5 Tips To Start Your Shipping Experience
Getting your products to your customers is a complex process and there are lots of things that can go wrong. Even before you ship your first package, you might find yourself getting lost in all of the paperwork, desperately trying to decode a matrix of logistics, taxes, and customs. And once your packages arrive, you might face a whole new set of challenges dealing with hidden fees and out-of-control costs.
Thankfully, for both you and your customers, every shipping problem out there has a solution. After all, as a business owner, your responsibilities do not end at sourcing and selling products, you need to make sure that those products actually make it into your customers' hands, too.
1. Ship your products internationally
Even if your business targets a local market, there is still a chance that you will get customers ordering your products from outside of your home country.
International shipping can seem difficult at first - challenges like dealing with unfamiliar carriers and accounting for duties as well as for tarrifs and regulations can make you want to avoid global shipping entirely.
International shipping gives you the chance to expand the business globally and meet new clients from all the world’s corners.
2. Pack the products safely
For some businesses, shipping packages through the mail just isn’t enough. If your products are too large or exceed weight restrictions for standard shipping, then freight shipping is necessary to get your products to where they need to be.
The packaging requirements for freight shipping are very different than standard guidelines for parcel and mail delivery. While it’s best to check with your carrier to find out their specific requirements for shipping: choose the proper pallet, choose durable packing, secure your shipment.
3. Reasonable shipping costs
As a business owner, it is important to trim your budget, especially when it comes to shipping. If you do not research cost-cutting options, your fees can balloon out of control and either eat into your margins or be passed onto your customers.
Even if there is a great concurrence between the international shippers, you have to set the reasonable prices for your services. This is the great key to your shipping success!
4. Communicate with the manufacturers
In business, communication is key and that is especially true when it comes to dealing with the people responsible for manufacturing your products.
It is very important to communicate with manufacturers in order to set up some new B2B relationships and expand the shipping business globally!
5. Replace the lost and damaged products
During the shipping process, sometimes things happen that are completely beyond your control. Maybe your package never makes it onto the delivery truck or it shows up at a customer’s doorstep completely bent and broken.
Lost and damaged products are not just a problem for you as a business owner, they can be an extremely frustrating experience for your customers as well. Waiting days or weeks for a product to arrive, only to have it show up in poor condition can be enough to send some customers away permanently.
Shipping insurance is a small investment that will save you time, money, and frustration. You will rest easy knowing that you have a method for getting your money back if things do go sideways.
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