Small_Parcel_Shipping_Challenges

How to overcome challenges of small parcel shipping?

by BlogTSM

Small Parcel shipping is challenging for many shippers. Businesses need strategic solutions with the right software tools to ship small parcels efficiently.

The convenience of ordering online is here to stay. Experts believe there’s been a significant increase in the volume of shipping small parcels to customers directly over the past few years. However, small parcel shipping domestically or internationally requires strategic planning. Inflation, record-high gas prices, supply chain disruptions, and more contribute to various challenges during shipping. Shippers need to automate shipping processes to save time and enhance customer satisfaction. This blog will focus on the challenges shippers face when shipping small parcels.

Small parcel shipping

Packages such as envelopes, posters, small boxes, etc., weighing less than 150 lbs are small parcels. Shipment of small packages requires efficient pickup, transit, and delivery. They do not occupy full truckload capacity like freight or large packages. Each small parcel order is unique and has various requirements. Shippers face challenges when shipping small parcels direct to customers (D2C).

Some of these challenges include:

  • Management of high volumes of small parcels

As customers shifted to e-purchases, there has been a rise in small parcel shipping volumes. Warehouse workers and truckers keep parcel volumes moving to prevent supply chain disruptions. LTL carriers disassemble small parcels or less than pallet load (LPL) shipments to fill their trucks. It may cause damage to the goods during transit.

  • Labor requirements

Processing small parcel shipments requires more labor or workers than bulk shipments. It leads to higher shipping costs for shippers. This cost is either transferred to customers as shipping fees or is a part of the product. Companies hire more people for warehouses and fulfillment centers for shipping small parcels.

  • Overcoming packaging hurdles

Small packages can vary in size, weight, and dimensions. Picking out the ideal packaging material is necessary to prevent shipping delays. Padded mailers and envelopes are appropriate for single items. Fragile items need packing in boxes with proper dimensions to avoid damaging goods in transit. In addition, heavy packages cost more to ship than light ones.

  • Accessorial fees charges

Many transportation service providers charge accessorial fees for small parcel shipping. These fees are residential charges, additional handling, address correction, weekend pickup/delivery, and more.

  • Selection of appropriate parcel carriers and services

Last-mile delivery of small parcels is essential for better customer satisfaction. Choosing the correct local parcel carriers is necessary as inexperienced and untrained courier staff can damage the goods. Hence, selecting the parcel carrier and the appropriate services allows shippers to cater to their customers’ needs.

Retail consumers expect on-time delivery and updated arrival status of packages. And failure to meet customers’ expectations causes loss of repeat business. Providing reliable services with greater visibility gives shippers an advantage over their competitors. Many parcel carriers like UPS and FedEx enhance customer experience with their services.

UPS small parcels

UPS has various options for small parcel delivery that are tailor-made for small businesses. They provide access to Drop Boxes, pickup options, and an-inclusive rate for shipments. They have defined the price range and service level for small parcel deliveries of particular dimensions at specific times. For example, UPS Ground services can provide 1-5 delivery dates for shipping small parcels.

FedEx small parcels

FedEx has different package classifications based on size and weight for delivering small parcels. For instance, FedEx’s Flat packages have short dimensions and a volume of around 400 cubic inches. FedEx has various small parcel limits for domestic Ground services than Express Services.

A third-party (3PL) provider helps shippers in carrier management. They can negotiate better shipping rates for shippers to get better discounts. Further, they can compare carrier performances and suggest services of multiple parcel carriers. With expert knowledge of packaging expertise, they can provide cost-effective solutions.

Audintel- for faster and cheaper small parcel shipping

Our state-of-the-art shipping optimization platform helps manage small parcel delivery. We offer customizable dashboards that continuously monitor shipping status and on-time delivery of packages. Audintel’s automated real-time customer notifications keep our clients abreast of the entire shipping operations of packages. Our expert team can provide shippers with data to compare carrier performance, identify areas of saving money and time, and more.

Companies can streamline their small parcel shipping needs with Audintel’s Transportation Management System (TMS). We provide customized views within our dashboards even for the shipping’s made through small parcels to different destinations. Moreover, our software tools help reduce shipping costs for our clients by providing alternate solutions.   

Finally

During the pandemic, there was a drop in sales of brick-and-mortar products. E-commerce sales of small packages have grown exponentially. Smooth, reliable small parcel shipping is vital for shippers to improve their profitability. So, efficient management of high volumes of small parcels with advanced shipping software solutions is the need of the hour. Partnering with Audintel helps shippers overcome these challenges. We address each business’ unique customer preferences to ensure effortless, cost-effective delivery of small parcels.

Along with customized dashboards, Audintel do have 200+ reports available in their portal which are available for live customers which will help in generating and scheduling the reports based on their required criteria.

