Marketing Commentary from interlinkONE
Marketing. Web-to-Print. Warehouse Management.
The Supply Chain: A Collaboration of Marketing and Fulfillment
Posted by 
on Monday, December 5, 2011 
at 2:46 PM 
in 
Over the past few years, many service providers in the worlds of print and mail have sought to grow their business by also offering fulfillment services.
While this certainly can prove to be a profitable move, the initial transition may prove to be a bit difficult. Part of that is simply related to logistics — you need space to hold inventory, you need to install shelves, you need to strategically learn where to position materials, etc. However, once a company gets over some of the bumps during the implementation process, they may start riding down a smooth and profitable road.
If you are wondering if your company can also benefit by offering fulfillment services, we have some advice for you.
The Main Secret to Success
In the end, success inside of a fulfillment operation often comes when the lines of communication between it and the marketing/sales departments are open and running smoothly.
Some companies make the mistake of not thinking of fulfillment operations as part of the marketing process. But it absolutely is!
Most of the materials being stored and fulfilled inside of a warehouse are often for marketing activities — for trade shows, for lead follow-up, for presentations, and more. Thus, it is absolutely vital that your supply chain management efforts — which connect marketing with fulfillment — are functioning as well as possible.
Overview of Supply Chain Management
What exactly is supply chain management?
One definition is listed as the “design, planning, execution, control, and monitoring of supply chain activities with the objective of creating net value, building a competitive infrastructure, leveraging worldwide logistics, synchronizing supply with demand and measuring performance globally.”
Now, that may seem slightly confusing or overwhelming to a company that is wondering whether they should get into the fulfillment business.
But the good news is that in all actuality, supply chain management can be orderly, efficient, and successful, especially when marketing and warehouse business departments work together effectively.
A few simple steps that can improve communication and work-flow between multiple departments include:
- Implementing software that both groups can monitor easily — this would include visibility into inventory amounts, order status, and more
- Understanding the supply chain from beginning to end so that there is no confusion as to how each step fits into the wholesale/retail puzzle
- Consistent scheduled face-to-face meetings can go a long way toward promoting a spirit of community between departments
Are you looking to improve your Supply Chain?
If you are looking to offer fulfillment services, or to improve your existing Supply Chain Process, I hope that you find the information above helpful.
Of course, if you’d like to discuss this further, I would love to help! Please feel free to contact me.
Tags Webinar: April 6th on the Marketing Supply Chain
I just wanted to share a quick news blurb about an upcoming interlinkONE webinar.
On April 6th at 2PM Eastern Time, Karen Sheehey will present a webinar on the topic of “The Marketing Supply Chain: Providing Solutions with Virtual Warehousing“.
I hate to brag, but I am excited to share this news — we started promoting this webinar yesterday, and it’s already on pace to become one of the most popular webinars that we’ve ever done in regards to the # of registrations.
I think that speaks to the fact that organizations of all types and sizes are all trying to streamline operations and communications between sales and marketing departments.
If you’d like to hear Karen talk about print-on-demand, variable data printing, electronic fulfillment, and more, simply click here to RSVP >>
Ignite Your Growth Symposium: March 17th
On Thursday, March 17th 2011, I will have the privilege of attending and speaking at the “Ignite Your Growth” symposium in Philadelphia, PA.
This event is being put on by the great people at Today’s Graphics Incorporated (TGI).
There are absolutely a few very impressive items on the agenda… There’s a continental breakfast to kick things off, there will be live music and dancers during lunch, and my boss John Foley will be presenting as well 
If you will be attending the symposium, I’d love to see you there.
Here are the details regarding the presentations that we’ll be delivering:
Presenter: Karen Sheehey
Topic: Saving Time, Energy, and Money with Virtual Warehousing
Times: 11:30 am and 3:30 pm
Description: Would you like to reduce your inventory? Learn how other Fortune 500s are successfully transitioning to virtual warehousing. Karen will discuss real life challenges and benefits being realized by other enterprises that have successfully made the transition.
Presenter: John Foley, Jr.
Topic: Using Social Media to Build Your Business
Times: 10:30 am and 2:30 pm
Description: Explore the business case for social and mobile media–not just for marketing purposes, but as a way to generate leads and build client relationships. Learn what’s new with social media and mobile media and how you can use these tools for prospecting and lead generation.
Warehouse/Ordering: State Restrictions (Feature Highlight)
In the business of collateral distribution and fulfillment, it sure would be easier if all users could order and receive the same items. The company managing the inventory would have a lot less stress.
However in many industries, that is not the case. Financial Services and insurance companies have many rules that dictate which collateral can be shipped to people, based on the State that they live in.
Many of our service provider clients have received business from companies in those vertical markets. One way that our software supports them is via our State Restrictions feature.
In the Inventory Management section of our software, users have the ability to create and define details of the products that they are responsible for. This might include reorder points, descriptions, print instructions, and order approval rules. Users can also define if a product (or kit) is restricted to specific States.
If a product is restricted to specific States, our Order Placement/Shopping Cart pages will honor those rules. Users will only be able to view and order products that are available to the applicable State. This helps to ensure that any laws surrounding distribution of that sensitive literature are honored.
Another example of how this feature may be used is if a person orders a kit. Let’s say someone orders the “Welcome to ACME Insurance” kit. This kit might include a generic Welcome letter, a What’s New document, and perhaps a description of the various insurance options that are offered. But if the person lives in the State of Massachusetts, the system could automatically inform the warehouse that they must include a supplement that provides state-specific guidelines when they ship the order.
Use our Inventory Usage Reports for Planning and Action
We recently released an enhancement to one of the most popular reports in the Warehouse module of our ilinkONE Version 8 software.
Customers often use the “Part Number Usage” report to analyze what they have on the shelf, how much they’ve used, and what they may need for the future. Our new enhancement provides customers with a quick way to record notes for each product, directly from the report.
Simply click on the “notes” icon, and you will able to enter a new note for that item. You will also be able to review previous notes.
This enhancement will allow customers to truly utilize the usage data that our system calculates. The notes data is often used in determining the next steps for re-printing or re-stocking an inventory item. Having immediate access to that data should help all personnel involved.
Here is a screen shot of the updated report:
Click the Notes Icon on the Part Number Usage Report
Here is a shot of the “Add/View Notes” window:
Review and Add Notes for your Inventory Items
