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What Are the Best Shipping Companies for Small Businesses?

Starting a small business is intimidating enough, but when you start taking deliveries into account, it can feel even more overwhelming. No one wants their business to become known for slow order fulfillment, but once a package leaves your door, it’s out of your hands. 

With the best shipping companies for small businesses, you can trust that your products will be delivered safely and on time. But how do shipping companies work? Let’s find out! 

Quicklook: Best Shipping For Small Businesses in the U.S

  • USPS
  • FedEx
  • UPS
  • DHL

4 Best Shipping Options for Small Businesses in the U.S.

Now that you have a better understanding of what to look for in a shipping company, you can start figuring out which company will be best for the transportation of your orders. Perhaps you need to utilize different shipping companies depending on the types of orders being shipped out. 

You don’t have to pick just one! Start by taking a look at these options to help you figure out which shipping company is best for you and your business.

USPS

One of the best go-to shipping options for small businesses is the United States Postal Service. It is a simple way to get good prices when shipping items across the country. It’s also one of the only shipping services to offer flat-rate shipping. 

Delivery Tracking: Yes

International Shipping: Yes

Shipping Options: 

  • Standard
  • Two-day shipping
  • Overnight

Third-Party Logistics (3PL): Yes

Shipping Label Generation: Yes

Shipping Rates: 

  • Priority Mail: starts at $7.70
  • Priority Mail Express: starts at $26.35
  • Priority Mail International: starts at $37.60

Special Features

  •  Flat-rate shipping 

Benefits: 

  •  Free package pickup 
  •  Print shipping labels from home
  •  Last-mile delivery feature 

Disadvantages: 

  • Not the most reliable package tracking system
  • Insurance is not always included

FedEx

FedEx is an affordable way for small businesses to ship packages. If you take advantage of the many features available with a FedEx account, you can start earning discounts on your shipments with FedEx Express, Ground, and Freight. 

Delivery Tracking: Yes

International Shipping: Yes

Shipping Options: 

  • Standard
  • Two-day shipping
  • Overnight

Third-Party Logistics (3PL): Yes

Shipping Label Generation: You can create shipping labels through their website. 

Shipping Rates: FedEx Shipping Rates are constantly fluctuating so they do not offer a generalized base rate for you to reference. But they do have a Shipping Rates Calculator on their site that you can use to see what it would cost to ship your package at that time. 

Special Features

  • Delivers on Sundays
  • Some of the best international shipping connections

Benefits: 

  • Outstanding reputation 
  • Temperature-controlled shipping options
  • Discounts available with a FedEx account 

Disadvantages: 

  •  No set shipping rates
  •  Relies heavily on the U.S. market

UPS

UPS is a company that has over 100 years of experience providing quality shipping across the United States. UPS excels when it comes to shipping large packages at affordable rates, especially in comparison to their competitors. 

Delivery Tracking: Yes

International Shipping: Yes

Shipping Options: 

  • Standard
  • Two-day shipping
  • Overnight

Third-Party Logistics (3PL): Yes

Shipping Label Generation: Yes

Shipping Rates: Just like FedEx, UPS shipping rates are not set prices. They fluctuate on a daily basis. You can find updated shipping rates on the UPS website.

Special Features

  •  Low prices for heavy packages

Benefits: 

  • Special deals for small businesses
  • One of the best package tracking systems
  • Discounts for large-volume shipments

Disadvantages: 

  •  No free package pickup
  •  Weekend delivery fee 

DHL

DHL is primarily a method of shipping internationally. They have a special system that can integrate with your website to allow for seamless and accurate information for your buyers at every step of the buying, shipping, and delivery process.Delivery Tracking: Yes

International Shipping: Yes

Shipping Options: 

  • Standard
  • Two-day delivery on business days
  • Two- to five-day delivery on business days
  • Next-day delivery

Third-Party Logistics (3PL): Yes

Shipping Label Generation: Yes 

Shipping Rates: As with most other options, the DHL shipping prices fluctuate regularly based on the economy and the countries you are shipping to. You can get an estimate of your cost through their Freight Shipping Cost Calculator

Special Features

  • The best international shipping company

Benefits: 

  • Parcels can be dropped of at USPS locations
  • No pick-up fees 
  • DHL ecommerce dedicated to online merchants

Disadvantages:  

  • Limited availability in the U.S.
  • Extra charges and surcharges based on destination 

How Do Shipping Companies Work?

