Whether you’re starting up your business or deep in the throes of it, you’re always going to be looking for ways to improve. As such, you might be looking at your suppliers. Maybe you’re changing them up, or you’re starting for the very first time: either way, you’re going to want to know how to make the most out of them. As with any aspect of your business, you’ll be looking at cost, suitability, and efficiency. Which leads you to the first big question:
Check the cost
Shipping costs, wherever you go, will depend upon the company you use. It’s worth shopping around between a few different companies to find one which offers a price point which is within your range. However, you will also want to look at shipping speed. Much of the time, cost and shipping time are inversely proportional, as you might expect. However, whether you are shipping internationally or domestically can also have an effect.
There are a number of charges and tolls which can apply when shipping domestically which you might not expect. It is always worth doing your research beforehand to make sure that you don’t get caught out. If this cost becomes a serious problem, it might be worth not shipping from that country and looking elsewhere.
You will also want to consider the quantity of what you are shipping. If you are ordering in bulk, you can often get discounts in shipping whether you are shipping domestically or internationally, but this can be somewhat easier with international shipping as the domestic national postal service is not designed for bulk orders. However, this will also largely depend upon your provider. There are usually various tiers of shipping, with different shipping companies to choose from, and which one you pick is up to you and your specific needs – you may want higher security for a certain product, for example, and so invest in tracked shipping. There are many international shipping companies, likewise, to choose from.
How suitable is it for your goods?
You also might want to think about the method of shipping. If you live in a land-adjacent country, your goods are likely to be imported over road by truck. If you live further afield, a large container ship with a shipping tanker is a more likely option. One of these might be more suitable than the other for your particular goods. If you’re shipping nationally, meanwhile, you’re most likely to have it driven to you (unless they’re from, say, the other end of the States – there’s a chance it could be flown, but this probably isn’t as cost effective). One method might be more convenient for you than another.
The time taken to ship will also have an effect, and this might be more or less suitable for your product. Fragile product or ones which are time-sensitive, such as fruits and flowers, will be far easier to ship from nearer home than from afar.
However, you will obviously also want to look at where the best produce is from. In some cases, the highest quality produce will not be from nearby: it can worth hunting abroad if it means getting this better quality.
Lastly, the method of shipping will likely depend on how frequent your orders are. If you order frequently, you are likely to prefer something which includes next day shipping, and this won’t be possible if you order internationally. On the other hand, international shipping can be a great way to save money over the long term: as long as you don’t care when the product arrives!
To compare some different methods of shipping, go to this site or similar.
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