Logistics form a core part of any online business. With the rapid globalization of online selling, it has become necessary for entrepreneurs to have a shipping partner for ecommerce to reach local and international clients at the click of a button.
Many ecommerce shipping providers have risen to answer this growing demand, innovating ways to streamline the process and simplify international logistics.
While options are abundant, sellers must still apply due diligence in selecting the right shipping partners for ecommerce. This factor alone may make or break the business.
Here are six quick facts to guide you through selecting ecommerce shipping companies for your business:
With everything going virtual, transparency has never been more critical.
Remember that your shipping partner will be the bridge between you and the customer.
Here a few ways to determine their reliability:
Satisfied clients will usually leave good reviews on their experience with the company. As a rule of thumb, choose a company that has provided consistent and quality service to customers. You can also send their previous customers an email to get direct and personalized feedback
What are they going to do when a situation takes a turn for the worse?. A serious ecommerce shipping company can provide you with a guarantee of security that your packages will be handled and delivered professionally.
Ecommerce shipping shouldn’t break the bank. With the recent innovations, much has changed in the industry’s efficiency and accessibility. You should be able to sell your products and still achieve a solid profit margin easily.
While diving for the cheapest option may seem feasible, this may come at the cost of quality. Soon enough, you might find yourself to the brim with lost/broken packages and angry customers. Finding the right shipping partner means finding a balance between price and quality.
Here a few factors that affect your rates:
You’ll be paying for the weight or dimensions of your package, whichever comes higher. A heavy, small package can cost just as much as a big, light one.
Shippers usually base this on local, regional, national, or international areas—the farther the delivery, the steeper the price.
One of this industry’s advantages is that competition amongst shipping companies is quite intense, spurring innovations that ultimately benefit sellers.
Some companies go beyond delivering your product, offering further support with customer service and handling. This ensures customers are receiving updates on their development in real-time and handling messy situations such as unresponsive customers and item returns.
Having a shipping partner means they’ll be able to support you every step of the way from expanding market reach to providing stellar and timely customer service.
What systems do they have in place? A straightforward platform can make or break the selling experience. You need to be able to make decisions that are timely and efficient. When it comes to matters concerning deliveries, you want the process to be smooth and streamlined so you can focus on improving other aspects of your business.
Find out if they have a:
While this may seem ordinary, not all tracking services are made equal. Are they providing real-time updates? Does the service show accurate time-lines of where the product currently is? Does the platform crash often? Having an accurate and timely tracking service that’s easy to understand could mean the difference between an informed and angry customer.
Integrating your various ecommerce business with your shipping provider will save you tons of time and energy. Automating the process means you can quickly scale your business without much fuss at all. The right shipping partner for ecommerce has the technology to integrate leading ecommerce websites like Amazon and Shopify to their platform so you can manage your orders and shipments all in one place!
Shipping internationally can get complicated fast with legislation varying from country to country. Negligence may result in your items being held up at customs, making you lose both money and customers.
You must partner up with a shipping provider that knows these things upside down. They should have a vast and proven experience in handling international packages effectively, so your items reach your customers without any hiccups or ados.
Your winning product can’t stay “winning” if it’s not reaching customers quickly and in one piece. It also won’t amount much if your customers are burning holes in their pockets to afford the shipping fees. You’ll want to get things right the first time around which is why it makes perfect sense to choose a shipping provider that gets the job done. When you grow your business with Stallion Express, you’re partnering with a company that has shipped almost 3 million parcels for 5,000+ enterprises in Canada, giving them a whopping savings of $2,000,000. To know more about how we can help you, get in touch with us and book a free consultation at Stallion Express.
Diana leads the growth marketing initiatives at Stallion Express. As a personal trainer turned digital marketer, Diana is obsessed with equipping eCommerce entrepreneurs with everything they need to scale their online businesses. You can catch her doing yoga or hitting the tennis courts in her spare time.