More and more businesses are shipping products all over the world. This goes for new small businesses as well as those with a lot of venture capital. Not only does shipping help cut costs if it’s applied to the right business model; it’s also what a lot of customers are expecting these days, anyway! Even businesses that have thrived since long before the wide availability of the Web are finding that long-term customers will want them to have some sort of home delivery service.
So logistics is as important to other areas of business as it ever was – maybe even more so. It’s essential that a new business gets the arrangement of logistics correct. Many make the mistake of thinking it’s a very simple process, perhaps thanks to the painless experiences they’ve had with logistics as end-users. But as business owners, logistics becomes an entirely new animal to tackle.
Mistakes in this field can cost your business a lot of time and money. And, if you’re reading an article like this, you’re probably a young business owner, or a budding one. I doubt your business is established and rich enough to afford such a massive waste! Here are three alarmingly common mistakes that new businesses make when it comes to logistics.
Underestimating cost
Again, years of experience as the customer receiving the item at the end of the business process leads many to underestimate how much shipping usually costs the business itself. A lot of small businesses make errors right out of the gate by not putting enough research into accurate cost estimation. You’re doing it wrong if you find yourself surprised by the bill you receive when the shipping process is complete! (Of course, if it’s cheaper than you expected, then that’s a fairly pleasant surprise, to be fair.)
Working with the wrong businesses
Very few online businesses form their own logistics company in order to complete deliveries. Even commercial Goliaths such as Amazon still rely heavily on state-run or other private services. Unless you’re running a very small, local enterprise, the vehicles and packaging you can get your hands on probably won’t do the trick! That means you’ll be working with other companies, especially if you’re sending things via sea and have to use shipping containers. Make sure you’re working with the right logistics business to ensure things go smoothly.
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Neglecting research of customer satisfaction
So you’re fairly confident that customers love your products. But do they love your packaging? Your shipping times? The people who actually hand the package to them? A lot of companies neglect to take what customers think of the shipping process into consideration. This is because businesses tend to have less control over the logistics in such a process, and a lot more control over the quality of their product or in-house customer service. But it all reflects on your company. Try to get comprehensive feedback on your shipping process. Remember that amazing delivery times will make all the difference in your line of work. It’s delivery times that most customers will be focussing on once all is said and done, after all!
