3 Ways Your Business Can Save Money On Packaging And Shipping
If your online business is expanding, you are likely looking for ways to keep things as streamlined and cost efficient as possible. After all, more revenue is only a benefit if you can continue to keep your costs down. One area that some businesses struggle with once they start shipping a larger variety of products is packaging.
You of course need to ensure that every box you ship is packaged well to protect the merchandise inside, but you also need to make sure that the extra packaging supplies and labor it takes to get the job done don't take away too much profit.
Here are 3 ways your business could attempt to curtail your packaging and shipping costs, leaving you with more money in your bank account:
Offer Customers Discounted Shipping for Multiple Items
If you now have a large catalog of items for sale, the chances of your customers ordering more than one item during any transaction have likely increased. Customers generally hate shipping charges, and your business certainly does not want to have to send out a new package for every single item purchased.
Offer customers an option at checkout to have all of their items shipped in one box, even if not every product is immediately available. Even if they have to wait an extra day, they will likely appreciate the savings in shipping, and shipping fewer boxes will likely save you some money on packaging.
Order Customized Packaging
If you sell a lot of the same items every day, it might be time to invest in some custom packaging designed just for your best products. There are companies who can design a box or package to be a snug, exact fit for a given product.
You won't have room at top of a generic sized box anymore that you will have to fill with a large amount of bubble wrap or other supplies. This will cost more money in short term, but over the long run, the fewer supplies, smaller boxes (and less weight) will save you money.
Hire a 3rd Party Packaging Company
As your company expands and ships more products, you will likely need to hire more workers to help get everything into boxes. But every time you hire another full-time employee, you'll also have to pitch in for benefits like health care or a 401K match if that is something your company generally offers to other employees.
One way to save money in this area is to hire a 3rd party company that you can outsource your packaging and shipping duties to. You'll still have to pay for the hourly wage, (or one all-encompassing set price), but all of the "extras" like benefits will not show up on your own expense report.
If your business is looking to cut packing and shipping costs, first look to see if you can encourage customers to get their products all shipped in the same box. You may also want to look into custom packaging, which can save you money in the long run, or even outsourcing your entire packaging and shipping operation to a 3rd party.
To learn more, contact a company like http://www.shalomdenver.com with any questions or concerns you have.