Domestic shipping is a massive operation in the United States. There are a few recent statistics from the American Trucking Association that provide a solid glance at the enormously large stature of this industry:

• Over 70% of all the freight tonnage moved in the U.S. is shipped on trucks, coming to a total of 10.49 billion tons of freight.
• The numbers above accounted for 81.5% of the nation’s freight bill in 2015, coming to a total of $726.4 billion in gross freight revenues.
• Commercial trucks make up 12.1% of all registered vehicles, and there are currently 31.4 million trucks registered and used for business purposes.
• These trucks travelled 279.1 billion miles in 2014 and were driven by 3.4 million truck drivers.

There is a great need for shippers to find reliable carriers and streamline their domestic shipping operations. Creating an efficient and affordable domestic shipping strategy will not only reduce your costs, it will also allow you to provide better service to your customers, putting you a step ahead of the others in your industry.

Here’s how to get your domestic shipping operations right so that they can be a great benefit to your company.

Choosing the right carrier shipment size
Do you have enough freight to fill entire truckloads, or are you constantly paying carriers to haul half empty trailers? Many business drain their domestic shipping budgets simply because they don’t have the proper mechanism in place to plan and coordinate less-than-truckload (LTL) consolidation strategies. Implementing LTL freight solutions requires heavy planning and negotiating with carriers, as many will have to make additional stops in order to fill their trailers.

No matter where your freight needs to go, and how much of it you have you ship, make sure that you are getting the right carriers and and rates when you ship domestically.

Choosing the right carriers and other partners
With millions of carriers in the U.S., it’s virtually impossible to scan and assess all options. This is why logistics management is a process that shippers need to perfect. The ability to audit freight invoices, optimize routes, ensure carrier compliance and manage freight bills and claims is an invaluable resource.

In the end, the best option for shippers is to formulate a network of industry partners to help them track and move freight. If this is not possible because of the size of your company, seek out a valuable partnership within your industry and leverage their extensive network of carriers and other partners.

Keep in mind that there are more ways to move freight than standard carriers; it’s also worthwhile to partner with organizations like the United States Postal Service. USPS Destination Services are useful because open up a network of over 200 USPS locations across the country, allowing shippers to easily move freight with efficiency and speed.

Learn more about domestic shipping
Over the past 20 years, we here at King Solutions have formulated a massive network of carriers and other industry partners, like the USPS, to help us move our client’s freight in reliable and cost-efficient ways. We want to help you succeed, so contact us today to learn more about our domestic shipping services.