Helpful International Fulfillment Tips

Consumers by nature are ambitious, finding joy in being able to get what they want in spite of the obstacles. And if people far away want your products or your local client base desires foreign goods, it’s time to engage in importing and exporting.

If you’ve never done this before, here are some tips to get you started:

1. Know Your Niche and Buyers

This may sound obvious, but you need to know where your product line is in demand.

Consider the big picture: it’s not just regular clients of your fulfillment center that might be interested, but also governments, corporations, and even the military.

2. Know Your Budget

While this likely also sounds like a no-brainer, costs for importing and exporting goods are pretty varied. There are tariffs, transport fees, foreign distribution, and fulfillment fares to consider, not to mention repackaging, promo material, and marketing campaigns.

3. Know Your Laws

Legal knowledge is a necessity. Product restrictions and laws regarding intellectual property, amongst other rules, can vary between countries. And with the expansion of e-commerce order fulfillment, security measures for imports and exports are stricter about abiding to their standards.

4. Know Your Capabilities

Shipping can be complex, but is manageable provided you plan ahead and obtain the right assistance with your warehousing and shipping. You have to determine which containers, storage, and means of transportation are required, the answers depending on the size and amount of product being moved.

5. Know Your Allies

More than anything, you’re going to need some sort of agent to assist you with your import/export operations—someone to assist with third-party fulfillment. Options include a home-based agent, a multinational product agency, a branch office of a major associate business, a distributor, and a joint venture with another company. To get started, work backwards by contacting your existing distribution and fulfillment source and see what information they can provide you on international representation.

Need solutions to your product fulfillment problems? APS Fulfillment, Inc. has the knowledge and services to make your direct mail and product fulfillment ventures more successful. Contact APS Fulfillment, Inc. by e-mail at info@apsfulfillment.com, visit their web site at www.apsfulfillment.com, or phone at (954) 582-7450.