BFCM Logistics for 2022: E-commerce Shipping, Fulfillment and Returns

Ever since the pandemic subsided, eCommerce has been growing steadily. In 2021, global eCommerce sales surpassed the extraordinary $4.9 trillion mark.

However, if you scan eCommerce sales figures carefully, you will find a noticeable trend—most shoppers prefer shopping during the holiday season. And when it comes to the holiday season, nothing beats BFCM.

BFCM (Black Friday and Cyber Monday) is one of the US's most celebrated weekends. People go on a shopping spree and gather with friends and family to celebrate the two events.

The eCommerce revenue collections during BFCM far exceed the collections during other festivals. For instance, Salesforce data shows that US e-retailers earned a whopping $62 billion during 2021's Cyber Week, of which Black Friday and Cyber Monday were a part.

Further, National Retail Federation data shows that almost 180 million shoppers purchased products during the BFCM week in 2021.

So, if you plan to improve order management this BFCM season, streamlining shipping, fulfillment, and returns is crucial. Let's look at some expert tips to plan shipping, fulfilment, and returns for your eCommerce brand this BFCM.

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Tips to Streamline eCommerce Shipping, Fulfillment, and Returns for BFCM 2022

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1. Prepare Your Company to Handle a Huge Rush for Quick Deliveries

Data shows that there are more than 24 million eCommerce websites globally. So, to grab a piece of the consumer market, you have to compete with a significant number of eCommerce brands.

Today's consumers are smarter than ever. If they have to wait for a prolonged time to receive their orders, they may never return to your platform. So, quick delivery not only makes your customers loyal to your brand but also enables you to stay ahead of the competition.

Analyze whether your delivery partner has enough staff to provide last-mile connectivity or not. If your delivery partner doesn't have sufficient staff or network, you must find others to cater to the order surge during BFCM.

Look up courier partners with experience in handling eCommerce delivery. Don't shy away from paying a little extra if they demand it since your primary objective during BFCM must be to satisfy customers by providing quick deliveries.

Some popular courier companies facilitating super-fast eCommerce deliveries are DHL and FedEx. However, you are free to make the choice depending on your budget and customer portfolios. Alternatively, you may partner with a logistics integrator to get help from multiple courier companies instead of one.

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2. Analyze Whether Your Courier Partner is Trustworthy or Not

There are many options when you embark on choosing an eCommerce logistics company. However, if you do not select the logistics company carefully, it might cause more harm than good.

For instance, let's assume that you have partnered with five logistics companies in the areas you service. You chose them based on their network, delivery people, and supply chain management.

However, not all of them might be equally good in aspects like cost-efficiency, speed, the delivery person's behaviour, package handling, etc. The worst thing to do is to trust the wrong logistics company during BFCM since any mistake by the company might disrupt your plans and reflect negatively on your brand.

Since most business processes happen online, you cannot take a manual approach to sort this out. Hence, it is recommended to fine-tune your business model to determine which logistics companies you should finalize.

Thankfully, you can partner with an AI-based courier allocation platform that helps you find the best courier company for every unique order. An AI-based courier allocation platform might help you optimize the fulfilment rate, reduce the RTO (Return-to-Origin), streamline logistics costs, improve delivery rates, and the like.

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3. Optimize the Order Fulfillment Process and Secure Shipping

When customers hit the 'Buy' button during the holiday season, they put a lot of emotion into the order. The last thing a seller would want is to send defective or broken products. While generally, sellers do not ship broken or defective products, they might get damaged, lost, or misplaced during transit.

Shopify data shows that one out of every ten eCommerce packages gets lost or damaged during transit. Incidents like this not only pull down an eCommerce company's profit margins but also affect customer relationships. Every eCommerce company wants 100% of their orders to reach the right destination, enabling optimized order fulfilment.

With eCommerce product catalogues becoming bigger and better, they have to include fragile items in their inventory. The risk of damage increases when eCommerce companies send fragile items like electronics or ceramics through couriers. So, you must have a robust plan to secure the shipping process and increase your company's bottom line.

Reputable eCommerce companies have found an ingenious solution to secure shipping and ensure 100% order fulfilment. The solution is to ensure your high-value orders. Many courier companies provide shipping insurance, and by purchasing it, eCommerce companies can save themselves from untoward incidents.

The rate of shipping insurance usually varies between 1% and 3% of the product's selling price, with a minimum of $1 per order. Courier companies have an excellent track record of settling shipping insurance claims. Moreover, shipping insurance can cover your package against loss, theft, or damage globally.

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4. Keeping the RTO in Check

RTO is a dreaded term in eCommerce. RTO, or Return-to-Origin, refers to the total number of returned products in a specific period.

Customers may return orders due to dissatisfaction with the product. Alternatively, products might be returned due to damage or delivery issues. If you do not have a solid strategy and infrastructure to manage returns, it can cause irreversible damage to your profit margins and customer relationships.

Since order volumes are usually higher during BFCM, so are the chances of returns and non-delivery. Hence, you must plan the return management process even before dispatching products.

Multiple ways exist to reduce the RTO or make the return process more customer-friendly. For instance, you can enable the courier person to check the product before accepting the package. If you are sure that the product is exactly in factory condition, you can transfer the refund amount instantly. Alternatively, you may set up a mechanism where the delivery person makes at least three attempts to deliver the product.

Besides taking the above-mentioned steps, you can also improve the content listings on your website. Glood.ai helps you personalize your website to target the right audience. If used correctly, personalization can reduce the RTO considerably.

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Conclusion

Providing a satisfactory experience to customers is imperative during BFCM. BFCM brings about a host of unique shoppers, and you can give them enough reasons to stick with your eCommerce brand. Fast shipping, optimized order fulfillment, and proper return management are proven ways to improve customer relationships.

Leverage Glood.ai to move ahead in the eCommerce arena by categorizing user segments to provide personalized services. Glood.ai's onsite personalized recommendations, personalized marketing, and upselling and cross-selling features are all you need to take your eCommerce brand to the next level.