It’s no secret that a company’s shipping expenses can be crucial to its success, but let’s face it: we often tend to underestimate the financial impact they have on our businesses. Shipping costs may seem like a necessary evil, but we can save a lot of money by analyzing the phenomenon correctly and handling it with care, whilst neglecting it often leads to major financial losses. Obvious steps, like passing the shipping charges to your customers can be ineffective, since your competitors won’t miss the chance to use it against you. So, what can you do to reduce your shipping costs once and for all? Here, we’d like to share some useful tips:
1. Watch out for excessive charges
You should check your invoices carefully to avoid paying for services you do not need or those you aren’t even aware of. Can you imagine, that at least 10% of your freight invoices are most likely to be unwanted, accessorial charges? Good examples would be commercial shipments that were considered residential, as well as any address corrections, dimensional extra charges and so on. Luckily, there is modern software that verifies shipping details for you and eliminates possible errors. As for the package dimensions, try using scales that calculate them automatically.
2. Send your packages together
The larger the total weight, the cheaper it gets per pound. So, analyze your invoice yourself or with a freight audit professional, and figure out which parcels can be shipped together. For example, if some of your customers live in the same area, try putting several orders into one package, fastening the boxes together, or If you have many orders, you may use a full truck.
3. The human factor
Another good reason to always check your invoices: they are created by human beings, and we all tend to make mistakes. Sometimes small, sometimes big. So, it’s probably a good idea to check and double-check all human-involved tasks like picking, packing, taking phone calls and replying to refund-related emails, etc. Take advantage of modern technology, use specialized software to make sure that the amount of these mistakes is minimized.
4. Compare carriers
No shipping company can be effective in every category. One is good for heavy-weight international shipments, while another offers the best price on light-weight local deliveries, etc. So, it’s extremely important to carefully compare your options and to consider using multiple carriers. Multicarrier shipping software can be a useful tool to save your time and money, since it rates the carriers automatically and makes calculations for you. Also compare and check carrier’s rates before buying their insurance. It’s often overpriced, so you might want to consider using a third-party company.
5. Save up to 5% by auditing carrier’s invoices.
If your carrier guarantees to deliver on time or to give your money back (and most of them do guarantee that), you should check if they meet their obligations, because when they don’t, you can claim your right to get a refund. If you feel that this job could be too demanding, try talking to a professional who provides.