Business Budget: How to Keep Your Company's Shipping Costs Down

Business success relies on meeting sales goals, sustaining cash flow, and keeping your overall expenses low. Keeping shipping expenditures low means keeping an eye on shipping costs by examining supplier costs, packaging methods used, and shipping options available. Shipping costs are a necessary expenditure for most businesses and it's possible to keep shipping costs low with the following methods.

Negotiating with Carriers and Suppliers

The prices a shipping company may display on its website are only the starting point for negotiations regarding shipping prices. Most carriers offer reduced prices when a business agrees to a minimum number of shipments. In addition to taking advantage of volume pricing, a business owner should also contact different carriers to negotiate the lowest possible price.

A business owner may also want to make inquiries with regional carriers. Some local carriers offer reduced shipping costs and working with local shipping carriers also helps support the local economy. Some small shipping carriers only provide local delivery, so a business owner may need to use multiple carriers for long-distance and local shipments to secure the best rates.

Use Carrier Packaging

Shipping outfits like the United States Postal Service (USPS), FedEx, and UPS offer shipping supplies at no cost for shipments in standardized sizes. Carriers often charge extra for boxes in unusual sizes or when one of the dimensions of the box exceeds a certain number. Cross-country auto transport may need to be done by a specialized third party and you can get quotes from many different companies to see what would work best for your budget.

Carrier provided packaging not only helps a business avoid additional fees for certain box sizes, but the boxes also reduce the cost of boxes. Some shipping companies, such as USPS, provide tape at no additional cost when the business chooses certain shipping options. Some carriers even provide free software that helps arrange and track shipments.

Consider Prepaid Shipments and Online Shipping

The USPS offers incentives for buying shipping online, as well as free pick-up service and significant discounts for expedited shipments. Creating an account with a shipping vendor may come with the benefit of various shipping discounts, and using the account online is an excellent way to keep track of the overall cost of shipments.

Use Eco-Friendly Packing Methods

A business must strike a balance between well-protected shipments and smart packaging techniques. Fragile items do require protection during shipment, but it's easy to spend more than is necessary on packaging materials with excessive packaging. The majority of shipped items only require a single box, and boxes shipped within boxes wastes materials and increases costs.

Packaging materials like bubble wrap may help protect shipments, but it's a good idea to consider the environmental cost of plastic shipping supplies, as well as their impact on the overall shipping cost. Bubble wrap may take up a disproportionate amount of room in a box and lead to higher-than-necessary shipping charges due to the use of needlessly large shipping boxes.

A business may receive some marketing benefits from using a single box for shipment that's printed with the company's logo. Companies that have seen extraordinary success with custom printed boxes include Amazon, which has created significant brand recognition with boxes printed with the company's familiar arrow logo.

Inquire Each Quarter About Discounts

Prices change and shipping carriers update rates on a regular basis. Without regular attention, the rates a business pays for regular shipments may increase. However, contacting the shipping carrier a few times a year can help reduce or even eliminate increases. Shipping carriers appreciate loyalty and may offer sustained discounts for continued use of their services.

A business owner has two responsibilities in securing the lowest shipping rates and costs for his or her organization. The first responsibility is negotiating with carriers and finding the lowest rates for shipments and packing materials. The second responsibility is reaffirming techniques and prices on a regular basis to take advantage of new rates and shipping options.

About the author

Eileen O'Shanassy is a freelance writer and blogger based out of Flagstaff, AZ. She writes on a variety of topics and loves to research and write. She enjoys baking, biking, and kayaking. Check out her Twitter @eileenoshanassy.

Comments

Post new comment

The content of this field is kept private and will not be shown publicly.
CAPTCHA
This question is for preventing automated spam submissions.