Peak Season Planning Mistakes Many E-Commerce Brands Make (and How to Avoid Them)

The holiday rush is fast approaching, and whether you're finalizing a peak season plan—or just now starting one—you’re not alone. For many e-commerce brands, the Q4 scramble is real.

But in the race to prep promos, stock inventory, and polish your website, it’s easy to overlook one of the biggest make-or-break factors in holiday success:

Your shipping strategy.

Here are five of the most common peak planning mistakes we see—and what you can do to sidestep them before it’s too late.

1. Waiting Too Long to Plan Shipping Logistics

The mistake:
Shipping is often an afterthought until it becomes a problem—like missed SLAs, capacity limits, or last-minute rate hikes.

Why it happens:
Smaller teams are focused on marketing and merchandising. Many rely on Shopify defaults, plug-and-play shipping apps, or assume their 3PL has it covered.

What to do instead:
Start shipping conversations early—even if it's just reviewing last year’s pain points. Ask:

• Are your carriers aware of your forecasted volume?
• Have you reviewed peak surcharges?
• Do you have backups if one partner hits capacity?  

2. Over-Reliance on One Carrier or Fulfillment Partner

The mistake:
Banking your entire holiday delivery promise on one carrier or 3PL can backfire—especially during peak.

Why it happens:
It’s simpler to stick with what is familiar to you. But during peak, a single bottleneck can derail the entire customer experience.

What to do instead:

• Diversify across national and regional carriers
• Set up rules to auto-switch based on zone or cost
• Identify your "Plan B" carriers before you need them

Want to rely on data-backed—rather than gut-based—decisions when it comes to how to incorporate new carriers into the plan? Modeling tools are a must. They’re purpose-built to help you simulate scenarios with your actual shipping data (vs. hypothetical situations) before making a single decision. So, when you’re asked, “what do we do now?”, you’re armed with solutions based on cold, hard facts.

3. Ignoring Shipping Costs in Promotional Strategy

The mistake:
Offering blanket free shipping without analyzing cost-to-serve can crush margins during high-volume periods.

Why it happens:
Many brands feel pressure to stay competitive. But not all orders are equal—nor should they be treated that way.

What to do instead:

• Set minimum thresholds for free shipping
• Use real-time shipping cost data to inform promos
• Consider zone-based pricing or shipping incentives for higher-margin SKUs

4. Not Stress-Testing Fulfillment Capacity

The mistake:
Assuming your warehouse, team, or third-party partner can scale with volume—without testing—is risky.

Why it happens:
The fulfillment engine is out of sight, out of mind. Until the order backlog hits.

What to do instead:

• Run a simulated order spike before peak
• Add temporary labor or automation for key days
• Ensure your tech stack (OMS, WMS) supports real-time prioritization and batching

5. Lack of Proactive Customer Communication Around Shipping

The mistake:
Leaving customers in the dark when shipping delays or exceptions hit can erode trust fast.

Why it happens:
Many brands only find out about issues after the customer does.

What to do instead:

• Use shipment tracking tools with real-time exception alerts
• Build email/SMS templates for delay scenarios
• Set expectations early—especially for cut-off dates

Fast shipping is great. Transparent shipping builds loyalty.

Here's the Deal: A Little Extra Planning Goes a Long Way

Whether you're on track or playing catch-up, there’s still time to make small adjustments that can prevent big headaches. Shipping might not be the flashiest part of your holiday strategy—but it’s one of the most important.

Avoid these common missteps, and you’ll be better positioned to deliver not just packages—but repeat customers.

And if you want to phone a friend, we’re here and happy to help. Let’s talk.

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