Wondering how much it will cost for small parcel shipping? Learn more about small parcels by contacting us at +1 (619) 354 8539 or visiting our Audintel website.

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Competitive parcel auditing services: essential for shippers

by BlogFreight Audit

With rising inflation and skyrocketing fuel prices, businesses need to economize and improve profitability. Shipping small packages to customers needs scrutiny as service failures lead to higher expenses for shippers.

Affordable patent auditing services are essential to monitoring shipping expenses. Our earlier blog focused on affordable parcel auditing services that reduce shipping costs. This article focuses on the various aspects of parcel auditing services, such as package shipping spend, services offered, and their software.

Affordable parcel auditing services

Parcel auditing analyzes the shipping data of companies and unearths any invoice errors. Parcel auditing services of parcel auditing companies work to fix the invoice errors and get refunds from the shipping carriers. Web-based technology used by parcel auditors spares shippers from purchasing hardware, thus saving money. In addition, parcel auditing services do not involve set-up fees or up-gradation in current technology resulting in cost savings.

Parcel shipping spend

According to the latest reports in business wire, US parcel volume will grow exponentially by 2027. It is due to increasing demand for internet retail. Small parcel shipping is a critical component of shipping systems. An audit on small parcel shipping spend allows companies to save money. Shippers are eligible for a refund from shipping carriers for service failures like late deliveries, invalid surcharges, billing errors, and more. Parcel auditors like Audintel have a real-time dashboard that monitors small packages’ shipping spend while controlling shipping costs.

Outsourcing parcel auditing

Manual parcel auditing is time-consuming and is prone to human errors. So, by outsourcing parcel audit work to a third party, shippers save time as they do not need to track each shipment and file refund claims. Further, the parcel auditors secure refunds for service failures with direct credit to shippers’ accounts. Parcel auditing services provided by a third party give companies valuable insights into their shipping process.

Services offered by a parcel auditing company

Small parcel auditing is a complex process that requires data evaluation at each stage of the shipping process. Parcel auditing companies analyze the parcel invoices from the shipping carriers. In addition, tracking parcel delivery to customers and information about any shortcomings is conveyed to the business owner. Some of the common service failures made by parcel carriers include:

  • Late deliveries: Parcel delivery to the customer beyond the scheduled delivery time
  • Surcharge errors: Parcel invoices with incorrect address correction charges, delivery area surcharge, and other surcharge errors
  • Dimensional weight errors: Shipping carriers levy wrong dimensional weight charges on packages
  • Duplicate charges: Double invoicing for a single parcel shipment
  • Manifested not shipped parcels: Shipping carriers like UPS charge for a package manifested but not sent to its destination
  • Deviation from negotiated shipping rates and discounts: Parcel shipment with different shipping rates and discounts.

Parcel auditing services offered by parcel auditing companies provide effective solutions for service failures. They inform business owners about billing errors, changes in shipping rates, additional surcharges, etc. Parcel auditors use intuitive auditing software that automatically notifies any discrepancies in the shipping process.

Small parcel auditing software

The tracking and monitoring of each small parcel shipment use cloud-based shipping software. The data analysis improves shipping spend management and curbs excessive expenses. In addition, the software monitors the performance of shipping carriers, identifies invoice errors, and files for unclaimed refunds. Shippers reduce their parcel shipping spend and improve their shipping operations with ease.

Freight audit software

Freight audit software minimizes complex freight auditing processes. Due to the automation of the freight audit process, labor decreases, and cost-efficiency increases. The shippers get greater clarity of their shipping expenses. Also, there is streamlining of the shipping process. Further, automatic uploading of the shipping documents into the system helps track invoices efficiently. Freight audit software benefits many industries such as manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, construction, electronics, etc.

The software used by parcel auditors improves customer satisfaction and increases brand loyalty, which benefits shippers’ businesses.

Benefits of using Audintel’s services

Parcel auditing services of Audintel are economical and customized to cater to our client’s needs. We provide greater transparency to our clients by using their shipping data. Audintel has more than forty customized dashboards and shipping reports for our clients. Our team uses updated, secure technology to track and monitor the shipping data of our clients. We assist business owners in negotiating the best carrier contracts and saving money. Companies benefit tremendously by partnering with Audintel as it honors their parcel delivery commitments to customers. We help shippers receive refunds promptly from shipping carriers for service failures and increase their profits.

Final thoughts

Small parcel delivery services like FedEx and UPS do not always stick to their delivery commitments. It impacts the shippers as they have to deal with angry customers. Companies offer extra credit or special offers to keep customers happy, thus involving double expenses. Audintel’s parcel auditing services give companies a helping hand in receiving all the refund credits from shipping carriers. To know better about the full extent of our parcel auditing services, contact us at +1 (619) 354 8539 or visit our Audintel website.

