Read Time: 3 minsAn important aspect of every firm is completing consumer orders. The customer puts an order, and the order fulfillment procedure begins when the order is delivered to the customer’s door. A lot of businesses use third-party logistics (3PL) firms to help with fulfillment. From warehousing to fulfillment, 3PL companies may oversee the complete supply-chain operation. 3PL can handle inventory forecasting in addition to these other services.

When a company grows and can no longer manage its order fulfillment procedures itself, outsourcing through a 3PL is a suitable option. There are five fundamental steps in the fulfillment process for any 3PL fulfillment provider. The business gets the items for the order out of the warehouse, chooses, packages, ships, and delivers them. Let’s examine the procedures that must be followed in order to get the right product to the right customer at the right time.

5 stages of 3PL fulfillment

1. Receiving

Inventory needs to be stocked in a warehouse even before an order is placed. Orders are not able to be filled if it is absent or insufficient. Upon receiving inventory for its warehouse, the 3PL usually completes a Warehouse Receiving Order (WRO), which is a document that enumerates the products’ names and quantities.
Following that, a quality check is performed on every item, and its barcode is scanned. By doing this, the 3PL business can ensure that goods are stored in the appropriate bins and verify the accuracy of the WRO. This is a crucial component of their storage setup. Modern software, like GOIS’s warehouse management software, which handles inventory management, makes the process easier and its warehouse activities are held by the 3PL.

2. Picking

The Warehouse Management System (WMS) generates a picklist—a list of the items—when a customer’s order is prepared for fulfillment and designates a warehouse associate to retrieve each item from its designated storage bin. A picking pattern is created to make sure the associate selects the products in the most effective manner—one that requires the least amount of walking and travels the shortest distance around the warehouse. Picklists and picking patterns are both simply generated using the software. The items in an order are scanned and reserved for packing once picking is finished.

3. Packing

Items for an order are placed in boxes and cushioned with suitable packing materials, like bubble wrap, by a staff at the packaging station. Packing materials should ideally be safe but light enough to save shipping costs, according to the 3PL fulfillment service. In most cases, a seller has the option to request the use of particular packaging. Following packaging, a shipping label is affixed and the entire box is tightly taped shut. This includes all of the details required to deliver the items to the client. This is the point where the packing department verifies that the package’s weight and measurements are accurate.

4. Shipping

Packages that are ready for dispatch are divided into their designated sections prior to shipping. This allows all packages meant for a specific region to be transported together on a single vehicle. At this point, you have the option of having the 3PL business handle shipping and delivery or organizing a courier service like UPS or FedEx on your own. Since your 3PL will have negotiated favorable pricing with the carriers, it is usually a smart idea to let them handle shipping if your business is small and you don’t need to send many items. In order to get your items to your customers as quickly as possible, they will also know the shipping option to choose.

5. Returns

Refunds and returns are inevitable in the retail industry, particularly for online purchases where customers do not physically view the merchandise until it is delivered. If a product needs to be returned for any reason, there needs to be a simple manner to handle it. Customer pleasure is guaranteed by doing this. Having your 3PL ship the item with a return label attached is an excellent method to expedite the return process.
Prior to shipping out, your 3PL fulfillment provider ought to ensure that every item in their care is in ideal condition. An item’s condition needs to be examined once more and recorded when it is returned. An item in good shape will either be disposed of or put back in the warehouse according to corporate policy.

How to have a good 3PL experience

Having oversight is the best approach for you to get the most out of your 3PL. You can batch track, see which orders are coming in from which sales channel, and check on your inventory that is in their warehouse in real time if you have GOIS. Knowing specifics like the batch from which a faulty item originated and when expiration dates have passed are made possible by batch tracking. You may get comprehensive reporting on every facet of the fulfillment process using GOIS software. Why not schedule a demo with our professionals right now?