Reduce High-Volume Shipping Costs

What we learned after working with Shipware is that the confidentiality provision in carrier pricing agreements is a well thought-out strategy to prevent shippers from understanding the rates and terms of other shippers since we can’t disclose rates. The Shipware process allowed us to better understand the discounts and concessions we were entitled to without any breach in terms with our delivery partners.

We used to use a broker for our LTL shipments. In theory, it’s a good concept: benefit with deeper discounts by aggregating volume from hundreds of other shippers. However, after working with Shipware, we learned that we could avoid huge broker markups and reduce our LTL costs by forging direct relationships with the carriers. We are saving 18% with the same high-quality LTL providers we had been using previously, and as we grow, WE benefit with even higher discounts – and not the broker. We’re also using Shipware’s TMS to identify the right carriers for the right loads for better time in transit at lower costs. I’ll never use a broker again.

I’m not new to logistics. Been at my job nearly two decades, and I’ve worked with 4-5 parcel invoice audit companies during my career. Shipware’s audit is hands down the best. It delivers significantly greater savings week in and week out, and their spend management reports and portal are tools I actually use to improve my business.

Following Shipware’s complimentary rate assessment, I was anxious to get started. But their proposed gainshare split and term seemed too high. So I spent the better part of the next six months negotiating with UPS on my own, only to get miniscule rate improvements despite a lot of effort. In frustration, I hired Shipware. Within weeks, Shipware’s strategic guidance resulted in significant pricing improvements, and frankly, better responsiveness and relationship from our carrier ever since. If you’re thinking of going it alone, take it from me: you’ll get faster results, deeper savings, save a lot of time and do it right the first time by working with category experts. Shipware earned every nickle!

I put off using Shipware for nearly a year because I thought I didn’t have time. John Paul finally got through to me when he quantified that I had lost nearly a million dollars in savings by waiting a year. Now, we had many other initiatives underway during the year, but all of them combined didn’t net $1 million to the bottom line. What’s more, I only invested a total of about a day’s work over the course of a 10 week process. Only wished I would have come to my senses sooner!

Shipware stands alone as the best in the business. We conducted an RFP for professional parcel consulting services. Of the six firms that received the bid, 5 of the 6 told me my rates were already optimized. Shipware is the only firm that projected savings, and the actually delivered on the high end of their 7-9% estimate.

I’m a little embarrassed to admit that initially, I resisted Shipware’s proposal. After all, it was my job to negotiate and manage my carriers, and admittedly, I felt I’d be exposed if I hadn’t done a good job. But going through their process, I quickly realized how little I knew about parcel contracts, and how much that knowledge gap was costing the company. Not only did I increase my knowledge and value to the company by learning from the pros, but I also received huge kudos from the corner suite by adding Shipware resources to my transportation procurement department at no cost to the company!

When we first approached by Shipware about saving 10-30% on our parcel costs, we were concerned they might advocate the use of lower quality carriers. We have a long-term relationship with UPS and were not open to changing providers. Shipware assured us they could achieve double digit savings with zero disruption to our operations, and without changing carriers. And they came through on that promise!

Apparently, like many other companies, we naively signed a waiver eliminating our ability to file service claims for late deliveries with FedEx. Shipware was able to quantify the real value of that mistake, and provide a successful strategy to remove the unnecessary waiver, reducing our costs more than $100,000 annually.

Even though we had negotiated our parcel carrier agreement just 6 months prior, Shipware guided us through an RFP process that further reduced our spend 18%. What’s more, we didn’t have to change carriers.