Shift4Shop eCommerce Blog | Shipping & Fulfillment (2)

Online shopping has changed the entire retail landscape for everyone, both retailers and consumers. Not only has online shopping demanded more of all retailers, especially those who never considered selling their products online previously, but it has also changed the way consumers think, altering the requirements that must be met in order to fulfill their expectations. One of the biggest changes in terms of consumer expectations is, of course, shipping.

Your inventory is business-critical. No inventory equals no business. But, even with a warehouse full of stock and a sales channel full of listings, if you don’t have inventory and fulfillment efficiency, you can struggle to sell, ship, and earn that glowing feedback you deserve.

Statistics show that the eCommerce industry has been steadily growing over the past few years. More importantly, it's expected to continue to expand in the years to come. A study published by Statista found that the global eCommerce sales in 2019 amounted to 3.53 trillion US dollars. What’s even more promising is that, by the end of 2022, it’s predicted that eCommerce sales will reach 6.54 trillion US dollars.

Every e-commerce business—regardless of size, product category, or experience—shares a common challenge: shipping orders to customers. The key to thriving online is finding a way to get products into your customers’ hands quickly while keeping your transportation costs low.

Your relationship with a customer doesn’t end after they’ve made a purchase. Their shopping experience needs to be cared for at every stage before, during, and after that point – and that includes delivery.

In this blog, we’ll be showing you 5 ways that you can effectively engage with customers in the post-purchase phase. With these tips, you’ll build fierce brand loyalty and keep customers more satisfied than ever before. Let’s begin.

Running a successful eCommerce business is a ton of work. You have to set up and maintain a website, find great products to sell, market your business, and keep your customers happy. A big part of that is making sure you get items into your customers' hands safe and sound. Unfortunately, this is often easier said than done.

Many eCommerce owners start out by shipping their own items. For a little while, this can work out well. However, as a store grows, it can quickly become overwhelming to[...]

Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) is a service for Amazon sellers in which Amazon handles the storage of inventory, and the picking, packing, and shipping of orders.

FBA has evolved far beyond what it was in 2006, when it was first introduced to sellers. James Thomson, Amazon’s first-ever account manager for FBA, even remembers giving tours of Amazon’s flashy fulfillment centers back in the day.

According to the U.S. Department of Commerce, shoppers spent $601.75 billion with online merchants based in the U.S. an increase of 14.9% from the previous year. With so much opportunity to be had online, it’s no wonder that manufacturers are ditching the traditional selling strategy of using a middleman, for the modern direct-to-consumer (D2C) approach, that allows them to:

• Have more control over their business
• Leverage their brand’s online presence
• Develop their own marketing campaign, and
• [...]

For every e-commerce business owner, weaving together an effective shipping strategy lies at the heart of their business model. This is especially true if they engage in cross-border selling. Between 2019 and 2023 alone, the global e-commerce logistics market size is slated to grow by a staggering $81.78 billion, with most of the contributing factors falling in the cross-border e-commerce territory.

With so many eCommerce brands competing for the attention of customers across the world, your eCommerce website must provide a unique experience to stay in business. Localizing your website offers a unique shopping experience to your customers who belong to a specific linguistic, cultural, and geographical group.

When it comes to setting up an eCommerce business, shipping is a vital aspect that could make (or break) or business. 

Because eCommerce is all about ordering the product online and delivering it to your customers' doorsteps, shipping is essential. And, without the right shipping and delivery strategies, you won’t be able to satisfy your customers or create goodwill. 

So, what happens when a product is damaged during shipping or goes missing?

Well, that is where shipping insurance comes in. 

Today’s customers are an unforgiving bunch with a low tolerance threshold for mistakes by retailers. They do not hesitate to take their grievances online in an attempt to name and shame retailers into acting on them quickly.

The social media pages of most brands with eCommerce stores are littered with negative reviews from customers who have faced delivery delays or damaged parcels.

Working with reliable suppliers that can provide high-quality service is a critical step to the success of your dropshipping business. It can be frustrating to find a product that you like and think will sell well, only to find that suppliers aren’t able to work with you. Because of this, you feel you might lose the chance to your success that may never come back. To solve this problem, I’ve gathered a list of the top Chinese dropshipping suppliers for you to consider.

Shipping can be a stressful part of eCommerce for customers and retailers alike. Problems with delivery mean extra work for both the buyer and seller, with the online store sometimes taking the blame regardless of the source of the issue. When shipping is as smooth as possible, customers have a better experience and brands receive a benefit to their reputation.

Shipping carriers have made numerous improvements to the process, aimed at peace of mind and convenience for customers expecting an[...]

When an online shopper places an order, their next step is to sit and wait until the product arrives. For the business, landing the sale is only the beginning. They must get the product securely packed, get it shipped out, and get it to the customer’s doorstep or mailbox.

Creating a new eCommerce business can be a highly lucrative venture. However, as the old saying goes, “If you want to make money, you have to spend money.” Especially at the beginning, you may have to invest quite a lot before you start to see any real revenue. This is the challenge that you will need to accept if you are ambitious and interested in starting an online store.

Just consider some of the expenses you may accrue during this process. Someone has to create the goods you are selling,[...]

Providing accurate shipping rates can be tricky for any eCommerce business, especially newer and smaller stores. So many factors may dramatically lower or raise the final price, and even one miscalculation can result in someone charging you the wrong amount, or you charging your customers the wrong amount. Thankfully, there are solutions out there that can simplify shipping rules for merchants and use automation technology to pull up the correct price every time.

Advanced Shipping Manager, from[...]

Fast shipping programs are booming across marketplaces. Walmart 2-Day Delivery, Amazon Prime and eBay Guaranteed Delivery are just a few that provide both fast and free delivery. When you compete with convenient shipping and service, you can avoid price wars and keep your margins healthy. However, these programs aren’t just popular with marketplaces and sellers; they’re also expected by customers.

Delivery speed and costs are two of the biggest reasons for cart abandonment, meaning that if[...]

There are many benefits to adopting dropshipping as the model for your eCommerce business. The benefits include relatively low start-up costs; a major reduction of how much of the supply chain you need to manage; and great scalability as your business booms over time. With that said, not every business would benefit from dropshipping, and not every business owner will find it to their liking — not necessarily due to the fault of the person, but due to the nature of the model and the associated[...]

Dropshipping can be a highly lucrative and relatively inexpensive way to start and operate an eCommerce business. It is no wonder that online entrepreneurs, especially those who do not have much or any start-up capital, are increasingly turning to this business model. While not every business is cut out for it, the many benefits of this method definitely make it worth at least considering and learning more about.

Having said that, the dropshipping model — as with any other business model —[...]