Order fulfillment can be generally explained as the particular steps a company takes to receive, process, store and deliver orders/products to end consumers.

This procedure applies to all kinds of orders, from bigger transactions between large scale businesses, to a smaller, more individual scale with the product going directly to the consumer.

The entire process is far more complex and variations between companies can cause differences in service, but the gist of the procedure is that a customer makes an order and the company ensures that it is delivered within the given timeframe to provide a quality service

However, order fulfillment, in a fuller sense, involves more than just the delivery of a particular service/product, but also the differing actions a company does in response to an order being placed as well as the initial handling of the product before being put in transit.

Order fulfillment can be broadly summed up in 5 steps:

• Inventory/Warehouse Management
• Processing of Orders
• Packing and Shipping
• Processing of Returns
• Fulfillment of Orders

As an internet/ecommerce fulfillment company, we can assure you of quick, easy, dependable and affordable fulfillment services that you can trust.

Inventory/Warehouse Management

This is the first step into getting a consumer’s order to where it needs to be.

Before the supply chain gets set in motion by a customer’s order, companies first manage their current inventory by receiving, counting, inspecting, labeling, listing, monitoring and adding it to the product management software before properly storing it.

Fulfillment service providers would do things such as:

• Tallying items in the inventory. Merchants would count their items in order to make sure that the correct amount of items received from their respective manufacturers or suppliers matches the amount that was initially ordered.
• Inspecting the products. It is crucial that companies provide goods and services with the utmost quality. This is why they always inspect the products for any signs of damage or manufacturing error.
• Listing goods in product management software. Adding stock keeping units (SKUs) to items in the inventory helps keep track of their location for easier access as well as the number of sales per product.
• Proper inventory storage. This refers to the process of shelving the products in a location, usually a warehouse, until they’re needed again for shipping. Order fulfillment service providers need to properly make use of the given storage space and equipment used for the transport of goods in order to efficiently move products to where they need to be.

Processing of Orders

With an inventory full of products that are well sorted, labeled and stored, the next step in the order fulfillment process is receiving orders from a customer.

Customers can place their orders through different methods, but the main takeaway is that once an order is placed, the corresponding item/product is considered sold and must be delivered somewhere else.

Using implemented fulfillment software (we use Veracore for connecting to shipping, payment, cart and other software) the company collects the necessary details regarding the product such as what type of packaging to use, shipping address and other sensitive information that is required.

After finally going through a series of checks, the item is then ready for packing and shipping to the customer.

Packaging and Shipping

When the customer’s order has gone through the necessary inspections, it is then retrieved and sent to a packaging and shipping station to ready it for transport.

The shipping station has the duty of determining the best, efficient and safest shipping method for any particular package depending on factors such as its weight and fragility.

They also have the responsibility of updating the corresponding sellers if a product has been shipped, in order to have transparency between the business and its clients.

If you are in need of an experience order fulfillment company, contact us and let us help.