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How can logistics businesses provide faster, cheaper, and more frequent order fulfillment all at once?

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA, November 16, 2022 /EINPresswire.com/ -- It’s the most anticipated sales season of the year. For logistics operators, the cyber sales online shopping frenzy brings increased demand, warehouse capacity concerns, and accelerated last-mile dispatch expectations.

According to Shopify’s recent report, the Future of Commerce, 60% of global consumers expect same, next, or two-day delivery — and with online sales across Black Friday and Cyber Monday expected to soar for another year, this trend means 3PLs are expected to handle their highest volume of the year, with their fastest delivery timeframes.

How can logistics businesses provide faster, cheaper, and more frequent order fulfillment all at once? We take a look at how some 3PLs are taking advantage of the silly season, to boost returns and grow their business.

For many direct-to-consumer brands, the cyber sales season accounts for the majority of their yearly sales. In the USA, cyber sales between Black Friday and Cyber Monday alone account for 20% of online sales from November to December 30th. The stakes are high, and those partnering with a 3PL provider to outsource their logistics will be looking for a 3PL provider who can offer online ordering, order tracking, and fast fulfilment.

Consumers are looking for faster and cheaper shipping, on top of sales discounts. They want to shop online, select from delivery or store pick-up, and receive their orders as fast as possible. Logistics providers need to offer online ordering, streamlined order fulfillment, and faster dispatch, while coping with increased demand. Many brands will anticipate higher-than-usual sales for the season, and will be looking to increase the stock on hand, requiring increased warehouse capacity.

What’s more, the logistics industry is continuing to cope with labor shortages, with many 3PLs requiring to hire additional seasonal workers for periods of higher demand. They need the ability to accept integrated online orders, train their team easily, ensure accuracy, and optimize their processes for faster order fulfilment. Here’s how.

Meet demand, delivery expectations, and omnichannel ordering this cyber sales season with the right tools.

All growing 3PL warehouses need a scalable system, allowing them to easily ramp up operations without compromising accuracy, quality or speed. Demand spikes created by cyber sales and other peak seasons makes scalability essential.

Online ordering must be integrated from their customer’s Shopify or other online stores, directly to their WMS, allowing instant order updates and accurate order placement without middle handling. There are estimated to be 12-24 million e-commerce sites in the world, with new online stores opening each day, the majority of which are powered by Woocommerce or Shopify.

Their warehouse system also needs to be easy to use, and easy to train new employees. This way, seasonal workers can come on board for peak demand seasons, and pick up processes with ease. They can begin fulfilling orders faster, with higher accuracy — allowing the warehouse to be reactive in taking on new business. (An easy-to-use system is also a huge benefit towards staff enjoyment and can even help with warehouse staff retention.)

Finally, order tracking and system integrations with transport partners is essential to ensure seamless dispatch and delivery. Cloud-based 3PL software like CartonCloud also provides greater oversight for 3PLs and their customers, with automated data tracking in real-time.

This peak season, don’t reduce prices— win business by giving your customers more for less.

Cloud-based WMS software like CartonCloud gives the ability to integrate directly with online ordering for faster and more accurate orders, transparency and order tracking, and simplified reporting they can access at any time, from their own customer portal.

You can also use your WMS software to help overcome warehouse capacity issues with clever storage options (FIFO, or high racking storage for low-volume goods), identifying stock replenishment for faster picking, or implementing wave picking for fast-moving goods.

Warehouses looking to increase their use of space may also offer cross-docking for faster handling and dispatch, or use multiple warehouses or storefronts as stock depots to reduce last-mile distance. After the last two years of restrictions, this cyber sales season in-store footfall is forecast to increase, rising gradually back to pre-pandemic levels. Not only this, but storefronts can be used as local warehousing depots as well, allowing faster last-mile dispatch, or in-store pick-up, for those who use integrated cloud WMS systems for omnichannel ordering.

Digitization adoption is trending in logistics

A report of Shopify store merchants found between January 1, 2021 and September 30, 2021, app installs for warehouse management grew by 198%, while app instals for order and shipping reporting grew by 53%, compared to the same period in 2020.

With greater digital adoption, software integrations between retail and logistics providers is essential. CartonCloud is a cloud-based warehouse and transport management system software provider, delivering easy-to-use systems to 3PL warehouse and transport operators globally. The powerful platform has built over 10k integrations for their customers, allowing seamless data flow between systems for transparency and accuracy across automated workflows.

With over 23,000 active daily users, the software company is expecting to see major spikes in warehouse order fulfillment and transport consignments over the next two months.

“What we’re expecting to see is stock backlogs ahead of the sales season as warehouse customers prepare for the sales boom,” CartonCloud CEO Vincent Fletcher said.

“Over the past few years, we've seen a significant shift in the sales season approach, responding to supply chain bottlenecks, shipping delays and stock shortages experienced in previous years. These days, brands are beginning their sales ahead of the Thanksgiving weekend, to try and lengthen out the activity, giving distribution channels a better chance at keeping up.

“Once the sales season ends, we’ll see stock being cleared from warehouses, but the need for warehousing won't stop. The impacts from the global pandemic really changed the game. It showed the importance of data transparency and forecasting, especially in terms of what 3PL providers can offer to their customers, to help navigate the complexities of the logistics industry."

To find out more about CartonCloud’s powerful, integrated WMS/TMS, visit www.cartoncloud.com

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