Once you understand why a great partner is beneficial, learning how to select the best shipping and delivery partners for print is crucial to business success. Here are the top qualities to look out for in your next shipping and delivery partner:
Constant Communication
Constant communication from your shipping and delivery partner is essential. If you’re already seeing long wait times between messages before you’ve even begun fully working with the team, it’s probably not a great match. Finding a partner with great communication before you’re even their client shows how well the company works and proves that they have phenomenal customer service. After all, if they care about you before you’re even a customer, that’s a great sign.
Once you’re officially partners, pay attention to how they continue to communicate. Some shipping partners will drop off after they sign you. That’s a huge red flag. You need someone who’s going to keep in contact with you and pay attention to your needs, regardless of what stage you’re in with them.
Finding someone who stays in constant communication with you, who responds in a day or two at most, is going to be a great pairing for sending and delivering your print materials.
On-Time Delivery
Finding a partner who delivers print (or anything) on time, every time, is a huge win. Consistently on-time delivery partners are hard to come by, but they do exist. The problem is that you might have to try a few different providers before you find the right one.
Otherwise, searching for companies with their own delivery capabilities is a great start. In these situations, it’s hard to overextend themselves since there are no outside asks. Essentially, working with someone with an “in-house” shipping and delivery team means that you won’t have to share your provider with a bunch of outside vendors. You will be the priority.
Organized Publication Calendar
If you find a shipping and delivery partner with a well-organized publication calendar, you can immediately tell they are doing a lot correctly. This shows they are extremely organized, have specific publication dates, show firm boundaries (meaning your deliveries won’t be held up by someone submitting print materials past the deadline) and they know what they’re doing. Bonus points if they have their publication calendar or similar information accessible straight from their website.
Related Blog: How to Select the Best Ad Frequency for Print Marketing
Great Reviews
An easy way to determine the capabilities of your potential shipping and delivery partner is to thoroughly check out their reviews. This doesn’t mean to immediately skip to the 5-star or 1-star reviews either. When we say “thoroughly,” we mean that you should compare the overall average to the highs, lows, and averages.
If the company is above 4 stars, that’s a great sign already. Especially considering that people are more likely to leave bad reviews or leave 5-star reviews for exceptional service. It’s also important to check out the lowest reviews and check their legitimacy. Oftentimes, competitors may try to leave poor reviews, or someone will leave a review for the wrong company. Overall, if there are more positive reviews than negative, you’re heading in the right direction with your print partner.
Turnkey Print Solutions
Another great sign that your potential shipping and delivery partner is a good match is if they have turnkey solutions: design, print, packaging, shipping, delivery, etc. Companies that are able to provide every possible solution know what they are doing, and the turnaround time is that much faster when everything is done with the same company. Handing off projects to different contractors takes time, and companies that are able to handle it all offer prime efficiency.
Shipping and Delivery Partners to Avoid
There are a lot of great shipping and delivery companies out there, but it’s important to know which ones to avoid. Here are some of the biggest red flags in shipping print materials:
- Poor or inconsistent communication
- Late or inaccurate deliveries
- Disorganized and lacking knowledge
- More bad reviews than good reviews
- Lacking comprehensive, advanced options
Simplify Shipping and Delivery with Signature Graphics
Now that you understand how to select shipping and delivery partners for print, it’s about time you find your best solution. Here at Signature Graphics, we offer comprehensive print solutions from design all the way down to delivery. Our shipping and delivery trucks make it easy to deliver on time, every time.
Explore Shipping Solutions
