5 Things To Consider When Choosing a 3PL Provider for Blind Shipping

Blind shipping is a strategic method of drop shipping where the supplier's identity is concealed, and products are shipped directly from the supplier to the customer, maintaining confidentiality along your supply chain.

It's rapidly gaining popularity in the freight shipping world as businesses look to cut costs and streamline their logistics operations. Whether you're fulfilling large freight shipments or smaller orders, blind shipping offers several key advantages that can enhance your logistics strategy and drive your business forward.

What is blind shipping? And why does it matter to businesses?

In drop shipping, products are shipped directly from the supplier to the customer, speeding up order fulfillment and solving common inventory challenges. However, blind drop shipping takes it a step further by concealing the identity of your supplier. This tactic helps protect your brand's image, prevents customers from bypassing your business to order directly from the supplier, and keeps your supplier relationships confidential from your competitors. Additional benefits include:

• Blind shipping ensures that your customers focus on your business, not the supplier.
• You can streamline order fulfillment and minimize the risk of shipping delays, errors and/or handling mistakes.
• Even when outsourcing fulfillment, blind shipping enables you to keep customer relationships intact.

What To Look for In a Blind Shipping 3PL Provider

When adding blind shipments to your shipping strategy, it's essential to partner with a reliable third-party logistics provider (3PL) that understands the nuances of this advanced shipping tactic. Here are some key qualities to look for in a 3PL:

1. Experience and reputation

Handling blind shipping requires accuracy and expertise. Partnering with an experienced and reputable 3PL ensures your shipments are managed seamlessly. For instance, Worldwide Express is the second-largest privately held freight broker in the U.S. and is recognized as one of the top 20 logistics companies in North America. With more than 30 years of logistics experience, a 3PL like Worldwide Express can streamline your blind shipping and assist you after your strategy is launched.

2. A range of shipping solutions

A reliable 3PL should offer you extensive freight shipping solutions, along with parcel services when you need them. This flexibility is crucial for businesses that need to fulfill orders of varying sizes. Look for a 3PL that offers less-than-truckload (LTL), full-truckload (FTL) and specialty freight. The 3PL should also have a strong relationship with a major parcel carrier like UPS. This ensures comprehensive shipping support, even when handling returns (aka reverse logistics) where shipment origins need to remain confidential.

3. Scalability as your business considers blind shipping

As your business expands and implements blind shipping, you need a partner who can handle growing order volumes and works with top-quality carriers. A well-established 3PL like Worldwide Express can provide you access to its network of 75+ vetted LTL carriers and 45,000+ truckload carriers.

4. Intuitive shipping technology

Effective blind shipping requires a robust transportation management system (TMS). With SpeedShip^®, Worldwide Express offers a powerful TMS that provides real-time tracking, shipment scheduling and seamless integration with your e-commerce platforms. Our TMS enables you to manage both freight and parcel shipping in one place, saving you time and effort.

5. Exceptional customer support

Blind shipping requires expertise and support at every stage of your supply chain. Your 3PL should provide dedicated customer success services to ensure everything runs smoothly during the journey of your blind shipments. For example, Worldwide Express assigns a dedicated account team that offers personalized service to resolve potential challenges and provide timely solutions.

How a 3PL Can Set Up Payment, Invoicing and Customer Support Systems for Blind Shipping

Implementing a blind shipping strategy can be daunting, with invoicing, paperwork and real-time shipping difficulties feeling like a major challenge. But the right 3PL partner can set up processes to maintain confidentiality and streamline operations to avoid mishaps and miscommunications along your supply chain. Here's how:

1. Payment processing

• A 3PL integrates payment systems with transportation management systems (TMS) to process payments securely.
• This ensures payments are managed seamlessly without revealing the supplier's identity, maintaining confidentiality and accuracy throughout the blind shipping transaction process.

2. Invoicing

• In blind shipping, accurate and automated invoicing is crucial. A 3PL generates invoices that consolidate product, freight and handling charges into a single document.
• This process ensures the customer only sees your business details, keeping supplier information hidden while ensuring timely, accurate billing and reduced invoicing errors.

3. Real-time assistance

• A 3PL provides integrated support systems for blind shipping, ensuring you have real-time access to order tracking and status updates.
• With the right technology, support teams can resolve inquiries quickly without revealing sensitive supplier details, maintaining a positive customer experience.

Added bonus! More ways a 3PL can streamline your logistics with blind shipping.

A 3PL can implement blind shipping to improve shipping times and delivery

• Direct shipments: Blind shipping eliminates unnecessary warehousing or handling at the shipper's location, streamlining the process.
• Faster fulfillment: Since products ship directly from the supplier, the time between order placement and delivery is reduced, especially when suppliers are strategically located near customers.
• Optimized delivery routes: 3PL providers can leverage trusted carrier networks to select the most efficient shipping methods.

A 3PL can help your sustainability efforts with blind shipping

• Reduced packaging waste: By cutting down on excess handling and warehousing, blind shipping minimizes unnecessary packaging.
• Lower carbon footprint: Direct shipments reduce transportation stages, leading to fewer emissions and a smaller environmental impact.
• Decreased warehouse energy consumption: With fewer goods passing through warehouses, there is less need for lighting, heating and cooling in storage facilities. This can contribute to overall energy savings and reducing the environmental footprint of warehousing operations.

Take your shipping strategy to the next level with blind shipping. Worldwide Express can help!

Worldwide Express has more than 30 years of success in the logistics industry and helps thousands of freight shippers of all sizes move products with great efficiency. We are also part of WWEX Group, alongside GlobalTranz and Unishippers.

Combined, these three companies make up one of the largest and most diverse 3PLs in the industry, providing shippers with top solutions that help them succeed — including blind shipping. That includes teaming up shippers with our top freight solutions and network of 75+ LTL and 45,000+ FTL freight carriers!

Ready to learn more about our blind shipping services? Reach out for a free
consultation!