Running an online store is no easy task. Besides ensuring you have the best quality products and an appealing website, you have to keep track of your inventory and make sure your products are delivered to ordering customers. This usually involves multiple warehouses, different logistics services for different geographic location amongst other challenges. It is therefore, prudent to utilise a shipping platform that will simplify these processes and manage everything from one location. Let’s look at a few shipping softwares available today.
ShipStation – shipstation.com A versatile cloud based software that is easily integrated with most online shopping platforms and logistics providers. This software comes with a host of useful features such as store label design, inventory management, integration with online shopping platforms such as shopify and also integration with popular online marketplaces such as Etsy.com. Prices vary from moderate to high depending on the package chosen but they do allow a 30 day trial so you can use the product and be sure about it before spending your money.
Parcelhub Shipping – parcelhub.co.uk This shipping platform is an installed system that integrated well with online platforms and has features like inventory management, label design etc. It is also free to use. The company does not charge you anything for the installation and use of the software. The only downside is that has a imited number of parcels per month and is therefore only suitable for retailers at the initial growth phase.
EcommHub – ecommhub.com A very feature rich shipping platform, EcommHub is aimed at the more established online stores. It is therefore priced accordingly but the tradeoff is that you get a reliable efficient system that is more suited to a large ecommerce organisation with multiple storefronts and business partners.
U Route – uroute.com A cost effective alternative for shipping platforms, U Route’s simple and easy to use interface makes it popular amongst smaller and newer online ventures. The lower prices also results in a dearth of extra features and U Route focuses on core logistics rather than package design or inventory management.
ShipWorks – shipworks.com A shipping platform widely integrated with most online shopping platforms and marketplaces, shipwork’s strength is its user support and customer service. It is also very affordable and a perfect fit for small stores.