What does Shopee and Tiktok Shop's increase in SLA mean for you?

September 14, 2024

How Fulfillment Centers Help Meet Rising SLAs in E-commerce Marketplaces

In September 2024, Shopee has introduced new service levels for Preferred, Preferred+ and Shopee Mall sellers. The updates are as below:

Preferred+, Preferred, and Mall sellers will be at risk of being offboarded from their respective seller programmes if they do not meet the FHR criteria of:

  1. ≥ 85% (Preferred+ sellers) and ≥ 75% (Preferred and Mall sellers) effective 1 October 2024 onwards; and
  2. ≥ 90% for Preferred, Preferred+ and Mall sellers effective 18 November 2024 onwards

Furthermore, Shopee will now recognise Saturdays as part of their Days to Ship metric. It is now inevitable for high volume sellers to recognise Saturdays as a working day to avoid pile up of orders on Monday.

What does this mean for high volume sellers? More than ever, there is an increasing need of ecommerce retailers to partner with professional 3PLs to achieve better SLAs. Let's find out why:

1. Speed and Scalability

Fulfillment centers specialize in optimizing warehouse operations, from inventory management to order picking and packing. With advanced technology and automation, they reduce processing times, ensuring that orders are ready for shipping quickly. This speed is vital for meeting SLAs that require same-day or next-day shipping.

Fulfillment centers also provide scalability, allowing businesses to handle large volumes of orders during peak seasons without compromising speed or accuracy. By outsourcing fulfillment, sellers avoid the costly infrastructure and staffing investments needed to meet fluctuating demand.

2. 7 Days a Week Operations

One of the primary ways fulfillment centers help sellers meet stringent SLAs is by operating 365 days a year, ensuring there’s no downtime in order processing. This round-the-clock operation is critical for sellers to stay compliant with marketplace SLAs that expect orders to be fulfilled even on weekends and holidays.

3. Shipping Partnerships

Fulfillment centers often partner with multiple shipping carriers, enabling them to negotiate better pick up timesand choose the fastest, most reliable shipping options. This flexibility helps sellers provide a range of shipping speeds to meet marketplace requirements.

4. Technology Integration

Modern fulfillment centers use order management systems to manage inventory, process orders, and predict demand. These systems sync seamlessly with e-commerce platforms, ensuring that sellers can meet the increasingly complex requirements of SLAs, such as same-day shipping and accurate tracking information.

Conclusion

As marketplaces continue to raise their SLAs, fulfillment centers play a critical role in helping e-commerce sellers stay competitive. With their expertise in logistics, scalable solutions, and 24/7 operations, fulfillment centers like Cohub are ideal partners for ensuring compliance with SLAs while maintaining efficient and fast delivery services.