phase v fulfillment

In-House Vs. Outsourced Fulfillment Services

In-House Vs. Outsourced Fulfillment Services

To outsource or not to outsource? That is the question a lot of businesses ponder when they start to feel the growing pains of their expanding businesses. You might think that third-party logistics are for the big guys that are doing so well they don’t have time to package their products and figure out shipping costs, freight regulations and distribution programs for their increasing business. It is, however beneficial for startups to outsource their fulfillment operations to help them grow into their next level and become a “big guy”.

Phase V Fulfillment Company

Finding the right fulfillment company makes a huge difference in costs, as some fulfillment centers require quotas and minimums that can cause small and seasonal businesses to incur additional fees. Customized services and direct lines of communication with your fulfillment center team are crucial.  Phase V Fulfillment Company is a one-of-a-kind third-party logistics company.  We work with you to learn about your company, your mission and your plans for expansion. Partnering with you, we help you save money and time, by tailoring your supply chain operations to your specific needs. As your partner, we work within your budget to automate your fulfillment operations, increase your sales and find other ways to help grow your brand.

In-House Fulfillment Vs. Outsourcing With Phase V

When your business starts to grow beyond the limits of your original business plan, you will need a place to store your inventory, packing and shipping supplies and a number of other items that keep your supply chain flowing smoothly.

A few things to consider about in-house fulfillment vs. Phase V outsourced fulfillment include:

Warehousing In-House Vs. Fulfillment

 

In-House

 

 

  • In-house fulfillment operations entails taking the time to source and negotiate warehouse space

 

  • Locks you into a long-term lease or mortgage payments

 

  • Capital costs for outfitting your space to conform to your storage needs and optimal environmental conditions

 

  • Certification and licensing time and fees

 

  • Cost and hassle of training warehouse personnel in on-boarding, pick & pack, shipping and inventory management procedures

 

  • Paying warehouse staff salaries, insurance and benefits

 

  • Saves you the cost of shipping it to the fulfillment company, provided you have that extra space or you will simply be trading the cost of shipping to the fulfillment company for the cost of shipping it to your warehouse

 

 

Phase V Fulfillment Center

 

 

  • Our facilities in Ft. Myers, Florida are strategically positioned near all major shipping routes and international ports of call

 

  • Our warehouse is ready and waiting to house your products in one place meeting all your product-specific storage needs

 

  • System in place to inspect your products for quality and quantity when they arrive at our facilities and monitor your product throughout the fulfillment process

 

  • We assign universal SKUs, or stock keeping units, to facilitate optimal stock storage and inventory management

 

  • Experienced personnel who have been working with many different businesses, in a broad spectrum of industries, since 1980

 

  • Outsourcing your fulfillment process is a cost-effective solution and can save you overhead costs.

 

 

Pick & Pack In-House Vs. Fulfillment

 

In-House

 

 

  • You’ll need to train or hire someone to assemble a team and train them on the ins and outs of package design, packaging guidelines and in following your packaging specs

 

  • You will need to source and stock packing supplies, including specific box types, labeling, branded materials, protective materials, etc.

 

  • Depending upon your product size and weight, you may need a forklift to move your products

 

  • You will need logistics specialists to develop a system of packaging that saves time and money in shipping

 

 

Phase V Fulfillment Center

 

 

  • Experienced pick and pack professionals are on the lookout for time and money saving processes

 

  • We maintain a well-stocked supply of packaging materials and the capacity to print branded materials, including labels, bills of lading and shipping invoices- We have forklifts

 

  • Staffed and trained logistics team working to automate your supply chain processes

 

  • Flexible labor that can be increased in busy seasons and decreased in off-cycles

 

 

Shipping In-House Vs. Fulfillment

 

In-House

 

 

  • Your shipping team will be required to be up to speed on freight regulations, size and weight shipping practices

 

  • You’ll need logistics to establish domestic and international distribution plans

 

  • You need to develop a shipping department that is capable of fulfilling shipping options you offer your customers

 

  • Your staff will have the responsibility of packaging and delivering packages to customers on time, consistently

 

 

Phase V Fulfillment Center

 

 

  • Our experienced and resourceful shipping department understands freight regulations

 

  • We work to save you money on shipping costs whenever possible

 

  • Well-versed in shipping carriers and shipping options, including future ship, auto-ship and expedited delivery options

 

  • Will configure the most cost-effective, time-efficient way to ship your products

 

  • Experienced in international and domestic distribution

 

 

Technology In-House Vs. Fulfillment

 

In-House

 

 

  • Sourcing software that does everything you need it to do, in an intuitive, non-conflicting fashion

 

  • Spend time and money on installing, configuring and maintaining inventory software

 

  • Finding effective ways to coordinate your multi-channel marketing operations

 

  • Finding and implementing costly scalable software for domestic and international packaging and currencies.

 

 

Phase V Fulfillment Center

 

 

  • Our data driven scalable fulfillment software is state-of-the-art

 

  • Our user-friendly web-based dashboard lets you create and edit orders, view invoices and more

 

  • Can view inventory counts in real-time, 24/7 with touch of the finger reorders

 

  • Software ready to easily integrate with most online shopping carts

 

  • Funnels all your multi-channel e-commerce sales into a central location

 

  • Allows you to easily set up low inventory alerts that let you know when to restock your inventory and will even automatically reorder for you

 

  • Track all orders from start to finish, building transparency for your staff and your customers

 

 

Customer Service In-House Vs Fulfillment

 

In-House

 

 

  • With your online presence, shoppers can order at any time of the day, so you need to have customer service reps at the ready 24/7. This can be expensive

 

  • Skilled, personable customer service reps need to know enough about your products to address customer’s concerns in a timely fashion

 

 

Phase V Fulfillment Center

 

 

  • Customer service reps available 24/7; your customer is our priority

 

  • Our rigorously-trained customer service reps are well-informed about your products, with a goal to address any inquiries within a 24-hour period

 

  • Exceptional customer service is a core component of brand loyalty- our CSR’s are there to be sure it is consistently good

 

 

Don’t Forget To Factor In High Opportunity Costs

Keeping your fulfillment processes and inventory management operations in-house can easily add a new department to your company. As a small business, you may think you can’t afford to outsource your fulfillment operations or even use a warehouse, so you spend part of your time and your other employees’ time filling orders. Factoring in high opportunity costs may have you realistically viewing a third-party logistics service as the more affordable option. Multiply the hours you spend packing and shipping with your salary per hour rate. If you, or a staff member is spending ten hours a week on packing and shipping, those ten hours, annualized at a $65,000 per year salary comes out to $16,250.

Phase V can help you streamline your fulfillment processes without disrupting your supply chain flow or throwing you and your staff into reactionary modes that can steer your business way-off course. Contact Phase V to discuss how we can partner with you, keeping your focus on new product development and sales, while letting us tackle the rest.

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