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Parcel audit-Small parcel audit improves your bottom line

by BlogFreight Audit

There is an urgency to ship medical, protective, and cleaning supplies. E-commerce orders are piling up. There are chances of shipping and invoicing mistakes.  A parcel audit is an essential feature when managing the shipping process. In this article, we will explore the concept of parcel auditing. We will also discuss why it is necessary for logistic businesses around the world.

First, we need to understand-What is a Parcel audit?

A parcel audit involves reviewing shipping bills and invoices. It identifies overcharges and service failures by carriers. Many carriers such as FedEx, UPS, DHL promise refunds to shippers. A parcel audit reviews every shipment for errors and service failures.

What do we mean by service failures?

US Shipping carriers like FedEx, UPS, Ontrac, DHL, CanadaPost, Purolator are responsible for shipping the goods. Their failure to do so is what is a service failure. There are several service failures.

Some service failures by carriers include:

  • Late deliveries- Delivery beyond the committed time and date.
  • Voids- Packages have been billed but not shipped.
  • Duplicate charges-Verifies the invoice hasn’t been billed previously.
  • Avoidable address corrections-Charges for trivial address correction.
  • Incorrect dimensional weight charges- Wrong measurements of the parcel.
  • Account validation – Validates that all shipments considered for payment are tied to an existing customer account number.
  • Proof-of-Delivery – Identifies instances where there’s no POD or an invalid POD.
  • Zone validation – Uses postal codes to validate carrier zone assignment.
  • Erroneous rates- The shipping carrier has not given the correct discount.

Logistic businesses can claim refunds for service failures from carriers. They can reduce shipping costs.

Parcel auditing

In the early days, there was manual parcel auditing. It required employees to identify all billing errors. They had to review several invoices. The review of excessive paperwork was tedious. Shipping companies had to hire auditors to do this labor-intensive work. It was a time-consuming process to gather information. It was not cost-effective for companies in the long run. Adopting parcel auditing software was the way forward.

Software-assisted parcel auditing

There was a need to optimize shipping operations. It was due to an increase in shipping volumes. Shipping companies have started adopting software technology. It is maximizing their profits. On the other hand, shippers can review their invoices digitally. Enhancement of shipping methods is possible. This is by analyzing the data readily available.

A Parcel audit benefits logistic business

Parcel auditing is essential for logistic business operations. These audits help in saving costs for shipping companies. Businesses can monitor the complexity of managing fees, agreements, and guarantees. Parcel audit processes reduce overall shipping costs for companies. Shipping costs are reduced to about 20% by claiming eligible refunds from carriers.

Additional benefits

Reviewing data from parcel audits can lead to huge savings. It helps shippers to understand any inefficiencies in their systems. These audits identify additional surcharges to companies. However, in-house auditing is expensive based on shipment complexity. When logistic businesses want to save time and money, they outsource. Businesses such as Audintel are providing parcel audit services.

How do these parcel audit services work?

The business offering these audit services understands the needs of a shipping company. They create an online login for them. Then link it with the carrier’s systems. There is real-time parcel tracking till their point of delivery.  There is a generation of an invoice when there is a service failure.  Next is an automatic invoice audit.  Then there is a submission of an automatic claim. The audit team contacts the carriers with the claim.  The shipping company gets a quick refund. The entire process involves a software tool working in the background.

Parcel auditing and technology

Parcel audit services have a dedicated database for each shipping company. They provide an overview of the shipping information. It ranges from the origin, destination, charges, etc. Parcel audit companies use Interactive, AI-powered dashboards. An automated BI platform helps in identifying overcharges. They help in analyzing problematic areas and improve negotiations with carriers. After a parcel is shipment, there is an audit at each level. There is proof at each service level.

What are the advantages of using Parcel audit services?

The services provided by a parcel audit company include:

  • E-connectivity with the carrier and parcel invoicing system
  • Transparency in shipment operations
  • Tracking each parcel with accuracy
  • Interacting with carriers for resolving any disputes
  • Check on any violation of guaranteed service agreements
  • Identifying any overcharges made by the carriers

Parcel audit services provide support to logistic companies. Their exhaustive auditing processes help shippers to reduce costs.

Summary

Customer satisfaction is paramount for the logistics industry. A customer has the choice to change the company based on a bad experience. The loss of a customer is painful for shippers. A parcel audit is an answer to each charge and refund. It is vital for real-time confirmation of billing errors. Logistic companies can reduce shipment spend by doing a parcel audit. For further queries, please visit Audintel us at +1 (619) 354 8539 or mail to [email protected].