Your supply chain partner is intrinsic to your business’ growth. Being able to fulfil customer orders in a timely fashion is critical in building trust and brand loyalty – two of the key components for growth. Here, Glenn Lindfield, CEO, Cygnia Logistics, discusses the key characteristics to look for when selecting your perfect supply chain partner and the reward for getting it right.
Five things to look for in your next supply chain partner
- Capability and experience
E-commerce and omnichannel retailing is all about growth.
To grow, you need to reach new customers and build long-lasting, trustworthy relationships with them.
When selecting your logistics partner, think beyond the short-term. Think of how they can serve your long-term business operations and growth ambitions.
You need to be confident that your supply chain operations can scale quickly with your business. For this, experience is key – where have they shown their ability to scale with well-known brands before? Or how have they adapted operations quickly to suit the evolving needs of their customers?
- Knowledge and insight
Understanding your business and your customers is essential for any logistics partner. Your customers are the lifeblood of your business, and delivering delight to them should be the priority. To do that, your chosen partner needs to truly understand their needs.
That understanding, coupled with data insight, will help your 3PL partner to anticipate and plan for both micro and macro peaks in demand. It will also help them to predict your customers’ needs, both now and in the future.
- Technology and trends
Another key characteristic is the ability to keep on top of the latest technologies and consumer trends to deliver service improvements at every level.
Think about whether your supply chain partner is aware of the demand and technological trends that may impact your business operations, such as warehouse automation, livestreaming, delivery preferences and tracking systems, etc.
Staying one step ahead of what your customer wants and needs is a crucial step in uniting your brand with them successfully.
- Alignment with your sales team
Strong relationships between your logistics and sales teams are crucial if you want to delight your customers.
Aligning your sales strategies and promotions with your logistics partner is critical. For instance, if you’re discounting products or offering bundle deals, your logistics partner can seamlessly step up to the resulting surges in demand. It also ensures the right products are discounted based on real-time inventory levels and predictions for demand change over time.
- Ambition
You want to grow your business and your logistics partner should too.
Strategic direction and ideas from your logistics partner should mean they’re improving your supply chain, including finding efficiencies to help you to better serve demand peeks and consumer expectations.
What happens when you get it right?
Put simply: brand loyalty and business growth.
Creating a strong relationship with your logistics provider will ensure your customers get what they want, when they want it, because you’re able to deliver peak performance, all year round. That consistency creates trust and promotes brand loyalty, keeping your delighted customers coming back for more.
Want to know how logistics can help unite you with your customer and grow your business? Visit: Cygnia Logistics or call 01604 664 300.