In today's competitive B2B landscape, best-in-class order fulfillment is no longer an aspiration but a necessity. Companies that prioritize timely, accurate order fulfillment achieve higher customer satisfaction and boost overall profitability.
Our survey of 898 manufacturing and distribution leaders sought to reveal the current trends in B2B order fulfillment, exploring the challenges and best practices that can make all the difference.
Additionally, this research uncovered the negative impact of order errors and manual processes, as well as what actionable strategies leading manufacturers and distributors are taking to avoid these by closing the digital order gap. You can download our new benchmark report, packed with valuable insights and industry benchmarks to help your organization achieve best-in-class performance in B2B order fulfillment.
Our research produced so many insights we had to spread them across two reports. The first report is live now, and the second one will be published later this month. Here are some takeaways that demonstrate what you can expect from reading the first report.
No company sets out to disappoint customers. Order fulfillment is a complex process that requires a mindset of continuous improvement. We wanted to know what manufacturers see as the most challenging part of fulfilling orders through processes that are both profitable to businesses and beneficial to customers.
The most-cited challenge was cost management – striking a balance between exceptional service and present-day realities like expensive labor and volatile supply chains.
While this topic has been top-of-mind for many years, it remains one of those goals that's easier said than done. For one, customer experience is hard to define objectively. Metrics like Net Promoter Score and Customer Satisfaction can help manufacturing and distribution leaders determine whether they're delighting or disappointing their customers. But ultimately, as one respondent said, it comes down to how easy you are to do business with.
When it comes to order fulfillment, shipping products quickly and accurately with expected levels of communication and transparency is how you ensure customers keep choosing your company for years to come.
According to our respondents, on average, the hardest customer to serve are the ones buying small, ad-hoc orders. They aren't large enough or purchasing frequently enough to justify EDI and still prefer ordering by email instead of on websites.
You know who your largest customers are (though you might have some questions about what ones are most profitable), but the rest are generally smaller companies with infrequent demand for your products. But they're still customers. And smaller companies today could be tomorrow's enterprise giants.
Delivering an order fulfillment experience that earns their loyalty now both ensures you continue to unlock new growth opportunities while creating a moat around future revenue.
Discover for yourself how best-in-class manufacturers and distributors are positioning themselves to increase market share and profitability regardless of economic conditions.
Introduction
What makes order fulfillment such a challenging process?
Most important goals to manufacturing and distribution executives
Why most companies can't deliver more perfect orders
How to save thousands by improving one order fulfillment KPI
What's keeping your customer service team from serving customers
Why manufacturers and distributors are spending more to close the digital order gap
9 Secrets of Best-in-Class B2B Order Fulfillment
Final thoughts
Download your copy of our new benchmark report today, Revealing the Secrets to Best-in-Class Performance in B2B Order Fulfillment.