Shipping costs can be daunting to any business. That is why most business owners and managers would want to reduce shipping costs as much as possible.

However, supply chain scenarios are changing. Customers have become pickier than ever as they expect sustainability. D2C model is also changing. All these changes mean that you may need to reinvent the ways you operate. It could result in an overall difficulty saving money in the shipping process.

No matter what business model you use and how demanding your customers are, you will need to pack your products the right way before shipping them out. That’s where you can apply a bit of customization to keep costs under control.

In this article, we will discuss some tried & tested, and evergreen ways to save money on product shipping.

Train your staff

Reducing shipping costs will depend heavily on your staff, so they better be up to scratch. You will need a well-trained staff if you want to ensure efficiency and perfection in the supply chain and fulfillment department. It means all staff has to be well-trained on the all equipment you use to package your products.

Maintain your machinery

If your machinery is not working as it should, it is probably costing you a lot of money. First, you have to make sure that you have the right tools for the job. For this purpose, you will need to see what materials you are using. Then you can look into the type of machinery you can use.

Be proactive

Cost skyrocketing, more returns and a massive inefficiency are some of the most undesirable happenings related to product packaging and shipping. Instead of acting when something happens, you may like to pay attention to processes when there is no problem. The best time to identify problems is when you perform an audit. This way, you may be able to reduce costs further.

The packaging is not all about a box

Most people pay attention to a box when they have to optimize packaging costs. The fact of the matter is that a box is just a part of the packaging. There are too many other packaging materials that you have to pay attention to when it comes to optimizing product packaging to save costs.

Assembly and packing time

Labor costs can put a significant burden on your shoulders. You have to pay your labor force on a daily or hourly basis. So, if the number of packages being prepared is less than what should be, you are essentially overpaying your labor. This lack of efficiency may be due to an unnecessarily complicated procedure or the absence of necessary automation.

Removing unnecessary materials

You may want to add flyers or other marketing materials to acquire the branding advantage. However, these materials can make your fulfillment tasks significantly slower. These materials add to the cost of packaging due to the time they take. So you do not want to add these promotional materials unless you are sure about their effectiveness.

Cutting down on void filler usage

If you are sending products over long distances, you will have to add a void-filler to cushion those products. Void-filler is something you wouldn’t want to use since they just fill void areas in a box. So, instead of not using void-fill entirely and waiting for the product, you can use it in an amount that doesn’t hit your bottom-line but help you ensure the safety of your product.