4 Technology Solutions to Consider for Holiday Shipping (and beyond!)

If you operate an online business, you are most likely aware of the importance of stacked technology. Whether you're using an employee scheduling system, a point of sale system, a website, or an email service application, you'll find that automation is incredibly useful. By utilizing automation technology, you will not only be able to reclaim your time for other aspects of your business, but you will also be able to save money. With that said, the transition to technology dedicated to e-commerce can be difficult, time-consuming, and expensive if you are not familiar with it.

Now that peak shipping season is almost over, it is essential to take stock of what has worked and what hasn't. Whether you are switching to new technology software, or if you are trying it for the first time, the first quarter is a perfect time to adjust your current workflows. 

Top 4 Technology Solutions to Help Streamline Your Operations:

Order Management System (OMS):

Systems for managing orders may be stand-alone or integrated with shipping APIs, such as DesktopShipper. A business can use an OMS to organize all aspects of its fulfillment process from order acquisition to inventory management and delivery. Order management systems are suitable for companies of all sizes and accomplish what its name implies, namely, managing orders. No matter if your orders originate from selling platforms or marketplaces, they will be consolidated into one generalized view, which will help you ship orders more accurately and efficiently. It also allows for quick and easy data analysis. 

Warehouse Management System (WMS):

Using warehouse management systems, or WMS, companies can supply and regulate warehouse operations by using software that manages goods from the moment they enter a warehouse to the moment they leave. This makes a WMS a great resource for 3PL’s and larger businesses. With an excellent warehouse management system, your warehouse can manage multiple companies, multiple carrier rules, and other additional moving parts. A WMS can stack with a shipping solution to help you rate-shop and organize your retail clients based on their customers’ rules and services. Not sure where to start when looking for a great WMS? Read more information from our 3PL Week Resources page, here. 

Inventory Management System (IMS):

Inventory Management Systems are used by businesses to track products through the supply chain process. It dictates how companies manage inventory, from purchasing and producing materials to delivering a product to customers. According to our partners, Netsuite, inventory management is primarily concerned with ensuring that there are enough goods and materials to meet demand without creating excess or overstocked inventory. Having an inventory management system is beneficial because it improves inventory accuracy, reduces the risk of overselling, saves costs, provides better insights, and generates overall profit. As a general rule, the less you overorder, oversell, or over-promise your customers, the better your bottom line. An IMS is a great tool for retailers who want to stay in touch with their customers and spend less time managing inventory.

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP):

ERP refers to integrated management software. An ERP system collects, stores, manages and interprets data from multiple business activities. The use of ERP software is beneficial for companies of all sizes for a variety of reasons, such as improving customer service, reporting, reducing inventory costs, and improving cash flow. ERP’s also blends perfectly with an IMS, and when paired together, users can streamline logistics. ERPs are excellent for large companies shipping and managing thousands of packages a month. 

Obviously, not all companies require all of these different software components, but together, they form an excellent e-commerce technology stack. The process of having to take data from one system and transfer it to another defeats the purpose of streamlining your process and saving you time and money. Instead, use DesktopShipper to integrate seamlessly with all of these products. Ensure you do your research when picking these different technologies and make sure they all partner together.

To learn more about our technology partners and how they make your business run smoothly, check out the technology partners page, here.