Black Friday 2022 shipping is just around the corner, marking shoppers’ and retailers’ official start of the holiday season. Each year, the last Friday of November is getting bigger by generating more and more sales and revenues. In 2021, Black Friday shipments increased sales for retail businesses considerably. It resulted in a leap in demand for eCommerce companies and retailers.

Black Friday shipping challenges

It can be very challenging to keep up with that demand and maintain high-quality customer service simultaneously. This is crucial for businesses since the overall customer experience defines whether they will return for shopping or not. Many of these purchases are gifts, putting even more pressure to deliver on time. Due to strict delivery deadlines, it’s sometimes hard to avoid shipping delays because of heavy traffic and congested routes.

Since the enormously high return rates after Black Friday and Cyber Monday, retailers have to prepare for various shipping situations. Try to organize your Black Friday shipments returns policy to ensure the customers’ financial safety. During this period, the delivery flow is highly intense, and sometimes order returns are unavoidable. Still, you can work on securing your products with reliable packaging and cooperating with professional carriers.

Often, retailers face common stock issues during the Black Friday shipping season. This problem typically emerges because of sales analytics gaps, which don’t let you evaluate the popularity of different products in your line. Eventually, your business may suffer from insufficient supply or deadstock.

Tips for Black Friday 2022 shipping

Despite the challenges of the proactive holiday shipping season, there are ways to organize your supply chain properly. The shared experience of many successful retail businesses provides several reliable practices to prepare for Black Friday shipping.

Prepare early

Traditionally, retailers start preparing for the holiday season early, beginning in the middle of August. However, if you haven’t done that much-advanced planning, you can still adjust to the rush before the end of November. Set up all marketing campaigns, prepare sales, check inventory and estimate how many products you will sell during the busy time.

Consider analyzing your previous sales data and customer feedback to guarantee the company benefits. It will help you detect the most frequently purchased items and make some changes to the products’ features. Besides, you can apply the techniques of demand forecasting to predict what goods may potentially bring you the most income.

Also, plan your Black Friday shipments to book the needed capacity at better rates. The earlier you start researching suitable carrier services and comparing their pricing, the more extensive your choices are. In addition, following the capacity updates allows you to get some additional spot shipments in between.

Communicate with suppliers

Before entering Black Friday 2022, estimating your supply volumes and detecting possible bottlenecks is essential. The best way to do this is to verify you’re receiving enough materials or goods to satisfy customer demand on time. If any inconvenience emerges, try to communicate the issues with your supplier and work out a better plan.

Apart from streamlining the supply flow, you’ve got an excellent opportunity to strengthen the relationships with your vendor. It creates a favorable ground for establishing a strong, long-term partnership that benefits both parties. In addition, your supplier will better understand your supply chain management and prioritize you as a customer.

Hire additional help

Sales can jump quickly during Black Friday weekend, so consider hiring additional staff to help you fulfill all the orders. Whether it helps directly in your supply chain operations, there are no extra hands in the holiday rush. For example, you can get assistance at a stock facility or a warehouse center. The employees will help you manage your stock and take care of its proper storage.

Also, consider hiring customer support representatives to help you handle the buyers’ requests and answer their questions. This step will improve the quality of order processing and overall customer service. You’ll gain extra time to focus on the core shipping operations without worrying about direct communication with your target audience.

Ensure to have all the partners set up

The retail business is complex and usually involves many parties in the operating process. While preparing your stock and checking payment systems, don’t forget to communicate this information to your suppliers, shipping providers, and other business partners. Let them know the timing or what you need in advance. A clear communication strategy will help you avoid potential misunderstandings and shipment disruptions. Analyze your previous years’ experience and implement solutions that will benefit you and your customers.

With good preparation, Black Friday and the rest of the holiday season can be less of a burden. GoShip platform aims to facilitate the organization of shipping activities and provide our customers with the best LTL rates. On our website, you’ll find a vast network of experienced carriers and compare the prices of transportation services. Check out our digital tool to get a free LTL quote today!