The True Cost of Fulfilment: When DIY No Longer Makes Sense

Running an online store demands a substantial investment in fulfilment operations.

As a small business owner, you might initially opt to handle these tasks yourself to save on costs. However, as your business grows, the challenges and expenses associated with DIY fulfilment can quickly become overwhelming. Inefficiencies, time constraints and hidden costs may begin to eat into your profit margins and affect your growth – that’s where an experienced, trusted fulfilment provider can help.

These experts offer specialised services, designed to streamline operations, reduce costs and increase customer satisfaction, allowing you to focus on what you do best – growing your business!

In this blog, we’ll delve into the true cost of fulfilment, exploring the various expenses involved, from warehousing and inventory management to shipping and customer support. We’ll also help you identify the key indicators that signal it might be time to transition from DIY fulfilment to outsourcing.

Searching for a reputable, affordable fulfilment provider? Get in touch! Call us on 01483 204479 and speak to one of our experts today!

How Much Does Fulfilment Cost?

DIY fulfilment involves managing every aspect of your inventory storage and order processing. While this approach is common among new businesses, it includes a variety of tasks and responsibilities, including:

• Finding a Storage Facility: Securing a space to store your inventory.
• Investing in a Workforce: Hiring staff or adding to your own workload.
• Purchasing Equipment: Buying the necessary tools and machines.
• Investing in a Warehouse Management System (WMS): Implementing software to manage inventory and processes.
• Processing Orders: Handling the entire order management process.
• Sourcing Packing Materials: Finding appropriate packaging for your products.
• Packing Orders: Ensuring items are safely packed.
• Labelling and Shipping Orders: Preparing orders for shipment and sending them out.
• Tracking Packages: Monitoring shipments to their final destinations.
• Customer Notifications: Informing customers about their order status.
• Handling Returns: Managing the return process for customers.
• Managing Customer Service: Addressing customer enquiries and issues.

DIY Fulfilment: What Are the Hidden Costs?

While self-fulfilment may initially appear cost-effective, hidden expenses can quickly add up. Here are some additional costs you might not consider:

Shipping Costs

If your parcels are uniform in size and weight and have a similar postal area, you can often negotiate competitive shipping rates. However, if your packages vary in these aspects and are often sent internationally, achieving the best rates can become challenging.

Partnering with a trusted 3PL service provider can mitigate these concerns. Fulfilment providers typically have agreements with major carriers and ship in larger volumes, enabling them to negotiate better rates than individual businesses typically can.

Materials

The more orders you fulfil, the more money you’ll be spending on packaging materials.

Envelopes and boxes are the obvious components, however, you’ll also need shipping labels, packing tape, bubble wrap, printer ink and so much more.

At JEM Marketing & Fulfilment Services Ltd., we’re proud to provide our clients with bespoke order picking and packing, ensuring your orders stand out from the crowd. We also provide personalised gift wrapping and custom messaging to enhance the buyer experience and increase the likelihood of repeat purchases.

Infrastructure

As your business expands, you may decide to move operations from your spare room to a dedicated warehouse facility. In addition to the rent for your storage space, you’ll also need to cover the costs of employees responsible for picking, packing, dispatching and managing returns.

Partnering with a reputable 3PL provider can significantly streamline your transition, offering scalable services that align with your business growth. They will thoroughly inspect incoming stock, ensure secure storage and maintain a clean, environmentally controlled warehouse space.

Low Efficiency

A less obvious cost of DIY fulfilment is a general reduction in efficiency and speed in processing orders. Without an efficient Warehouse Management System (WMS), locating items for dispatch can be a time-consuming process, resulting in costly delays that could result in loss of repeat custom.

At JEM, we can integrate with all the largest E-shop platforms, providing a tailored solution to suit your needs. Our custom eCommerce systems will import all of your customer orders automatically into our database, allowing our team to swiftly audit these orders and ship your customer’s parcels as soon as possible. To find out more about our eCommerce solutions, please get in touch.

The True Cost of Fulfilment: When is it Time to Outsource?

If you’re:

• Struggling to keep up with orders
• Finding it hard to find the time for marketing or product development because of the responsibility of fulfilment, or
• Looking to expand

Now is the time to outsource!

Reduce Your Fulfilment Costs Today!

From picking and packing to order processing services, we provide tailored, cost-effective eCommerce fulfilment solutions that suit the needs of your growing business.

If you’re interested in discovering how we can help you expand your reach whilst retaining your current customers, please get in touch. Call us on 01483 204479 and speak to a member of our team today. Alternatively, fill out our enquiry form below and we’ll get back to you as soon as possible.