a seller lists a large number of products on the site.Another drawback is the issue of returns. Amazon makes a profit just from the items being listed and sold, so if a customer returns an item, it is at no cost or loss to Amazon. Amazon has built an experience aimed at the customer, not the seller, making it difficult for sellers to manage customer expectations, even when it comes to a returns policy that favors the customer. This means that customers can insist on refunds without returning the items or offering an explanation for their dissatisfaction.These are just a few reasons why ecommerce owners will want to encourage the customers they obtain through Amazon to purchase directly from their online stores for subsequent purchases. A few ways to motivate direct purchases are to:

1. Enclose an insert in the packaging of the product shipped by Amazon. While Amazon discourages business owners from incentivizing customers to visit other sites, there are a few loopholes to take advantage of. One technique that savvy companies utilize is to include a card in the pre-packaging that connects them with their customer service team. This approach ensures that the dissatisfied customer makes a positive connection directly with the business, while also communicating to the customer that the company that they purchased from is invested in their satisfaction.

Other companies include inserts that encourage customers to register their new product directly on the company’s website. These companies usually offer incentives for registration, such as free items, discounts for future purchases, or warranties. Often, if the buyer puts the effort into registering a product, they will likely come directly to the company’s website for subsequent purchases and product registrations.This works especially well for products that may require consumable parts, such as filters or other components that need to be replaced over time. For instance, I was really impressed with the inserts that accompanied a water carbonator I recently purchased online. Not only did I receive a thoughtful note with a free sample of lime flavoring (who doesn’t like that!), I was also offered a discount for an automatic replacement cartridge subscription service. I didn’t think twice about signing up.

2. Email your customer directly with a thank you note and offer something in return for a review or feedback. If it isn’t feasible to include an insert in the pre-packaging, another option is to email your Amazon customer directly with offers, promotions, or incentives. Companies can be more direct when using this approach, perhaps offering a “15% off your next purchase” coupon, a free mystery gift, entry into a lottery for a popular product, or a discount for any referral resulting in direct purchases from the online store.

Most customers do not leave reviews unless they are outspoken or, in the worst case, very unhappy. But, retailers who make a personal connection with their customers increase their chances of receiving positive reviews. Companies can also make this connection by sharing their story in the follow up emails. They can share how they got started, how they make their product, and how, as a small company selling on Amazon, they rely on positive customer reviews for their continued success. Incentives, coupled with compelling stories, resonate with customers and inspire positive reviews.

3. Sell product bundles on Amazon while offering individual products only on your company’s site. This is a great way to showcase your products without making all of them available for purchase on Amazon. Another benefit of this approach is that businesses can reduce individual SKUs that are stored by the Amazon warehouse, which further reduces a company’s FBA costs.

One of the best examples I’ve seen of this is from a company that sells action and fantasy character-themed kits for children's birthday parties. This retailer uses Amazon to fulfill orders for basic party kits, such as the princess-themed one that includes hats, balloons, plates, and cups for five kids. But, the extra place-settings and coordinating accessories are only available directly at the party store. It’s genius, because anyone who has thrown a party for a five-year-old princess knows that she will absolutely have more than five attendees - and she most certainly needs all of the accessories.Although Amazon’s policies present a number of issues for ecommerce owners, Amazon’s ability to reach a wide audience is invaluable for those seeking to expand their customer base. Once new customers discover your product on Amazon, you have the opportunity to create a unique experience for and personal relationships with your customers, which can result in direct purchases from your sales channel. Nicholas Daniel-Richards is the co-founder of ShipHero, a platform that helps growing businesses manage inventory, eliminate fulfillment errors, and reduce shipping costs. He has worked across many industries, and has collaborated with Anna Wintour on the launch of Vogue.com, Pete Cashmore on the mobile launch of Mashable, and most recently, NBA players Steph Curry, Lebron James and Chris Paul on various projects as the Chief Digital Officer of the National Basketball Players Association.

Originally posted on Small Business Digest.Many entrepreneurs mistakenly assume that their primary challenge will be to sell enough of their products. And, while it is true that countless retailers never accrue enough sales and fail within the first year, others do succeed. But when demand picks up, it’s often difficult for sellers to keep up with the pace. Once thirty orders start coming in each day, retailers suddenly start struggling to keep track of their inventory, ship out their products on time, and manage returns. The result? Customers who are frustrated that their orders are delayed, wrong, or missing. And if an overwhelmed retailer fails to thoughtfully respond to emails from these dissatisfied customers, scathing reviews start popping up online. A few negative reviews on social media can spell disaster for a new company, impacting sales and tarnishing the business’ reputation before it even gets started.Sadly, this scenario is all too common. Fortunately, there are several things growing ecommerce companies can do to prepare for the sort of pitfalls that accompany customer demand. Nicholas Daniel-Richards, co-founder of ShipHero - a cloud-based platform that manages inventory, fulfillment, and shipping - offers retailers a few tips to help them stay on top of the influx of orders once they start rolling in:Ship orders out according to the required ship date.Typically, a warehouse will process orders as they come in. Often referred to as First in, First Out (FIFO), this is a great method to keep on top of orders coming in - provided that the team can keep up. When your business is growing, relying on this method becomes challenging and increases the risk of missing order shipment dates. Instead of using FIFO, sort your orders by required ship date - the date that orders need to be shipped by, determined by when the order was placed or when the customer is expecting the order to be delivered.Connect your customer support and warehouse teams.Lack of communication when orders require additional attention or are suddenly changed disrupts fulfillment and increases the possibility of errors. Ensure direct communication between your individual warehouse team members and customer support to prevent this from happening. As part of the daily fulfillment ritual, the warehouse and customer service teams should focus first on orders that are on hold due to common occurrences such as a fraud risk, invalid addresses, unexpected inventory availability issues, or customer questions.Keep it simple.Always strive to eliminate tasks, actions, or decisions at the time of order fulfillment. Every second and decision counts. Decisions such as figuring out when to ship an order, determining which shipping method to use, or ascertaining whether the address is valid can have a negative impact on fulfillment efficiency. And while these actions may only take a minute or so for each order, all of these minutes make a difference, especially as you scale your business.Further simplify the process by eliminating manual tasks that can be automated with defined business rules (using technology, of course). Where possible, organize packing stations for consistency and use barcode scanning to avoid tapping screens on devices. Make sure simple things such as box types, order priority, packing material, and shipping method are defined for each order so that the packer can focus on verifying items in boxes and printing shipping labels.By using these tactics and utilizing a platform to help you streamline the fulfillment process, you can avoid the common pitfalls that most ecommerce owners encounter once their business begins to take off.Nicholas Daniel-Richards is the co-founder of ShipHero, a platform that helps growing businesses manage inventory, eliminate fulfillment errors, and reduce shipping costs. He has worked across many industries, and has collaborated with Anna Wintour on the launch of Vogue.com, Pete Cashmore on the mobile launch of Mashable, and most recently, NBA players Steph Curry, Lebron James and Chris Paul on various projects as the Chief Digital Officer of the National Basketball Players Association.

ShipHero has distributed teams that are located in the US and Argentina. As we've grown, we've also evolved how we communicate and track tasks.

We share some of our tools and practices with the team at Daxx as we discuss how our teams stay connected and productive.