Fulfillment Company Partnerships

Copyright (c) 2011 Julie Austin

Being a small business owner that sells one or more products usually means you have to ship all of them yourself when you're starting out. That means you probably have boxes of inventory stuck in closets, basements and garages. You have to buy the shipping material and package them up, then drive them to the post office, and stand in a long line.

Another thing a bootstrapping entrepreneur with a product knows about is warehousing inventory. If you ask any entrepreneur that's done it you'll hear all kinds of stories about how they had stacks of boxes in their house when they started out. I know from my own experience that these boxes take up a lot of space. I couldn't even walk in one of my rooms for months. Small business owners often complain about the number of boxes they have to keep in their house while running their business.

But at some point your time will be worth more and it will make sense to start using a fulfillment company to do your shipping and warehousing. You can lower your processing and warehousing costs if you partner with the right fulfillment company. It will also free up your time to do other things. They understand shipping and can use the best, most efficient ways to ship. They also get discounts from shipping companies because they ship in large volume. It can be cheaper to use a fulfillment company than using a part time worker to do the shipping.

A good fulfillment company will provide you with references and won't have any hidden charges when they give you a quote. You want to make sure the fulfillment company knows as many details about your company's shipping as possible so they can help you grow your business. They should be able to grow with your company and be flexible. You should get your shipping partner to help you figure out the best ways to ship your products and also to grow your business. Try to find the right partner when it comes to shipping.

It's important to think about the location when you are looking for a fulfillment company. A centrally located fulfillment company will make shipping more efficient. Find a fulfillment company close to the border if you plan to do a lot of shipping to Canada.

Make sure you do your homework before deciding on a fulfillment company. You will learn that a good fulfillment company will make your business run smoother.


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Julie Austin is a "Go To" media expert on innovation and creativity. She's also the inventor of swiggies, wrist water bottles, which are sold around the world and the author of "The Money Garden: How to Plant the Seeds for a Lifetime of Income". http://www.createforcash.com