10 Tips for Lowering Ocean Freight Costs

Businesses are known to move around resources and products on a regular basis. There are times when the destination of such items would entail travelling internationally or locally with the need to pass through oceans and seas. For these cases, these customers pick either air freight or ocean freight to transport their cargos. When customers need to transport a large quantity of items, they may need the services of ocean freight shipping since it will not be possible for airplanes to carry the total load of their cargo. 

One of the concerns a customer has is the costs that would entail to transport cargos via ocean freight shipping. In relation to this, customers will always try to find ways to try and cut down on their shipping expenses. This article will focus on some tips for these customers to do so.

10 Tips to Lower Ocean Freight Shipping Costs

It is up to the customers to find ways on how they can be more cost-effective whenever they transport products and resources via ocean freight shipping. Shipping companies can help them make the process as efficient as possible, but customers need to strategize properly so that they do not waste their resources. The following are tips that will help customers make educated decisions whenever they feel the need to avail of ocean freight shipping services:

Finalize the items that you will be including in the cargo

This is a necessary step since this will determine the type of ocean freight shipping that you will be availing. Depending on the size and weight of your cargo, you may need to avail of full container load shipping (FCL) or less than container load shipping (LCL). Determining the type of shipping will save you from using up unnecessary resources when dealing with your preferred shipping company. 

In addition, you will be able to give the shipping company the exact information of the items included in the cargo, so they will be able to identify the size and type of shipping buy cheap valium container they will be using. For products that need to be kept at a specific temperature to protect their integrity, it is not advisable to use a dry shipping container. You will need to avail of a refrigerated shipping container.

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Formulate a strategic plan to handle the customs taxes and duties before going through with the shipment of your products

It is necessary that you start planning how you will approach your goal. Remember that transporting goods overseas may have some concerns in relation to customs. You have to effectively classify your items to see which of them will need to be paid with additional customs taxes and duties. You can avail of the services of a customs broker to help you identify any requirements and documentation you will need to get and also the fees you will be paying. 

This is important since you may already get an idea of the possible charges you may need to pay for with regards to the customs. You can also compare the amount your customs broker was able to come up with the customs fees that will be included in the price quotations that will be given to you by shipping companies. If there is a huge difference in the costing, you may opt to pay for the customs fees yourself so that the shipping company that you will choose can remove the fees from its price quotation.

Compare the current rates in the market

You should not only get a price quotation from only one shipping company. If you want to keep your costs low, you should inquire from multiple shipping companies so that you will have a point of reference and see which one would be able to offer you the lowest price quotation. If possible, try to inquire from well-known and older shipping companies since they already have a reputation for satisfying customers for longer periods of time.

Discuss with the shipping companies regarding their price quotations and try to ask for discounts

You must show the shipping companies that you are attentive with regards to the items they include in the price quotation. If you find some information that is unclear, you should ask for further explanation. This way you might uncover some charges that should not be included in the quotation. Shipping companies sometimes follow a template and may not fit your requirements. 

You should also ask for some discounts if possible. In some cases with LCL shipping, shipping companies might need your products to be included in a storage container that is ready and just waiting to be filled up. They may offer you some discounts so that they can release the shipping container for loading into a shipping vessel.

Avoid shipping your products during peak seasons

Freight rates generally increase during peak seasons. You should plan ahead and try to ship your products before or after peak seasons if possible. Shipping companies will be working at full capacity during these seasons, which would not be cost-effective for customers.

maximize the number of items

Maximize the number of items you include in your cargo

Since shipping containers have different sizes, you may opt to fill up the space of the biggest available shipping container. If your business can produce large quantities of goods, then you can try to send out as many items as possible for one transaction. The price difference when using a bigger shipping container compared to the smaller ones is not that huge of a difference. This will save you from spending for multiple shipments on different days.

If the cargo you are shipping is meant for a buyer, you may discuss with the buyer if they would prefer to avail of free-on-board shipping (FOB)

This is a good way to cut costs with regards to shipping the products to your customers. FOB shipping would entail that the seller will only take care of the hauling costs, insurance, and liability for damages in sending the products to the port of origin. Once the items are onboard the shipping vessel, all of the responsibility will be transferred to the buyer. 

This means that the buyer will be the one paying for any customs taxes and duties, hauling, and insurance of the cargo during transit of the shipping vessel up to the point where the cargo reaches the buyer’s location. This is actually a good deal for both parties as this method will lessen the accountability of the seller. 

However, the buyers will usually ask for the price of the products to be lowered to consider the additional expenses the buyers will incur shipping the products to their destinations. This method was actually developed due to some buyers thinking that some sellers are adding profit from the shipping of their goods. The buyers will be hiring their own freight services to transport the goods from the port of discharge.

You should be systematic in packing your products

One of the reasons why some customers incur high shipping costs is due to the fact that space on the shipping container is wasted from unnecessary packaging. This means that some products are not optimally packed and would take up more than the needed space in the shipping container. Oversized cartons, bags, or other packaging materials will eat up a lot of space inside the container. Customers must customize their packaging to save enough space for more items to be included in the shipment.

As much as possible, customers should refrain from tagging their cargos as urgent

Rush deliveries will entail higher costs. By implementing an effective time management system, customers may send out their products earlier to meet their deadlines without incurring the additional costs for rush deliveries. Unless the products are being sent for emergency purposes, customers can study the different factors that may cause delays to the shipping of their cargos. These factors may include the weather conditions for both the country of origin and the destination of the cargos. By looking into this, customers will be able to decide on the best date they can send out the products so that they will arrive at their respective destinations on their preferred schedule.

Have deeper understanding of the shipping companies within your area

Being able to find out more about the shipping companies that you may transact with is very crucial for any business that will regularly ship out products to destinations all over the world. With ocean freight shipping, a reliable shipping company should have contracts with multiple ocean carriers. By having more than one ocean carrier, a shipping company can give you alternatives and may even find cheaper options on certain occasions. There will also be possibilities that different ocean carriers will have considerable price differences depending on their workload.

Be Patient and Plan Appropriately To Save On Ocean Freight Costs

There are many ways for customers to lower the costs to ship their products overseas. However, they must take the necessary steps for this to happen. Patience and planning will be very crucial to avoid incurring unnecessary expenses. With Ontario Container Transport, you are assured that our team of experts will be able to give you the best pricing possible to ship your products overseas. You may contact us at (905) 695 1501 so that we can evaluate your cargo and give you a price quotation as soon as possible.

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