3 Ways to Get Discounted Shipping Labels
Shipping is rarely cheap, especially when it comes to international shipping, so it is not surprising that a lot of people are looking for ways to save on shipping. There are several ways to reduce shipping costs; shipping discounts are one of them. How can regular shoppers and small e-commerce businesses get discounted shipping labels?
Deals with Carriers
It is possible to get a shipping discount by negotiating a deal with a shipping carrier or multiple carriers. However, these discounts are volume-based, which means they are only available to those who regularly ship multiple packages. In other words, deals with carriers are a great way to get a shipping discount for e-commerce businesses.
Many carriers have services and programs that are specifically designed to aid small online shops by providing them with discounted shipping labels. However, small businesses can get a more significant discount by negotiating directly with carriers.
The best way to approach this is to gather your numbers and try to secure a lower rate with multiple carriers. Don’t be shy to let them know that you’re considering working with their competitors; some carriers may be eager to offer you a discount just so that you don’t take your business elsewhere.
Special Offers and Programs
Sometimes carriers would offer free shipping coupons and promo codes, but promo codes have an expiration date, and free shipping offers typically are not available when you need them most. Here are a few more reliable ways to secure a shipping discount.
Those who sell items on eBay can save on shipping by associating their FedEx or UPS account with their eBay account, because both carriers offer discounted labels to eBay sellers. If your carrier of choice is the United States Postal Service (USPS), you can get a shipping discount by printing your USPS labels using the eBay labels service.
FedEx offers discounts to owners of American Express Business credit cards, who can get up to 40% of the shipping cost back by linking their cards to their FedEx accounts and using them to pay postage. FedEx also gives shipping discounts to members of the USAA (United Services Automobile Association), while DHL gives a shipping discount on international parcels to those who use a DHL account to print shipping labels and pay for shipping with a credit card.
Small e-commerce businesses can secure shipping discounts by joining a professional association or using a fulfillment center. Such associations and centers often negotiate shipping discounts with carriers on behalf of their members or customers. However, you should keep in mind that this discount will be lower than the one you might negotiate yourself because fulfillment centers provide their services for a price and professional associations typically have a membership fee.
Printing Your Shipping Labels Online
Printing your shipping labels online is the easiest way to get a shipping discount. What’s especially great about it that you can print discounted shipping labels regardless of whether you’re a small e-commerce business owner or a regular shopper.
To qualify for a shipping discount, one needs to regularly ship a large number of packages, as we’ve already mentioned above. Shipping label printing services get a bulk discount because they generate a large volume of shipping labels on behalf of their customers. To boost customer loyalty, they sacrifice part of this discount to offer their customers discounted shipping labels.
For instance, PostageMaker allows you to save up to 25% on shipping with the USPS or UPS regardless of your shipping volume; you can print a single shipping label and still get a discount, the amount of which will depend on the shipping service you choose and the size of your package.
All you need to do to print a discounted shipping label is sign up for the service, deposit funds to your account, and fill out a short form. Postage is paid from your account in the PostageMaker system. Once your shipping label is generated you can print it out immediately using a regular printer and office paper, or save it as PDF to print later or e-mail the shipping label to someone.