As you are aware there are a lot of courier companies available for you to choose from when it comes to sending parcels across the country and the world as unlike the letter market which is a monopoly, the letter market is completely deregulated.
With that being said, many businesses overlook sending their parcels through the Post Office and opt for private couriers as on face value, their prices seem to be far cheaper. However, as many of our customers have discovered, this is not always the case.
With declining revenues from letters and the rise in parcel business spurred through e-commerce, the Post Office has been forced to rethink its parcel service in order to remain competitive. So what does this mean for you the consumer? It means if you are sending a reasonable volume of parcels (in the case of the Post Office – more than 20 per week) then if you ask there are a few ways to save money on your postage as outlined below.x`
Reduce Your Businesses Spend On Parcels – Method 1
Get a contract parcel rate with the Post Office. This to some business is considered as the “old way” of doing things however it is still a viable ways for businesses to save money in this area. Essentially what will happen here is the Post Office will have a look at not only the raw volume of your parcel spend but also into the sizes and destination of your parcels and work out where you are spending the most amount of money. For these key areas they will generally offer you a discounted rate in order to remain competitive and to discourage you from shopping around for the cheapest courier company in order to send each item individually.
The best part about examining this method is that all you have to do is make an appointment with your Post Office business manager and tell them that you are considering using them to send out your parcels and they will more often than not, offer you a discount when compared to their published rates. In some cases this discount can be up to 40% so it is well worth exploring.
Reduce Your Businesses Spend On Parcels – Method 2
Get an E-Parcel with the Post Office. This differs from the Contract agreement outlined above as you will be required to print labels for all of your parcels using the bespoke system developed for the Post Office. Despite the extra processing requirements, this does add a couple of key advantages when compared to the Contract Parcel Rate.
Firstly, your business will be able to track the progress of your parcels using the Post Offices online service as each item is given a unique identification number. This is impossible using the Contract Parcel Rate as when you lodge your items using this service, you are simply filling out a lodgement form as you may be used to doing with your regular mail.
Secondly, the system that the Post Office has developed actually has some good functionality when it comes to analytics and reporting of your parcel spend allowing your business to effectively manage it and align with your objectives and outcomes.
Thirdly, the e-parcel system allows the post office to view analytics of your parcel spend in detail and as your spend increases they are likely to offer you increasingly greater discounts in order to retain your business.
If you would like some more information on how to reduce your businesses parcel spend – click here to contact us or give us a call on 1300 624 562
