Yesterday we looked at the steps from receiving an order to despatch. Today Jan from One Stop Order Processing (OSOP) shares how using her own software enabled her to automate her Integrated Labels business in conjunction with a fulfilment house:
Automating The Despatch Process
I sell Integrated label paper and worked out that I was spending around 15 minutes processing each of my order, I reorganised the system and got it down to around 15 seconds per order.
Process Before Automation: 15 minutes per order
- Downloaded orders
- Checked each order, manually verified the address, checked that the customer had ordered the same product because returns were very expensive and people rarely changed paper types.
- Manually exported our orders to Royal Mail DMO
- Printed out the labels
- Put a label onto each parcel for the order manually and carried them to the front of the warehouse ready for pick up.
- When all orders were complete, print the manifest and rechecked that the right number of parcels and paper types were waiting to be picked up.
- Manually marked the orders from Amazon as shipped.
Process After Automation: 15 seconds per order
Orders are automatically imported into OSOP at regular intervals, as they arrive they are checked by the software, they are ranked from 1 to 5 and a colour is assigned based on the rank. Levels 1,2 and 3 are automatically processed and marked as shipped, levels 4 are marked to check (this might be a new customer, so the address need to be verified) if possible but will be processed at a certain time if they aren’t, level 5 are marked in red and has to be authorised (these might be a change of paper type or a new address)
Emails are sent at regular intervals throughout the day, showing what has been ordered and what issues need to be authorised, we can authorise an order to be shipped by clicking a link in the email.
Orders are automatically marked as shipped on Amazon and eBay when they are shipped on our system.
Twice a day authorised orders are automatically sent to our dropship warehouses in the UK and Australia where they are picked, packed and dispatched.
At the end of the day emails with tracking links and software licenses are automatically send out to our customers at the end of each day.
