What is Order Fulfillment?

or - der ful - fill - ment

noun

Is the complete process of delivering an item to a customer. This process begins when the customer places an order with an online store, and is followed by processing, packing, shipping and finally, the customer receiving the order.

It is very important for eCommerce businesses to have a well-defined order fulfillment strategy, in order to keep and retain customers. It is mandatory to make sure your shoppers are happy with your services, and they do not experience any inconvenience during the shipping process. The ordering fulfillment set-up needs to ensure easy returns (ideally, as easy as it is to order), and to allow for omnichannel operations – order online, pick-up in store, and so on.

For digital goods, order fulfillment should happen instantly in the purchasing session, by either providing access or offering a download link, supplemented by email confirmations. Order fulfillment for digital goods requires a different kind of set-up, which doesn’t involve warehouses and shipping companies, but instead uses content delivery networks and data storage providers.