Shipping companies are the companies that take care of transporting your orders and deliveries to your customers. They take care of the physical transportation aspect, while a shipping agency keeps track of and stores your stock. Shipping agencies hand the items to the shipping companies as orders are placed. 

The best shipping companies offer deals and discounts for small businesses that use their shipping services often. A shipping company can help your business because it will provide high-quality and speedy delivery services that don’t break the bank. 

What to Consider for Small Business Shipping Services

There are some key factors worth considering when you are trying to determine the best shipping company for your small business. Here are some of the considerations that you should keep in mind when making that decision! 

Shipment Volume

Being able to ship large quantities of orders without any sort of delay is important if you are looking to expand your business. You also need to take note of whether you are responsible for dropping packages off at a certain location or if the packages will be picked up by the shipping company from your company’s location. 

If you have a deal with a company that will ship your items regularly, then they will likely have a set day for pickups, which will make your shipping process much simpler. This would also mean that you’ll handle the packaging slips, which will save you a lot of time as well. All you have to do is print them out when you receive an order!  

Packaging Material, Weight, and Dimensions

The weight and overall dimensions of a package play a big role in calculating the shipping costs. The higher the weight and the larger the overall size, the more it will cost to ship the package. 

It’s strategic to include the cost of shipping in the total price of the item that you are selling. You can also add the cost of shipping as an additional fee at checkout as well.  

Shipping costs don’t just include what you are paying to ship the item. You also have to take packaging materials into consideration. If you need to wrap the product in a protective wrapping or special packaging, the extra precautions will cost you even more money.

Some companies will offer boxes or bags with a set shipping price, meaning whatever you can fit inside of the container will ship for the set cost of the box or bag. This is always a great option for items that won’t run the risk of breaking in transit. 

Order Volume

Keeping up with orders can be a difficult task if you are handling every step of the process on your own. Coming up with a way to handle the shipment process in an efficient manner can not only significantly improve your business operations but also reduce your stress levels at the same time. 

Delivery Time

In today’s world of online shopping, receiving your order as quickly as possible is a major bonus for a lot of buyers. For example, Amazon has set one of the largest precedents for the speediness of online orders, and many buyers have started expecting that from all retailers. In many cases, buyers will pay more if it means their packages will arrive sooner. 

Package Traceability

There is a certain joy that comes from seeing your package make its way from the facility to your front door. There is also a sense of security that comes with knowing where your package is at all times. Whichever company you use for shipping, it is always a good idea to know that they can provide an accurate tracker for your packages. 

Perishable & Fragile Items

Shipping fragile items can be very risky. It becomes more and more expensive to ship fragile packages because they require additional packaging and safety precautions. Due to the extra care and attention that fragile packages require, you will have to pay more to ship them no matter which shipping service you utilize.

The same goes for perishable items. Whether they require something as simple as a sticker on the shipping container notifying the delivery service that the items are perishable or they require a completely different type of shipping method altogether, perishable items are also more expensive to ship. 

Insurance

Insurance is important, especially for smaller businesses. You’ll want to avoid paying any additional fees as a result of needing to replace damaged or missing packages. 

Having insurance that covers your items might feel unnecessary, but when the worst happens to you and you end up having your package damaged or it goes missing, you’ll thank yourself for covering the package with insurance. 

Insurance is more important for expensive items but it can also be nice to have insurance for smaller parcels. Most shipping companies will offer custom insurance which is dependent upon the estimated worth of the package. 

Out the Door

Getting your orders shipped and delivered to your customers should be easy. No matter what shipping company you choose to work with, you need to know that you can trust them. 

Make sure you stay informed about the orders that have shipped so that you avoid sending out duplicates or failing to ship orders altogether. Once you figure out the best way of doing things for your business, you’ll be able to breeze through the process and keep your customers coming back for more!

FAQ

What are shipping companies?

Shipping companies are in charge of transporting your packages and deliveries from one location to another.

What is the best shipping method for small businesses?

Depending on the size, weight, and destination of your shipments, you can choose from a variety of options! Make sure you take all shipping companies into consideration before making your decision.

How do you calculate shipping costs for small businesses?

The first step is to figure out the package size. UPS has a helpful guide for determining the size of the package. After that, figure out how much the package weighs. Once you have those details figured out, look for a price calculator from your preferred carrier and input the data to find out how much it’ll cost to ship the package!

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