Offering shipping of your company's products is a great way to expand your potential audience of customers. At the same time, establishing shipping regimens can be complicated and costly, especially if you don't know what you're doing. The good news is that optimizing your shipping budget is as easy as following a few practical tips.
Make Sure You're Charging Appropriately
These days, a lot of businesses feel the pressure to offer free shipping and even free expedited shipping as a result of services like Amazon Prime. While "free" shipping might be financially feasible for a huge organization like Amazon, it probably won't be possible for a smaller business. Make sure you're charging enough for shipping to recuperate those costs. In some cases, it may make sense to offer free shipping if the customer spends over a certain amount, but you will need to crunch the numbers carefully to determine your "break-even" point here.
Invest in a Quality Postage Scale
If you're currently buying your postage online (which can save a lot of time and hassle) but are only estimating the weight of your packages, you could be leaving a lot of money on the table by paying for unnecessary weight. Consider investing in a small postage scale that will accurately tell you the exact weight of the item you're shipping. This way, you won't be spending a penny more than you need to.
Shop Around For Carriers
You have a wide variety of options when it comes to shipping carriers, so make sure you take the time to shop around and see which can offer you not just the best price, but the best value for their service. Aside from cost, be sure to also consider delivery windows, customer services, tracking ability, and pickup availability to determine the right carrier for your business and budget.
Use the Right Packaging
Last but not least, don't overlook the importance of choosing the right packaging for your products. Standard cardboard boxes are not always the best solution; consider other options such as shipping tubes, plastic packaging, bubble-wrapped packaging, and the like. You may be able to find a more budget-friendly option that suits the product you need shipped this way.
Shipping costs can be substantial when you run a business of any size, but by following these practical tips and tricks, you'll be well on your way to optimizing your company's shipping budget.
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