Amazon Shipping insights & news
Prep for retail's peak season
Learn how you can make sure your peak season is a success. Having the right plans in place ensures you not only get through peak season but also knock it out of the park.
Retailers’ peak season brings increased sales, surges in demand, and, if you're not prepared, more stress. Consumers have high expectations of getting their packages on time, and the last thing you want is to disappoint holiday shoppers. Having the right plans in place ensures you not only get through peak season but also knock it out of the park.
Here’s how you can make sure your peak season is a success.
Here’s how you can make sure your peak season is a success.
Identify what peak season means to you and your customers
Peak season generally refers to the holidays, kicking off with Black Friday, which falls on November 29 this year, and run through Christmas. But the holiday rush can begin much sooner. Consumers are shopping earlier and earlier. In 2023, the National Retail Federation reported that almost half of consumers planned to start their shopping before November.
And don't forget smaller retail peaks, such as back-to-school season and Halloween, that can also bring a surge in demand. Your peaks may also be related to promotions, such as Amazon Prime Day, or marketing efforts the company has planned.
And don't forget smaller retail peaks, such as back-to-school season and Halloween, that can also bring a surge in demand. Your peaks may also be related to promotions, such as Amazon Prime Day, or marketing efforts the company has planned.
Forecast demand
Advanced planning guarantees you have the inventory, labor, shipping materials, and shipping providers in place when you need them so you can fulfill every order. Past sales, upcoming promotions, and growth can help you forecast your optimal inventory levels and re-order points.
Amazon Shipping works with you to forecast your pickup demand using machine learning, pickup and delivery history, internal information, and manual data. Amazon sellers can use Amazon Shipping for products sold on Amazon as well as other channels, including their website or other online marketplaces.
Amazon Shipping works with you to forecast your pickup demand using machine learning, pickup and delivery history, internal information, and manual data. Amazon sellers can use Amazon Shipping for products sold on Amazon as well as other channels, including their website or other online marketplaces.
Communicate early and often
It is nearly impossible to overcommunicate during the busy holiday season, and you’ll want to keep your shipping providers and your customers informed. We already covered how helpful forecasts can be, and sharing your forecast with your shipping provider enables them to have the right equipment and drivers to pick up your packages and get them delivered to your customers. With large shipments, they may want to send a trailer rather than a bin for you to load.
Tracking has become increasingly important to shoppers, and they want to see the status of their orders. Work with providers that offer tracking so your customers have one less thing to worry about as they celebrate the season. Amazon Shipping provides tracking information as soon as a label is created and only ends once a package is delivered. Delivery drivers take a photo of the package to confirm delivery and provide information on the delivery location.
Tracking has become increasingly important to shoppers, and they want to see the status of their orders. Work with providers that offer tracking so your customers have one less thing to worry about as they celebrate the season. Amazon Shipping provides tracking information as soon as a label is created and only ends once a package is delivered. Delivery drivers take a photo of the package to confirm delivery and provide information on the delivery location.
Evaluate bottlenecks
You don't want anything to slow down the transportation of goods, so look at any issues that could cause fulfillment to lag. For Mark Lee, founder of BentleyGift, floor space within the warehouse was filling up over the weekend as packages sat waiting for a Monday morning pickup, making the warehouse team inefficient.
Lee switched to Amazon Shipping, which provides pickups and deliveries seven days a week for no additional charge. "Having that daily pickup helps enormously because I have limited space," he said. Lee added that having a cost-effective option for weekend pickups and deliveries gets orders in transit to customers faster.
Shipping software integrations can also streamline operations. Amazon Shipping allows you to print shipping labels through Amazon Shipping’s Shipper Central, directly through our API integration, or with third-party integrators you’re already using, so you don't need to print labels individually, which can be costly and time consuming.
Lee switched to Amazon Shipping, which provides pickups and deliveries seven days a week for no additional charge. "Having that daily pickup helps enormously because I have limited space," he said. Lee added that having a cost-effective option for weekend pickups and deliveries gets orders in transit to customers faster.
Shipping software integrations can also streamline operations. Amazon Shipping allows you to print shipping labels through Amazon Shipping’s Shipper Central, directly through our API integration, or with third-party integrators you’re already using, so you don't need to print labels individually, which can be costly and time consuming.
Seek value
We understand that alongside the daily stresses of running a business, getting shipping right can feel daunting. That’s where a robust shipping strategy comes in, helping you to optimise processes and save money.
In this guide, we’ll take you through important considerations when crafting an effective shipping strategy: calculating shipping costs, managing these costs effectively, and choosing the right delivery speeds to meet your customers’ needs.
In this guide, we’ll take you through important considerations when crafting an effective shipping strategy: calculating shipping costs, managing these costs effectively, and choosing the right delivery speeds to meet your customers’ needs.
Let us help
We are here to help you with your peak season and day-to-day shipping needs. Sign up for Amazon Shipping and get your shipping rates today.
* Limitations apply.
Grow your business with Amazon Shipping.
Reliable. Fast. No additional weekend delivery fees.
© 2024 Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates. All rights reserved