How to Pick an International Shipping Service for Your Online Business

 

Starting you're an own online business involves a lot of serious work. During the beginning stages, besides the fun and adrenaline of designing your website and setting up your social media accounts, you have to take care of the not-so-exciting task of selecting a shipping carrier. So how can you spot a good one anyway?

 

Before deciding to work with a particular worldwide shipping service, here are eight essential points to consider:

 

Products Shipped and Locations Covered

 

First and foremost, determine the types of products accepted by your potential shipper, and the locations where they ship. When assessing various various companies from http://simpleglobal.com/, ask about permitted specs, like sizes, shapes, shapes, etc. Keep in mind that some services will not ship everything. Fragile or expensive items like jewelry may be refused, so do check on this first. Of course, you need a carrier that will ship to the places you're opening your business to. This may sound obvious, but it's ironic that it can be overlooked. If they say they ship to Asia, it doesn't mean they will cover every single point across the region.

 

Industry Reputation

 

Don't just choose a shipping carrier with cheaper rates; you may just end up with a lost or delayed shipment - both extremely bad for your business. You need to research on the reputation of every company you're considering, and again, the reasons are obvious. On top of their shipments being successful, you'd also like to focus on your prospect's customer service. They should be responsive to customers' concerns, offering quick and effective solutions.

 

Live Rates

 

Have you tried shopping online and getting an automatic computation of shipment rates based on product details, like weight, destination, etc.? Those are called live rates and they be hugely beneficial for your customers. They will surely love you for it!

 

 

Speed of Delivery

 

International shipments usually take from 3 days to 2 weeks, depending on point of origin and destination. Compare various carriers and pick the one which makes the quickest deliveries, all other factors being equal.

 

Shipment Tracking Services

 

Tracking services provides an easy method of monitoring where the package is at each stage of the shipment process. We all want a carrier that provides this e-commerce fulfillment service because we like to be updated on our shipment's status. 

 

Insurance

 

Keep in mind that not all shipping companies have insurance, so you really need to ask your prospect about this. Both you and your customers need that security and peace fo mind. Besides, it can even be a selling point!

 

Convenience

 

Choose a shipping carrier that will come and pick up your packages from your office or warehouse, instead of you having to bring them over. This can mean so much for a starting business, where time, effort and cash savings are precious.

 

Pricing

 

Lastly, when planning to offer free shipping, it's critical that you factor in the rates of your chosen carrier when setting a price for each product you sell. If you want to provide shipping options, post all rates based on size, weight, and/or destination. Check this out:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shipping_agency.