Do you know how many stores are on Shopify?

3.9 million and counting. And, let’s not forget the 1.9 million active Amazon sellers. Looking at these numbers, it’s clear that eCommerce is thriving.

As the online selling world becomes increasingly crowded, some brands have learned a hack that gives them a much-needed edge. Efficient fulfillment.

But as a scaling brand, completing all the fulfillment-related tasks to a high standard consistently can be challenging. That’s where an experienced prep and pack service provider like MyFBAPrep takes the load off your shoulders and builds an optimized fulfillment process.

Many services fall under the “fulfillment” umbrella that can take your prep process and customer experience from good to great. In this post, we’ll cover why partnering with a fulfillment provider to secure value-added services is a worthwhile investment. We’ll also share some of the most impactful services for growing eCommerce brands and the rewards you stand to reap by using them.

Struggling to manage fulfillment in-house? Learn how MyFBAPrep makes outsourcing easy.

Why invest in fulfillment services?

From prep and pack services to prep to 3PL and 4PL solutions, investing in your fulfillment processes can pay huge dividends for years to come. Let’s take a look at some benefits you can get when you pick the right provider:

Enhance your end-to-end fulfillment with the perfect details

Whether you need items securely shrink-wrapped for transporting to your retail stores or want some finishing touches added to your show-stopping bundles, the right value-added service provider will be right on hand. As you polish your fulfillment, you can expect lightning-speed efficiency and productivity that’ll upgrade your eCommerce selling results.

Make your resources count

Time and money are two of the most important resources you can have as a growing eCommerce brand. Using fulfillment services will not only help you maximize your budget but it’ll also make your processes more streamlined and profitable.

Set a high bar for customer happiness to accelerate growth

One of the great things about using value-added services is that phenomenal customer experience will become your standard. As swift fulfillment becomes your signature and you can attract even more business into your store, boosting its growth.

Feeling overwhelmed by your fulfillment duties? Let MyFBAPrep do the heavy lifting.

Value-added services: Top picks for eCommerce brands

When it comes to value-added services, the world is your oyster. You can pick and choose from a wide variety of services whether you have a fixed or flexible logistics setup. As an eCommerce store, there are some core fulfillment services you should consider. Let’s break them down:

Re-labeling at scale

Relabelling involves taking products with premade labels, e.g., barcodes or printed packaging, and attaching new labels in line with the requirements of your sales channel.

If you have unlabelled goods from manufacturers and suppliers, you can also use this service to attach labels such as QR codes, Stock Keeping Units (SKU), or product name tags to your goods.

The perks of relabelling services

• Create compliant labels without exploding your workload: Sticking labels onto boxes may seem manageable, but as your order volumes and SKUs increase, it’s easy for things to go haywire. A relabelling service will ensure labels are accurate, organized, and uniform.
• Keep costs low: Relabelling can be a time-consuming and intricate process. If you depend on an eCommerce marketplace’s fulfillment service to carry out this task, you could be left with an eyewatering bill. Outsourcing this task to a 3PL will help keep your costs in check.
• Consistent labels no matter where your goods come from:  When you use multiple manufacturers or suppliers, maintaining consistency in your labeling can be costly and get any safety or branded stickers added at scale.

MyFBAPrep works with brands to develop labeling and sticker guidelines to ensure uniformity in your labels every single time. Staff executes the labeling service based on the guidelines, and relabelling work is inspected for quality and consistency before sign-off.

Co-packing

Co-packing involves taking goods from their raw and packaging them into finished products. While often used in the food industry, co-packing is also great for eCommerce brands with multiple SKUs and sales channels. Co-packing services can also include inventory management, packaging design and production, product assembly and warehousing, and distribution.

The perks of co-packing services

• Increase your supply chain output: Taking an item from freshly made to packaged products can be a messy labor of love, requiring expertise and space to get the job done efficiently. A co-packing service will help you access the necessary tools, space, and workers to maximize productivity.
• Prep goods fast no matter what: When you’ve got a small team working on everything from customer service to prep and fulfillment, it’s easy for important tasks like prep to get bumped down your to-do list. By using sorting and segregation, you can prep and send goods quickly no matter what your team’s obligations look like
• Slicken your prep process: By taking the prep and shipping off your hands, a co-packing service can help you gain more flow in your fulfillment process while executing multiple packaging specs. This will help you avoid issues like stockouts and non-compliant goods.

MyFBAPrep will work with you to craft product and shipment outer packaging guidelines for every product and sales channel. We will receive your goods in any state, then we brief and assign team members to a station and task to speed up workflow.

For example, At MyFBAPrep, we recently received 50,000 dog bones that we needed to put on individual J-Hooks and hang tags. We made custom plywood tools to accelerate work output and keep our workstations and product handling hygienic.

