Tectalic helped an established business automate its online order processing by connecting their online store to Australia Post eParcel using Starshipit. This integration sped up order processing, getting orders out to customers faster and saving the business time while reducing errors.
Project Overview
Our client is an established business that has been selling online for about a decade. Until recently they have manually handled, processed and shipped orders as they flow through the website.
The Goal
They were looking for a way to automatically lodge each order into their courier’s shipment system, in their case, Australia Post eParcel. Manually typing names, addresses, and order details into the shipping provider had been slow and error-prone. They wanted to automate that to save time. This project was particularly useful and relevant for them because they have seasonal product releases three or four times a year, with quiet times in between. During those seasonal times, they receive large numbers of orders in a very short period. It’s been challenging for them to manage the whole process manually with their small team. Their goals were to reduce customer delivery times while reducing errors and workload.
Challenges & Surprises
Our previous experience working with other shipping fulfilment software helped ensure this project went smoothly. This experience helped us ensure that we asked the client the right questions in the planning phase so the desired result and setup were clear for all. The most surprising element was Starshipit – it was a lot easier to set up and use than previous systems that we had used. It was a breath of fresh air for us and the client.
Customisations
Our client sells both domestically within Australia and internationally. They offer fee-based shipping and also a local pick up option. While these options made the integration a bit more complex than it would otherwise be, all of those scenarios can be handled by the integration.
Features of Starshipit
Several aspects of Starshipit were beneficial for the business’s operations. It’s off-the-shelf software that integrates with Australia Post (among many other couriers). Starshipit also integrates with the client’s eCommerce platform, WooCommerce, and already has built-in connectors for those services, making it easy to get everything reliably talking to each other. The integration could be achieved without writing custom software.
Steps To Integration
Planning
The key to seamless integration is the planning phase. We sat with our client and had them describe in detail how they manually processed and shipped all types of orders. We wanted to avoid assumptions and be very clear about how they do that.
Flow Chart
After we were all clear about how the current order fulfilment process works, we developed a flowchart showing how the new process with Starshipit would work. That helped the client understand how the shipping process would work for different order types and approve it in advance.
Implementation
Our client established their new Starshipit account, and we linked it to their Australia Post eParcel and WooCommerce accounts. There are a number of different settings and options in Starshipit, and these were configured to match the agreed flow.
Test Orders
Test orders were placed for different scenarios, including local pickup orders and domestic delivery.
Training and Handover
The handover to the client for their own testing was straightforward, using the agreed order flows. Because of the in-house experience with order processing, once the integrations between WooCommerce and Starshipit were in place they found it very easy to understand and use. The client got direct assistance from Starshipit support to set up their shipping label software on their office computers. Once all testing was completed, the system was put into production and worked well.
Client Feedback
System Working Well
After several weeks of operation, the client was really pleased with the way it all worked. They appreciated the fact that the billing is flexible with Starshipit, so in those busier times of the year, they can upgrade to a plan that supports more orders.
They used it for a high volume seasonal product release shortly after implementation. The system achieved their goals of speeding up delivery processing, saving many hours of manual data transfer work, and improving the experience for their customers.
Starshipit Support
Our client has also had a very good experience with the Starshipit support team, who have helped them further refine some of the order processing details. They were able to work directly with Starshipit to refine the flow even more and get the desktop application at their end working as efficiently as possible.
Future Improvements
Accounting Integration
Now that they’ve automated the delivery and fulfilment of their orders, our client wants to automate the invoicing of their online orders further. They’re currently working with their accounting system provider to help get that up and running.
They had wanted to do it a few years back, but it was quite complicated. Now that they’ve had a taste of how much time they can save with an automated order-handling process, they now have extra motivation for the accounting integration.
Pick Up Order Improvements
They’ve since noticed that some of their customers accidentally place delivery orders when they meant to place pick-up orders, so we are working with them to improve the checkout process to help ensure pick-up orders are always placed correctly.
International Orders
For the initial implementation, we chose to focus on Australian domestic orders. International orders are much less common, and the business uses several different couriers depending on where the customer is located. It seems likely that our client will automate the international orders next, and Starshipit’s rule-based structure should help support that.
Project Time & Costs
With a service like Starshipit, we were able to complete the project without doing any custom software development. This allowed us to complete the project in several weeks (including planning and implementation) within our regular retainer with the client. It was one of multiple priorities that we delivered for the client that month. Pricing for the Starshipit service ranges from fifty to several hundred dollars a month (depending on order volumes).
Project Takeaways
Importance of Planning
The key takeaway is the importance of the up-front planning phase. Take the time to get very clear on how the current order fulfilment process works, map out the new process with the Starshipit automation in place and help the client understand how it will all work.
Manual Processing Is Still Common
Manual order processing is still very common in small and medium businesses. People tend to put up with a manual laborious process for years without realising how much time these tasks are taking up. Sometimes they’re not even aware that those manual processes can be automated. It takes a conscious effort to decide to spend the time (and the resources) to automate a manual process. Our client is saving so much time that it’s already paid back the investment to automate. That will be a compounding benefit as the months roll on and they do more seasonal product releases.
Improvement in Customer Experience
The automation has improved the customer experience by reducing errors and faster order processing time. When you place an online order you will often get a “Your order has shipped,” notification a few hours later. That is a fantastic customer experience.
In Summary
Integrating applications, and automating the data flows between them, has never been more feasible using off the shelf solutions. If you’re running a small or medium business and you’re doing things manually, it’s worth taking the time ask yourself this question:
“How much of this manual process could be automated, and what would that mean to my business and my customers?”
You might be surprised how feasible it is.