Costly shipping mistakes and how to avoid them

If you’re here then the chances are that shipping plays a crucial role in your business. In some cases, your customer’s experience with your shipping services can be the difference between earning a customer for life and losing them forever. And as they say, the devil is always in the details and it’s small mistakes that can cost you a lot of stress, time and money. Thankfully, there are some things that you can do to remedy those issues. 

Today, we’re going to talk about the most common mistakes we encounter and how you can make sure you don’t make those same mistakes. Let’s jump right in!

Poor packing

Regardless of what you’re shipping, you need to choose the right sized box and the right protective packing material. Faulty packaging can cause a plethora of issues depending on what’s being sent – and in some cases, your parcels can get broken and or damaged. Make sure that whatever you ship – that you do your research or ask your courier service precisely how to package your items. 

Lack of transparency with returns

Make sure that you have a very clear, thought-out return policy that only gives precise instructions as to what needs to go where and how; but what will also happen once the package is received. This is a commonly overlooked aspect of the day-to-day function of a business that can lead to a lot of unnecessary expense. Also – be sure that all of your returns are going to one, centralized place. That way, things will run more efficiently. 

Underestimating the weight of your package

Weight has a heavy influence on the cost of shipping something from point A to point B. This can be an issue because if there’s a discrepancy between what you THINK the package weighs and what it actually weighs, companies can and will charge you extra – and in some cases that cost can be significant. Measure the weight of a product up front and save yourself the headache of unexpected fees and expenses. 

Use delivery receipts 

Keeping receipts is important because it tracks where a package was and when it was there. That way, in the event that something got broken, you can easily track back to when the damage happened and try to get some answers. Even though this isn’t ideal, it’s making the best of a bad situation and will at least show some initiative on your side to help your customers out. 

Freight Companies vs. Courier Services: Which should you choose?

Companies are always trying to figure out how to get their goods from point A to point B. And it’s always a speed vs. cost question. How fast can you get something somewhere by spending the least amount of money possible. For many companies, it simply comes down to two options: Courier Services or Freight Companies. 

Which is the best for your business? Well, we’re hoping today’s blog helps to bring that answer into a little bit clearer focus. Both offer great benefits, so let’s take a look at both and see which one might better meet the needs of your business. Let’s jump right in!

Benefits of a freight company

Freight companies are an ideal choice for businesses that ship large items and big parcels. Anything north of 70kg should probably be handled by a freight company. They also work particularly well with companies that provide bulk inventory shipments to other businesses like retailers. Freight companies are great at reducing their overhead costs because they don’t deal with customers directly – instead they usually liaise with a smaller network of forwarders and freight brokers. 

Benefits of a courier service

“Small but mighty” is the calling card at the end of the day when it comes to a courier service. If you need something moved quickly, accurately and with precision – then courier services are for you. Think of freight companies as the right way to go for the big stuff and courier services are the superior option when it comes to tactical precision. They also give your customers peace of mind – as they know their package will be secure from beginning to end and even more importantly – that only one company handled their goods. Especially in the event that there are issues with the delivery – you’ll be able to manage any issues more easily and have more control over the outcome. 

So like we said – if you’re going big, go with a freight company. If you need speed and precision; go with a courier service. At the end of the day, both will meet your needs depending on what they are better than traditional shipping methods will. And as always, if you’re in the Largo, FL area and are looking for a courier service, we can help. Until then, good luck!