Amazon Order Fulfillment Services: 5 FBA Issues Consultants Can Solve

Last updated on June 15th, 2023

Written by Ken Zhou

An upset customer complaining about a terrible buying experience can make you more anxious than any cup of strong coffee. Amazon order fulfillment services, also known as Fulfilled by Amazon (FBA)), can be a significant yet challenging aspect of your business. You risk losing your customers, reputation, and money with a small mistake.

You don't want this to happen, so you're seeking advice about fulfillment problems and counteracting them. Well, you're in the right place. This article discusses five of the most common issues in eCommerce fulfillment, including solutions from working with an Amazon FBA consultant. But before that, here's an overview of what Amazon FBA is all about.

Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA): How Does it Work?

Amazon's fulfillment service lets sellers take advantage of warehouse space (called Amazon fulfillment centers) to store their products until it's time to ship to customers. In return, FBA sellers have to pay fulfillment fees in exchange for using the service.

Compared to Fulfillment by Merchant (FBM) and Seller Fulfilled Prime (SFP), Amazon sellers benefit more from FBA because the platform handles almost everything. Amazon's in-house fulfillment team is the one that picks, packs, and ships the ordered items. With this, the seller can focus more on other aspects of their ecommerce business.

Here's a run-through on how to start using the FBA program:

1. Add FBA to your Amazon seller account.
2. Create and optimize your product listings to prepare for shipment.
3. Present a shipping plan to Amazon's fulfillment centers. They will pick a warehouse for you to send the packages to.
4. Once you send your product out, it will end up in its designated Amazon fulfillment center. A team of experts handles all the work from there: running the inventory, shipping procedures, updating and answering customers, and handling returns and refunds.

How Does an Amazon FBA Consultant Deal With Order Fulfillment Issues?

Now that you understand how Amazon FBA works, it's time to discuss how consultants can help handle your eCommerce fulfillment issues. We've enumerated five common fulfillment mistakes below.

Complex International Shipments

Greater distance means extended hours and higher shipping costs. Third-party sellers participating in the Amazon marketplace must understand that going international means their packages won't arrive in a few days like local shipping.

If they make their buyers wait for too long, they might lose the chance to grow customer loyalty. In addition, international shipping is challenging because of customs, duties, and return processing.

An FBA consultant lets you know how Amazon fulfillment works internationally. Once you send your products to their global warehouse, the team will smoothly process everything from picking to shipping. On top of that, their customer service is available 24/7 so that you can relieve yourself of the swarm of customer inquiries. 

Poor Customer Service

The customer's buying experience is one of the most crucial aspects of fulfillment, especially with Amazon as the marketplace. To provide them with the best service, you need a smooth fulfillment process; the key is to avoid making minor errors that massively impact your entire system. These errors include wrong delivery items and addresses, incorrect labels, and more.

Poor customer service results in bad reviews; any seller wouldn't want that. With Amazon as your fulfillment partner, you don't have to worry about the nitty-gritty details anymore. Add to that a competent team of customer service professionals that handles all buyer inquiries on a 24/7 basis, and you'll save up a lot of time and unnecessary stress.

With these systems in place, the role of an FBA consultant is to maximize the use of Amazon's services through full account management. By managing your account, they minimize any order casualties, reducing potential returns and customer calls, thereby optimizing your customer service.

Challenging Inventory Management

It is tough to handle inventory if you fulfill orders in large quantities. Whenever an order is placed, there are three things you need to work out fast: locating the product, warehouse operations, and communicating with suppliers/manufacturers. If these steps don't turn out smoothly, your shipments will be delayed.

With an FBA consultant, you can ensure that processes are well coordinated both on the online storefront and the fulfillment company, which is Amazon. A consultant can make excellent use of the inventory management system to avoid shipping delays and miscommunication between the teams.

Apart from a smooth logistical process, a consultant can also drive the flow of products in and out of the Amazon fulfillment center. By driving demand using available marketing activities, they can sell products fast and help with a fast inventory turnover. This will reduce or even eliminate your long-term storage fees.

Difficult Shipping Negotiations

All sellers want to save on shipping costs. The objective is easy, but negotiating rates or finding affordable shipping solutions is challenging. Small businesses, for instance, might not have enough power and authority to make an agreement with major courier companies and get the best discount on shipping rates.

If you have an FBA, you no longer have to be the one negotiating. Amazon has partnership agreements with UPS, FedEx, DHL, and other major carriers that give great shipping discounts. 

FBA consultants can also manage your shipping fees and strike the right balance between price and cost. Whether you have one or several sales channels, they can adjust the pricing structure to maximize your profit per unit sold if you're on a multi-channel fulfillment setup.

Inadequate Customer Trust

All businesses start from scratch before they reach a certain level of success. However, working with a reliable and customer-trusted company can help you get closer to success faster. 

An advantage of working with Amazon FBA consultants is that they have knowledge and experience with a brand that many customers trust: Amazon is a go-to shopping store and a trusted platform for shopping inspiration—because of this, working with an FBA consultant can increase your chances of generating more sales. 

Keep These Things in Mind Before Working With An Amazon Seller Consultant

After learning the benefits you can acquire if you choose to work with Amazon experts, here are a few things to note to ensure they can help you make a wise business decision. 

• FBA can be a costly program since they charge a variety of fees from the seller. Having them handle fulfillment teams and processes saves you workforce fees, but you will still get charged for storage, membership fees, returns processing, and many more. 
• If you sell with FBA, your products are automatically eligible for free shipping on Amazon Prime. You have to pay for the shipping costs, so while it may be in the Prime buyers' favor, it might not work out well on your end.
• Make sure to calculate the fees first before using FBA. Your FBA consultant can help you break down these essential details on costs.

Conclusion

Some order fulfillment issues are inevitable, but you can minimize the potential damage with excellent preparation and collaboration with a team of experts. Suppose you need guidance on jumpstarting a business under Amazon FBA or are interested in knowing more about our experienced Amazon sales consultants, contact us today.