What’s the best way to ship business products efficiently and cost-effectively?
Payments
Asked by Question Bot08/Nov/20121 answer
1 Answer
F
Faisal Khan
Answered 08/Nov/2012
If you're in the US, dropping in to your local USPS is a great idea. Why? First of all, they have a lot of information on how to pack, ship, etc. There is a flyer for almost every conceivable shipping scenario. This would not only help you get educated, but also make you acutely aware of the pricing. Your local postmaster should be able to help you out. Postal Workers get a bad rep for no reason. Be polite and smile, and they will help you out genuinely.
Once done with the USPS (and armed with a little bit of knowledge). Drop in to your local PO Boxes service. Ask them how they can help you. Most commercial PO Boxes type businesses are operated by your Mom/Pop --- and you can count on them giving you extra time and explain everything they have to offer. Such businesses offer supplies, shipping and handling, etc. Be sure to be thorough.
Your third venue to visit would be your UPS center (not the drop off-point). The Men (and Women) in Brown know their stuff. Do not assume that UPS is just shipping boxes and containers. They do a whole lot more (but that is beyond the scope of this question). Again, armed with your knowledge from the USPS and your local PO Boxes businesses, you will have a much better understanding of how UPS works and ships and be able to talk their lingo so to speak.
If you want, you can visit your local FedEx shop as well, but FedEx inherently is very corporate type, They really don't explain things well as UPS or USPS does, in my opinion. However, your mileage may vary.
Do be sure to ask what it takes to open a corporate account. How you can print labels, etc yourself (most shopping cart system will allow you to do this). Do ask how you can integrate your corporate account online with your shopping cart (they may or may not be able to explain this - depending whom you bump into).
Also ask for how insurance can be offered and how it is calculated, etc.
Be sure to understand volumetric pricing, how discounts are done, cost of packaging materials, etc.
Once done with the USPS (and armed with a little bit of knowledge). Drop in to your local PO Boxes service. Ask them how they can help you. Most commercial PO Boxes type businesses are operated by your Mom/Pop --- and you can count on them giving you extra time and explain everything they have to offer. Such businesses offer supplies, shipping and handling, etc. Be sure to be thorough.
Your third venue to visit would be your UPS center (not the drop off-point). The Men (and Women) in Brown know their stuff. Do not assume that UPS is just shipping boxes and containers. They do a whole lot more (but that is beyond the scope of this question). Again, armed with your knowledge from the USPS and your local PO Boxes businesses, you will have a much better understanding of how UPS works and ships and be able to talk their lingo so to speak.
If you want, you can visit your local FedEx shop as well, but FedEx inherently is very corporate type, They really don't explain things well as UPS or USPS does, in my opinion. However, your mileage may vary.
Do be sure to ask what it takes to open a corporate account. How you can print labels, etc yourself (most shopping cart system will allow you to do this). Do ask how you can integrate your corporate account online with your shopping cart (they may or may not be able to explain this - depending whom you bump into).
Also ask for how insurance can be offered and how it is calculated, etc.
Be sure to understand volumetric pricing, how discounts are done, cost of packaging materials, etc.