Too Many #FAILS For Order Fulfillment Houses This Year!

Too many order fulfillment houses failed to deliver this year. How did you measure up?
Skip this blog post and go straight to a free Fulfillment Performance Evaluation to score your efforts.

Order fulfillment houses have a seemingly simple job. All they have to do is take orders, pack the items and ship the packages to customers, right? And yet this holiday season too many order fulfillment houses failed their clients – and their customers — miserably. How did things go so wrong?

1. They failed to deliver packages on time.

This is a cardinal sin in the world of fulfillment. During the holidays, on-time delivery is every customer’s #1 concern. Yes, they should have placed their order earlier. No one controls the weather or other variables, and everyone knows fulfillment companies are swamped. But the customer did not order earlier, because the company (your company, perhaps?) promised them all would be well if they placed their order by X date.

Order fulfillment houses work with clients to determine that “X” deadline. Someone dropped the ball here. When packages aren’t delivered on time for a date-specific need such as the holidays, you cannot fix the error.

Customers are more than miffed, they go ballistic. You let them down. Worse, you embarrassed them.  They couldn’t count on your fulfillment house, but you can count on them to vent – on the phone to you, on social media with the entire universe, with scathing reviews online. Others will take notice. It may never be possible to calculate the losses in sales, customer loyalty, and brand reputation, but they will be significant. All because of failed on-time delivery.

2. They delivered the wrong order.

What good is it if your customer’s package arrives on time but the order is wrong? This isn’t the gift they chose so carefully. It’s the wrong color, the wrong size, some other item entirely. They are as empty-handed as if the package never showed up. Talk about frustrating!

3. They delivered damaged goods.

Whew! The customer is relieved that their packaged arrived just in the nick of time, only to open it and find the product has leaked all over the place. Or their must-have gift is broken. Arrrgh! Failures like this can result from inadequate product or packaging design. But they also happen when order fulfillment houses do a sloppy job of packing products for shipment.

Once again, the customer has nothing, when all they wanted was to experience the thrill of joy when their loved one opened what was supposed to be their Most Special Gift.

Every failed delivery – no matter the cause – is a failure for that company’s brand. And the failures continue to mount. Customers now have to explain why their gift box was actually empty. And then they have the added hassle of returning the wrong or damaged merchandise. The cost of lost sales and goodwill can be devastating.

Failure is unacceptable.

Your brand, and your customers, deserve better. You’ll get that if you look for order fulfillment houses with the facilities, people, and know-how to professionally handle the holidays.

If your fulfillment house created a #FAIL for you and your customers this holiday, you may want to check out this free ebook called “Deliver Me.”