Get the Best 3PL Onboarding for Your Clients and Your Team

Imagine this: You onboard a new 3PL client in the morning, and by lunchtime, their entire product catalogue is imported into your WMS system, rate cards are set, and orders are already moving through your 3PL warehouse. 

Fast 3PL onboarding with automation is the key to turning new opportunities into active customers — without the wait. 

Now imagine this. It’s peak season and you bring in extra seasonal staff to help — and your new hires are up and running in minutes, confidently picking, packing, and shipping orders out the door.

Find out the secret behind fast, seamless 3PL software onboarding. 

(Hint: It starts with the right WMS!) When you have automation tools that can handle the heavy lifting, expert support that guides you at every step, plus on-demand training resources to get your team up to speed fast —- it becomes easy to welcome new clients and expand your team whenever you're ready to scale!

TL;DR: Say goodbye to long, complicated onboarding. In this blog, we’ll show you how to go-live faster with actionable tips you can use to onboard your new clients and get your team confidently picking orders — all on the same day.

Q: How do I onboard new 3PL clients into my warehouse?

A: When it comes to onboarding new 3PL clients, you want a cloud-based WMS that can easily automate your setup and data entry.

Here’s how to onboard new clients in a 3PL warehouse using CartonCloud’s WMS:

1. Bulk import client data to save time.
2. Customize rate cards and workflows for each client.
3. Set up a customer portal for real-time access to orders and inventory.

Q: What’s the fastest way to get my 3PL team started with new software?

A: The fastest way to get your 3PL team up and running is with a WMS that’s intuitively designed to reflect your workflows and easily fit within your operations. Your WMS should do the heavy lifting, automating your manual data entry so your team can work with accuracy, ease, and assurance.

CartonCloud makes this simple — your team can jump right in with step-by-step video tutorials, help articles, and guided workflows, all backed by an expert onboarding team to ensure everyone gets up to speed quickly, no matter their experience level.

Fast-Track Checklist: Onboarding Your Next Client

Ready to onboard a new 3PL client? Here’s your quick-start checklist (including best practices for 3PL client onboarding) to make sure nothing gets missed.

Onboarding Checklist for Warehouse Operators

✅ 1. Collect key data - Gather all essential details for your new customer — including product lists, contact info, and any unique service requirements. The more organized your data is, the faster you can get started.

✅ Configure your rate cards - It’s important to set rates for your services right from the beginning. In CartonCloud, you can build a new rate card from scratch (or duplicate an existing one to save time), all you have to do is just enter the relevant rates, assign it to your customer, and you’re done!

✅ Set up the customer portal - Give your clients instant access to CartonCloud’s WMS through the customer portal by creating a new user account and customizing their dashboard. Simply toggle on the widgets that matter most to their business, such as order history, delivery status, recent invoices…etc, and that information will all be displayed on their dashboard to view at a glance.

✅Onboard your team - Add your staff as users so they can access the system, track inventory, and manage orders right from day one. 

What is 3PL Onboarding (and Why Does it Matter?)

3PL onboarding is the process of getting new clients up and running in your warehouse — or moving your own team onto a new software platform. 

Here’s why it matters: the way you approach onboarding has a real impact. A smooth, well-managed experience sets the tone for strong client relationships and helps you achieve early wins for your business. The faster you bring clients on board, the sooner you can deliver great service, minimize downtime, and start generating revenue.

Of course, getting this process right isn’t always straightforward. 3PL onboarding often comes with a unique set of challenges, such as manual data entry, setting up complex rate cards, or mapping inventory when information isn’t up to date.

However, by streamlining your 3PL onboarding process (like relying on expert guidance and using the right WMS automation tools) you can say yes to new customers with confidence, knowing your business is ready to grow, deliver outstanding service, and avoid any common onboarding pitfalls.

Learn more about how you can overcome implementation woes with expert support in onboarding here.

Onboarding Your 3PL Team to a New WMS: What to Expect

Switching to new 3PL software doesn’t have to mean downtime or delays. 

“We had a customer involved in cross-border nearshoring operations, who signed up on a Thursday and had to be picking on the following Monday, with about 2,000 units a day — and we were able to get that done for them.”  — Shaun Hagen, CartonCloud CEO

Here’s how easy it is to onboard your 3PL warehouse team with CartonCloud.

Step 1: Data Migration

First things first, you need to have all of your warehouse data imported into the system, whether that be customer information, current inventory and warehouse location records, orders, rates, and more. 

You can import all of this data in bulk — all it takes is uploading a CSV file and you’re set. CartonCloud then automatically pulls your data into the system, and you can quickly update or edit any details from there.

