At present, the e-commerce market is booming throughout the world and across the country. More and more retailers make the transition from the traditional brick and mortar stores to web-based shops that are better suited to meet the growing demands of the modern customer. The truth is that electronic commerce was born out of the need to deal with changing shopping habits – the increased use of mobile technology. As mobile devices become more and more popular, it can be sure that e-commerce will have its won market. Yet, it seems that not all manufacturers and retailers welcome this change. In order to satisfy the demands of highly impatient consumers, they have no choice but to rely on third parties to accommodate and ship products. In what follows, we are going to discuss the way ecommerce logistics affects channel distribution.

E-commerce and the supply chain

Logistics and distribution networks have considerably evolved over the last couple of years, e-commerce logistics representing a result of this evolution. From the moment that electronic commerce was introduced, everything changed, including the supply chain. To be more precise, traditional supply chains are outdated. Retail models do not imply anymore freight moving from one distribution center to the other. This takes a considerable amount of time and does not provide good insight into product inventory. The growth of e-commerce management had led to the redefinition of logistics functions. Now, the following four affairs are in demand: e-fulfillment centers, parcel sortation centers and delivery, and, last but not least, shopping cart technology

Major e-commerce logistics challenges

While e-retailers are provided countless opportunities, they are frequently put in the difficulty of determining the ideal distribution network. The main issue with electronic commerce is the fact that customers need and implicitly expect faster deliveries, which adds a lot of pressure on all modes of transport. Basically, providers have to challenge the function of logistics, which is not simple considering that they have to reach a balance between service and cost. Companies that are not able to manage in-house systematization decide to let a third-party provider take care of the shipment of products and services. The third-party provider has to deal with common intricacies of deliveries, such as numerous customer addresses. Modern e-retailers also resort to order fulfillment technologies to reduce insufficiencies in the supply chain.

E-commerce logistics formulas

It is not surprising to find out that retailers who have established a reputation in e-commerce-logistics rely on certain strategies to manage the distribution network and implicitly gain a competitive edge. In developed countries, for instance, e-retailers have resorted to transforming their online shops into distribution hubs, shipping products and services directly to the customer. In other words, they change the delivery model. Others make use of mobility applications, which handle everything from delivery to pick up. Finally, it is necessary to mention the change in access points. Many providers have adopted the creation of innovative access points, such as stores and other convenient locations. Of course, there are many other logistical strategies.