Automate systems and gain logistics agility for Black Friday

Delivery efficiency and service level are essential to ensuring sales success on one of the year's biggest shopping dates

One of the most profitable dates for retail is approaching, and Black Friday 2024 promises to be more profitable than the previous year's. According to data from Geotrust Confi, the event is expected to generate 9.1% more online sales volume than in 2023, reaching a possible revenue of R$9.3 billion.

To maintain this sales performance, it is necessary to pay attention to certain specific points and adopt strategies to maintain the quality of the logistics chain and service level, such as delivery agility, efficient and appropriate use of resources, cost reduction, and margin increase.

According to Eduardo Muniz, a Massimo Consulting consultant and retail and consumer goods specialist, what contributes to this positive outcome is pursuing strategies that integrate the entire chain: technology, processes, logistics methods, IT, and communication between departments (sales, marketing, etc.).

This is where automation systems become indispensable, playing a key role in a company's logistics performance. An automation system makes logistics much more efficient, in addition to reducing order failures such as in dispatch and delivery, enabling more precise inventory control, and better managing high demand. However, it is important to stay alert to avoid any failures in these systems — whether in the ERP, MRP, or WMS — since failures in this case would result in losses.

The expert highlighted some strategies to prevent possible problems in the logistics chain, thereby ensuring customer satisfaction and generating returns for brands:

Learn from the last Black Friday:

Simple, but effective. Sales forecasting is an essential factor in preventing brands from losing sales. This allows retailers to produce with fewer errors by analyzing forecasts, avoiding both overproduction and product shortages. Reviewing the accuracy of sales forecasts during promotional periods is also necessary data to gather. It is important to assess the accuracy level of forecasts and learn from the process. Sales forecasting is increasingly incorporating technologies such as machine learning and big data analytics to improve accuracy and responsiveness across supply chains.

Ensure the quality of your systems:

In the case of online sales, one of the most important factors is having a properly functioning system. The goal is to prevent consumers from losing interest when accessing the brand's website due to server downtime caused by traffic spikes or some other failure. This can negatively impact sales performance, since consumers often abandon a purchase because of a "fragile" online system.

Apply intracompany communication:

Alignment between the Sales, Marketing, and Operations teams is essential to give the operation greater visibility and mitigate risks. The goal is to understand the impact the campaign will have on warehousing processes to ensure greater productivity in order picking and delivery during this peak sales period. Using cross-docking points can be a good way to speed up product distribution, increasing speed and reducing the number of movements. Another option is to position products closer to the end consumer to avoid lost sales due to lack of availability or extended delivery times.

Plan supply chain communication:

Once you have visibility into the campaign, share it with your partners. Transportation operations are heavily impacted during this period. Negotiate with your carriers and share the campaign plan with them. Increasing demand visibility for your suppliers will help build a more resilient chain during this critical period.

In addition to delivery delays, transportation problems can create a mismatch between inbound and outbound flow at the distribution center, causing significant productivity losses during this period.

Plan your warehousing processes:

The team needs to be able to handle outbound shipping, so aim to plan efficient work shifts for both the company and employees. To meet full demand, it is necessary to have a number of employees appropriate to the product or service being sold, along with contingency plans for different scenarios. Therefore, ensure this minimum staffing level so that everything is done with quality and without delays in the delivery schedule.

Don't skip process steps:

Last, but not least: don't skip process steps in order to avoid losing control, even under the pressure of increased demand. In trying to save time or guarantee delivery, product or service quality can suffer, and problems end up arising in the logistics chain. This leads to customer dissatisfaction and, likely, lost sales. Get it right the first time. This Lean Manufacturing principle is a good reminder that process quality is fundamental to productivity. Quality losses during this period can generate a volume of returns and dissatisfaction proportional to your sales.

It is important to anticipate possible problems and apply strategies that help your brand turn a profit during this period of intense sales that is Black Friday. It should be noted that each of these processes must be carefully evaluated, taking into account your company's specific reality. It's time to prepare for the year-end sales calendar.