Imagine e-commerce as a big iceberg. The part above water, the tip of the iceberg, is the part we can see, like everything that reaches the end user. This means the ready-to-use digital shopping platform is optimized for the best possible shopping experience and for specific target audiences. The larger part, however, the part hidden under the water is like the whole set of factors that are not visible to the public but that are vital for e-commerce itself. One of the most important of these factors logistics. But what are the logistical processes to be taken into account and optimised for the benefit of your e-commerce?
Relationships with suppliers
When managing an e-commerce, there are no clear boundaries between one aspect and another. So commercial issues can be closely related to logistics. This is the case, for example, with supplier relationships. Special care must be taken so that the quality and quantity of the product or service offered on the market can remain constant at all times. A good relationship with your suppliers has a direct, albeit not very visible, influence on your customers' and users' experiences.
The warehouse
If you have opted to open your own e-commerce, you will surely have wondered at some point whether to choose between a dedicated warehouse or sell using the drop-shipping method. Both of these have their advantages, as we have seen in other articles. It goes without saying that choosing to have your own warehouse carries certain logistical tasks, such as supplying material for processing or packaging your products, managing storage space and, in the case of perishable items, expiry dates and storage conditions.
Optimize your warehouse
Optimizing warehouse management is definitely a good way to boost your e-commerce. Take stock and see which products have been oversupplied, about to expire, or that you need to sell more urgently and create a strategy with the marketing department to boost those products. This is just one of many ways in which warehouse optimization leads to real sales benefits for your e-commerce.
Orders
If there is a time when customers and logistics certainly meet, it is when orders are placed. That's why you should pay special attention to this logistical aspect, which has a practically direct impact on your user's shopping experience. The main aspects that you should optimize are packaging, shipping and returns.
Packaging, shipping and returns
Design or select packaging that is logistically efficient. What does this mean? It means that you should choose boxes of the right size, which are easy to store together in order to optimize storage space, and, above all, that reduce waste and transport consumption. The smaller the package, the more packages will fit into the same truck for shipment. As far as returns are concerned, you should always try to limit them as much as possible, so that you avoid unnecessary additional costs.
The management aspect
The logistical aspects we have been talking about so far are obviously not all of them. There are some of them that you will only realize when you witness them first hand, and others that you may never really personally experience, depending on the case. In any case, the most important aspect of all is certainly the management aspect. We often talk about management software as far as logistics are concerned, but this work is a real synergy of human and components. Add-on modules to integrate into your e-commerce, such as this one from SendCloud, which allows you to optimize shipping processes, from importing orders to printing waybills, are also an important tool.
Logistics management is a job that requires great commitment and mental focus. It requires someone who has some experience and, above all, is suited to the task. Basically, someone who can quickly figure out what's going wrong and solve the problem in a quick and effective way. Managing the relationship between suppliers, orders and the warehouse is by no means a child's play and in fact, as we said above, the IT aspect is crucial. Make sure you choose the IT management solution that best suits your needs, and stay open to change according to your needs at any given moment.
