C-Suite

Discover why a parcel focus is essential for your multi-carrier shipping software partner

The e-commerce landscape is constantly evolving, but the need for fast, reliable, and cost-effective shipping remains ever-present. However, the shipping industry itself can be quite dynamic, with factors like mergers, acquisitions, service disruptions, and fluctuating fuel prices contributing to an environment of constant change.

Choosing the Right Partner for Future-Proofed Shipping

In this dynamic environment, navigating the complexities of multi-carrier shipping can be a challenging task. Juggling various carrier platforms, comparing rates in real-time, and ensuring consistent shipping rules across different providers can be time-consuming and inefficient.

While some parcel shipping software solutions offer a broad range of services, lacking a core focus, centering solely on parcel shipping provides a level of specialization and expertise that is unmatched in the industry. By choosing a parcel-focused shipping software, you gain access to advanced features and functionalities specifically tailored to your logistics needs.

The last couple of years have not been without their ups and downs, however.

Examples of Volatility in the Shipping Industry:

Mergers and Acquisitions: The landscape of the parcel carrier network is constantly shifting due to mergers and acquisitions. We’ve seen final mile carriers come and go over the last several years and both FedEx and UPS have had acquisitions that impacted their parcel delivery network, potentially altering service offerings in certain regions.

Service Disruptions: Even within the parcel industry, unexpected events like natural disasters, labor disputes, and infrastructure issues can cause significant disruptions. For instance, severe weather events in 2023 led to temporary service disruptions for several major carriers, impacting delivery times – not to mention the economic cost: nearly $93 billion for just 2023.

Fluctuating Fuel Prices: As fuel is a major cost factor for parcel carriers, its price fluctuations significantly impact shipping costs. The ongoing global events and economic uncertainties further contribute to the volatility in fuel prices, making it challenging for businesses to accurately predict shipping expenses.

Evolving Regulations: The regulatory landscape governing parcel delivery is constantly evolving, particularly with regards to drone deliveries, emissions standards, and international trade policies. These changes can add complexity to the shipping process and require businesses to adapt their operations accordingly.

Recent Carrier Strikes: The industry has also faced recent labor unrest, with potential strikes impacting shipping operations. In 2023, negotiations between the Teamsters Union and major parcel carriers like UPS reached a critical point, raising concerns about potential service disruptions.

Ongoing Labor Concerns: Aside from potential strikes, ongoing contract negotiations and labor concerns within the parcel industry can lead to uncertainties and potential disruptions, impacting shipping operations and costs.

The limitations of non-parcel-focused shipping solutions become even more apparent when considering the long-term. As the parcel industry continues to experience volatility and complexity, having a partner with a deep understanding of the specific challenges and opportunities in the parcel sector becomes crucial for businesses to navigate these challenges and ensure efficient, cost-effective, and reliable shipping operations.

The Future-Proof Solution: Parcel-Focused Shipping Software

Now that you understand why a parcel-focused shipping solution is necessary, let’s dive deeper into the ancillary benefits. A parcel-focused shipping software acts as a central hub for all your shipping needs, helping your organization future-proof your operations and embrace innovation in several ways:

Automate Carrier Selection

Define your preferences (weight, dimensions, delivery speed), and let the advanced carrier selection tools choose the best carrier based on the data. These tools consider factors beyond just base cost, including:

Accessorial charges: Shipping software that factors in additional costs like fuel surcharges, residential deliveries, and address corrections, ensures you get the most accurate and cost-effective comparisons.

Delivery speed: You can set specific delivery timeframes, and multi-carrier shipping software can prioritize carriers and services that meet your needs while considering cost optimization.
Trailer pull times: This feature helps optimize carrier selection based on available pickup times, ensuring efficient scheduling and avoiding delays.

Label creation time: Only carriers that can create and print a shipping label within the necessary timeframe will be included in the make selection options.

Contracted rates: Shipping software can leverage your negotiated rates with different carriers to ensure you get the best possible price for each shipment.

