How Ecommerce Logistics Partners Are Helping Smes Make A Mark Online

By Author: shiwangi ecourierz
Total Articles: 19

The logistical infrastructure of supply chains of offline and online sales funnels of various organizations have been a class apart. In today’s age, this is now Omni-channel wherein through the power of the mobile e-commerce, customers are now interacting with suppliers more than ever. So coming down to the core concept here, selecting the right logistics partner is a great investment for an SME. The question is if the SMEs know exactly what they should be looking for in a third party logistics partner?

Brick and mortar stores provide one thing what the online retailers can’t- the power to touch and feel a product which instantly makes a customer decide if he wants it or not. On the other side, the online retailers provide a very large product offering, lowest prices and a better shipping experience in the case of large voluminous goods. There are a few stores that provide both a physical presence of their product line as well as sell on e-stores. But the challenges involved in e-logistics with traditional suppliers is very daunting. Rapid access to product and supply is something that is worked and focused upon greatly, and this calls in external logistics partners for ECommerce to reach this side of the customer reach. An Omni channel or mid-way approach essentially means an integration of both online and offline logistics.

SMEs need to find the right logistics partner as they can help them craft a highly effective go-to market strategy. To a certain degree, this implies a partnership with existing physical stores. Technological developments in the logistics sector can benefit SMEs with limited resources. A good third party logistics provider can help SMEs come up with better operational and management capabilities as opposed to them following traditional management principles. As these logistics providers have access to various sectors of the industry at a given point of time, establishing a right alliance with these organizations can mean a fluid flow of right information, synchronization of demand and supply and ease of doing business with players of all size in the market.

SMEs must have a mix of such partners, as each logistics provider can contribute differently to pre sales and post sales activities. Customers usually leverage between online and offline stores. They browse the product database online but go to an offline store to make a purchase. This can be vice-versa as well. But the supplier must be present at both these ends. As post sales activity, services such as global warehousing for showrooming, global transportation and access to global customers are some of the valuable touchpoints provided by the third party logistics provider. The functionality of such a provider even extends to inventory management on a global basis as well. SMEs are now stepping into eCommerce aggressively and are trying to provide maximum purchase points for their audience. In such cases, logistics becomes a necessity right from the beginning and a right partnership can skyrocket an SME.