Image by The Library of Congress via Flickr
Before you choose a transport company, it is essential to make sure you know something about the company and how it operates. It is not as simple as picking up the phone book and choosing the company that has the lowest prices and quickest shipping. First and most importantly you need to understand a company will tell you anything you want to hear in order to gain your trust and acquire your business. Therefore you must take it upon yourself to conduct an investigation into the practices of any transport company you may be considering.
While the price is important to your company, you don’t want to place the pricing structure of any transport company as a priority. What you do want to do is review the pricing structure of the industry as an entirety and compare that to what each company you research is willing to accept for its shipping services. This will allow you to choose a transport company that has competitive pricing rather than choosing a company that has the lowest price and may offer few services as well. When you are looking for a transport company to provide services for your company, it is important to make sure you choose a company that is willing and able to meet your company’s needs and not a company that has its own agenda and set of shipping guidelines.
While there is nothing wrong with a transport company trying to make a profit, it must also be flexible enough to bend for its customers. For instance, if the company expects 72 hours notice, but you sometimes have rush orders and don’t know that far in advance when a customer’s order is coming off the production line. A transport company with rules they are unable or unwilling to bend when your customers need quicker turnaround time can be problematic to your business and the success of your relationship with your customers.
Besides price and flexibility, you need to choose a transport company that is reliable and can provide on-time services the majority of the time. Certainly there may be the occasional delay, but a transport company that makes delays a habit is not good for your business and will cause your customers to look for another company to meet their needs. Therefore, first and foremost you must keep the needs of your customers in mind and choose a fulfillment company based on research rather than on recommendations of friends or family.
