Many times in the past we have briefly addressed the issue of "Do I outsource my logistics or not? This seems like an ordinary yes/no question, but there are many more factors at play in arriving at the right decision. In fact, you can only answer this question if you answer four other questions first. In this article, we delve into the first two questions.
1. How strongly is your company digitized?
We believe that successful outsourcing or not depends on how much you digitize your business. Even regardless of whether you want to outsource, the degree to which you digitize determines your success in the future.
After all, we are evolving more and more towards an omnichannel market, where you approach different target groups and markets at the same time. You then naturally want the various components to reinforce each other. For example, your marketing forms one story and you can follow your customer through the various channels. That way you communicate with your customer according to his real needs.
Outsourcing also puts the customer first
When you want to outsource your logistics, this is extra important! This gives your e-fulfilment partner the opportunity to serve each sales channel according to its specific needs. Sending an order to an end consumer requires a totally different approach than sending an order to a local retailer, a marketplace or a wholesaler abroad. Just think about the way of packaging, dealing with due dates and the way of delivery.
An additional benefit of digitization is that you and your e-fulfilment partner are more easily able to adapt processes as your market evolves. Everyone notices faster changes in customer needs, whether B2C or B2B. The extent to which you can keep up with these changes determines your effective long-term value-add.
2. How do you stand out from the rest?
We are always looking for the holy grail that makes you different from your competition. In the past, this was mainly determined by your product, your price or a mix of both. Thanks to digitization, many dimensions have been added. It gives us the ability to understand our customer better and respond to their needs faster.
As a result, how you do R&D or communicate with your customer, for example, can also provide a strategic advantage. In short, determine the right mix of things that are crucial for your company to diversify. It is this mix that you need to keep in your business as much as possible.
Outsourcing should strengthen in-house services
The other outsourced services do need to fit well with your unique story so that they reinforce your distinctiveness. It offers little added value to say, for example, that your customers should keep a small inventory, if your logistics provider does not have a fast and flexible model that ensures that your customer always has available inventory.
Conclusion
The better you identify where your added value lies and the stronger you can translate it into digital processes, the more likely this unique story will play out throughout all of your company's processes.
Want to know more about how both questions impact the choice of an external logistics provider? Certainly don't hesitate to contact us! In our next article, we will explain the last two components.
