You just checked out and you can’t wait to receive your order! You’ve gotten so used to receiving Amazon deliveries in a certain amount of time, but this time you see a “Preparing for Shipment” status on your order. It can be really inconvenient if you seriously need the item you ordered, or even if you just bought something for fun!
A lot of Amazon shoppers are unaware of how the Fulfillment By Merchant (FBM) and Fulfilled by Amazon (FBA) systems work and how the differences between them can affect how fast orders get to a buyer’s doorstep.
What were your first thoughts when you saw “Preparing for Shipment” on your order?
In this preparing for shipment Amazon blog, we’re going to explain everything you need to know about the “Preparing for shipment” status on Amazon orders including insight on what sellers of your favorite products are doing during this time.
What Does “Preparing for Shipment” Mean On Amazon?
The “Preparing for Shipment” status means that your order is in the process of being packed, labelled, and shipped. This is a very important step in processing orders because Amazon needs to confirm what products are included in each order and the quantity to make sure they don’t mess up your order.
This process differs depending if you bought from an FBA or FBM seller.
Amazon FBA Seller
If you purchased from an Amazon FBA seller, this means that orders are “Fulfilled by Amazon”. Sellers under this method analyze and send their inventory to Amazon’s fulfillment centers where Amazon’s warehouse employees process, pack, label, and ship customer orders. Sellers pay a fee for this kind of service because it saves them time and effort from manually handling orders, giving them more opportunities to improve and grow their business. It’s the most popular method of fulfilling orders on Amazon.
Amazon FBM Seller
If you purchased from an Amazon FBM seller, this means that orders are “Fulfilled By Merchant”. This is the common method of fulfilling orders for new sellers who do not get many orders.
The reason why preparing for shipment can take longer with this type of seller compared to an Amazon FBA Seller is because they do everything by themselves. FBM sellers personally process, pack, label, and ship their own products to buyers.
Why It’s Important To Know The Status Of Your Order
There are some reasons why knowing the status of an order is important to you as a buyer.
Depending on what you order, Amazon may require you to receive the package personally. They usually do this for large packages or valuable items that cannot be simply left at your doorstep. This means that you’ll have to be personally available and present at the address that is indicated on your order. They will send you an OTP to present to the driver to confirm your identity before you can receive your order.
Secondly, if you are not tracking your order’s status, you may not even realize it when it doesn’t arrive on time. How would you know when something is going wrong and when it’s necessary to contact customer service for help?
If an Amazon order is taking longer than expected to arrive, there may have been inventory issues or an FBM seller may be prioritizing other orders that have been delayed before yours was checked out.
What can you do next? You can always send a message to the seller to ask about the status of your order, or you can contact Amazon’s customer service at 1-888-280-4331. This phone number is available to receive calls 24/7 and they may be able to track the progress of your order.
How Do Sellers Get Notified That They Are Preparing For Shipment?
Amazon sellers use Seller Central to view their orders and get notified through email when an order has been placed and is preparing for shipment. The seller gets a notification that the customer’s shipping address was loaded into Amazon, which means it will be shipped within 24 hours. All you have to do at this point is wait patiently while your package makes its way from the warehouse to your doorstep.
How Sellers Can Prepare Faster Shipments On Amazon
There are some things that Amazon FBA sellers can do to make preparing for shipment faster.
Inventory Management
If you have inventory in multiple warehouses, it will take time before the shipping process begins when orders come in because they need to pick from all available locations. If your products are stored close together, it may be possible to use free same-day Prime shipping if they are available in your area.
Handling orders manually is also a time-consuming process, so it’s important for Amazon FBA sellers to have their inventory organized and ready to be sent to fulfillment centers at any given time. Having an efficient system that allows you to quickly access the products when preparing shipments can greatly reduce the number of hours you spend preparing orders, allowing you to focus on other aspects of your business.
Amazon FBM sellers can also keep their inventory organized at all times so that they are ready for orders when they come in. This will allow them to have more time to respond if there’s an issue with the shipment later on. Preparing ahead of time is a great way for Amazon FBM sellers to save time and avoid any potential issues that could lead them to lose money.
Holiday Season
The holiday season often leads to an increase in the number of orders placed on Amazon, so FBM sellers need to find ways to prepare faster shipments during this time. An option would be to consider using the FBA service temporarily or hiring part-time help.
Other Factors That Affect Amazon Delivery Speed
There are other factors that you should be aware of when orders are being prepared. Preparing for shipment means that the order is ready to be picked up by Amazon, but there may still be some issues preventing the package from being shipped.
Other factors such as the weather or traffic can lead to delays in preparing shipments. If the delivery location is experiencing bad weather, it could take a bit longer for your shipment to be prepared and sent out because of transportation issues or any other unforeseen circumstances that may arise during this time.
Supply chain issues can also affect preparing for shipment status. When sellers source products from overseas, a lot can happen because of the distance. This is why sellers find it very important to always stay updated and order their products in advance.
Final Thoughts
The “Preparing for Shipment” status on Amazon is a great indicator of the progress your package has made in its journey to you. The most important thing that can be done at this point is to stay patient and be aware of your order’s changes in status. You are also always free to contact Amazon’s customer service to get more information in case they are having problems at their fulfillment centers.
If you’re an FBA seller with shipments going to multiple warehouses, make sure they are stocked with inventory so that when orders come in, there will be smaller chances of a delay. If you’re an FBM seller, constantly find ways to improve and speed up your order fulfillment processes to keep your buyers coming back for more.
For more Amazon content, read the Sourcing Monster blog!