The 4 Main Benefits of 3PL Partnerships

There are countless benefits of 3PL collaborations. Building a partnership with a 3PL can help improve your business in numerous ways. This blog post is going to cover the four main advantages of using a 3PL provider. These are access to their carrier network, using their technology to your advantage, applying their expertise and freeing up time and resources for yourself. There are, of course, benefits offered outside of these but those four points cover the bulk.

Carrier Relations

A carrier network is a 3PL’s greatest asset and is crucial to constructing the benefits of a 3PL provider. This is especially the case with small carrier companies. There are around 900,000 carrier companies in the US and most of them are small companies. These smaller companies have no more than 20 trucks and no sales team. These are the companies that work hard and are dedicated to bringing your delivery to where it needs to be. These are the companies that 3PL brokers are able to partner with because they spend time searching for them and building relations with them.

Technology

Technology is another one of the key benefits of 3PL companies. This includes transportation management systems (TMS), track and trace technology, and reporting. By parting with a company that already has all of these tools in place you can forgo the barrier to entry and still enjoy the benefits of them. Furthermore, even with the technology it still takes the knowledge and expertise to know how to use them effectively, which brings us to our next point.

Expertise

Expertise is absolutely required to run your transportation effectively. Everyone working at a 3PL company works in logistics all day, every day, so they are experts at it! Additionally, from this expertise comes the processes and systems that allow you to overcome issues as they rise up. There are going to be issues with your freight at some point. Being able to resolve these issues quickly is one of the advantages of using a 3PL broker. These processes are built over time from observation and error. By partnering with a company that has a plan for everything you never have to worry about disaster again.

Free up time and resources

All the benefits of 3PL partnerships contribute to this one point; the freeing up of your time and resources. The main reason to use a 3PL partner is so that you don’t have to handle transportation and freight yourself. Even if it’s just a fraction of your freight, there is still time saved. When you no longer have to focus on transportation you are able to refocus on other areas of your business. You can suddenly focus on what you know and what makes you profitable.

When to Make the Switch and Start Acquiring the Benefits of 3PL Providers

So, now you know all the benefits of 3PL partnerships, the next question is: when do you know the time is right to start using one? Well, it is always worth looking into partnerships, even if your transportation is going smoothly. You may as well request a freight quote to see if someone else can be doing it cheaper.

Some of the telltale signs that a 3PL can do more for you than save money is when you are finding that your operations are coming to a complete bottleneck in the transportation department, you are looking into expanding your logistics management team, and when you never have faith that your freight will arrive on time or in the right condition. However, those are topics for another time. The advantages of using a 3PL provider that were covered in this post will alleviate worries. Additionally, they allow you to take a step back and focus on the bigger picture. By partnering with a 3PL you will have a whole lot more time and a lot less worry.