What To Look For When Selecting A Warehousing Service?

by Dolly K. Digital Marketing Executive

The lockdown initiated to combat the Coronavirus pandemic has proved beyond doubt the effectiveness of e-commerce. A rise in the same is thus a natural progression. And to be able to cater to the increasing demands generated by businesses online, hiring warehousing services becomes a mandatory option.

These services are cost-effective. They provide dedicated services and storage without the e-commerce company having to heavily invest in:

· Warehouse space procurement,

· Maintaining a workforce,

· Procuring insurance to ensure compensation for losses, if and when they occur etc.

The selection of a third-party warehousing company, thus, needs to be done after careful deliberation and proper research. Some of the determinants influencing the final selection are:

· Location: A warehouse needs to be located at a place from where easy delivery of goods to clients can be facilitated. A warehouse situated at an obscure location would take a lot of time to deliver. One that is situated in the heart of the city would be extremely expensive to manage in the long run. Hence the suitability of the location depends on the individual needs of the concerned e-commerce company and the type of goods that it services. Selection of the same thus needs to be suitably done.

· Storage space: There are three things which determine proper planning and management of warehouse storage space. They are:

o Efficient organisation of stocks,

o Regular and frequent old stock clearance and

o Clutter-free atmosphere.

All top warehousing companies in India maintain the same with diligence and e-commerce companies in the process of selecting a warehousing provider should also concentrate on them.

· Commitment of the team: The team controlling the warehouse are the ones facilitating the delivery of goods on time and in good condition. Thus they need to be dedicated and sincere in their approach and take responsibility to:

o Keep evaluating the warehouse working conditions,

o Come up with suggestions for improvements that would benefit their clients.

They are also the frontrunners who have to deal with daily problems and find immediate solutions. A warehouse with a good communication network present between the frontrunners and the management makes for a skilled and dedicated team. Such warehousing companies in India will help enhance the e-commerce business associated with them.

· Use of advanced technology: To maintain quality a warehouse needs to use its manual and technological resources. But maintaining a warehouse catering to several companies needs huge floor space to accommodate all their goods. Ensuring proper functioning of such a huge area and volume of goods needs the implementation of state of the art warehousing technology. This also should be factored in when selecting a warehousing company.

· Quality control: Certifications for quality control and quality management offer a guarantee of efficiency and maintenance of high standards. Thus these certifications play a crucial role in ensuring expected and anticipated outcomes facilitated by the implementation of the best processes and use of best technology available. Thus even before going into the other determinants, all shortlisted warehousing companies in Mumbai and other places need to be checked for their certifications.

·Transparency: All processes, procedures and methods that are used and implemented in the functioning of the warehouse need to be transparent. This is important for e-commerce companies to judge if their warehousing partners are adhering to the agreed norms or deviating from the same.

Based on the above determinants the final selection of the company offering warehousing operations and services need to be finalised. This partnership will only then be able to enhance business and bring mutual satisfaction.