It doesn’t have to be this way,
Hard to believe, international courier services are currently the only lifeline to embark on global connectivity.
Be it a local business aspiring for overseas customers or individuals wishing to send packages of home comforts to their loved ones settled abroad, the role of international courier services is indispensable.
As much as complexity revolves around the process of it, comprehending the shipping charges is a whole other ball game. However, it doesn’t have to be a nerve-wracking exercise anymore.
With a bit of detailing and a curated set of detailed insights in your hand on how the shipping numbers are determined, you will strike upon ways for optimising the shipping costs and therefore making more informed choices.
At Brown Post, we stand for one unified goal of simplifying the process of cross-border shipment services at all levels, able to position ourselves as a reliable and affordable international courier service provider.
Let’s delve into some of the important factors influencing shipment charges and a few essential tips on optimising your shipping budgets accordingly.
Factors influencing international shipment charges
The international shipment costs are influenced by different factors each bears its weightage impacting the final price of the shipment. Here is a list of the top 5 factors you need to know,
1. Destination
The shipment charges increase concerning the proximity level of the destination. However, accessibility also plays a huge role in devising the prices where remote areas may lead to additional charges as well.
Pro-Tip: Checking priorly whether your destination lies within the serviceable areas will prevent you from incurring extra charges.
2. Weight and Dimension
Most courier services emphasise either the actual weight of the parcel or the dimensional weight to calculate their shipping charges. The larger lightweight packages take up a higher charge due to the extra spaces they occupy while making a cross-border transit.
Pro-Tip: At Brown Post, we extend ourselves in providing packing assistance where we cut down the weight and dimension of the packages by efficiently infusing proper packaging materials.
3. Customs duties
Another vital factor impacting the shipping charges greatly is the customs duties and taxes which differ according to each country. Moreover, they also significantly vary on the goods type and the value of it.
Pro-Tip: Make sure that the chosen service provider offers end-to-end support in assuring customs clearance.
4. Speed of the delivery
Most of the services apply their pricing based on the service delivery chosen, whether standard or priority-based. Accordingly, express, same-day or next-day deliveries are costlier than the economical options.
Pro-Tip: Based on the delivery’s urgency, choose the service type. For non-urgent packages, make sure to choose an economical option.
5. Value-added services
The overall costs of the shipment also vary according to the choice of any add-on services like insurance, packaging, handling fragile items, pick-up services tracking etc.
Pro-Tip: Carefully evaluate your shipment needs and opt-in for only necessary services.
6. Fuel surcharges
In addition to the other factors, dynamic fuel prices also play a crucial role in shaping the shipment charges. On that note, the fuel surcharges are being applied as a variable fee reflecting the volatile price of the aviation fuel.
Understanding the pricing of international shipments
International shipment service providers apply different pricing models. A thorough evaluation of these pricing models can help you choose the ideal one.
Weight-based pricing– The shipping rates are directly proportional to the weight of the package, and the price tends to increase as the package exceeds the standard limit.
Zone-based pricing– This is another commonly applied pricing technique where the delivery partner chooses to categorise the destinations based on zones and fix their charges accordingly. For instance, if you wish to send a parcel to France, it may come under the European zone.
Flat-rate shipping– Recently, most delivery partners have incorporated the system of flat-rate shipping to save customers time and effort. Correspondingly, through this option, a shipper gets to pay a fixed cost based on the specificity of the package dimensions.
Bulk volume– Moreover, the international shipment charges can also be decided on the volume of the shipment. So, choosing to send bulk shipments can help the shipper bear advantages in terms of cost reduction.
Tips to save international shipment costs
Upon understanding the basics of how cross-nation shipment charges are determined by the delivery partners, it is also necessary for you to look for opportunities to adequately prevent your shipment costs from exceeding. Take a look at some of the practical tips;
1. Prior Planning
Most of the time, excessive spending on shipments results from last-minute bookings. So, planning your cross-border shipments can significantly cut down your expenses on the overall delivery charges.
2. Proper comparative research on shipping rates
Another reason you might tend to overlook which enormously adds to the excessive amount of shipping charges, is the lack of a transparent pricing approach. It particularly leads to the situation where one might end up paying a lot of hidden charges during the process of cross-border shipment.
So, when choosing a shipment provider, it is necessary to do complete research comparing against different operators in the market, ensuring they have a transparent pricing model to make appropriate shipment decisions.
3. Negotiation with the delivery partners
While analysing the services of a chosen delivery partner, you must request quotes and begin negotiating based on the diverse pricing terms. You can choose to negotiate based on bulk shipments, and the ability to foster potential long-term value for the business.
4. Adjusting packaging decisions
Some of the efficient packaging decisions should be made carefully so that you escape paying more for the shipment charges. Accordingly, decisions like using lightweight packaging materials or bringing packages with a different variety of sizes can favour you in reducing volumetric dimensions.
5. Consolidating multiple shipments
Instead of sending individual shipments separately, consolidation of packages can help you save better. Always attempt to turn your multiple shipments into a single one so that you get a cost advantage on a per-shipment basis.
Wrap Up
International shipment decisions are crucial enough for its know-how.
Even if you are a newbie in the process of sending packages abroad or have been struggling to understand the costs despite sending parcels for months now, starting this second your learning gets easy.
With our above walk-through of the comprehensive guide to understanding global shipment charges, the quality of your decision-making concerning the pricing component gets enhanced.
More so, your wallet is even more fool-proof now preventing you from encountering excessive spending on cross-border shipments by considering the aligned factors like destination, weight, customs duties etc.
When transparent pricing is the ultimate root cause for the customers to experience expensive shipment charges, at Brown Post, you ought to experience a difference as ‘we communicate through transparency by all means’. That’s why, we strive to achieve market leadership in providing affordable and reliable cross-border logistics services.
Want to ship smarter with customised budget-friendly strategies on International shipments? Pick Brown Post for a reliable & cost-effective international shipment process.
