Ways To Reduce Your Shipping Costs

A cost all businesses must bear is the cost of shipping, which carriers increase the rates of every year. The exponential rise of ecommerce has left a sore need for truck drivers and warehouse space exasperated by ever-increasing expectations for faster shipping. Luckily, there are ways to reduce your shipping costs. It simply requires exploring the options provided in this article.

Buying in Bulk

Rather than buying shipping supplies in specific quantities as you need them, a better idea is to simply buy in bulk. Bulk shipping supplies will almost always be cheaper. It costs the producers and suppliers less in terms of risk, labor, and wastage when making a large quantity of supplies at once (rather than multiple smaller orders.) This allows the producer to move and sell more units at a lower unit price, outweighing the profit loss of lowering the price. It allows you to stock up on shipping supplies to use as needed. Even if you don’t need all that shipping material right away, having it on hand can’t hurt.

Weigh and Reduce Dimensions

Unless you have a flat shipping rate, the price will often be determined based on the size and weight of your package. A postage scale can help you weigh and predict the cost of shipping so you can determine the right shipping labels. Next, consider what kind of shipping package you’re using. Packaging with larger dimensions will often cost more because it takes up more room when being transported, so if the box is bigger than the actual item you’re shipping, you may pay a bit more than you need.

Prepaid Shipping Labels

Consider prepaid shipping; many sources offer up to a 20% discount for buying your shipping labels in advance. It’s like buying in bulk—you buy a quantity of shipping labels upfront, applying them as you need them. This option is best for when you know you’ll be sending out same-weight packages, allowing you to determine the shipping cost in advance.

Third-Party Insurance

While most carriers will charge you about 80 cents per every $100 of insurance, third-party companies have a competitive way to reduce your shipping costs by only charging around 45 cents per every $100 of insurance. This difference may seem like nickel and diming your savings, but it can add up quickly over time, especially if you’re shipping expensive items.