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Value Added Logistics

Enhancing Customer Satisfaction through Value-Added Services

Ethan Townzen
Written by
Ethan Townzen
Published on
May 31, 2024
Enhancing customer satisfaction through value-added logistics

In any business, the need to maintain client satisfaction is crucial, and this is especially true in the warehousing and logistics sector. Upholding customer satisfaction in logistics is a top priority, as it directly impacts the success and efficiency of the supply chain.

One way to keep your customers satisfied, especially in the warehousing industry is to offer value added logistics on top of the warehousing solutions they have available.  

Formally, they are referred to as value added services or also known as value added logistics, but simply put they are extra services offered by the provider such as co-packing, rewrapping, and re-packing.

Now, you might be wondering how these services enhance customer satisfaction in logistics. In this article, we’ll explore precisely that, delving into the mechanisms that drive satisfaction and efficiency in the logistics sector. 

Examples of Value-Added Services 

We will explore specific value-added services that play a crucial role in optimizing operational efficiency and customer satisfaction in the logistics industry.

  • Co-packing: Combining various products into one package for promotional or sale purposes.
  • Kitting: Assembling different items into a single, ready-to-ship package.
  • Co-production: Joint production between a manufacturer and a logistics provider for the manufacturer to reduce costs of labor. Buske Logistics’ clients, such as Diageo attest to this, and you can see how great the effect is as they have continued to avail our services.
  • Retail display builds: involve creating and setting up visual displays in retail settings. A real example is the retail displays we build at Buske Logistics for Starbucks that ship to Walmart.
  • Heat tunnel rewrapping: involves encasing products in plastic and applying heat to shrink-wrap them securely. You can learn more about this process here.
  • Repacking: Altering a product's packaging for updates, corrections, or resizing.
  • Variety pack creation: Creating a variety pack for three flavors of chips.

Benefits of Value-Added Services

As mentioned previously, these services greatly influence customer satisfaction in logistics. Below are some specific benefits you can expect to experience: 

Increased Efficiency

A value-added service like kitting and co-packing streamline the supply chain, making it more efficient and reducing lead times. This leads to increased customer satisfaction, as customers' needs are addressed much more quickly with less effort.

This is a greatly studied phenomenon as documented in this study. The author has found a positive correlation between efficiency and customer satisfaction, such that higher efficiency means a higher satisfaction rate.

Cost-Savings

In co-production, labor costs and other miscellaneous expenses are cut down. This is because the majority of the labor costs are shouldered by the VAS provider as stipulated in their contract. 

With that, the customer is able to focus on other things that may require their attention. This increases both customer satisfaction and retention. For example, Buske’s long-term clients have continuously trusted us with their operations, making it a favorable situation for both parties.

Customization

Repacking and the creation of a variety pack allow companies (i.e., customers and clients) to customize their products to specific market demands. This will enable them to keep up with current trends effectively enhancing sales.

This article mentions that customers are willing to pay more for original packaging. This makes sense, as people seem to view novelty as something to collect, making them want to purchase things that are packaged uniquely. All of these point to increased sales on the client's side, making them more satisfied in the long run.

Integrating Value-Added Services to Improve Customer Satisfaction

To maximize the benefits of value-added services, logistics companies need to integrate these services effectively into their operations. Here’s how to do it:

Understand Your Customers Needs

Knowing what your customers need is crucial to providing them with the right solutions. After all, you can’t use tape to stop a flood. That said, to know this, we at Buske recommend you have a sit-down interview with your customer so you can get the details you need. 

This is a practice we commonly do as it helps in identifying the cause of their issues allowing us to give them the right solutions. Alternatively, you can analyze data like past orders and complaints to see what they need.

Invest in Technology

Research suggests businesses must adapt to technology to stay relevant and competitive. Automation and having great inventory management software are key because they will make things much faster—a win-win situation for both parties.

A great example is how Buske stays ahead of the curve by integrating these technologies into our processes. Specifically through Secchi and Netsuite for our software and support needs.

Monitor and Evaluate Performance

You should be able to strictly implement Key Performance Indicators to measure your solutions' effectiveness accurately. Whether they performed well or did badly, take it as a learning opportunity to do better in the future.

You should also frequently ask for feedback from customers so you will know what you can improve on or change. Both of these will greatly help with customer satisfaction in logistics as they are all for the client’s sake.

Conclusion

Customer satisfaction is the key to a successful business, and you can keep them happy by implementing value-added services. Should you be interested in such services, consider having Buske as your partner; we are dedicated to giving you only the best in the industry. For more information on how we can assist, please contact us at info@buske.com.