The Advantages of Using a Fulfillment Center vs. In-House Fulfillment

| Posted on |

When it comes to managing order fulfillment, businesses face a critical decision: should they handle fulfillment in-house or partner with a fulfillment center? Both options come with their own set of advantages, but as e-commerce continues to grow, many companies are discovering that outsourcing to a fulfillment center offers distinct benefits. From cost savings and scalability to enhanced efficiency and customer satisfaction, utilizing a fulfillment center can be a game-changer for businesses looking to streamline operations and focus on growth. In this blog, we’ll explore the key advantages of using a fulfillment center versus managing fulfillment in-house, helping you make an informed decision for your business.

The Advantages of Using a Fulfillment Center vs. In-House Fulfillment

Fulfillment Center vs. In-House Fulfillment

A fulfillment center refers to a third-party, usually off-site provider that handles inventory management. They handle the fulfillment of orders, ensure they are successfully packaged, and ship them once the order comes in from your site.

Most companies fill these orders themselves at the beginning when there aren’t all that many orders coming in. However, soon, this might no longer be enough, when order volumes increase. When you have too many orders to complete in-house, it’s time to find a fulfillment company to partner with.

The in-house order fulfillment process can be slow, tedious, and time-consuming – for both businesses and their customers. However, a fulfillment center saves you time, which is one of your most crucial resources when you’re scaling your business to a bigger size.

Fulfillment Explained

A fulfillment center completes the ordering chain. Customers order via your site, and the provider makes sure their order is completed as soon as possible. They use:

  • Techniques
  • Technology
  • Their time instead of yours

Companies usually embrace fulfillment centers because it is cost-effective and saves essential time as well. This allows them to grow their business – going forward instead of going back! Think about it:

  • Where would companies like Amazon have been without making the essential leap?
  • Where will your company be ten years from now?
  • What will happen if you don’t switch to a fulfillment center, versus if you do?
  • How can you get your business to be bigger – and how can you get to this goal sooner?

The Advantages of Using a Fulfillment Center

Let’s go over some of the advantages of using a fulfillment center for your orders in more detail. Here’s why you should consider switching from in-house order completion.

Saving Time

One of the main advantages of fulfillment centers is that a third-party provider can save you time. For most businesses, time and money are the same thing.

The more time you have for the important things (such as growing your business venture), the more potential your business will have to grow.

Shipping Rates

Fulfillment centers help save you money. They can offer shipping costs that are fifteen to twenty percent lower than what one might find on their own. Working with bulk orders is a benefit that saves you money.

Faster, Quicker Orders

A fulfillment center can also be a route to faster, quicker orders and much happier customers. Using a fulfillment center can get your goods out the door faster than trying to do everything on your own.

An Intelligent, Automatic Inventory Management System

Fulfillment centers provide an intelligent, automatic inventory of what’s left in the warehouse. You won’t have to manually tally items yourself. Rely on the third-party provider’s system to keep track of inventory levels and which orders have to ship next.

That sounds much better compared to pens or paper, doesn’t it?

Guaranteed Orders

If you’ve ever been under serious pressure to complete orders, you might know what it feels like to fall short. No business wants to disappoint its customers. Few businesses can keep up with pressure long term without letting it show eventually.

To make sure orders are closer to guaranteed, choose a trusted third-party logistics company to help you fulfill your orders. You now know the major cons of in-house fulfillment.

Reliable Fulfillment Partners

A reliable fulfillment partner completes a successful ordering link, ensuring that there are no weak links in the supply chain that are tasked with getting orders to your customers.

Business owners can have more time to focus on the quality of their products and where their business is going in the future.

MAI Fulfillment | 3PL Warehouse Chicago, Illinois

Warehouse | Cross Docking | Fulfillment | Kitting | Inbound/Outbound Voice | Freight Broker

Established in 1981, MAI is a privately-held 3PL company in Chicago specializing in warehousing, fulfillment, and omnichannel contact services. As an experienced outsourced provider, we provide value-added solutions to help companies build and maintain customer relationships.

The MAI business model offers clients the efficiency and convenience of dealing with a single accountable resource for a wide range of services. MAI areas of specialization include:

  • Custom B2B and B2C warehouse/fulfillment solutions
  • Omni-channel contact center services
  • Technology support

A wide range of service offerings, strategic problem-solving skills, and experience make MAI a valued partner to a broad range of Fortune 500 companies. “Quality” is more than just a word here – it’s the foundation of how we conduct business and an integral part of the processes and metrics we use to deliver value to our clients every day.

Scroll to Top