13 Sep
Understanding the latest ecommerce order fulfillment statistics can help you optimize your fulfillment operation and unlock the full potential of your online business
Ecommerce is an industry that continues to grow at a rapid pace and is showing no signs of slowing down any time soon. As an online merchant, you need to make sure your order fulfillment strategy is up to the mark and meets your customers’ requirements.
It is crucial for you to keep your customers’ needs in mind and optimize your order fulfillment processes to ensure they get the best possible shopping experience at your online store. Knowing the latest statistics and trends for order fulfillment can help you understand what your customers expect from your business and how you can provide it for them.
Order fulfillment is one of the most important aspects of any ecommerce business. It is also a comprehensive process that comprises multiple steps and can take up most of your time and resources if you carry it out in-house. In today’s day and age, ecommerce businesses are more keen on outsourcing their order fulfillment processes to a fulfillment center or warehouse.
Working with a warehouse or total fulfillment center can help you save your time and resources and allow you to focus on growing your online business and brand. Before you outsource your fulfillment operations, familiarizing yourself with the latest statistics regarding order fulfillment can help you make better decisions for your business.
General Ecommerce Statistics
Ecommerce is now the preferred method of shopping for 68% of consumers, up from 52% in 2020 (NRF, 2022)
Ecommerce and online shopping has become a norm for people these days. The Covid-19 pandemic also played a huge role in the increase in online shopping all over the world in the past couple of years. As people were dealing with lockdowns and physical stores were being shut down, people became more comfortable shopping online and receiving their orders at their doorsteps, giving a massive boost to the ecommerce sector.
Ecommerce sales will represent 20% of total retail sales by 2024 (eMarketer, 2021)
According to the latest projections, ecommerce will account for around 20% of all retail sales by 2024. As more and more people become comfortable shopping from the comfort of their homes, the ecommerce sector will continue to grow steadily over the next coming years.
Estimated by eMarketer, worldwide share of retail ecommerce will grow from 13.9% to 22.3% by 2025 (Schliechtriem, 2021)
The market share for ecommerce is also projected to increase in the coming years. The ecommerce sector will continue to grow and it is becoming one of the major sectors of all retail across the globe. As an ecommerce business owner, it is important to understand that the industry is bound to become even more competitive over the coming years and your ecommerce total fulfillment services should be up to the mark to make a place for yourself in the market.
It is expected that by 2040 more than 95% of all purchases are conducted via ecommerce (Schliechtriem, 2021)
A projection shows that in almost 20 years, almost all of the purchases will be carried out online. This shows us that ecommerce is a sector that will only continue to grow instead of slowing down. Ecommerce businesses should be prepared for a growing customer demand and higher order volumes if they want to be around for a long time.
According to Statista, over 2.14 billion people worldwide were expected to buy goods and services online in 2021 (Schliechtriem, 2021)
Around one quarter of the entire population were making online purchases in 2021. People have easier access to the internet and having mobile devices with them has made browsing online stores easier than ever before. There is a large majority of people who make at least one online purchase every week.
With an annual growth rate of 35%, the world’s leading ecommerce market is China (Schliechtriem, 2021)
China has established its place as an ecommerce giant in the entire world. There are multiple ecommerce marketplaces based in China, delivering products all across the world. The affordable prices and delivery options is one aspect that draws people to the Chinese ecommerce marketplaces. Asia has grown massively in terms of technology, and people are more comfortable making their purchases from online platforms.
Recently, Latin America stood out with the fastest growth, going from 23.2% in 2019 to 36.7% in 2020 (Schliechtriem, 2021)
Latin America is another region that has seen incredible growth when it comes to the ecommerce sector. They have developed their online marketplaces and offer top-notch total fulfillment services for their customers, which has helped them become one of the fastest growing regions when it comes to ecommerce growth.
Mobile commerce is expected to take a market share of 72.9% of the total global ecommerce retail share (Schliechtriem, 2021)
Mobile devices have made online shopping incredibly accessible. People are more likely to browse through online stores on their mobiles and make purchases. This is why it is crucial that all ecommerce stores have websites that are mobile-friendly and make browsing on mobile devices simpler for their customers. If you don’t optimize your online store for mobile use, you can lose out on a large portion of your sales.
70% of consumers search on Facebook and Instagram for products they need to buy (Schliechtriem, 2021)
Social media is a driving force for online shopping and ecommerce everywhere in the world. People that are looking to purchase something will most likely search for the products on social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram before they head over to other online shopping websites. As an ecommerce seller, you must use social media platforms to showcase your brand and products and reach your target audience.
