For many people, the holiday season is a time to relax. But for logistics industry professionals, it’s the most intense time of the year. The surge in online shopping causes holiday shipping problems that ripple across the entire industry.
If you’re unprepared, the added demand could lead to supply chain disruptions and late shipping times. But with strategy and a willingness to adapt, you can mitigate holiday shipping delays and keep your logistics running smoothly through the new year.
When is Peak Shipping Season?
The holiday shopping season traditionally starts on Black Friday and Cyber Monday and continues through Christmas Eve, although demand often begins to climb as early as September. During this season, shipping demand typically surges by around 30% compared to the rest of the year.
A second surge spikes between December 26th and New Year’s Eve, as holiday shoppers return gifts or spend Christmas gift cards.
What Causes Seasonal Shipping Problems?
Naturally, the sheer increase in shipping volume ripples into holiday shipping delays. But late shipping isn’t the only potential concern for businesses during the holiday season. The following issues can also create seasonal shipping problems.
Inventory Shortages
The massive wave of finished products and raw materials shipping across the world can also translate into supply chain disruptions. Ports might struggle to unload shipping containers in time, leading to inventory shortages across industries.
Uptick in Returns Cause Shipping Problems
When so many people take advantage of sales and shop for gifts, many online purchases won’t live up to expectations. In fact, shoppers returned around around 15% of holiday purchases in 2023.
Every item sent back to the store is another package in the queue for shippers, making the demand for shipping even heavier.
Weather Delays
The holiday season can also usher in winter storms across the Northern hemisphere, leading to both local shipping delays and potential supply chain disruptions, if factories or ports become backlogged.
Staff Shortages Can Cause Shipping Problems
The logistics industry already faces staff shortages, with nearly 40% of supply chain and logistics companies reporting high workforce shortages. Low employee retention can cause issues throughout the year, but the added holiday demand can create even more severe crunch times for both warehouses and carriers.
Poor Communication
In the midst of holiday chaos, businesses and logistics providers may not clearly communicate their bandwidth and expectations. For example, if a retail warehouse isn’t prepped for a seasonal promotion, the unexpected demand can lead to late shipping or depleted inventory.
Alternatively, a third-party logistics provider might not inform their customers of how the holidays impact their operations, leading to shipping delays or expensive rush fees to meet deadlines.
How Logistics Companies Can Prepare for Seasonal Shipping Problems
While the holiday season can create chaos for those in the logistics industry, delays aren’t always inevitable. With proper planning and strategic changes, you can rise to meet seasonal shipping challenges and maintain an on-time delivery schedule.
Adopt Scalable Warehousing
Your warehouse layout can make or break your seasonal shipping responses. So, it’s important that your warehouse can scale with your demand. Take advantage of vertical storage solutions that allow you to scale up to your warehouse’s ceiling, and can
Leverage Data for Your Warehouse
If you aren’t already, now is an excellent time to use artificial intelligence and smart warehouse management systems to inform your strategy. Were there particular orders that shipped late or out of inventory? Any items that took longer to pack than usual?
You can use the data to prepare for a more efficient holiday shipping season. For example, you might move items popular during the holidays closer to the packing and loading area, or start inventory-building items that ran out months prior.
Use AI Routing for Trucking
AI isn’t just useful for warehouses. It can also track seasonal traffic patterns and weather issues that can prove invaluable for routing trucks. AI trucking systems can leverage the extended data to give better-optimized routes than a standard GPS, helping drivers stick to tight delivery schedules and potentially avoid shipping disruptions on the road, like weather delays.
Winterize Your Fleet
Prepare for harsh road conditions and winter weather by winterizing your trucking fleet. Depending on the temps in your service range, measures like checking tire pressure, adding anti-gel products to fuel tanks, and charging batteries can all prevent breakdowns and make trucks safer and ready to deliver seasonal packages.
Plan for Transportation Delays
During the holiday season, add in possible delay times when calculating shipping estimates. This can prevent over-extending or rushing to meet tight deadlines when the season kicks into high gear. It also helps businesses temper their expectations and plan their operations accordingly. Plus, if items do ship out faster than the delay time, it makes your brand look more efficient and builds your reputation.
Implement Employee Retention Policies
The holiday crunch can be overwhelming even for seasoned employees and is a common cause of stress-quitting. During the holiday season, it’s more important than ever to practice employee retention measures and help warehouse workers and truckers feel appreciated for their hard work.
Strategies like holiday bonuses, providing adequate training, and clear communication may seem basic. But they can all go a long way towards keeping a robust workforce throughout the holiday season. Additionally, if you need to hire seasonal workers, consider offering your current employees a referral bonus if they attract friends or family for part-time work.
Upscale Customer Service
Since a lack of communication between logistics providers and clients often leads to disappointments and shipping delays, upscaling your customer service team can be a wise choice during the holidays.
Putting more effort into customer service can help you communicate clearer expectations, coordinate proper inventory stocking, and have trained staff ready to deal with potential problems and work on solutions that will leave customers feeling like you have their back.
Meet Your Seasonal Shipping Problems With N&D
With over 50 years of logistics industry experience, N&D Transportation knows how to handle the holiday shipping season. As a Rhode Island trucking company, we’ve spent years developing and refining our strategy to meet seasonal challenges and prevent shipping delays. So your business can run smoothly all year round.
Contact us today to learn how we do it, and how we can help you meet your holiday deadlines.
