Creating the order processing (OP) and fulfillment approach that meets the customers’ needs is a crucial choice that will take a company one step closer to becoming a success in the target market. However, while being seemingly different, the OP tools used by different companies are most likely to lead to a similarly positive result as long as they are selected in accordance with the company’s design.
The OP deployed by the BeachBeat Company is highly innovative in nature as it was designed specifically for the needs of the entrepreneurship and its customers. Particularly, the firm puts a strong emphasis on the collaboration issue: “We now focus on shaping, designing and running our shaping machine and work closely with one of Europe’s finest finishing factories for the glassing and finishing of our boards” (About BeachBeat surfboards, 2016, par. 8). Nevertheless, the basic principles of its operation are quite similar to those that the rest of online companies employ. Particularly, the form provided by the organization invites the customer to fill in the personal details, including the e-mail address, the first name, and (optionally) a message that the company staff will answer shortly. As soon as the order details are processed, the company staff sends the customer the link to continue the ordering process and paying for the product chosen. The fulfillment process, in its turn, requires the physical transportation of the surfing board of the customer’s choice.
Similarly, the OP tools that the Jelly Belly organization uses presuppose a choice of the range of products provided by the company via their official site. However, the OP also involves stating the product quantity. The reason for the BeachBeat organization to skip the given step in the product purchasing process is quite evident – because of a comparatively large size of the product, it is assumed that a customer will buy only one item at once. Therefore, it can be assumed that the order processing system implemented by the Jelly Belly Company can be defined as a batch one (Jelly Belly candy company, 2016).
When comparing the two systems used above, one must admit that both have its benefits and problems depending on the purpose that they are used with. In each case above, the OP systems are implemented flawlessly based on the firms’ and customers’ demands. For instance, the batch OP approach used by Jelly Belly is fully justified by the nature and characteristics of its product. The e-mail-based processing of the order request used by the BeachBeat Company, in its turn, should also be viewed as highly functional and very useful due to the high cost of the product. By incorporating several rather complex steps into the process of purchase, the organization reduces the possibility of a misunderstanding or an error from occurring, therefore, leading to higher customer satisfaction rates (Schroeder, Goldstein, & Rungtusanatham, 2013).
The choice of a proper OP system may be quite challenging for a company, yet it fully depends on the type of the product that it serves. As the examples of BeachBeat and Jelly Belly companies have shown, it is important to offer customers as much flexibility in the process of product ordering as possible. Therefore, both OP systems can be deemed as reasonable in the specified scenario. Although the specified systems have their problems, the focus on their assets allows for making the best of them.
Reference List
About Beachbeat surfboards. (2016). Web.
Jelly Belly candy company. (2016). Web.
Schroeder, M. J., Goldstein, R. G., & Rungtusanatham, S. (2013). Operations management in the supply chain: Decisions and cases (6th ed.). Homewood, IL: Richard D. Irwin, Inc.