Getting the Most From a Fulfillment Company
When you run a small business, in order to be successful you have to get the most out of all your investments, including the fulfillment company that you use.
Fulfillment services can save small businesses a lot of money, but in order to maximize the potential profit that you can make by using a fulfillment company you need to make sure that you get as much as you can to justify the investment of paying the fulfillment company.
Here are some tips that will help you get the most out of fulfillment services for your small business:
Take advantage of all the services that are offered – When you sign up for a fulfillment company your first instinct might be to save a dollar or two per product by only signing up for order processing and packing and shipping. This will cost you money in the end.
Fulfillment companies offer many other services that you can use to help your business run efficiently. Many companies offer great financial incentives when you bundle services so take advantage of special pricing deals.
For example, instead of just paying for order processing and packing and shipping pay a little more and get warehouse space at the fulfillment center. Then you can stock up on product when it’s on sale, or you can get bulk discounts for buying larger amounts, and you don’t have to pay for a separate space.
Or, add on customer follow up services from the fulfillment company so that you can go that extra mile for your customers. Providing 24 hour customer support that is combined with other fulfillment services is a cost effective way to impress your customers and keep them coming back.
Outsource your office – Get rid of your office space and run your business from your den or bedroom at home with a household computer or laptop. All you need to run a successful retail business online is a great fulfillment center and an Internet connection.
Pay to have all your orders processed, packed and shipped by the fulfillment company instead of paying employees to do the same thing from your office. Hiring employees is time consuming and expensive, and if you have a high turnover rate you could kill your operating budget for the year in just a couple of months.
Instead of wasting time hiring personnel the old fashioned way budget more money each month to hire a fulfillment services company and let them become your dedicated office support team.