When you’re shipping internationally, it’s essential to understand international logistics to help you select an affordable shipping option that fits your time constraints. This helps you be competitive in your industry, lower your expenses, and better serve your customers. Here’s what you need to know about shipping internationally.

You Should Consider Multiple Factors When Choosing a Shipping Option

There are numerous shipping methods you can use for international shipping, including sea freight, air freight, and ground shipping. When deciding what option to use, there’s no steadfast rule to follow.

Instead, you want to think about your budget, time constraints, and reliability needs to pick the best shipping mode for your needs. You may even need to use multiple shipping methods when shipping your goods to certain destinations.

The Transportation Process Has Multiple Steps

A lot happens after you ship your goods; after you and your freight forwarders decide on the best shipping methods to use for your items, they’ll load the goods onto the plane, truck, or ship.

Once your goods reach a destination port, they have to go through customs. Then, they’re transported to their intended destination.

This process takes time, but there are a few ways you can expedite your shipping times. Make sure that your shipment adheres to the recipient country’s laws and regulations and confirm that any shipping documentation is included an properly filled out.

Using Warehousing to Lower Shipping Costs

If you’re finding that there’s a consistent demand in a specific country or region, one way to lower your shipping costs and reduce your transport times is to utilize a warehouse or fulfillment center in this area.

Having a fulfillment center that’s closer to your intended destination shortens your shipping times and expenses and can help you avoid customs and tariffs (if the warehousing center is in the same country that you’re shipping to). A trusted global freight forwarder, like AMR Group, will often have global coverage and relationships with local experts and partners to ensure shipments reach their final destination without a hitch.

Customs Fees and Import Duties Can Increase Your Total Shipping Costs

In addition to the cost of shipping your goods, you need to include any customs or import duties that are due on your shipments when calculating your shipping expenses. If the customer needs to pay duties on the goods to take possession of them, make sure that they’re aware of this.

Otherwise, the shipment may sit unclaimed and the customer will never get their goods.

Shipping Internationally Made Easy

AMR Group is a trusted global freight forwarder that ships to more than 60 countries. Ready to start shipping internationally? Visit AMR Group online or give us a call at (702)800-6385 to request a rate.