Routing guides enable you to set specific standards and requirements for moving shipments through your supply chain, and maintain those standards while working with outside suppliers and distributors. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
With every party following the same guidelines on how to handle and route various shipments<\/a>, your cargo can seamlessly move between different points in the supply chain with minimal issues. This helps you save time and effort in managing your ecommerce shipping operations<\/a>, which improves efficiency in the long run. <\/p>\n\n\n\n A routing guide contains a ton of critical information that guides various aspects of your shipping operations. Some of the main components of a routing guide include: <\/p>\n\n\n\n Ecommerce retailers may create routing guides as they expand their operations and work with more suppliers, vendors, and shipping partners across more locations. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The most common type of routing guide found in ecommerce is the inbound vendor routing guide. This guide provides a detailed set of rules on how to handle inbound shipments (shipments from a supplier or manufacturer<\/a> to a brand\u2019s facilities) that are to be stored at the retailer\u2019s warehouse or various distribution centres. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The ecommerce brand shares the finished routing guide with relevant parties, such as vendors and suppliers, as well as your 3PL<\/a>, fulfilment partner, or other stakeholders that are responsible for sending inventory to the business\u2019s warehouses and fulfilment centres. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Before preparing the goods for shipment, the vendor refers to the routing guide to ensure that packages are prepared in accordance with the brand\u2019s specifications and preferences. They then hand them off to the courier, which also refers to the routing guide to ensure that the shipment is transported and handled according to the buyer\u2019s requirements. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Having detailed routing instructions in place enables you to standardize and optimise your shipping process<\/a>. This benefits your ecommerce operations in a number of ways. <\/p>\n\n\n\n A routing guide lays out all your shipping and routing requirements, and these requirements are made with your operational needs and time constraints in mind. As a result, you can design a set of rules specifically structured to help you improve your order fulfilment<\/a> efficiency. <\/p>\n\n\n\n When relevant parties have all the necessary information on hand regarding how to handle your shipments, you can minimise the need to go back and forth for clarification and instruction. This allows you to essentially automate some portions of your transportation management, which improves supply chain efficiency. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Moreover, when all instructions and key details are laid out at the start, it makes it easier for shippers to prepare and transport shipments according to your requirements. This generally leads to higher order accuracy<\/a> and vendor compliance, as it helps prevent misshipments<\/a> and other errors that hurt your brand\u2019s OTIF<\/a> rate. <\/p>\n\n\n\n With this level of accuracy, you also reduce the need for corrections and rerouting, which further increases operational efficiency (since you\u2019re not having to spend time repackaging goods to meet compliance regulations or reshipping packages to the correct destination). <\/p>\n\n\n\n Having a routing guide in place also helps you save time and money. Specifically, a well-written routing guide enables you to: <\/p>\n\n\n\n Routing guides are a valuable tool \u2013 but like any other tool, they require upkeep to be effective. Here are some best practices for managing your routing guide over time. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Shipping costs change, courier policies get updated, and new routes emerge. All of these can have an impact on your shipping operations, so it\u2019s important to stay on top of any changes that could affect various aspects of your shipping and update your routing guide accordingly. <\/p>\n\n\n\n It is crucial that your routing guide aligns uses current or timely information, so your shipping operations can function seamlessly. Additionally, using the most up-to-date data will also help you find the most optimal solutions and further improve your shipping strategy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n For example, say one of your preferred couriers invests in new trucks to support liftgate delivery. If you\u2019ve been experiencing issues transporting your heavy goods using another service, you could update the routing guide to leverage this courier\u2019s service for your heavier shipments<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s also important to maintain clear communication channels with shippers and couriers alike. Make sure to provide shippers with the latest updates to your routing guide so they can use it from that point forward. Have a system in place to ensure that they\u2019ve received their specific routing guide and to confirm that they understand it (this may involve requiring a signature response that also serves as a security measure). <\/p>\n\n\n\n Similarly, maintain regular communications with your courier and logistics partners so that you stay apprised of any changes that could influence your routing guide. Have them share updates to their policies, rates, and services before they take effect so you can update your routing guides accordingly. <\/p>\n\n\n\n While you may have a system in place to revisit your routing guide every few months, it\u2019s also important to make adjustments on the fly. If you can remain flexible to a degree, you will be less likely to be deeply impacted by unexpected and sudden changes, as you\u2019ll be able to adapt your shipping strategy in a timely manner. <\/p>\n\n\n\n To monitor your shipping performance, you will need access to real-time analytics on all your channels and shipments \u2013 preferably through a single platform. You may use a transportation management system<\/a> with built-in analytics capabilities to keep track of KPIs<\/a> such as transit time and cost, or leverage a partner\u2019s platform to achieve this visibility. <\/p>\n\n\n\n ShipBob, for example, offers merchants a free analytics reporting tool<\/a> that tracks key metrics on shipping performance that you can use to extract insights that will help you update your routing guide. <\/p>\n\n\n ShipBob also tracks real-time courier rates<\/a>, which can be used to optimise your routing strategy for increased cost savings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As a best-in-class fulfilment provider, ShipBob helps ecommerce brands optimise their shipping strategy from port-to-porch. Here are just some of the ways ShipBob saves brands time and money while minimising the complexities of shipping. