Basically, the fulfillment industry consist of companies that provide services such as receiving, warehousing, inventory storage, assembly or kitting, pick and pack, repackaging and sending requested product to a client’s consumers. Most of these companies also offer other services like database management, mail processing or telemarketing. Common advantages to using the services a fulfillment company include having adequate space to ensure new products that may not initially be selling well have space to be stocked and stored. Here are the different stages or processes used by fulfillment companies to handle your products or goods:
Storage
Inventory storage is a major part of the fulfillment service package. Goods are stored securely within their warehouses until an order is placed and the product is shipped. Products can be stored under special requirements such has pre defined temperatures.
Selection
The selection of items for shipping is also another key part to the fulfillment service. A team of dedicated floor staff will pick the ordered items and prepare them to be shipped.
Packaging
Products are carefully placed in protective packaging which are supplied by the fulfillment company. A receipt is packaged with the goods and a printed address will be firmly attached to the item.
Inventory
As soon as products are shipped and new one arrive on the warehouse floor a detailed inventory is made available and maintained. The recording of levels of stock can usually be accessed remotely by the client and is presented in an easy to follow spreadsheet or something similar.
Shipping
Shipping will usually be outsourced to a large shipping firm like FedEx, UPS and USPS utilizing the least cost package routing. The advantage to this process is that the order fulfillment centers are usually eligible for great discounts from the courier services due to their volume. Due to the huge numbers involved with these companies they can offer their services at extremely competitive rates.
Fulfillment companies strive to adhere to the client’s budget, deliver the level of service they expect and meet their deadlines. Meeting client demands while seeking efficient ways to ‘do more with less’ is a priority. Costs are determined from a number of factors, which may include the number of products, order volume, and the cost of extra services such as kitting. Before you hire the company, you need to know the different kinds of fulfillment services offered by the industry for your particular products.