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Articles & Tips

Finding the Best Shipping Options for Small to Medium-Sized Businesses

1/19/2022

 
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By the end of 2021, retailers both online and in-store saw a significant increase in holiday spending, which rose 8.5% compared with the year-earlier period. Despite higher prices due to inflation and supply chain challenges, shoppers bought in-store sales up by 2.4%, while online sales surged 61.4% compared to pre-pandemic 2019. But what does this all mean for small and medium-sized businesses

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Best practices to reduce shipping costs with major carriers

11/17/2021

 
See video from Automotive Logistics Conference.  
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Freight pricing specialists AFMS, CEO Mike Erickson,  gives an inside track on best practices to negotiate best-in-class shipping rates with major carriers in North America and beyond. 
For a copy of the full video, please email info@afms.com or call 800-246-3521. ​

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2022 USPS, Postal Rate Changes - Take Effect Jan. 9, 2022

11/10/2021

 
As part of it’s 10-year plan to achieve financial sustainability and service excellence, the United States Postal Service has filed notice with the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) of price changes for shipping products including Priority Mail and Priority Mail Express products to take effect Jan. 9, 2022.  See attached Press Release and Industry Alert.    

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UPS Set Implement New 2022 Rate Hikes

10/31/2021

 
During this past year we have all experienced change as our businesses and communities navigate through this challenging time. We remain committed to making a difference investing in the strength of our global network of employees to positively impact your business.

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UPS Service Guarantee

10/12/2021

 
Read Announcement on UPS.com

Update: Effective October 18, 2021 and until further notice, UPS is making the following operational adjustments: Delivery commitment times for UPS Next Day Air® destined to residential locations with a typical delivery time of 10:30 AM will be extended to 12:00 PM. Any applicable Service Guarantee with respect to these packages will be based on these revised delivery commitment times.
Effective March 26, 2020, we suspended the UPS® Service Guarantee for all shipments from any origin to any destination. For all U.S. origin shipments, the Service Guarantee suspension became effective as of March 24, 2020.
The UPS Service Guarantee has been reinstated for the following services only:
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​The Service Guarantee remains suspended for all other UPS® shipments not specified in the above sections, from any origin to any destination.

As the effects of the Coronavirus impact our infrastructure, we will continue to seek guidance from local, state, and national government entities to ensure that we fully align with their regulations. We are committed to continue operating globally except where constrained by government restrictions.

Prior to shipping, please check to see if the recipient’s location is open, since many some businesses’ hours may have changed either due to local restrictions or at the business’s discretion. We will make three routine delivery attempts* before returning a package to the sender. Please continue to visit this site for the most up-to-date information regarding the impact of Coronavirus on UPS services.

*Where three routine delivery attempts do not coincide with a recipient’s adjusted (e.g., shortened, or weekend-only) business hours, the package will be returned to sender.

For your convenience, The UPS Store® and UPS Access Point® locations all provide access to your vital deliveries. Where available, you can sign up for free UPS My Choice which enables you to provide more specific delivery instructions such as where to leave deliveries, or redirect deliveries to another location, and also provides you with the ability to receive delivery notifications.
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Service guarantees are subject to change. For further details, see the UPS Tariff/Terms and Conditions.

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USPS Is Making This Permanent Change Starting Friday

9/29/2021

 
Read Full Article On bestlifeonline.com

THE COMING DAYS COULD BRING A WHOLE NEW MEANING TO THE TERM "SNAIL MAIL."

Even in the age of email and using the internet for practically everything, there's a good chance you still rely on traditional mail to get a few things done. But whether it's your annual holiday cards going out on time or a care package you're hoping makes it to your loved one swiftly, it can still be a helpless feeling whenever you drop something off in a mailbox or at the post office. Now, the United States Postal Service (USPS) has announced it's making a major permanent change that's going into effect in a matter of days. Read on to see how your daily deliveries are about to get different.
​Read Full Article On bestlifeonline.com

FedEx Announces 2022 Rate Increase

9/22/2021

 
  • FedEx Ground, which delivers to businesses, and FedEx home delivery will increase by an average of 5.9%. FedEx Freight customers could see an increase of up to 7.9%.
  • Starting Nov. 1, a fuel surcharge will be added to certain FedEx shipments, including FedEx Express, FedEx Ground and FedEx Freight shipments.
  • Starting Nov. 1, a fuel surcharge will be added to certain FedEx shipments, including FedEx Express, FedEx Ground and FedEx Freight shipments.

For more detailed information, see articles below:
FedEx is raising its shipping rates - CNN Business
FedEx Earnings Miss, Guidance Cut Amid Labor, Supply Chain Woes - Investor's Business Daily
FedEx, UPS rate rises are making online shopping more expensive - FOX Business

DHL Introduces Its Peak Surcharge Schedule

9/9/2021

 
Continued pressure on carrier capacities has led carriers such as FedEx, UPS and now DHL to implement additional shipping surcharges in advance of the traditional peak season.  As this timing is quickly approaching this peak period, planning for this is critical. DHL has now released its peak surcharge schedule as well. 
 
The recently announced USPS increases will primarily be applied to First Class type mail. Parcel Select rates will increase slightly for those shippers dropping parcels upstream in either the DSCF/DBMC. However, shippers who use UPS/FDX for SurePost/SmartPost  get their packages dropped  into the DDU (local Post Office). It looks like USPS will not increase those particular rates. Noteworthy because both UPS/FDX would pass it directly through to both SurePost/Smartpost customers.
 

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UPS enters into the “Peak” Season of surcharges..

6/14/2021

 
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Effective June 13, 2021, UPS will apply additional Peak increases to those international shipments originating in Japan destined to Canada. Previous increases, that were set to expire on June 12th, will continue to be applied on a per/pound basis. Depending on the service used, expect to see increases ranging from 67.6%-200% (on a per/lb. basis). All other previously announced surcharges will “continue until further notice”.
Although UPS did not take this opportunity to make changes to key Domestic Peak surcharges (as did FedEx several weeks ago), it is the collective wisdom amongst analysts that suggest additional hikes are on their way.
Specific details can be found at:
https://www.ups.com/assets/resources/media/en_US/2021_UPS_Peak_Surcharges.pdf
​

Canada Post not to be left out the Surcharge party

6/14/2021

 
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Effective September 13th, Canada Post will increase rates to both Domestic, USA and International parcels. Increase ranging from 2.8% (US /International) to 3.5% (Domestic parcels only). Similar to both UPS and FedEx, other increases center around big, bulky and oversize packages flooding into their network.  Surcharges for Oversize/Unpackaged items will increase from $18 to $25 (38.8%) and Out-of-Spec packages will increase from $300 to $400 (33.3%).
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As a side note, any UPS International Mail Innovations or Purolator customers should expect to see increases to their bills as well. Since Canada Post makes many of the final mile deliveries for both UPS International MI and Purolator, rate hikes are typically treated as a “pass through” charge to the customer.

As always, the pricing professionals at AFMS pricing team will continue to monitor for any changes as they arise.
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