Order fulfillment represents the complete order cycle, from the moment you receive an order until its delivery to the customer, including receiving inventory, storage, order picking, order packing, shipping, delivery, and returns.
In the order fulfillment process, you need to take care of a few things like inventory management, demand planning, logistics planning, supply chain execution, etc., to ensure that the whole process stays smooth.
There are four types of order fulfillment:
- In-house: You perform all order fulfillment steps internally
- Third-party: You outsource all order fulfillment activities to a third-party company
- Dropshipping: You just receive the order, and the manufacturer handles the rest of the fulfillment process
- Hybrid: As the name suggests, you combine any of the aforementioned order fulfillment types for a successful delivery. For example, you can handle the order fulfillment of popular products in-house and outsource the remaining processes to a reputed company
You can opt for any of these order fulfillment models depending on your business requirements.