Should You Outsource Fulfilment Or Do It Yourself?

E-Commerce is the way to go these days if you want to maximize sales. Brick and mortar stores are fine but they’re dying out and more people are turning to the internet to do their shopping. Once you’ve got a good product, the next challenge that you’ll face is getting the product out to customers. This has given rise to a debate amongst business owners. Should you deal with the packing and distribution yourself or should you outsource it to somebody else? People on both sides of the argument make good points and it’s often difficult to know which is best for your company. To help you make sense of it all, here’s a list of the pros and cons of outsourcing fulfilment.
You Know It’s Being Done Right
When you outsource your operation to another company you have to put a lot of trust in them. They’ll tell you that everything is being done above board and you just have to trust that they’re telling the truth. But if you handle it yourself, you’ll know for sure. You can make sure that you’ve got HGV Insurance for all of your drivers and their licenses are all correct and up to date. You can also make sure that everything is being packaged correctly and nobody is cutting corners. Knowing that everything is being handled professionally will put your mind at ease and let you concentrate on other areas of the business.
Global Network
One of the big benefits that outsourcing brings is access to a global network. When it comes to storing and shipping your products, you aren’t likely to be able to afford more than one warehouse. That means all of your deliveries are being sent from one central location and that sometimes means longer wait times. When you outsource it to an outside company they’ll have warehouses and depots all over so they can be a bit more efficient. This might not be an issue for you if you’re only supplying a fairly small local area but if you’ve got a wide reach, it’s something to consider.
Technology
Larger shipping companies are going to have access to technology that you simply wouldn’t be able to afford to implement in your smaller operation. In all aspects of the process, they can be quicker and more accurate because they’ve got better technology. One of the main pieces of kit is tracking systems. They’re so valuable because they’ll allow you to give your customer’s far better information about exactly when their package will arrive. Being able to give them a one or two hour slot is far better than a full day.
Cost
Business owners often mistakenly think that outsourcing is going to be more expensive than doing it yourself. If you’ve got a very small operation, this might be the case. However, more often than not, it’s way cheaper to outsource it to somebody else. Because they’re doing everything on such a large scale, they can make savings that you never would. You can then transfer those savings into reduced product prices and make more sales.  
If you’re running a very small operation then doing it yourself might be the best option. But most of the time, outsourcing is far easier and cheaper.