Preparing online sales orders

In traditional sales channels, the logistics process ends in a retail store or wholesale company, and is limited to efficient management of inventories and deliveries. An individual purchaser selects the goods, takes them from a store, and returns back to the store in the case of a complaint. It is possible to predict the time and place of execution of the process of purchasing or returning a product.

In online sales, the logistics process is extended, and to a high degree dependent on the expectations of the individual customer. It’s the customer that makes the decision when to purchase, and when and where the products are to be delivered.

Online sales are characterized by dynamism and high degree of unpredictability. What is more, it is not only sales of goods, but also, in a way, a promise of fulfilling the customer’s dream of the given product, in specified size, with specific color, etc., and its success depends on the untroubled communication between the store and the logistics operator. The party responsible for the correct preparation of customer's order is the provider of logistics services.

The process of assembling an order may be the beginning or the end of a success in online sales. An order that is assembled incorrectly has a negative effect on the image of the store, and in the future the customer may decide to do the shopping with the use of another sales platform, and increases the store costs (handling the returns, benefits lost on account of lack of availability of the given product for other customers, chance that the product will be damaged during the process of return).

Correct assembly starts when the products are delivered to a warehouse. Correct product identification upon entry, and its correct introduction into the warehouse, provide the grounds for correct order assembly. Another element of success is the warehousing system which will allow to efficiently manage the flow of goods, and minimize the human factor in the process of order assembly. Several inspections of the goods at the stages of picking, packing and releasing, limit the possibility of mistakes to the minimum, with the assumption that the goods had been correctly introduced to the warehouse.

Another aspect worth mentioning, is the quality of product packing and order personalization.

Esthetic packaging of products, selection of the carton of suitable size, placement of products in a larger carton in compliance with the packing manual specified by the seller, adding notes, samples, leaflets, etc. – such activities are becoming standard procedures in handling online stores. Large shopping clubs and well-known online sales networks demonstrate high requirements in that regard. The packing guidelines often change from season to season, e.g. in the fashion industry. The attention to esthetic packaging develops the image of the store and the relationships with clients.

The role of logistics operator is not limited only to properly preparing the orders in terms of their completion. It is also very important to secure the goods against any damage during transportation. The manner of packing the given product groups should be defined by the e-store, and executed by the operator. Even the best and most costly packaging will not guarantee the absence of damage during transportation, but may highly minimize the possibility of its occurrence.

Both the correctness and quality of packing, do not seem to be difficult to implement. However, the challenge starts when the volume of online sales increases fast, and the logistics resources of an online store do not allow it to efficiently handle the orders and to provide future development. Then, it is a good idea to entrust the logistics to a partner with the suitable experience and know-how.

Marta Kunikowska

Business Development Manage

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