Many businesses are hesitant to complain to the shipping giants responsible for getting their customers’ orders delivered to them on time. They may be aware of the fact that auditing their invoices for mistakes or attempting to renegotiate their carrier contract may save them some money, but they’d rather not experience any customer service fumbles due to delays in shipping along the way. Not to worry- you can save money on shipping and still deliver on time by using these four tips:
Audit your Shipping Invoices
The shipping industry has a 2%-5% average on late delivery. If you could get 2%-5% of your shipping fees returned to you, on a regular basis, you’d definitely start to see your savings start to add up. However, late delivery is only one of many errors that you can get money back for if you know what to look for. Other errors include Invalid Residential Charges, Invalid Address Correction Charges and Invalid Dimensional Weight Adjustment charges. Whether you make an employee responsible for finding these errors or outsource the work to a Freight Auditing company, know that both FedEx and UPS discounts are available to you.
Use Free Online Tools to Compare Shipping Costs
These free tools are available from numerous carriers themselves and from companies like Source Consulting, who provides a free shipping calculator and free shipping comparison tool. You can easily use our FedEx/UPS Rate Calculator to view the rates of your specific shipments from either major carrier. The calculator goes through each carrier’s rates, the specific year, service type, weight, and minimum charge and then generates a handy rate sheet that will help you see how much your shipment will cost and potentially save you money with the right specifications and rates.
Compare Different Delivery Methods
In order to save money on shipping, it’s smart to consider which services offered by your carrier will provide reasonably fast delivery at the lowest cost. If you are regularly shipping consistently sized items, you can hone in on one delivery method and significantly reduce some of the shipping costs on your bill. Remember to consider if the delivery method you choose poses any risk of damage to your product or an unusually lengthy delivery time, as it is your company who will bear the brunt of these setbacks, not your carrier.
Know Your Shipping Practices and Package Characteristics
Determining how much to charge customers for shipping can often be a vexing proposition. Remember to account for the cost of insurance, packaging, and special delivery requests. By knowing your shipping practices and package characteristics, you have the information to reduce shipping rates and improve your bottom line.
When you successfully save money on shipping while still meeting customer expectations, you create a win-win situation for both you and the people who buy your products. Source Consulting is committed to saving companies money on shipping and offers free resources and premium services for businesses that choose to outsource the feat of reducing shipping costs and smoothing out their logistics processes. However you choose to go about generating savings in this area, the bottom line is that shipping discounts are available to you- you just need to know how to ask for them.
Author
Rich Harkey
Rich Harkey
Senior Strategy Manager
Rich Harkey is a results-driven professional with extensive experience in the logistics and supply chain industry.
As the Senior Strategy Manager at Lojistic, Rich leverages over three decades of expertise to help businesses improve their shipping strategies and reduce costs. With a deep understanding of the requirements of shippers and the operational intricacies of carriers, he excels in everything from optimizing business rules and managing carrier invoices to negotiating carrier contracts.
Rich's comprehensive knowledge of the logistics industry, combined with his strategic insights and passion for data analysis, has enabled thousands of companies to gain visibility into their shipping expenses, driving impactful results.