3PL onboarding tip: Give your data a quick tidy-up before importing! This can help to drastically speed up your 3PL software onboarding process so you can have the most up-to-date data from the start. For more tips to prepare for 3PL onboarding, check out 5 things you can do to be ready for a warehouse management system here.

Step 2: Team Setup

Now it’s time to get your entire warehouse team, including your warehouse pickers, packers, and drivers set up into CartonCloud. There are two simple 3PL onboarding workflows for warehouse teams that make this process simple. You can either:

1. Invite your team by sending them an email invitation so they can set up their own password, or;
2. Create your own team accounts and choose their login details.

Step 3: Staff Training

Now that your data is loaded and your team is set up, it’s time to make sure everyone feels confident using the new system. 

These are some top resources you can use for reducing onboarding time for 3PL operators.

• Take advantage of CartonCloud Academy - Dive into our easy-to-follow video tutorials and trails to learn the system inside out (Hint: CartonCloud Academy is available for your customers too! Be sure to give them access so they can also master the system in no time.)
• Use CartonCloud Help articles whenever you need answers - If you ever have a quick question, our CartonCloud Help articles are packed with easy, step-by-step guides for everything from setup to daily tasks.
• Reach out to our expert Implementation Team - Don’t hesitate to contact our onboarding specialists — they’re always here to guide you, answer questions, and offer friendly support along the way.

For Cass Strunk, CartonCloud Academy was key to learning the system.
“When you’re starting off with a new WMS software, it can be really complicated to learn all of the steps, systems and what it’s really capable of! The CartonCloud team were really helpful, but it was nice to be able to go online to CartonCloud Academy to search for the answers myself. They have step-by-step walk throughs, and video guides to help you understand exactly what it is you’re looking to do.”— Cass Strunk, Founder, Core Logistic Services

Setting Up and Onboarding New 3PL Clients in CartonCloud

CartonCloud is equipped with several automated bulk import tools that let you upload product lists, customer details, and rate cards with just a few clicks. Simply export your data, make updates or add new entries, and import everything back into CartonCloud as a CSV file — making the steps to set up rate cards and inventory in 3PL software fast and straightforward.

Onboarding new customers to your 3PL with WMS integrations is another way to easily get your clients up and running – no matter their industry. For example for e-commerce clients, you can simply connect your CartonCloud WMS to your customers online storefront like Shopify, using the CartonCloud Self-Managed Shopify Integration.

For Deanne Luke, setting up 3PL integrations is the first step when onboarding new 3PL clients.

“When we onboard a client, the first part of that is to ensure we have CartonCloud set up, to ensure their integration is spot on. Once we have everything connected, [our customers] actually don’t need to touch what we do or how it operates — we’re able to integrate our systems together to a complete, autonomous process.” — Deanne Luke, Founder, Lexington Logistics

Top Features to Simplify 3PL Onboarding

When searching for top features to simplify 3PL software onboarding, automation and support should be at the top of your list. 

What to look for with 3PL warehouse onboarding services:

• Bulk upload tools to import large amounts of data in a few clicks.
• Customizable templates such as consignment notes, labels, proof of deliveries, or invoices so you don’t have to create any from scratch.
• Guided setup and real support from an expert onboarding team to provide you with help whenever you need it.
• Online training resources with video tutorials and step-by-step guides so you can learn at your own pace.

You’ll find all of these features — and more — built into CartonCloud, so you can onboard new clients and team members with confidence and ease. Just see what some of our customers had to say about their onboarding experience!

“The implementation process with CartonCloud was very seamless. The fabulous people at CartonCloud were just very hands-on with helping us understand the program first and then marrying it to our specific needs.” — Jimmy Skodras, Vice President of Operations and Logistics, Rockstar 3PL

“CartonCloud is amazing. I learnt the system inside out in just 2 days — I’d been using [another system] for over 3 years and I’m still trying to figure it out!” — Lore Stanley, Supply Chain Manager, Open Fields Distribution

Key Takeaways

• CartonCloud’s 3PL onboarding features like bulk data imports, customizable templates, and hands-on expert support — make it easy to onboard new clients and get your team started on new software.
  
  
• Set up rate cards, import data, and onboard clients in just a few clicks, so you can spend less time on admin and more time growing your business.
  
  
• Using CartonCloud’s step-by-step training resources and friendly support, your team can master the system and hit the ground running right from day one.

Want to know more?

Ready to onboard your next client, or switch to a WMS that makes onboarding easy? Discover why CartonCloud is the best 3PL onboarding solution for small to medium-sized warehouses. Book a free CartonCloud demo and see how fast you can get started.