Forums: Discussions for entrepreneurs and small business.

For those of you who ecommerce/retail/shopping web stores, what do you do when you have to be away for a few days or longer?  Though I have two drop shipping vendors, I still process and ship most orders that come in.  Since my store is very new, I am not generating enough business to hire anyone yet, but I don’t want customers to have to wait either.  What do you do?

Is it at all possible you can outsource the fulfillment/shipping? I understand that you don`t have enough business to hire, but if you can find a firm you can outsource to, it is possible they will charge you on a per-unit basis. This way, you are being hit with variable costs instead--your profit margin will shrink a bit but you never have to worry about losing money with variable costs as long as the margin is positive. Additionally, your time is freed up. Hiring someone is more permanent where you expect stable business. But outsourcing might allow you more flexibility when your sales are a bit less stable.

I can`t specifically recommend any fulfillment firms, but maybe it is something you should look into.



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Motivation for Entrepreneurs
Entre-Propel.com

We have an "estimated ship time" box on our ordering page. Not only does it help if we get swamped, but it also provides a way to put in a delay if we ever get a chance to get out of town. :-) Plus, customers know up front about how long it`ll be before their order ships.

We always have a back up in case we have to go out of town. I have trained a few members of my family and friends to help us out if needed. We try to get our product out the next day so this help is greatly appreciated. Service is our number one priority and I believe it helps your company to stand out from the competition.

Thanks for the responses.  It looks like next time I’m gone for more than a weekend or holiday what I should do.  The drop ship vendors isnt a big deal thankfully.