Shipping is one of those things that most companies have to pay for
, and that most companies wish that they could save more money on. The problem is that so many people overlook on ways that they might be able to save money with their 3pl providers. The key here is that this is an industry in which very little is set in stone. There is actually more flexibility in shipping pricing than many people realize. This flexibility means that there is in fact room for negotiations in certain circumstances.
The first thing that you're going to have to do is to simply ask your courier company if they are in fact willing to negotiate a shipping rate. There may be courier companies out there that don't want to do this, as they may stick to a prescribed rate sheet at all times. You should find though that most companies will have at least some flexibility in terms of their pricing.
When you're trying to negotiate a shipping rate, it's important that you know what you're looking for when you start trying to negotiate. This is an overall preferred or corporate rate of some kind. There is very little value in trying to get a few dollars off any single shipment. You'll simply spend a lot of time trying to talk the company into giving you the discount only to find that you don't actually save that much money. If you can get a preferred corporate rate though that will apply to your account throughout your future deliveries, even a tiny little savings can grow to a large amount of money saved over the long term.
When you're trying to negotiate a rate, you need to think about the fact that it actually is a negotiation. Part of a negotiation is always about making sure that each party gains something by the transaction. Therefore, you need to think about what you can offer the courier company in order to get them to offer you what you want, which is essentially your discount.
Some people aren't sure what to offer their courier company. The thing to do here is to offer to give as much of your business as possible to them. For instance, if you have accounts with more than one courier company, you can offer to make a company your exclusive shipping company. The promise of your added business might convince them that they have something to gain by offering you a discount.