The Five “New Rules” of 3PL e-Commerce Fulfillment

In July 1995, the founder of a little-known start-up called “Amazon.com” shipped their first order out of his suburban garage in Bellevue, Washington.

Although he hardly realized it at the time, the act helped mark the dawn of the global industry we now call “e-Commerce Fulfillment.”

Needless to say, from that moment forward, the growth of both Amazon.com – and eCommerce fulfillment itself – has skyrocketed beyond anyone’s wildest dreams.

Indeed, over the past 15 years, annual U.S. Retail e-Commerce Sales have grown by almost $300 billion.

And this pace shows no sign of slowing. According to the U.S. Commerce Department, e-Commerce has grown by nearly 15% in each of the past five years.

And it is projected to keep growing by an additional 40% for the next four years beyond that.

As more and more shoppers flock to the web, however, their expectations in terms of service, reliability and delivery have grown exponentially.

This factor is already having an enormous impact on you, the 3PL warehouse, and your fulfillment customers, as both of you must now determine how to meet the escalating demands of the online shopping community in an omni-channel environment.

As a third party e-Fulfillment provider you must be perfectly aligned with your customers in terms of both desire - and ability - to meet these increased expectations.

The better you can make your customer look to their online clientele - the more your own business will thrive.

The Five New Rules of 3PL e-Commerce Fulfillment

• New Rule #1 - 3PLs Must Build Seamless Connections with Their Customers
• New Rule #2 - 3PLs Must Help Customers Select the Right e-Commerce Engine
• New Rule #3 - 3PLs Must Care for Their Customers’ Products as if They Were Their Own
• New Rule #4 - 3PLs Must Have Strong Relationships with Their Delivery Partners
• New Rule #5 - 3PLs Must Provide 24-7 Inventory and Order Shipment Visibility Worldwide