What do I need to take care of myself before the transition begins?

Most of the work involved in switching providers isn’t done in the warehouse, but on your end. The better organized your product data, barcodes, and agreements are before you start, the faster and smoother the rest of the process will go. Here’s what you need to prepare on your own.

Keep Your Product Information Up to Date

Make sure each item has a single, unique number that is consistent everywhere: in your online store, in your purchasing system, and on the packaging. Variations in color, size, or quantity are separate items, even if you consider them to belong together. Duplicate or ambiguous numbers are the most common cause of errors that don’t surface until later.

Barcodes

Each item requires its own scannable barcode. If your supplier has already applied one, check to make sure it’s truly unique for each variant. If it’s missing, have the supplier add it before you place your order. Applying barcodes after the fact is extra work and will be billed at the applicable rate.

A current inventory count

Count your inventory before you ship it. What you report and what arrives must match, because that is the starting point for your inventory count. A discrepancy you discover now is a counting error; a discrepancy you discover later is a search operation.

Your packaging preferences

Think about what an order should look like when your customer opens the box. Standard packaging materials are included, but if you want your own boxes, an insert card, gift wrapping, or an information leaflet, please specify that in advance. That way, it will be included in the work instructions right away, rather than being added later as an exception.

Special Requirements

If your product line has specific requirements regarding storage, shelf life, batch tracking, or returns processing, be sure to specify them explicitly. The same applies to products with hazard labels, such as perfume or nail polish, as these require specific arrangements with the carrier.

Your shipping options and customer communications

Check which shipping methods you offer in your online store and whether those names match what’s used in the warehouse. Discrepancies here are a common cause of misrouted orders. Next, review your order confirmation and tracking emails: Is the shipping address still correct, and does it include a return address that reflects the new situation?

Your schedule

Choose a quiet moment. Switching in the middle of a campaign or right before the holidays is possible, but it won’t give you any leeway if something needs to be sorted out. Also, agree on who your point of contact will be, so that questions about products or appointments go straight to the right person.