Ecommerce businesses that have at least one social media account have 32% more sales on average than online stores that don’t utilize social media networks (Schliechtriem, 2021)
32% is a huge difference, and ecommerce businesses that don’t use social media for their business are losing out on a huge percentage of their sales. It is important to use social media platforms to set up your brand and online store. Social media platforms allow you to connect better with your target audience and showcase your brand image, story, and products in the best way possible.
Ecommerce Order Fulfillment Statistics You Should Know
According to a survey, delivery expectations (45%) and transportation capacity (36%) were the most common fulfillment challenges (SC Logisitics, 2020)
When you run an online business, it is important to be aware of the fulfillment challenges and understand how you can avoid them. To become more efficient as an ecommerce business, you need to be sure that your total fulfillment strategy enables you to meet the delivery expectations your customers have from your business. Similarly, you have to work on your transport capacity and costs.
Ecommerce shippers are utilizing traditional strategies such as negotiating rates (36%) and switching carriers (31%), but they are also exploring a variety of other approaches (SC Logisitics, 2020)
To make sure you can cut down on costs, it is important that your ecommerce shipping is affordable. If your shipping costs you too much, you will not be able to offer affordable shipping to your customers in your store and can lose out on business. Traditional approaches like negotiating shipping rates and changing carriers are becoming more common for ecommerce businesses that are looking to bring their shipping costs down.
Approximately half (48%) of the survey respondents are adding or upgrading their parcel/LTL transportation management system (TMS) (Logisitics Management, 2022)
Ecommerce merchants have started to understand the importance of technology and software that can help them automate and enhance their processes. Almost half of ecommerce sellers are moving towards more advanced technology that can help them manage and track their orders and supplies and make sure everything is running smoothly.
36% of the survey respondents are automating parcel sortation (Logisitics Management, 2022)
As an ecommerce business, tasks like parcel sortation and picking and packing orders can take up a lot of time and labour. These processes are crucial parts of the order fulfillment process and have to be completed efficiently in order to provide your customers with fast order deliveries. Automating these processes can save you a lot of time and resources, which you can use to focus on growing your business.
An overwhelming 77% of respondents say that labour shortage has affected their operations in some way (Logistics Management, 2022)
Labour shortage has been a massive problem for businesses everywhere, especially when it comes to order fulfillment. The Covid-19 pandemic was a major reason which led a lot of people to quit their jobs and not work in warehouses or fulfillment centers where they can have direct contact with other people. The labour shortage has caused ecommerce fulfillment companies to rely on temporary labour to deal with the seasonal order fulfillment. Labour shortage is also one of the reasons why order fulfillment for many businesses was slowed down because there were not enough workers to complete all orders on time.
To attract more workers, approximately half of respondents (51%) are raising wages (Logistics Management, 2022)
It is crucial that you combat the labour shortage as an ecommerce business owner. You need workers to help you carry out the order fulfillment process and to make sure there are no delays when it comes to getting the orders to your customers. Most ecommerce businesses are willing to raise the wages for the workers in order to attract them.
Roughly a quarter of respondents (24%) felt constricted by technology limitations in the past year (Logistic Management, 2022)
To make sure ecommerce order fulfillment is carried out efficiently and smoothly, it is crucial that you have access to advanced technology. This technology can help you track orders and manage your inventory as well as automate most of the order fulfillment processes.
50% of businesses are looking to moving production/manufacturing closer to demand/customers (Logistic Management, 2022)
Moving your manufacturing or production closer to where your audience is located can help you cut down on shipping costs. It can be easier for you to fulfill orders and deliver them out to your customers on time, improving the shopping experience they have and making your order fulfillment more efficient.
The global warehouse automation market is predicted to increase at a CAGR of 13.6% during 2021 and 2026 (Schliechtriem, 2021)
Automation has become a significant aspect of the warehouse and fulfillment center sector. It can help make order fulfillment faster and make all your operations smoother. As an ecommerce business, you can incorporate technology to automate your order fulfillment operations.
34% of respondents in a survey say ecommerce has grown by 30% or more since the beginning of the pandemic (Schliechtriem, 2021)
Ecommerce businesses have noticed a significant boost in online shopping and ecommerce since the beginning of the pandemic. More people are willing to order products from online stores, which is why you should be making your order fulfillment process more efficient and streamlined.
63% of consumers say that home delivery is the top purchase driver to buy online(Schliechtriem, 2021)
According to online shoppers, home delivery is extremely convenient and one of the biggest reasons why they choose to order from online stores. As an ecommerce seller, your order fulfillment must be fast and you should offer home delivery in less time to make sure you retain your customers.
