How to avoid picking errors: a systemic guide

Filter out breakage, make sense of your mistakes, and regain control. What appears to be “human error” is actually the symptom of a poorly designed logistics system. In picking centers, errors recur not because operators aren’t paying attention, but because the warehouse, tools and processes aren’t structured to prevent error.

The figures speak for themselves: traditional picking centers often show picking errors of 1-3%, and a warehouse with 97% accuracy is already “at the acceptable limit”. However, specialists believe that we should be aiming for 99.5% accuracy or even higher. Each error is costly: studies and testimonials estimate that a picking error results in $40 to $75 in additional costs (return, second shipment, customer service, restocking), or even $50 per erroneous order, and up to $195,000 per year in a warehouse handling 1,500 orders/day.

In short, treating error as a human inevitability is counter-productive. This guide offers a global approach to understanding the origins of errors, implementing structural solutions, and taking advantage of innovations such as video to make your e-commerce logistics more reliable.

Understanding where errors come from: an organizational problem first and foremost

Netsuite analyses show that the root causes of errors often lie insite organization and lack of visibility:

• Disorganized warehousing and confused routing: poorly laid-out aisles, poorly identified zones or products that are too similar stored side by side tire pickers out, leading them to pick up the wrong product.
  
• Overworked or poorly trained team: fatigue, inconsistent procedures and lack of training increase the risk of error.
  
• Lack of stock visibility and insufficient WMS: poorly synchronized stock exposes pickers to working with out-of-date information, leading to delays and errors.
  
• Unsuitable or outdated picking methods: picking strategies ill-adapted to warehouse topology or order volume accentuate confusion and undermine accuracy.
  
• Wrong locations and manual processes: Peoplevox reminds us that a wrong location or a paper preparation generates costly misspicks. The solution lies in a WMS and scanners that make errors impossible to validate.
  
• Receiving and slotting errors: according to Staci Americas, poorly thought-out fixed placement or uncontrolled receiving create errors right from the start.
  

These causes are not “human”, but systemic. When you identify recurring errors, ask yourself: how accurate are our procedures, our WMS and our organization?

The cost of errors: when logistics performance falters

Beyond the discomfort, picking errors weigh heavily on your logistics performance:

• Direct costs: on average, a picking error costs between $40 and $75, when telephone rework, returns, repackaging, re-shipment and labor are added together. The same source estimates that a 1% error rate on 1,500 orders/day represents $195,000 in annual costs.
  
• Hidden costs: lower satisfaction, returns, negative feedback and brand abandonment; according to Staci, almost 23% of e-commerce returns are due to incorrect products, and 58% of customers may leave a brand after a bad experience.
  
• Task multiplication: each error requires repicking, repackaging, customer service interventions and cycle counting, sometimes doubling the cost of processing.
  

To put it another way: high logistical error rates undermine profitability and the customer experience.

Implementing structural solutions

To sustainably reduce errors, we need to review logistics processes andwarehouse organization. Here are the main levers:

Optimizing layout and slotting

• Clear zoning and ergonomics: separate similar products, place fast-moving items close to packing areas and number aisles and shelves intuitively.
  
• Dynamic slotting and regular reviews: regularly adapt product placement according to volume and season to limit unnecessary movement and confusion.
  

Invest in technology (WMS, scanners, automation)

• WMS and barcodes: adopting a warehouse management system with scanners helps eliminate misspicks. Barcodes create a checkpoint between selection and dispatch, and a well-configured WMS can achieve 99.99% accuracy.
  
• Picking technologies (voice, light, batch, cluster): adjust your method to your volume. Voice picking or pick-to-light direct the operator in real time, reducing fatigue and errors.
  
• Automation and robots: robotization or the use of automated forklifts streamlines movements and frees up human time for quality control.
  

Training and supporting teams

• Regular training: short, targeted sessions (on WMS, new procedures, safety) help maintain consistency and limit human variability.
  
• Feedback culture: encourage operators to report anomalies and suggest improvements. Wisdom from the field is a powerful lever.
  
• Monitoring and coaching: analyze data to identify operators in difficulty and offer them personalized support.
  

Set up KPIs and quality control

• Measure to act: monitor key indicators (error rate, cycle time, productivity per picker) and pilot actions accordingly.
  
• Double check: before dispatch, a second operator or a final scan system validates order conformity.
  
• Rotating inventories: multiply cyclic inventories to ensure that physical stock matches system stock.
  

Traceability and innovation: filming preparation to secure after-sales service

Beyond best practices, certain innovations offer a decisive competitive advantage. Iziship, for example, has chosen to film order preparation to reinforce traceability and reduce disputes. This approach is part of a wider movement to use computer vision to validate logistics operations.

• Photographs and videos of every movement: Vimaan’s PickTRACK solution, for example, installs on trucks and creates a photographic archive of every pick and put. These images enable rapid investigation of any anomaly, and facilitate the resolution of customer complaints.
  
• Visual proof of loading: Zetes’ solutions use a camera at truck doors to take time-stamped snapshots of pallets and control loading. Result: fewer customer complaints and full access to proof of condition.
  

By filming e-commerce order preparation, Iziship offers :

1. Total traceability: every prepared parcel is documented on video, limiting disputes and providing irrefutable proof in the event of a claim.
   
2. Enhanced quality control: by analyzing the videos, Iziship identifies areas for improvement in the process and trains its teams accordingly.
   
3. Reduced after-sales service: transparency reassures customers, reducing the number of requests for assistance, and disputes are quickly resolved thanks to video evidence.
   

This innovation fits perfectly into a global logistics performance strategy, and meets the expectations of increasingly demanding customers.

Conclusion: from error to logistical mastery

Order-picking errors are neither inevitable nor individual faults. Above all, they reflect a logistics system that can be improved. By working on warehouse organization, adopting the right tools and focusing on training and traceability, it is possible to drastically reduce the rate of logistical errors and improve order reliability.

By rethinking your order-picking chain as an ecosystem (and not as a succession of isolated operations), you can move from a reactive to a proactive, high-performance approach. The example of Iziship, which films order preparation to reduce after-sales service, illustrates this dynamic: technological innovation at the service of e-commerce logistics and customer satisfaction.

Would you like to find out more about e-commerce logistics, logistics transport optimization or logistics performance? Our teams are at your disposal to help you build a more reliable, agile and profitable business model.