eCard Systems Uses Shipping Automation Rules to Ship Faster

Recently, an unexpected set of shipping problems was seriously slowing down fulfillment and getting in the way of business growth for eCard Systems. The company had already grown to manufacture and ship premium gift cards for 100,000+ businesses in the U.S. and Canada. They were shipping more than 200 orders per day from the warehouse, and workers were stuck in a frustrating cycle of constantly trying to catch up. 

The hands-on steps to print shipping labels for FedEx One Rate were causing a serious bottleneck in the shipping process. As a result, eCard Systems sought Descartes’ help to reduce manual labor and ship faster. Here’s how the company radically transformed the shipping process. With shipping automation rules, they eliminated a huge headache in the daily workflow and cut processing time from 30 seconds to under 10 seconds per order. 

High-Priority Shipping Problems

This successful ecommerce business already had a smart shipping strategy in place to ensure predictable pricing and straightforward shipping with FedEx One Rate. However, problems in fulfillment threatened to derail their carefully laid plans. 

Painfully slow label-printing process 

The manual process to select the correct service and package type for each order bogged down warehouse productivity and limited the company’s ability to grow their business. Despite their best efforts, the company struggled to keep up with labeling. When peak volumes hit, the slow process caused them to risk missing FedEx pickup cutoffs during the busiest times. 

Looming threat of shipping delays

Shipping delays threatened customer satisfaction, business reputation, and revenue from repeat business. To prevent delays, this hard-working company went the extra mile – literally – to ensure on-time order delivery. Every time eCard Systems missed the FedEx pickup cutoff during peak seasons, an employee personally drove shipments to the FedEx hub after-hours to keep their delivery promise to customers. However, this was not a productive/cost-effective use of their time or a sustainable solution. Something had to change. 

eCard Systems Wins with Shipping Automation Rules

Seeking relief from this frustrating problem, eCard Systems consulted with the Descartes team. They sought to devise a faster way to print shipping labels using the Descartes ShipRush™ multi-carrier shipping software. Together, they configured shipping automation rules to lift the burden from warehouse workers, reduce manual labor, and get orders out the door on time.  

The new automation rules selected specific services and package types for the four most common shipment types. Not only did the rules replace manual labor, but they also completely removed the potential for human error for those tasks. The outcome? It ensured consistency and quality in the shipping process for each order. 

With the right technology to handle recurring tasks and prevent bottlenecks, eCard Systems workers could finally relax. They knew that peak periods and high order volumes would no longer threaten on-time order delivery.   

Tools for success: Descartes ShipRush™ multi-carrier shipping software, top 10 shipping automation rules 

Biggest Wins

• Gained 1.5 hours of productive time per day by automating tasks and eliminating after-hours FedEx dropoffs 
• Boosted profitability, preserving shipping margins on 90% of orders and reducing manual labor costs 
• Ensured on-time delivery by cutting order processing time from 30 to less than 10 seconds and preventing bottlenecks

Threats Avoided

• Late orders, unhappy customers, and bad reviews 
• Loss of profit due to churn and poor productivity 
• Restriction of business growth, limited capacity 

Need Help with a Similar Shipping Problem?

No one should have to deal with shipping headaches, especially during peak seasons. If these problems sound all too familiar, we hope you will do yourself a favor and decide to make a change. Let technology lift the burden and take care of the tedious work. 

Descartes offers free 1:1 live support for all customers. Try Descartes ShipRush for free and contact us to help configure your setup and solve your shipping problems today.