What the COVID-19 taught us is to embrace change, just as Heraclitus said, change is the only constant in life. So we keep updating our shipping options, to ensure our fulfillment solution is affordable, reliable, and fast as we guarantee. In the past two months, affected by the global pandemic, many e-commerce sellers are stuck with unstable and expensive shipping, and many consumers complain that they cannot receive products on time. In response, we collated and counted the previous logistics data, deleted the unqualified lines, and added some better shipping options. Although NextSmartShip has been updating the shipping options before, this update is the largest, so the improvement of service experience is unprecedented.
We all are in a very rare and special period, facing challenges that have never been before.
In this article, we will list some features of the new shipping options and explain why they will benefit your eCommerce business. I hope it can help you choose a wiser shipping strategy.
Keep Updating During The Turbulent Time
NextSmartShip never stops trying to expand your shipping options, which is the only way to keep up with the time (all of us have been through the awful time when the air shipping price kept rising because of the decreasing number of flights) and deliver what we promised: make fulfillment simple and affordable.
Let me list some of our daily routines to help you understand better
- Collect and summarize the actual shipping time and packet loss rate of existing shipping methods
- Collect the tracking number of the orders with problems, analyze the reason
- Compare the data of several shipping methods and delete the ones with poor performance
- Seek and develop alternative shipping methods which are fast and affordable
- Place test orders to know the actual shipping routes and transfer time of newly added shipping methods
- List the recommended shipping options for customers with different needs
And more…
To keep the fulfillment simple and easy to understand, although we keep updating the shipping methods, our quotation stays simple.
Along with the shipping options, your fulfillment adviser will summarize everything you will need to know to make the best choice for your business.
Delight Your Customers and Keep Profits
eCommerce buyers LOVE free shipping and overnight delivery, but we all know that there is no such thing as the fastest and most affordable shipping method. Both the 3PL and customers have to compromise. Being a professional order fulfillment in China, NextSmartShip knows what’s best for different customers. There is a balance between efficiency and price. To tailor the best fulfillment solution that applies to every customer, we provide a breakdown for different shipping options and expert opinions.
For example, NextSmartShip has fulfillment centers in Shenzhen, HK, US, Europe, and Australia. If an eCommerce business’s supply chain is in China, there are 2 options:
- Ship directly from China
- Fulfill orders in local fulfillment centers
Both of the options have unique shipping methods to choose from and combine, that’s why we need every customer to provide as detailed information as possible. You can fulfill orders in China or other places, ship by air or by sea, choose an express carrier or a special line, etc. We have sorted out and optimized many shipping methods in this update, which will delight your customers definitely.
More than that, by keeping years of in-depth cooperation with multiple logistics suppliers, the price of our new shipping options are over 15% lower than similar shipping options of other order fulfillment companies in China (data from the analysis report of NextSmartShip’s fulfillment department, 5.31.2020), and the timeliness is more stable.
Special Line Shipping: Fewer Transfers
A special line is a fast shipping method other than courier and express. During the coronavirus pandemic, good special lines can be faster than express, even DHL, because most of the express contribution centers are overwhelmed, causing handling delays, and special line shipping needs fewer transfers.
To understand this, let’s explain how a special line works.
Unlike express services(e.g. DHL, FedEx, UPS, etc) which provide standardized services and rates, special lines are more flexible: Because many packages are to be delivered from China to some popular countries and regions, such as the United States, Europe, Oceania, some logistics service providers set up special freight routes based on these specific locations. They collect packages with the destination of the same country (or region), send them to the country (or region) in cargo, do the custom clearance after arriving, then unpack the cargo, entrust local express carriers deliver parcels to the eventual destinations.
In normal times, when the volume of packages is not large enough, service providers will wait several days to collect enough packages to ensure profits, so special lines are slower than some express delivery with strict time limit requirements (e.g.DHL). But during the pandemic, many parcels are sent from China every day, special lines can quickly ship goods to destination countries and regions. A lot of express contribution centers like HK DHL warehouses are suffering from overload. Sometimes it takes 15 days for a package to scan into the system. More than that, when every warehouse is become overloaded, shipping directly to the destination seems to be a better idea.
If express service is like taking taxis, then using special lines is carpooling. You will find it cost-effective and fast during peak time.
After understanding the differences between special line shipping and express service, you can see how important to diversify the shipping options. Based on the data analysis of various shipping modes during the COVID-19 pandemic, we selected the best special lines and added them as new shipping options, to meet the needs of different customers for shipping efficiency and price.
7-12 Working Days from China to the US and Europe
Let’s take the US and Europe special lines as an example.
We can divide global shipping into three phrases
First leg: From the parcel being picked up to it arrives destination country or region
Customs clearance
Last delivery: From the parcel being collected by the local carrier to it arrives the buyer’s doorstep
The first leg of the new US special lines only takes 1-2 days, parcels need 1-2 days for customs clearance, which UPS will collect. Because of the different processing capacity and local conditions of UPS warehouses around the United States, the final delivery takes another 5-7 days.
And for the Europe special line, the first leg is from Shenzhen or HK(depends on the product attribute) to the UK, which takes 1-3 days, parcels need 2-3 days for customs clearance, which Yodel, Hermes, DHL or FedEx will collect later on. Because of the different processing capacity and local conditions of different destination countries and express carriers, the final delivery takes another 4-7 days.
Full Track: Control Your Shipments
When choosing the shipping options and making fulfillment plans, your account manager will inform you which one can be fully tracked and how to track them. Some eCommerce sellers who sell low-value items prefer low-cost shipping options, so we’ve got some untraceable shipping options. But in most cases, NextSmartShip doesn’t recommend eCommerce business owners to choose these shipping methods. We prefer to get lower prices through in-depth cooperation with logistics service providers. That’s why in this update, all the newly added shipping options are fully traceable, and most of the time, customers can track the packages all the way to “Delivered” with only one tracking number.
Covering 99% Countries and Regions
Besides price and time, another important factor in global shipping is the countries and regions cover rate. Especially for eCommerce business owners who run crowdfunding campaigns, the backers can come from any corner of the world. To meet the needs of crowdfunding customers, in this update of shipping options, we have focused on improving the diversity of shipping methods and the coverage of destination countries. 99% of countries and regions, as long as your backer is not in a floating boat in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.
NextSmartShip will keep updating shipping options and improve the service experience, ensuring each of our customers has one less thing to worry about during this uncertain time. If you want to boost your business by providing better shipment, please contact us.
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