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Picking errors eat into your Black Friday profits. Discover how to effectively minimize errors and increase your bottom line - without big investments.
When we talk about Black Friday performance, there are some go-to metrics that nearly every e-commerce business tracks:
Conversion rate, ROAS (Return on Ad Spend), AOV (Average Order Value), return rate and of course, profit.
But one crucial metric is often overlooked: the error rate in order picking.
In other words, how many orders are shipped with mistakes: wrong items, missing items, or extras.
These errors are costly. They erode profit, strain operations, and damage customer trust. But the good news? They can be significantly reduced with a few focused initiatives without the need for a complex or costly WMS setup.
Picking errors spike during Black Week
It’s one of the busiest times of the year. Temporary staff are onboarded quickly. Hours are long, and pressure is high. Errors increase.
It’s not unusual for the error rate to climb during Black Week, exactly when margins are thinnest due to aggressive discounts and price competition.
Many businesses scale up their warehouse teams to keep up with demand. But without the right tools in place, more hands can also mean more mistakes.
What do picking errors actually cost?
Correcting an error: reshipping, compensating the customer, or absorbing lost revenue - comes at a real price. Add the time spent on administration and customer service, and the cost rises fast.
And then there’s the long-term cost: a poor customer experience that can impact retention and loyalty.
Example: How expensive is a 2% error rate on 10,000 orders?
Let’s break it down, based on a typical scenario we often see when advising businesses on best-practice fulfillment setups.
A 2% error rate may sound low. But with 10,000 orders during Black Weekend, that means 200 orders are shipped incorrectly.
Include the cost of return shipments, 15 minutes of admin and customer support per order, and the total can quickly hit €4,000–7,000.
That’s pure cost. Directly hitting the bottom line during your most competitive season.
KiMs reduced error rate from 4% to near-zero
In August 2024, KiMs implemented Shipmondo’s Digital Pick Paths using handheld terminals with product images and quantities displayed on screen.
As a result, they cut their picking error rate from 4% to nearly 0%, and have maintained error-free operations for months.
That means fewer returns, more efficient workflows, and better customer experiences - delivering real impact on their business.
Read more about KiMs’ fulfillment setup.
How to minimize picking errors in practice
You can achieve similar results with three key actions:
What you’ll need:
Digital picking devices: scanners, tablets, or handheld terminals. (We’ve tested and recommend several here.)
Barcodes on all products. Don’t have barcodes? Shipmondo allows you to generate product labels or shelf barcode labels easily.
The Shipmondo setup: Order Management, Digital Pick Paths, and Order Check - an end-to-end solution to process, pick, and ship orders accurately, even under pressure.
With product scanning, Shipmondo validates every single pick. If an error occurs, your team is instantly alerted and can fix it on the spot.
Watch how it works in this video:
If an error still slips through, it’s simple to fix in Shipmondo. Search the order, select the appropriate action, such as creating a new shipment. See how to do it here.
Shipmondo Fulfillment Analytics gives you actionable insights into error rates by product and by employee. It provides a data-driven foundation for process optimization and long-term accuracy.
Want to optimize your logistics and minimize picking errors for Black Week? Start early, so when November arrives, your team can stay focused on sales and delivering exceptional customer service.
Psst… Want to try it hands-on first? Get access to a Shipmondo demo account pre-filled with order data, ready for picking. We’ll guide you every step of the way. Create a free demo account.
