Cloud-Based 3PL Solutions: Driving Innovation and Efficiency in Logistics

If you run a 3rd Party Logistics (3PL) business, you already know the pressure is real. Your clients want faster deliveries, real-time updates, and better fulfillment rates. Picture this: There is a flash sale coming up or a new same-day delivery option being made available for a city in a week. Your team has to accommodate, handle, and execute the situation flawlessly.

But when your operations are carried out through calls, emails, and other outdated on-premise systems, things start to fall apart. One misunderstood information can lead to delayed orders, angry customers, and ultimately a reputation crack for your client.

The truth is, on-premise systems slow you down. The installation and set up can take days to finish. Once that’s done, managing the system and maintaining it is a never-ending hurdle. This is where 3PL cloud software steps in.

If you’re thinking everything is in the cloud these days, it’s not just about moving to the cloud. It’s about moving towards smarter work operations that keeps everyone in the loop – in real-time.

Let us break down what a 3PL cloud software is, explore why it matters, and how it helps you overcome your business challenge.

3PL cloud software is a digital platform where 3PL providers can access and manage their inventory, orders, shipments & their overall operations using a web-based interface. 

Think of it as the one place where you can get a real-time operational view of your 3PL business. Are the operations running as expected? Or are there any hiccups? Or are there any recurring patterns that need attention? These are some questions you get the answer to with a 3PL cloud software.

Here’s a short list on how 3PL cloud software helps 3PL providers: (we’ll dive deep later in the blog)

• Collecting and managing orders through integration with client’s systems.
• Tracking inventory across multiple warehouses.
• Tracking the shipment through different mile levels through integrations with carriers.
• Real-time operations visibility for clients and carrier networks.
• Sharing real-time shipment status with the end customers.

But why do traditional 3PL systems struggle so much?

1. Lack of Flexibility

   On-premise systems are not enough to handle modern-day challenges and complexities. With rapid changes like new delivery expectations and modes setting in, these rigid systems take time to adapt and businesses cannot afford such wait-times.

2. Limited Real-time Visibility

   When data like shipment statuses, or delivery exceptions are delayed or siloed across systems, your operations become reactive instead of proactive. That means you’re always playing catch-up to existing problems whether it is updating a client on delayed shipments or troubleshooting why that shipment is delayed. This leads to frustration for all parties involved.

3. High Infrastructure and Maintenance Costs

   Maintaining local servers, handling software patches, or upgrading them every couple of years is costly on both ends. You have a dedicated IT team to manage your systems and looking back at how it affects scalability, you might actively be losing potential revenue.

4. Poor Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity

   Legacy systems don’t always have built-in backups or remote access, making it harder to bounce back quickly. Whether your server is down, or parts of your systems are not communicating with each other, or facing a data leak, it is up to you to fix it. All of this puts your clients’ trust and your reputation at risk.

It is clear that traditional systems slow things down. But does modern 3PL cloud software fix these problems? Absolutely! Let’s take a look at how 3PL cloud software helps your 3PL business run at its maximum potential.

1. Provides a Scalable Infrastructure

With a 3PL cloud software, you can onboard new clients and add your new warehouse without ever worrying about limits. Integrate with more types of client systems like ERP, CRM, WMS, partner with more carrier providers, optimize dispatch routes better, and more.

Scaling with a 3PL cloud software is only limited by your business’s direction (and funds, of course). Whether you’re handling 100 or 10,000 daily orders, the system scales with you and not against you.

2.  Real-time Data Sharing

From warehouse staff to clients tracking order statuses, 3PL cloud software ensures everyone stays in sync. Orders update instantly, inventory reflects current stock across all locations, and delivery statuses are visible to both your operations team and client’s teams. 

This real-time flow of information also allows you to provide real-time shipment tracking for customers. If you are the type of person to check every hour, if your shipment has moved from its last station or not, you get why real-time tracking is important.

3. Faster Deployment and Lower IT Overhead

With a 3PL cloud software, you don’t need a dedicated IT team or lengthy setup time to get started. Cloud platforms are designed for quick rollouts, minimal setup, and ease of use. Adding a new client, updating a workflow, or integrating with a carrier API can often be done in a few clicks. 

You also don’t need to take care of any maintenance or updates, the 3PL cloud software provider does it for you. This means consistent updates, secured data, and features that don’t break rarely. Your IT team becomes more self-sufficient, and can focus on your other internal infrastructure.

4. Always-on Operations with Built-in Redundancy

A 3PL cloud software is engineered for accessibility. They offer secure, 24/7 accessible systems, even if something goes wrong behind the scenes. This ensures smooth, interrupted operations no matter where your teams are or when they log in.

