All DTC businesses know that the holiday season requires extra care and preparation. In bigger businesses, there are dedicated personnel or even departments who work all year long just to streamline operations during this time of the year.
Finding a good fulfillment partner can be difficult unless you use a platform like the Exchange to help you match with the right fulfillment center and ensure your fulfillment performance is top-tier.
From gauging demand and analyzing fulfillment performance to managing inventory and preparing for miscellaneous troubles, a lot goes into preparing your business for the holiday season.
Aaron Alpeter, a supply chain consultant with decades in the field, summarizes, “Every year I’ve worked in the eCommerce supply chain, there has always been something happening in fulfillment.”
Recalling the times of 2020 and 2021 when FedEx and UPS stopped picking up orders followed by the COVID-19 lockdown that shut down fulfillment centers around the world, Aaron says, “There’s always going to be something happening internally or externally outside of your control when it comes to fulfillment in the peak season.”
Obviously, not many can afford to have issues like this. And to avoid getting surprises from your fulfillment center, here are a couple of ways you can save your holiday season:
Stay Ahead of the Problem
Don’t ever be the last person to know about the problem. Most frustrating problems many businesses encounter involve difficulties with communication.
“The last thing you want is to have a problem because you and your FC didn’t communicate with each other.”
Aaron points this out because several businesses tend to think their fulfillment provider is going to be okay with the increased amount of orders and they don’t bother communicating with each other ahead of time to discuss possible scenarios to plan for.
Talking about his experiences with FCs, Aaron says, “There were times when we had to send someone to the fulfillment provider because it was difficult to understand why we were behind on orders and what we’re going to do about it. But that’s not how it should be.”
You shouldn’t need to send someone to your FC every time you need a report of what’s going on.
Use Technology
In today’s day and age, you can rely on software platforms like Capabl to provide you with insights on your fulfillment performance.
By holding both parties in the fulfillment contract accountable to the agreed-upon SLA, Capabl provides performance analytics that can work as a neutral third-party to offer objective analyses for each party to discuss and improve.
Similar tools that allow you to track your shipment in real-time are helpful in reducing the need for frequent communication.
Using cloud technology can help streamline data sharing between brands and fulfillment centers, making it easier to share shipping updates, tracking information and other important notifications.
Is Your Fulfillment Provider Ready?
The 1st of November is when peak season begins and that means your fulfillment providers should ask you for demand forecasts by October.
If they don’t, it’s best that you check in with them yourself. Demand surges during the season and to fulfill the increased number of orders, FCs have to prepare their infrastructure for the holidays and that includes hiring the additional labor they might require.
By asking their clients for their forecasts, FC’s can gauge the kind of targets they’ll have to deal with and prepare accordingly. The questions they’ll need you to answer can include:
- How many orders do they need to plan for?
- What kind of seasonality is it product-wise?
- Which products are you expecting to be in demand?
- Any special SKU or packaging requirements they need to prepare for?
Alternate Carriers
All good fulfillment providers make sure to have alternate options for carriers when giants like FedEx and UPS refuse service.
Aaron states, “It hasn’t been long since FedEx and UPS were overwhelmed and refused to take more packages.”
Just like FCs do with their clients, carriers require forecasts from fulfillment providers to anticipate the challenges they’ll face. From the type of product and specific storage requirement to the number of total orders expected each day, carriers work with very specific information.
However, it’s not unlikely for carriers to refuse if the situation isn’t favorable. In fact, some can also demand higher rates, depending on when you reach out to them.
As a brand, you can urge your FCs to look for other options that can cater to your needs in the local market early on. Feel free to ask your providers if they have secured enough labor or if they have arranged for training programs.
Ideally, they should have everything ready to go with people in training during November.
Want Help with Fulfillment?
Reach out to us if you don’t have a provider that you would like to work with. Make sure to use platforms like izba Exchange to find partners to work with and tools like Capabl to measure your fulfillment performance.
Supply chain consultants at izba are here and ready to help you take on the biggest challenges faced by your business.
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