由 caicai8478 Here are 5 practical tips to reduce international shipping costs, combining practicality and operability to help you effectively control logistics costs:
- Optimize packaging volume and weight
Lightweight materials: Use bubble film, inflatable bags, etc. instead of heavy fillers to reduce the total weight of the package.
Reasonable size reduction: International express (such as DHL, FedEx) charges by volume weight (length × width × height/5000), avoid using too large cartons.
Standardized packaging: Choose a box type that matches the product to avoid extra costs due to irregular shapes.
- Compare logistics service providers and channels
Multi-platform price comparison: Use third-party price comparison tools (such as Freightos, ShipStation) to compare express, air and sea prices.
Mixed transportation mode: Express delivery (3-5 days) for high-value small items, and sea or rail (such as China-Europe Express) for bulk, low-time goods.
Negotiate the agreed price: If the volume of goods is stable, you can sign a long-term contract with the freight forwarder to get a discount (such as DHL’s large customer price can be reduced by 15%-30%).
- Take advantage of preferential tariff policies
HS code optimization: Ensure that the goods use tariff numbers with lower tariffs (such as tariffs on some electronic products may be as low as 0%).
Free Trade Agreement (FTA): Such as China-ASEAN, USMCA, etc., providing a certificate of origin (COO) can reduce tariffs.
Deferred tariffs: Some countries allow tariffs to be paid later to improve cash flow.
- Combine shipments and inventory pre-positioning
Concentrated shipments: Combine scattered orders into a single large package (such as changing from 3 times a week to 1 time) to reduce the freight cost per piece.
Overseas warehouse stocking: Prepare stocks in advance through Amazon FBA and third-party overseas warehouses, and the local delivery fee is much lower than international express delivery.
LCL sea freight: Small batches of goods are consolidated with other merchants to share the container cost.
- Automation and data monitoring
Freight audit software: Use tools (such as ShipBob, Flexport) to automatically check freight bills to avoid billing errors (such as double charges).
Track logistics data: Analyze delivery time and damage rate, and eliminate high-cost and inefficient channels.
Dynamic adjustment strategy: Flexibly switch carriers according to changes in fuel surcharges and peak season surcharges (such as switching to postal parcels during peak season to avoid express price increases).
Additional tips
Avoid remote area surcharges: Check in advance whether the destination postal code is “remote” (such as the Australian outback).
Declared value skills: Fill in the declared amount reasonably (avoid excessive tariffs, but must comply with regulations).
Through the above methods, companies can reduce international freight costs by 20%-50%, especially suitable for cross-border e-commerce, foreign trade B2B and other scenarios.