It also gives your clients peace of mind, knowing their logistics partner runs on infrastructure that is reliable, secure, and accessible 24/7.

At the end of the day, a 3PL cloud software should help you see a business that runs smoother, grows faster, and keeps your clients happier than ever. These are some ways through which a 3PL cloud software helps you achieve that:

1. Creates More Revenue Opportunities

A lot of 3PLs get stuck offering the same core services for years because adding anything new like a same-day delivery or a return management service sounds exhausting from a tech standpoint.

A 3PL cloud software changes that. You can set up new workflows, integrate with clients’ systems quickly, and test new services models without breaking your current setup. Want to support a client’s new flash sale? You can. Want to start supporting D2C alongside your existing B2B services? You can.

With the 3PL cloud software doing the heavy lifting, you get the freedom to try new things and turn them into your new revenue spot.

2.  Faster Client Onboarding

Bringing on a new client shouldn’t be a hassle, but it usually does with a traditional on-premise system. Between setting up integrations, defining workflows, and training their teams, onboarding could take weeks, or more in a worse-case scenario.

With a 3PL cloud software, you can configure most of what you need through simple menus, duplicate workflows for similar clients, and launch branded dashboards in no time.

This means your clients start seeing value faster and your team doesn’t have to scramble for weeks to get things off the ground. Quicker and effective onboarding also means that clients are happy and will trust your process more.

3. Improved Delivery SLA Compliance

Missing your delivery SLAs can be stressful as it would upset clients, if it is a regular occurrence. Sometimes it can be even too late to tell when systems give you delayed information, upsetting clients even more. 

But with a 3PL cloud software, you get real-time tracking of orders, drivers, and the whole process. So, if something looks off, you know right away. You can fix an inventory issue before it snowballs, reroute a package and notify the customer. The result? Fewer missed deliveries and angry emails or calls, and better control over operations.

Regularly maintaining your SLA compliance lets your clients know you’re a reliable provider and increases your reputation, welcoming more clients and more revenue.

4. Enhanced Client Retention and Visibility

Your clients don’t want to email you every time they need a status update or sit on a “weekly update” video conference. They want a self-serve experience which a 3PL cloud software can provide.

They get a clean dashboard that shows them where their shipments are, how inventory is moving, and what’s going on across your network. When clients can see all this in real-time, they feel more confident in your service. That trust makes a huge difference when it’s time for your contract to renew or expand the partnership further.

Moreover, the platform would be branded with your logo for your clients to see the effort you put into making their lives easier – An added bonus.

Managing logistics for multiple clients can get complicated fast. FarEye helps 3PL businesses take control with a platform that’s flexible, fast, and built to scale. Here are a few reasons why 3PL providers prefer FarEye:

• AI-powered workflow orchestration and dynamic routing:

FarEye leverages AI and machine learning to intelligently assign delivery tasks and optimize routes in real-time, helping reduce failed deliveries and delays.

• Real-time tracking and predictive alerts:

It offers end-to-end shipment visibility with live tracking and predictive ETAs, so you and your clients always know where the shipments stand.

• Low-code customization and API-first integration:

FarEye provides low-code tools along with robust APIs, making it easier for your teams to configure workflows and integrate with existing warehouse, transport, or order management systems.

• Cloud-native scalability and multi-tenant architecture:

As a 3PL cloud software, FarEye scales smoothly with your growing business, whether it is adding new clients, warehouses, or regions.

• Automation features like no other:

FarEye promotes automation throughout the fulfillment process, including automated alerts and exception management. AI-powered OCR scanning is also available in some implementations to speed up dock operations.

• Enterprise-grade security:

Security is a priority with FarEye, meeting industry standards such as GDPR and ISO certifications. It also offers role-based access controls, and protects data both in transit and at storage.

Ready to modernize your 3PL infrastructure? Talk to FarEye.

In today’s fast-paced logistics world, relying on outdated legacy systems just won’t cut it anymore. Cloud-based 3PL software has moved from being a “nice to have” to an absolute “must-have” if you want to stay competitive. The ability to scale quickly, adapt on the fly, and deliver real-time visibility to your clients isn’t something legacy setups can offer.

Modern cloud-based 3PL software give you the flexibility and power to manage growing order volumes, multiple partners, and complex workflows, without the headache of IT infrastructure. This means smoother operations, faster onboarding, and happier clients and customers.

FarEye stands out as a partner that helps 3PL providers not only keep up but lead the pack with agility, smart automation, and customer-centric tools. If you’re ready to take your business to the next level, moving to a cloud 3PL is the big right step in the direction.