Customer choice: If desired, you can even incorporate customer preferences into the selection process, allowing them to choose their preferred carrier at checkout.

Access Real-Time Rates

Get real-time carrier rate quotes for various carriers and service levels, allowing you to make informed decisions based on the latest information. This empowers you to choose the most cost or time-efficient rate and extend those competitive options to your customers, increasing their satisfaction and loyalty.

Manage All Carriers in One Place

Eliminate the need to juggle multiple carrier websites. Manage everything from a single platform, simplifying your workflow and providing a clear overview of your entire shipping operation. This improves efficiency and reduces the risk of errors.

Improve Customer Service

Offer a wider range of delivery options at checkout, enhancing the customer experience and increasing loyalty. By providing flexible shipping options, you cater to diverse customer needs and preferences, leading to higher satisfaction and repeat business.

Reduce Shipping Costs

Maximize cost savings by leveraging competition among carriers, negotiating volume discounts, and using advanced shipping software for carrier volume balancing, which involves strategically spreading your shipment volume across carriers to meet volume requirements necessary to still qualify for discounts, without exceeding your capacity or compromising service levels. Parcel-focused shipping software can help you optimize your carrier selection and routing to achieve this balance, maximizing transportation cost savings without jeopardizing carrier relationships, carrier performance or service quality.

ProShip: Your Trusted Partner in Multi-Carrier Shipping

ProShip stands out as a leader in parcel-focused multi-carrier shipping software, empowering businesses to navigate the complexities of multi-carrier shipping with confidence. Backed by Constellation Software Inc., a company renowned for its "buy and hold for life" strategy, ProShip offers a stable and long-term solution that you can rely on for years to come.

The Power of Parcel-Focused Shipping

ProShip's comprehensive suite of features is designed to streamline your shipping operations and unlock significant cost savings. With advanced carrier selection tools, shippers can leverage automated rate shopping technology to select the best carrier for each shipment based on pre-defined business rules. This advanced tool factors in an expanded amount of data, ensuring you get the most out of your carrier partnerships.

ProShip seamlessly integrates with your existing enterprise software stack (ESS), creating a streamlined workflow. This eliminates the need for manual processes like data entry between different systems, which in turn reduces errors and improves overall efficiency. Additionally, ProShip automates tasks like shipping label generation and document creation, freeing up valuable resources in your team to focus on other strategic initiatives. This combination of seamless integration and automation allows your team to work smarter, not harder.

While various parcel-focused shipping software solutions exist, ProShip differentiates itself through several key strengths:

• Unwavering focus on multi-carrier parcel shipping: Unlike some competitors offering broader logistics solutions, ProShip's laser focus on parcel shipping ensures unparalleled expertise and resources dedicated to this specific domain. This translates to a deeper understanding of your multi-carrier parcel needs and a more comprehensive suite of features specifically tailored to your challenges.
• Industry-leading technology: ProShip's technology is not a patchwork of various vendors, but rather a platform built from the ground up specifically for multi-carrier shipping. This single-source approach ensures seamless integration, superior performance, and ongoing development tailored to your evolving needs.
• Exceptional customer service: ProShip prioritizes customer satisfaction and offers dedicated 24/7/365 support. This experienced supply chain and IT team is readily available to answer your questions, troubleshoot any issues, and ensure you get the most out of your ProShip investment. [Learn more about why support matters when choosing a software partner.]

Invest in Your Success with ProShip Multi-Carrier Shipping Software

By choosing ProShip, you partner with a company committed to long-term stability, continuous innovation, and exceptional service. ProShip’s shipping solution empowers you to streamline your operations, reduce shipping costs, improve customer service, and gain a competitive edge, ultimately helping you thrive in the competitive e-commerce landscape. [Explore more reasons why top shippers choose ProShip for their shipping software needs!]

Ready to unlock the potential of a parcel-focused shipping solution? Contact ProShip today to see if our industry-leading shipping solutions can help you optimize your multi-carrier shipping strategy.