If you’re a business that regularly ships to customers, it’s never too early to start preparing for the holiday deluge. Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year’s, and all the winter holidays are joyous times of festivities—but they can also mean a time of stress and missed deadlines if you haven’t prepared for the rush of shipping and orders. Fortunately, you can avoid much of the chaos by preparing early. Now is the time to start planning for the holiday shipping rush—read on for our best tips to make the busiest shipping season a breeze!
Start early
It’s never too early to start preparing! Early November is a great time to start looking ahead. Identify common issues and pinch points in your shipping practices that might not cause huge issues at normal volumes, but that can balloon into significant headaches during the holidays. Work with employees to find solutions to any problems before things get out of hand.
Customer Support is Key
Customers need to know that you’ve got their back, especially during the holiday season. Delayed deliveries and poor service are major turn-offs for customers, who need to know that their product will be there when you say it will. To deliver on customer support, make sure you choose a reliable shipping service that offers tracking tools and a good support team. Kable Product Services provides a wide range of reliable services, flexible pricing, and product tracking and support to take the stress out of the holiday delivery season.
Track timing and prices carefully
Expected delivery times and shipping prices often change, especially during the holiday season. Don’t rely on numbers from last month or even last week—anticipate longer times and higher prices, and keep on top of the most recent information regarding shipping delays or price changes. Customers are more understanding of delays when you inform them upfront rather than promising a delivery time that you can’t follow through on.
Make it fun
Holiday shipping can be more work than at other times of the year. That’s no reason why you can’t have some fun with it, though! If you’ve started planning early and have a reliable shipping partner, you can focus on some fun touches. Consider including a special holiday greeting with your items or a small festive gift. Customers love little touches that make them feel valued, and the holiday season is a great time to include some unique extras with your products naturally.
It’s never too early to start preparing for the holiday shipping rush! The winter months can be a stressful time of year from a fulfillment perspective. Still, with some extra planning, information, customer support, and a reliable shipping partner like Kable, you can make this a festive and enjoyable season for you and your customers.