July 2022 Recap

Developments in the World of E-Commerce

Welcome to E-Comm Unboxed, our monthly newsletter!

Here we showcase major updates from the e-commerce world, our partners, and Soapbox.

If you have any feedback or would like to contribute, let us know.

In the second edition of our newsletter, we recap July’s software updates, E-Comm Elevated Podcast episodes, blog posts, and more.

Now, let’s kick things off with a beginner’s guide to product sourcing.

The Front Page

In The News

Product Sourcing: A Beginner’s Guide

If your e-commerce business were a recipe, your products would be the secret ingredient. This is because, while other brands out there provide similar offerings to yours, only you can provide the specific “flavor” of products that you do. This unique product offering is ultimately dependent on where you source your products.

On our blog, we discuss the pros and cons of four different types of product sourcing. Head to our blog to read more, or check out our key takeaways below:

1. Sellers don’t have to choose only one way to source products. Oftentimes, businesses will simultaneously use multiple sourcing methods.
2. Self- Produced and Manufacturered products provide sellers with a more hands-on experience, while Drop Shipping and Wholesale products are more hands-off.
3. To help determine which method is right for you, identify any points that you are unable to compromise on. Some of these dealbreakers include time, cost, and product originality.

Listing & Syncing Products Across Multiple Storefronts & Marketplaces

In our blog series, “How To Optimize Your Fulfillment Strategy,” we deep-dive into various aspects of fulfillment and best practices for each one.

In our first edition, we detail the benefits of listing and syncing products across multiple storefronts and marketplaces:

1. For the most part, there are two ways to list your products online: storefronts and marketplaces. Storefronts are brand-focused, while marketplaces are product-focused.
2. We recommend listing products on both platforms. This is a great way to expand your customer base without having to add new products or sacrifice branding.
3. To manage multiple storefronts and marketplaces, we recommend implementing an inventory syncing software.

Best Practices for Custom Orders

Our final story is from week two of our blog series. Week two describes best practices for custom orders:

1. Custom orders can be online or in-person.
2. Custom orders allow sellers to connect with customers and potentially save on time and money.
3. The biggest problems sellers face with this method are keeping order information organized and double-booking orders.

The Soapbox software allows for inventory syncing across all of your selling platforms, making it easier to sell via storefronts and marketplaces. Soapbox also provides a custom order feature where users can create and fulfill orders from scratch.

To learn more, click here to make a free account today.

Soapbox Announcements

We’re Hiring! We’re currently looking to add a Senior Python Engineer and a Senior JavaScript Engineer to our team. Both positions are full-time and remote. If you’re interested, head to our hiring page and learn more.

We're excited to announce that Soapbox is now available on the Shopify App Store. You can easily access our platform and manage your orders, inventory, shipping, warehousing, and returns from the Shopify 3rd-party app section. To learn more, head to the Shopify App Store.

Tech Talk

We introduced new features, made enhancements, and applied a few bug fixes to our software in July.

Let’s take a look at the biggest updates:

New Features

• Void label: Users can void labels that have been purchased but not yet scanned by a carrier.
• Push tracking info on label scan: A new setting that can push tracking info to the storefront either immediately or upon activation by carrier scan.

Enhancements

• 4x6 support for FlavorCloud labels
• Expanded size of modals
• Order table performance
• Minor UXUI enhancements

Bug Fixes

If you recently encountered any of the following bugs on the Soapbox platform, they have now been fixed:

• The weight of products imported from BigCommerce displayed incorrectly
• Inventory deducted incorrectly when order contained a single variant and a master carton
• Fulfillment packages did not include all products when order contained bundle item and non-bundle item
• User was unable to create mailer shipping package

Curious about how our software can help your business? You can create a free account or attend our Platform Demo Webinars every Monday from 10-10:30 AM PST.

Click here to add our webinar to your calendar.

Outside The Box Insights

E-Comm Elevated, our Soapbox-produced podcast, provides a platform for thought leadership and to share exciting, transformational ideas in the digital commerce space. In July, we had the pleasure of interviewing three entrepreneurs with a wealth of knowledge on logistics and analytics.

OTW Shipping

Our first guests in July were Parker Barnes and Nick Malinowski, co-founders of OTW Shipping. OTW Shipping provides e-commerce fulfillment services for direct-to-consumer (DTC) brands.

So, if you’re ready to learn more about outsourcing logistics, how to choose the right 3PL, and so much more, tune in to our interview with Nick and Parker.

• There are many factors that can contribute to a business wanting to partner with a 3PL. These include cost savings, faster shipping processing times, and overall business growth.
• When it comes to choosing the right 3PL partner, don’t focus only on price. A reliable 3PL with good communication is worth the investment.
• Some products are better suited for a specialized 3PL. For example, if you’re selling clothing or perishables, you will likely need a 3PL that specializes in fulfilling these items.

Trust

Next, our host Pete interviewed Daniel Druger, co-founder and COO of Trust. Trust is a data collaboration platform designed to help businesses understand their performance in the context of other businesses.

Ready to learn about analytics from a pro? Tune in to learn about the best ways to approach analytics, cut costs, expand your network, and much more.

• Data doesn't have to be complex. Many e-commerce sellers use a number of programs that already collect data for their brand, like QuickBooks, Stripe, Shopify, and social media.
• Networking is a data point. By creating trusted relationships with others in your field, you can compare to see where you’re excelling as well as how you can improve.
• Before partnering with a data collaboration platform, identify why you want to collect analytics on your brand. These goals will help determine the right partner for your brand.

If you 1) know someone who would be a great guest on E-Comm Elevated or 2) want to share your own experience in e-commerce, fill out our Podcast Guest Form and we’ll be in touch!

Network News

Sharing is caring, and we love talking about the great customers and partners that are working with Soapbox. This space is dedicated to updates, announcements, and cool innovations coming from our partners and customers. Let’s dive in!

Partner Portal

Are you tired of handling your own bookkeeping? Or not having an e-commerce bookkeeper that you can rely on each month?

Our partner, EcomBalance, is founded and run by Nathan Hirsch and Connor Gillivan. Nathan and Connor are former high-volume Amazon sellers and have scaled multiple companies to 7 and 8 figures. Reliable monthly bookkeeping has been a big reason they've been able to do it. Today, they run EcomBalance and provide monthly bookkeeping services specialized for e-commerce companies so that you can understand your numbers better.

If you're looking for a reliable, on-time, and founder-focused bookkeeper, get your first month free with EcomBalance!

A Look Ahead

We’re going to be staying busy at Soapbox HQ in August. Here’s a peek at some topics we’ll be tackling in our upcoming content:

• How To Optimize Your E-Commerce Fulfillment - Utilizing Shipping Carriers: Continuing our ongoing blog series, we discuss the ins and outs of shipping carriers. Learn more about what your options are and how to get shipping discounts.
• E-Comm Elevated Featured Guests:
• Marilyn Yang, Founder of Fun Gal Snacks
• David Kong, Founder of Glasvin

Closing Thoughts

Thank you for reading E-Comm Unboxed. We’ll see you next month with more updates and inside scoops from the world of e-commerce.

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