Electronic Retailer - May 2011 - 43

Given the environmental factors today, leading supply chain experts are recommending that marketers re-evaluate their supply chain strategies and risks on an annual basis.
reduce shipping costs and reduce “order to cash” cycles. In some cases, this can also increase customer satisfaction and reduce returns/cancellations – by reducing the delivery time frame by as much as two to three days. And the heavier your product, the more you stand to save. A simple freight analysis provided by your fulfillment partner can quickly identify your potential for savings. factor alone could double your SKUs or give you a leg up with major retailers. The second issue is the recent “shadow increase” in freight costs by UPS and FedEx, based on their DIM (dimension) charge calculations. The ability of your fulfillment partner to manage the amount of packaging used could, in some cases, allow you to avoid a double-digit increase in shipping charges. And third is that marketers are becoming more sensitive to shipping costs; for example, two extra sheets of packing paper can move your package from one weight class to another, resulting in a 5 to 15 percent increase in shipping costs depending on the shipping method.

Customers are now focused, more than ever, on how their products are packaged and received. It’s a factor that can truly impact costs, profitability, customer satisfaction and lifetime customer value.

Behind the Buy Button
There are myriad and complex issues behind the buy button. And we all too often concentrate on the sexy marketing and selling side of the equation. But every customer touch point is an opportunity to either build customer relationship, average order value and lifetime customer value, or lose a customer based on price, quality or delivery issues. And customer loyalty is truly earned with each customer experience. Clyde Mount is president 3PL of Worldwide, a provider of third-party logistics to direct response, e-commerce and catalog marketers. He can be reached at (888) 456-1940 ext. 7002, or via email to cmount@3plworldwide.com.

Packaging
There are three major issues brewing in the area of packaging. First is the desire for major retailers to receive goods in “retail ready” packaging to reduce retail store labor and packaging waste. This

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Electronic Retailer - May 2011

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Electronic Retailer - May 2011