7 Signs You Need a 3PL for TikTok Order Fulfillment

Making big changes in your business is rarely easy, and deciding whether to partner with a 3PL warehouse for TikTok Shop fulfillment is no exception. The process can feel like walking a tightrope – move too quickly, and you risk stretching your budget before your business is ready; wait too long, and you might miss out on valuable growth opportunities in an increasingly competitive market.

TikTok Shop is a fast-evolving channel with massive potential, but success hinges on your ability to keep up with demand and customer expectations. Efficient fulfillment can be the difference between scaling smoothly and falling behind competitors. 

This article breaks down seven key indicators that signal it’s time to transition your TikTok Shop fulfillment to a 3PL, empowering you to make an informed decision and seize opportunities with confidence.

1. Inventory Management Is Getting Complicated

Just like it is with every other sales platform, inventory management for TikTok Shop is complicated. Good management hinges on consistently meeting several responsibilities, from keeping stock data up-to-date to conducting regular cycle counts. The job becomes even more complex when additional sales channels are at play, as is the case for many burgeoning ecommerce businesses.

It's not uncommon to have a presence on social commerce platforms like TikTok Shop, to sell on Facebook and sell on Pinterest alongside a traditional online store. Then, orders made in one place need to be synced with inventory levels across all platforms. Inaccurate stock creates the risk of overselling products. It’s hard to guarantee reliable numbers at all times when managing inventory on your own.

3PLs use advanced software specially built for omnichannel sales. It can connect data through an integration for TikTok Shop, an integration for Shopify, or whatever other platforms you use. Everything is set up for you and updates automatically, so you have the bandwidth to focus on the initiatives behind growth rather than the logistics of it all.

2. Shipping Options are Limited or Inefficient

TikTok shipping options aren’t made equal. Not only do arrangements vary in practicality between business cases, but also between stages of business growth.

Every system comes with its own responsibilities and costs. Most TikTok Shop merchants start with either TikTok Shipping, a semi-supported option, or Seller Shipping, where they handle logistics independently. Large online stores may be invited to FBT, where TikTok manages all-things fulfillment behind the scenes. But even being exclusive in nature, FBT doesn't serve the full needs of real growing businesses. It effectively cuts decision-makers out of the loop while fragmenting fulfillment for those who sell both on and off of TikTok Shop.

Businesses typically choose to process orders on their own through seller shipping or TikTok Shipping and stick with that system for as long as it works. At a certain point, however, in-house management becomes too costly or otherwise limiting. Sometimes, competition or customer demand calls for more options and faster speeds as well.

Shipping orders independently means paying market rates for a usually-restricted scope of services. Switching from a FedEx personal account to a FedEx business account opens the door to moderate volume discounts with that one carrier, but relationships need to be made with multiple carriers to truly optimize shipping costs. This can be a time-consuming process, requiring negotiation skills and a thorough understanding of each carrier's strengths and weaknesses.

3PLs maintain strong relationships with freight shipping and last-mile shipping companies alike. They leverage their larger shipping volumes to arrange discounted rates with carriers, passing those savings on to their clients. This can significantly reduce shipping costs and improve delivery times, making it a compelling option for businesses ready to scale.

3. You’re Making Fulfillment Decisions with Uncertainty

While few business decisions are ever easy, a consistent feeling of uncertainty about ones relating to fulfillment should be taken as a sign of readiness for a 3PL. Well-informed, confident calls become more important as operations scale. As the stakes get higher, you're likely to feel increasingly uncertain about whether each move you make is right.

Reliable advice makes all the difference when choosing which shipping carriers to use, what inventory management strategies to employ, and what to prioritize within a product catalog. 3PLs offer insight that can only be gained through years of industry experience. In addition to a deep understanding of logistics, they're equipped with reporting systems for supply chain KPIs and other indicators of operational health.

Peace of mind is valuable for every business. However, peace of mind paired with timely access to information is especially valuable for businesses in a strategic growth phase.

4. The Unboxing Experience Needs to Be Better

The unboxing experience is a large part of why products go viral on TikTok Shop. Customers relish in the hype of receiving and opening packages in front of followers, whether through regular video posts or livestreams.

