When it comes to shipping in the United States, the three major carriers available to business owners are USPS, FedEx, and UPS. Factors to consider when sending out products to customers are the product size, weight, and destination, but if you don’t want to worry about the last two all 3 of the major shipping carriers offer different programs for flat rate shipping. Understanding which flat-rate service if any, is the best for your eCommerce or retail venture can be a game-changer in terms of cost savings and customer satisfaction.
Our focus is on the UPS Simple Rate Service that has recently launched. The Simple Rate Service is a flat rate service designed to offer businesses a streamlined and cost-effective shipping method, where flat rates are charged based solely on size and delivery time brackets. There are 5 size brackets which include extra small, small, medium, large, and extra-large. Calculating the size of the product is fairly simple, where you only need to multiply the length, width, and height of the product, and you will be able to measure which size bracket your shipping box falls into. For shipping speeds, they offer four options that include UPS Ground, 2nd-day air, 3-day select, and next-day air saver. Basically, all one needs to know is which bracket their parcel size falls into, and the shipping speed required for that particular order. The costs are extremely simple to estimate, and make the whole order process simpler and faster.
UPS Service Flexibility
The service offers great flexibility and convenience to anyone with regular shipping requirements with the added advantage of being able to send heavier packages in smaller containers at a much lower cost. It's a tool for businesses to easily forecast the costing and profitability of the logistics of their product lines. It also removes the uncertainties that usually occur when businesses, especially eCommerce ventures, have a variety of products to offer consumers throughout the United States and are unable to attain exact overheads involved with delivering different products to different destinations.
UPS Packing and boxing
The service lets you use your own packaging and boxing, meaning your business can bring in its custom packaging and containers as long as they meet the dimensional requirements for the different size brackets. In today's competitive environment, especially in the online space, increasing customer satisfaction is key, and recent trends show that customers are increasingly focusing on the packaging and unboxing experience for products. Hence, custom packaging can be the edge your venture is missing and that can help it grow even further.
Of course, like with any service, there are some drawbacks as well, starting with self-packaging. UPS does not provide businesses with free packaging and boxes, but its competitors USPS and FedEx both do. This can be an added cost for businesses, where every cent and dollar counts. The overall costs for UPS may also be relatively higher compared to similar services offered by USPS or FedEx, which may be detrimental to the bottom line of some startups and small businesses.
Overall though, UPS offers guaranteed quality shipping free of any surcharges allowing you to easily expand and offer services throughout the United States mainland. Having more options is always better, helping you make informed decisions that will benefit your business for years to come.
