Hiring the right fulfillment company or third party logistics service (3PL) can be a crucial part of your business strategy. Working with a fulfillment company means you can focus on product development and growing your business while delegating logistics to a reliable company. They’ll take care of inventory, order processing, shipping, and processing returns. The best part about working with a fulfillment company is that it lends your company the flexibility to grow and scale. Like every other area of business, there are fulfillment companies that stand out from the crowd, helping your company put its best foot forward, such as award-winning companies like ShipMonk, eFulfillment Service, and ShipBob.
What You Should Look for When Choosing an Order Fulfillment Company
Before you decide on which order fulfillment company to work with for your company’s logistic needs, it’s important to think about what your exact needs are, as every company offers several different services. Some fulfillment companies will simply provide the basics, which often includes warehousing, order fulfillment, and shipping. However, other companies provide more intricate services including customized packaging, monitoring stock levels, and can even help you with customized solutions. It’s good to look at what order fulfillment companies are offering you today as well as how they can help your company grow. If the order fulfillment company can’t help you scale, then you may want to opt for a different company that aligns with your business’ goals for growth.
Additionally, you want to consider the cost of working with the order fulfillment company. Some companies charge monthly or annual fees. There may also be per-order or per-transaction fees that must also be paid to the fulfillment company. You want to look carefully for any hidden costs so that you can stay within budget. Another important thing to take note of is the location of the company’s fulfillment centers. You’ll want fulfillment centers that are close to your customer base to minimize shipping times and extra fees like customs.
The third-party logistics (3PL) service that is right for your company, truly depends on your business’ needs and budget. While many order fulfillment companies offer basic services, some simply go above and beyond. These award-winning order fulfillment companies will help ensure your logistics go off without a hitch.
ShipMonk
ShipMonk specializes in helping small and medium-sized businesses with their order fulfillment needs. Their service is designed to help these businesses easily scale and grow with the help of reliable fulfillment and distribution services. ShipMonk has services that help with eCommerce fulfillment, retail fulfillment, subscription box fulfillment, crowdfunding fulfillment, FBA prep services, and seller fulfilled prime services.
Working together with ShipMonk lets you easily import orders from your various sales channels and ships out your products directly to customers. Their easy to use custom API integrations you can track inventory levels in real-time so you know exactly when you need to order more from your suppliers. If you ever have any questions, the support team is one of the best in the industry.
As a small or medium-sized business, the cost of logistics can be a major concern, especially when it comes to distribution and shipping. ShipMonk is one of the most affordable options when it comes to order fulfillment. Because they are dedicated to helping your business scale, you only pay for the services that you need and use. Better yet, there are no set up fees or order minimum. This coupled with major shipping discounts from major carriers makes ShipMonk a great option for everyday inventory management and order fulfillment needs. Their transparent billing means you’ll see exactly how much you owe so you can budget accordingly.
We all know that as customers are shopping online at an increasing rate, shipping and delivery is going to play an increasing role in the consumer experience. ShipMonk has three different facilities in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, San Bernardino, California, and Pittston, Pennsylvania. You can choose to ship from the East Coast, West Coast, or both, depending on where your customers are. In addition to shipping to customers, ShipMonk also helps with freight management and returns management. With their automated warehouse, you can be sure you’ll have accurate picking and quick fulfillment times. The team at ShipMonk is dedicated to making sure you put your best foot forward, keeping customers happy and easing the stress of logistics from your day-to-day operations.
eFulfillment Service
eFulfillment Service is one of the Top 3PL offering order fulfillment services to companies of all sizes. eFulfillment Service is dedicated to making the logistics aspect of your business as pain-free as possible by offering exceptional service. They understand that order fulfillment is a crucial part of keeping your customers satisfied.
Like other order fulfillment companies, eFulfillment Service has its own easy-to-use order fulfillment software, designed to make the process of delegating logistics easier. With this software, you can check inventory levels, forecast inventory needs, view backorders, view tracking information, and even manage shopping cart integrations. You can complete control over your inventory. The technology used with eFulfillment Services means you can monitor orders anytime or anywhere.
The centrally located facility in Traverse City, Michigan means shipping times will be similar for customers throughout the country. However, eFulfillment Services understands how important it is for orders to be shipped quickly and accurately. The service has one of the highest accuracy rates in the industry. This means your customers will get exactly what they ordered every time.
The best part about working with this award-winning order fulfillment company is that eFulfillment Services makes sure their pricing is competitive. For starters, there are no setup fees, integration fees, minimum order requirements, or hidden fees. In fact, they don’t even require a long-term contract. The company also has a price match guarantee, matching or beating the fulfillment service packages of its competitors. If that’s not enough, they also offer a 30-day risk-free trial period so you can be sure they are the right company to take on your company’s logistics. If you’re looking for a dependable order fulfillment company that offers first-class customer service then you should give serious consideration to eFulfillment Service.
ShipBob
ShipBob is a 3PL specializing in direct-to-consumer order fulfillment. ShipBob works with thousands of brands to get their orders shipped out both efficiently and affordably. The company has fulfillment centers located throughout the country in Illinois, Pennsylvania, California, and Texas. While you have the option of using a single fulfillment center, spreading your inventory across ShipBob’s facilities can shorten your shipping times and get you more affordable shipping rates with major carriers including UPS, FedEx, DHL, and USPS.
Use ShipBob’s proprietary software to access their fulfillment network and better manage your logistics. Their easy-to-use system allows you to manage and edit orders, get real-time stock levels across all facilities, and will automatically notify you when it’s time to reorder inventory. ShipBob’s fulfillment services help your organization scale efficiently by using space in numerous facilities at the rate you need.
Integrating ShipBob into your existing systems is also easy given their onboarding process with thousands of eCommerce merchants. Easily connect to Shopify, Magento, BigCommerce, Amazon, and Walmart, to directly transfer orders for fulfillment. ShipBob understands the importance of logistics to the customer experience and has created an end-to-end customer experience to better represent your company. By taking care of the logistics for you, you can focus on the other aspects of your business that make you stand out from the crowd.
There is a one-time implementation fee for 30 days of support and getting you set up. After that, you’ll have other standard costs such as monthly storage fees, pick and pack fees, and shipping costs. However, ShipBob also offers customized packages that include kitting and any other logistics needs your company may have.
Think About Your Customers
Many times, opting to work with an order fulfillment company can be cheaper than trying to manage all of your logistics in-house. When fulfillment costs are high, this is often passed on to the customer. However, it’s important to recognize that unexpected delivery costs (or high shipping costs) are one of the top reasons for cart abandonment. Therefore, when it comes to creating a list of order fulfillment companies, you want to pick one that will save your customers on shipping costs. Choosing a 3PL that can offer discounted shipping costs, competitive rates, and multiple facilities can help reduce shipping costs for customers. Opting to go with an award-winning order fulfillment company means choosing one you can trust so you can focus on growing and improving your business.