Within 24 hours, we got the bones ready for sale with the right labels and packaging. We also boxed and palletized them to keep the shipment organized.

Bundling

Bundling is when you batch similar products together to an offer. You can use them for promotions, holidays, and even as a way to shake up your existing product without creating new items.

The perks of bundling services

• Increase average order value: Bundling is one of the few services that can visibly impact your bottom line. Since you can earn more per order, bundling is a fantastic way to boost your store’s return and make your marketing campaigns more cost-effective.
• Optimize your items’ perceived value: Be it saving time, creating a memorable gift, or an easy kit, shoppers love bundles and the value they provide. For instance, by putting together products your customers often buy together at a discount, your offer can become more appealing despite not offering new products.
• Save space and simplify replenishment: With rising costs and continuing supply chain chaos, warehouse space is precious, and filling it with your most important goods is essential. Bundling helps you get goods into stock more easily and can even serve as backups for single product purchases by tearing them down when necessary.

MyFBAPrep can take individual items and package them as one unit. Alternatively, we can prep singular products into one order at the fulfillment stage.

Pallet bag packing

Pallet bag packing allows you to bundle and attach outbound shipments to a pallet in one swoop. Choose from different-sized bags and purchase in bulk to fit your need.

The perks of pallet bag packing

• Give your goods a safe ride to their destination: Pallet bag packing allows you to you lock the goods into one solid unit for transportation. This improves the pallet density and stability so you can ship them worry-free.
• Reduce inventory loss: With pallets secured using pallet bags, you can reduce the risk of product damage from things like mobile goods, dust, and moisture during transit and unloading and so protect your investment.
• Quick, easy, and cost-effective prep: If you’re looking for a fuss-free solution for your outbound shipments, pallet bag packing is the answer. You will add the finishing touches to your outbound shipments fast and easily without breaking the bank.

Variety packs

A variety pack service allows you to package individual items into one unit.  You can vary the assortment by size, product, or quantity.

The perks of variety pack services

• Switch up your offers to skyrocket sales: From assorted chips to face mask multiple packs, variety packs are a staple in the retail and eCommerce worlds. Using a variety pack service can help offer more choices to shoppers and increase conversions.
• Keep inventory costs manageable: As a growing business, it can be challenging to cover inventory costs with variety packs alongside your regular stock needs. Using a variety pack service will give you the option of creating variety packs on demand from one inventory pool.
• Hit the gas peddle on laggard items: Variety packs services offer you a great way to reposition slow-moving products to clear your inventory quickly and get higher margins per sale.

Shrink wrap

Shrink wrap involves tightly wrapping boxes or products with a polymer plastic film that “shrinks” around the object.

The perks of shrink-wrapping services

• Save on product packaging: Not every product needs a box or a tag, sometimes shrink wrap will do the job. Using a shrink wrap service will help you keep costs packaging, storage, and shipping costs lower.
• Add an extra security layer to your shipments: Got a shipment of valuable goods? Shrink wrap can offer a layer of protection by making it harder to access its contents.
• Make your pallets more: As the saying goes, “there’s strength in numbers”. A shrink-wrapping service will help you tie boxes together, wrap shipments to pallets for more, and put individual items into one bundle for more sturdiness.

Sort and segregation

Sort and segregation, a.k.a. sort and seg, involves your fulfillment provider handling unloading and sifting through shipments. This involves stock counting, quality inspection, packaging, and repacking.

The perks of sort and segregation services

• Get goods ready from sale easily: Purchased a liquidation pallet you want to rebrand? No problem! A sort and segregation service can help you prep goods for sale with minimal fuss.
• Get faster prep: Since you can send goods exactly as they are from your suppliers, you can speed up your prep and pack for faster restocking and fulfillment processes.
• Access specialized skills no matter your budget: Things like quality assurance and packaging take specific skills to execute, and with limited resources, it can be difficult to maintain high standards. A sort and segregation service will allow you to tap into these skills without needing to develop them in-house or sign up for lengthy contracts.

MyFBAPrep can handle the entire process from receiving goods from manufacturers to sorting and segregation of your SKUs according to your spec.

Get ahead with optimized fulfillment

Value-added services offer an excellent opportunity to streamline back-end processes and make your fulfillment hassle-free and cost-effective.

No matter your budget, product portfolio size, or packing requirements, there’s a service out there for you. So pick the areas you need help with the most now and get started.

The sooner you sharpen your fulfillment process, the faster you can start seeing results in your customer satisfaction and sales.

If you’re looking for a prep and pack partner, MyFBAPrep is ready and waiting with the services and tools needed to set your brand apart. Get in touch to learn more.