By Eileen O’Shanassy
If you’re putting goods in the hands of your customers, then you need to have a smooth and simple shipping process if you want them to order again. A slow, delayed, or outdated shipping process can leave you in the dust and give you bad reviews and annoyed customers. Getting things up to speed takes time and effort, but will put you in better standing all around. Use these below tips to make sure your product distribution process is operating as efficiently as possible.
Standardize Shipping Materials
Standardizing your packaging makes the shipping process more affordable and faster for anyone who uses it. It’s easier for workers to get into a groove of handling packages when the boxes are all the same size, and having different packages for different destinations, delivery methods, etc. makes it easier for your employees to move boxes quickly. As a bonus, you’ll save money on packing materials by not using too large of a container and having to fill the extra space.
Plan for Accidents
Even when you have the most highly-trained truck drivers working with high-quality equipment, accidents will eventually prove unavoidable. A truck accident will already slow down your shipping process, but you can minimize the damage by having a trucking lawyer’s number on record. This will free you to handle any shipping issues while an attorney handles any legal complications from unforeseen accidents.
Create a FAQ
For an optimal shipping process, it’s not only important that you have clear shipping procedures in place, but it’s equally vital your customers be aware of these processes as well. Adding a FAQ to your website about shipping times and how customers can contact the proper channels in regard to their orders will save you time fielding the same handful of questions indefinitely. Moreover, this will help improve your relationship with customers by providing them with succinct information right away.
Join Your Processes
One of the easiest ways to slow down your shipping methods is to use multiple programs for a single process. If your customer places an order, then that order needs to be passed along to the warehouse, who then passes it along to your fleet, you’ve already wasted too much time. Standardize your internal processes by running them on the same platforms and making communication as close to instantaneous as possible.
Much of a customer’s opinion of a brand is related to its shipping, so it’s imperative you make your distribution process as simple as possible. Use the above tips to simplify your shipping and make the process easier and more cost effective for everyone involved.
Eileen O’Shanassy is a freelance writer and blogger based out of Flagstaff, AZ. She writes on a variety of topics and loves to research and write. She enjoys baking, biking, and kayaking. Check out her Twitter @eileenoshanassy.
