Carriers and their sales reps want you to believe you are receiving the best service. With a lack of transparency in the industry, it’s easy to take your sales reps’ word for it. Shippers who have a concrete understanding of their shipping profile and know how carriers operate during contract negotiations stand a better chance of combating common myths that exist.
#1 UPS, FedEx and DHL always deliver on time
With millions of packages shipped each day, it can be assumed a few packages will slip through the cracks and arrive on your doorstep after the designated time. It’s true that big carriers offer a money-back guarantee on late shipments. Even if a package is 60 seconds late, you are eligible for a complete refund. It sounds great in theory, but shippers are responsible for cashing in on the refund. Carriers don’t want to hand over any refunds without requiring shippers do the work to get it.
Carriers make invoices intentionally complex to deter shippers from catching those late shipments and securing their owed savings. You probably have a lengthy to-do list and verifying the accuracy of on-time shipments would be somewhere at the bottom. Share A Refund provides intuitive technology that checks individual shipping invoices looking for overcharges, surcharges, and billing inaccuracies. When discrepancies are identified, Share A Refund works diligently behind the scenes to submit claims and verify refunds. Detecting late shipments is just one of the many time-saving facets Share A Refund provides to businesses.
Read more: Are you missing out on the money-back guarantee?
#2 Shippers won’t find a better deal out there
During a carrier agreement negotiation, expect your sales rep to try to convince you he is giving you the best deal around. If you aren’t familiar with your shipping profile, or with other existing options, you might tend to believe what the sales rep says.
FedEx and UPS are constantly battling against each other. Shopping around at other international carriers and regional carriers can open up more saving opportunities. A regional shipper will focus on specific geographic regions, offer more personable service, advanced flexibility and various cost reduction options. Comparing rates with one carrier to another is a smart way to operate. As e-commerce explodes, more shipping options are springing up to provide potential competition to the big-name carriers. There are always areas to negotiate better rates.
Read more: Amazon gears up for new delivery service
#3 The annual rate increase has a uniform impact on my shipping profile
The average annual rate increase for UPS and FedEx doesn’t apply uniformly across shipping profiles. Each individual line item must be reviewed to understand how it impacts business operations on granular levels. What you ship, how large and heavy the packages are, and how far packages travel are a few of the components that need to be factored in. These charges often exceed the publicized average rate increase on shipping.
The average percentage increase that is announced always ends up turning into a higher percentage of individual charges. You might not think these rate increases are enough to make a dent, but these charges often exceed the publicized 4.9% rate increase on shipping.
Don’t fall prey to these common misconceptions about carriers. Taking the time to investigate the best shipping solutions for your business and understanding your shipping profile will help save more money and time.