Businesses looking to get themselves featured in this type of content – which is so popular that it has garnered hashtags like #unboxing and #unboxingvideo tens of millions of views worldwide – need to do better than regular shipping boxes. Impress recipients with custom, branded, or personalized packaging, and they'll be much more likely to share it with the world.

The challenge lies in doing it efficiently and cost-effectively at scale. It's a telling sign something needs to change when operational capacity can't keep up with specialized packaging or similar warehouse projects requiring extra work. If that's too much, it's only a matter of time before growth in order volume alone will become overwhelming.

3PLs can handle expanded packaging needs at a high output. Their infrastructure is large and sophisticated enough to maintain accuracy, even amidst rapid increases in demand. There's simply no easy way of tapping into that level of performance, flexibility, and freedom so quickly in-house.

5. Order Volume Has Been Steadily Increasing

While there isn't a specific threshold that dictates when external support becomes necessary, month-over-month growth trends can provide valuable insights into future demands – and whether you're ready for a 3PL. 

Fulfillment operations may be able to keep up now, but you might find it increasingly challenging to maintain the same level of service. Recognizing this trend early allows you to make strategic decisions before any potential issues impact performance.

Look ahead by three months and evaluate whether your current systems can handle the projected increase. Factor in the potential impact of seasonal fluctuations and promotional events, which may create sudden spikes in demand that your current setup might not be able to handle. Also assess the flexibility of your workforce and whether they can adapt to increased pressure without sacrificing quality.

The great thing about partnership with a 3PL is that it's never really 'too early' to get the ball rolling. Some businesses start by offloading some of their processes, like TikTok order fulfillment, exclusively to test the waters and gradually scale up as their needs grow.

6. It's Becoming Harder to Meet TikTok Shop SLAs

As a merchant on TikTok Shop, you're expected to meet Service Level Agreements (SLAs) at all times. These expectations are wide-ranging, touching everything from inventory accuracy to order processing speed. Maintaining high performance in all of these respects logically gets harder at scale. More orders means more opportunities to encounter missteps.

Your violation points balance and metrics like Shop Performance Score (SPS) can serve as a gauge of how effective internal fulfillment resources are in achieving expectations. Declining SPS is often indicative of declining performance in one or more areas, especially fulfillment. It should be taken as a prompt to consider seeking external support from a 3PL.

Proactivity is critical as TikTok rarely gives off free warnings. Relatively small lapses in performance can garner violation points and damage your Shop Performance Score, which will require work to repair. With a 3PL on the job sooner, performance doesn't lapse but rather improves. 

7. Growth and Expansion Is Coming

The last item on our list is less of a warning sign and more of a reminder of the reality of selling on TikTok Shop. Growth has a way of happening quickly, especially on this social commerce platform in particular.

If you’re like any business owner, you’re undertaking this expansion with the intent to succeed. And if that’s the case, it makes sense to iron out logistics sooner rather than later. 3PLs offer turnkey, scalable solutions capable of adapting with your business as it grows.

The value manifests in multiple ways. Beyond simply being able to meet unexpected surges in order volume, there’s lots of freedom and flexibility. For instance, say you want to offer subscription boxes down the line. A fulfillment center with existing in-house infrastructure could seamlessly expand its operations accordingly. As your TikTok ecommerce strategy evolves alongside customer expectations, having a partner who can pivot quickly is invaluable.

Think back to the last time you were forced to adapt standard processes in some way. Was it easy? Financially manageable? Did it disrupt your workflow or cause delays? If you hesitated, it's time to seek external support.

Shipfusion Is the #1 3PL for TikTok Order Fulfillment In North America

If you're thinking about the benefits of working with a 3PL, it's likely you could already use one. Your current fulfillment strategy might be holding you back more than you realize. Recognizing these signs early can save you from potential pitfalls and help you maintain momentum.

Partnering with a trusted 3PL like Shipfusion can give you the edge you need. With dedicated Account Managers, real-time reporting tools, and a proven track record of 99.9% order accuracy, Shipfusion provides the white-glove service that growing businesses depend on. Whether you’re scaling your TikTok Shop or expanding into new markets, Shipfusion ensures your business is ready for whatever comes next.

Request a free shipping analysis from our team today.