By Ruth Richter • January 09, 2018
Not every company has its own fleet for distribution and fulfillment, but with third-party logistics companies (3PLs), not every company has to. Third-party logistics providers can range from full freight forwarders to courier companies and supply all manner of companies with a variety of services. They make it easier for their clients to serve their own customers with timely order fulfillment and delivery. The challenge, however, may be maintaining the free flow of information between 3PLs and the customers they serve, to ensure the freight itself experiences the same non-stop flow from the shelf to the customer.
That’s where data-based solutions come into play.
Integrate Your 3PL into the System
Technology provides that vital link between you and your 3PL. In fact, that system integration is a defining feature of the 3PL company. You need the right systems to connect order traffic so that 3PLs can plan loads and forecast routes for their long-term contracts. If you’re relying on manual data uploads, you’re risking an increased opportunity for error, incorrect files, and jams in your order traffic.
Integration defines a 3PL, but how you integrate can certainly define a lot about your business and your customers’ experience. With IN-SYNCH, orders are automatically synchronized between your Sage 100 system and your 3PL’s system. This means that as soon as you have your information entered, the 3PL has the information ready for planning, pickups, and routes. This triggers order fulfillment and routes a tracking number back to your Sage records.
Check out how IN-SYNCH Sage to 3PL integration has impacted these ROI Consulting customers!
Mountain View Services, Inc.
Since 1988, Mountain View Services, Inc. has been the leading supplier of groceries and other supplies to health care facilities around the country. They ship to local healthcare facilities from a warehouse in southern California, and offer direct drop ship programs from other warehouses throughout the United States.
Mountain View chose ROI Consulting’s IN-SYNCH to keep their orders flowing quickly between their website, third-party shopping carts, and their 3PL providers to ensure uninterrupted order delivery to healthcare facilities. Many of these facilities are dependent on timely delivery, and IN-SYNCH’s Sage to 3PL integration allows Mountain View to deliver on that reliability.
GoFromm
Family owned and operated Fromm Family Foods has been providing premium pet food for dogs and cats for nearly 70 years. While they partner exclusively with independently and family-owned pet stores, their products are also available online at GoFromm, making it easier for customers around the country to provide their pets with a healthy diet.
GoFromm relies on 3PL services to keep the kibble flowing. With IN-SYNCH Sage integration between their NOP Commerce webstore, Sage 100, and 3PL, GoFromm can make sure all packages reach their destination from the Wisconsin origin facility with minimal interruption in service. Every customer is provided with a FedEx tracking number as soon as their order ships so they can track their order’s progress and fill the bellies of hungry pets.
Royal Imaging Solutions
Office product supplier Royal Imaging Solutions is the one-stop shop for offices to find ink, toners, printers, fax machines, copy machines, and everything else necessary to keep an office running smoothly. Headquartered in Maryland, Royal Imaging Solutions serves clients around the United States and across the globe.
Once they added IN-SYNCH integration to their Sage system, Royal Imaging Solutions was able to coordinate shipments with their 3PL provider as soon as an order was entered. IN-SYNCH provides the direct link that populates Sage with live order tracking numbers from the 3PL company, eliminating manual processes or additional wait times for delivery.
Put 3PL Tracking and Delivery in the Fast Lane with IN-SYNCH
With IN-SYNCH, customized integration between Sage and your 3PL is easier than you thought, and cost-effective, too. Are you ready to try the fast lane connection and see how IN-SYNCH can fast-track your shipping process? Visit ROI Consulting or speak with someone at ROI Consulting today. Contact ROI Consulting online or call us at 402-934-2223, ext. 1.
