Recent changes to delivery carrier mailing and shipping rates have made it increasingly important to ensure correct package dimensions are used to calculate shipping costs. With domestic parcel traffic increasing every year, most carriers are now calculating shipping rates using the dimensional weight of a package.
What is dimensional weight?
Dimensional weight (also called volumetric weight or DIM weight) is the practice of calculating shipping costs using the amount of space a package takes up in transit, rather than its weight, which is traditionally how parcel costs have been determined. This means if your package dimensions take up more space than its weight in rates, you must pay for that space.
The dimensional weight of your package can be calculated manually or by using an online calculator, however, both are slow and take time to calculate and measure. Plus, the constant interruption to your workflow can invite error.
Tips to reduce DIM costs
1. Get accurate dimensioning solution
The first step to reducing your shipping costs is to record accurate dimensions every time. Cubetape is one of the best mobile dimensioning devices on the market, and will record and upload dimensions on the go.
2. Use the right box size
Get the appropriate box size for your product and avoid unnecessary empty space in your package, if it isn’t required for safe delivery.
3. Consider multiple carriers
Carrier shipping rates vary and this can be taken advantage of by using the most cost-effective carrier for different packages to optimize your shipping. For example, USPS offers the lowest rates for small domestic deliveries while UPS and FedEx are great for larger packages. With a portable device like Cubetape, you can calculate the cheapest freight costs quickly.
4. Use a device to prevent unnecessary chargeback
Customers can request a chargeback when they collect their parcels at the end of the freight route, particularly if they have been charged an amount for shipping that does not match expectations. Or if the parcel size differs from their initial transaction. The variances can often come from human error or courier audit. Cubetape provides accurate dimensions, which greatly reduces the number of end of line chargebacks.
Cubetape provides accurate and fast shipping cost calculations for all freight types. It helps prevent the problem of back charges and customer disputes, because your dimensional data can be verified by customers, thus helping to avoid disputes. Delivering better results for both your customers and your business.
Furthermore, the recorded dimensions can be valuable documentation to avoid post shipment billing adjustments by courier companies.
Faster and more accurate package dimensions
Cubetape captures the dimensions of parcels over and above a standard tape measure by recording and automatically uploading the data for all freight types. This eliminates the need to manually enter the length, width, and height of different products into shipping software and online calculators. Our customers use Cubetape to streamline the process of shipping, which saves time and money.
Calculating the precise dimensional weight of parcels can become a hassle, especially if you ship a lot of products. This becomes even more complex when using different couriers to ship your products to various parts of the world. All parcels must be entered, one by one, into the online registration systems of these different courier companies. Entering this data takes time and the speed and accuracy of this process is key to whether your parcels ship successfully or not.
Cubetape, updates parcel dimensional data into any shipping system quickly, efficiently and accurately. Every measurement taken with a Cubetape automatically provides your courier with the correct information. This eliminates any human error that may occur when recording tape measurements with a pen and paper, as well as reducing the amount of time lost in the shipping process.
It is not uncommon for operators to make typing errors. So, a dimension of 2 inches can accidentally be inputted as 20 inches. Which means extra delays or extra unnecessary freight charges. Cubetape captures data and dimensions precisely.
Cubetape quickly and easily measures small and large objects. What’s more, it limits the need to shift and move bulky objects. This makes Cubetape the ultimate back charge prevention for shippers, saving your business time and money.