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Brands can ship freight to ShipBob\u2019s global fulfilment network using FreightBob<\/a>, an end-to-end managed freight and inventory distribution program that enables merchants to pick from a variety of preferred freight providers, optimise freight costs, and get access to sailings from most global locations directly to ShipBob\u2019s receiving hubs and fulfilment centres. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe first shipment that we had with FreightBob\u2026I mean, it was amazing. We beat the average freight time it’s taken to move something from Asia to our warehouse in LA by at least 50% \u2014 and it was easier and cost us less money. What’s not to love about that?\u201d <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Nathan Garrison, Co-Founder and CEO of Sharkbanz<\/a> <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n ShipBob can also help you simplify inbound and outbound freight shipments to or from our fulfilment centres. Merchants who use ShipBob can save on freight costs, time spent on transit and coordination, with all appointments booked for them, and simplify vendor management through ShipBob\u2019s all-in-one logistics solution. <\/p>\n\n\n\n ShipBob\u2019s platform integrates seamlessly with major ecommerce platforms and tools, so orders across all your channels are pulled into ShipBob and processed automatically. <\/p>\n\n\n\n From there, our algorithm leverages your order data and product availability to forward each order<\/a> to the ShipBob fulfilment centre closest to the end customer. This ensures that your orders are shipped out from the most ideal fulfilment centres to save on shipping costs while reducing transit time. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Brands can even use ShipBob\u2019s Ideal Inventory Distribution tool<\/a> to calculate the most optimal split of inventory across ShipBob\u2019s fulfilment centre network to lower the average zone they\u00a0ship to. ShipBob will also physically distribute your inventory to regional fulfilment centres for you \u2013 simply send your inventory to a single ShipBob receiving hub, and we\u2019ll do the rest. \u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n \u201cShipBob’s technology streamlines inventory management across our network, ensuring optimal inventory allocation. Once the inventory is allocated correctly, passing orders to ShipBob is seamless. ShipBob automatically routes orders to the nearest warehouse to the customer. We receive notifications confirming the warehouse selected for shipping, eliminating inventory discrepancies between the warehouses. Efficient inventory allocation significantly impacts our outbound shipping costs, and with ShipBob, managing this has been effortless.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Ali Shahid, COO of Our Place<\/a> <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n ShipBob partners with major shipping couriers for last-mile logistics and negotiates bulk discounts to pass cost-savings on to merchants. Our platform also allows you to select a preferred courier for specific shipments automatically, or automatically choose the most cost effective shipping option for every shipment. <\/p>\n\n\n\n With dozens of fulfilment centres<\/a> across the globe, ShipBob\u2019s fulfilment network offers limitless shipping potential to help you optimise your routing strategy. By sending your inventory to and fulfilling orders from ShipBob\u2019s fulfilment centres in the UK, mainland Europe, Canada, and Australia, you can cut shipping times and costs for international customers while minimising cross-border complexities. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2019m a strong believer in having local inventory in the country that we ship to. I don\u2019t like to do cross-border shipments, just because there\u2019s so much potential for delays and customer issues. So for us, it\u2019s very important that the fulfilment company that we work with has the capability to grow with us and provide service in the countries in which we want to sell our products \u2013 and I see that with ShipBob.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Mithu Kuna, Founder and CEO of Baby Doppler<\/a> <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n For more information on how ShipBob can help streamline your shipping operations, click the button below. <\/p>\n\n\n\nKey components of a routing guide <\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\n
The lifecycle of a routing guide <\/h3>\n\n\n\n
The importance of routing guides for ecommerce <\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Promote fulfilment efficiency and accuracy <\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Improve cost-effectiveness and time management <\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
Best practices for managing routing guides <\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Regular updates and communication <\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Monitor and adapt on-the-fly <\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.shipbob.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/33\/2024\/08\/inventory-summary-and-turnover-from-ShipBobs-analytics-tool.png?w=1280px\")
<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\nFrom routing guide support to outsourced fulfilment: Introducing ShipBob <\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Inbound and outbound freight services <\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\n
Automated order processing and routing <\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.shipbob.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/33\/2024\/08\/image-1-2.png?w=1280px\")
<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
Optimised courier selection <\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Global fulfilment network for limitless shipping potential <\/h3>\n\n\n\n
\n
![](\"\/wp-content\/themes\/shipbob-2022\/resources\/svg\/plus-solid.svg\")
<\/div><\/div>