45% of online shoppers are unlikely to purchase from a store again after having received an item late (Schliechtriem, 2021)
As an ecommerce merchant, you need to make sure your order fulfillment operations are fast and accurate. You need to streamline all steps of the process and make sure your customers always get their orders on time. A single late order can turn your customers away from your online store and your sales will go down.
A survey carried out by Stitch Labs showed that 62% of respondents mentioned human error from manual process management as the number one root cause of inventory or fulfillment issues (Schliechtriem, 2021)
In today’s day and age, using technology to automate your order fulfillment operations is the best choice for your ecommerce business. Carrying out some processes manually can lead to an increase in the rate of human errors that occur during the total fulfillment process. Any error during the total fulfillment process can be extremely costly for your business.
62% of ecommerce merchants believe that the top contributor to ensuring positive customer experience in ecommerce is fast shipping speed (Schliechtriem, 2021)
As an ecommerce seller, you always want to provide the best shopping experience for your customers. The best way to ensure that your customers have a great experience with your online store is to provide efficient order fulfillment and shipping. Fast order delivery is the one thing that your customers want the most from your online store.
54% of ecommerce sellers believe that the top contributor to ensuring positive customer experience in ecommerce is an easy delivery process (Schliechtriem, 2021)
An easy delivery and shipping process is also one of the top reasons why your customers have a great shopping experience when purchasing from your ecommerce business. It is crucial that the delivery process is fast and easy, and can help you retain your customers.
53% of online sellers believe that the top contributor to ensuring positive customer experience in ecommerce is having ample product information(Schliechtriem, 2021)
As an online store, you should be providing all necessary information on your webstore. For customers to have a nice shopping experience, they need to be sure of what they are ordering. This is why providing excessive product information can help your customers feel more comfortable shopping from your online store and ensure they have an enjoyable experience.
24.7% of merchants say that the biggest challenge their supply chain faces are delivery costs (Schliechtriem, 2021)
Ecommerce shipping and delivery costs can be high, especially if you are an international ecommerce store. It is important that you work with shipping partners that can offer you affordable rates, so you can offer the same for your customers.
According to Stitch Lab’s survey, 40% of respondents reported that consistent, on-time delivery of orders is the most essential factor in making happy, lifelong customers (Schliechtriem, 2021)
As an ecommerce business, you need to make a name for your online brand and build a solid customer base. The best way to do that is by having an efficient order fulfillment strategy that helps you deliver accurate and on-time orders to your customers consistently. This can help you retain your customers and increase the revenue for your online business.
Nearly 50% of B2C respondents say that they will opt for a hybrid solution to order fulfillment (Schliechtriem, 2021)
Most B2C ecommerce businesses want to opt for a hybrid order fulfillment solution for their online business. This means they want to outsource some of the processes while also carrying out some of the fulfillment processes in-house. This can help some B2C businesses save costs, which is why they are more drawn towards this approach.
According to a DHL report from 2019, 40% of companies are insourcing fulfillment, of which 6% are planning to switch to an outsourcing solution and another 18% will most likely outsource their fulfillment completely (Schliechtriem, 2021)
More than half of the businesses have already outsourced their order fulfillment operations, and more businesses are willing to join in. Outsourcing your order fulfillment to expert fulfillment centers and companies can help you cut down on your costs and overheads. It also gives you the time and resources to invest in other aspects of your business that can help you reach new heights and establish your brand online.
Do You Want To Outsource Your Ecommerce Order Fulfillment?
Ecommerce order fulfillment is not an easy process, in fact, it can become one of the most time-consuming and labour-intensive processes for your online store. Storing your inventory, hiring a team of skilled workers to manage your stock, picking and packing orders accurately, and shipping orders to your customers on time are all steps of the ecommerce order fulfillment process.
It is crucial that, as an online store, you carry out all the order fulfillment steps on-time and accurately while also focusing on developing excellent marketing and sales strategies for your business. One of the best ways to make sure your business growth is not hindered because of your order fulfillment is to outsource your order fulfillment to a specialized company.
Meteor Space is one such ecommerce order fulfillment company that provides bespoke services at affordable rates. We connect with your online store using our advanced software and complete all your order fulfillment operations in the best way possible.
Our state of the art warehouse and total fulfillment center spans across 200,000 square feet, making sure we have enough space for your inventory. Our facility is safe and secure, and we provide you with fast international shipping for your ecommerce business!
Want to find out more about Meteor Space and the top-notch ecommerce total fulfillment services we have to offer?
