Foreign Trade Zones Continue to Drive Local Economies

A Foreign Trade Zone (FTZ) can provide a wealth of import and export benefits.  The impact on a business leveraging an FTZ can be significant with results across many areas.  Vision Consumer Products Fulfillment has extensive experience and expertise with setting up and managing a FTZ.

In this article the statistics for Foreign Trade Zone 43, located at the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Port of Battle Creek, pointed to significant growth in volume in 2015.  It presents clear and objective success pointing to the impact on commerce through the utilization of a Foreign Trade Zone.

The benefits of an FTZ are clear.  The article mentions these specific points:

• Reduce or eliminate tariffs: It is not uncommon for parts or raw materials to have a higher duty rate than the final product. Within an FTZ, companies may select the lower duty rate when the product leaves the zone. Sometimes, duty is altogether eliminated.
• Delay duty: Distribution firms may warehouse imported goods for extended periods. No duty is owed to U.S. Customs until the merchandise leaves the zone. If goods are exported, no duty costs apply. There is no time limit for merchandise remaining in a zone.
• Reduce paperwork and Customs processing fees: FTZs allow a company to notify Customs about shipments on a weekly basis. With Customs approval, frequent importers using Weekly Entry procedures can accrue a substantial savings.
• Improve logistics: FTZs are considered a best practice by the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism, permitting direct delivery of containers to zones.

Many other benefits can also be explored on the Vision CPF website here.  Check them out!

Vision Consumer Products Fulfillment is a certified General Purpose Foreign Trade Zone - #276. We are members of the National Association of Foreign Trade Zones, and we’re one of the few certified General Purpose Foreign Trade Zones in the Southern California area.

If you’re looking to take advantage of the benefit of doing business in a Foreign Trade Zone, Vision Consumer Products Fulfillment can help.  Let us share with you how implementing and managing a Foreign Trade Zone warehouse, with Vision as your partner, can significantly impact your bottom line.

Vision Consumer Products Fulfillment has decades of experience and industry expertise in consumer products fulfillment services.  No matter who your customer is, we treat your customer as our own.  We know what makes a raving fan out of an individual customer, as well as what makes a business partner trust you with their business.  Call or email us to learn how.  We’re certain we’ll be the best fulfillment warehouse partner you have ever had!

www.visioncpf.com

CPFSales@VisionMediamgmt.com

FedEx Fuel Surcharge Déjà Vu

Effective 2 November 2015, FedEx is adjusting its fuel surcharge index.  Experiencing some déjà vu? That may be because just nine months ago, in February 2015, FedEx adjusted its fuel surcharge index.  

This time around, fuel surcharges for FedEx Express/International will increase 1.5% to 1.75%, while FedEx Ground surcharges will increase 0.5% – 1.0%.¹ These are in addition to the fuel surcharges implemented in February.  And the hits just keep coming: FedEx also announced increased shipping rates effective 4 January 2016, with FedEx Express, Ground, Home Delivery and Freight, all increasing by an average of 4.9%.²

You have to get your products into your customers’ hands, so you have no choice but to ship.  So, how will these changes affect your planning? What are your options for managing rising shipping costs?  How can you proactively address your logistics management?  

Before you panic and start taking the hit to your bottom line, talk to your 3PL fulfillment partner.  A great fulfillment partner can help; transportation is the backbone of their business, and they’re on top of the trends and working on ways to optimize their options to their partners’ benefit.  Talk to Vision, we can help you understand and plan for your transportation future.

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Exciting news: Vision will be at the SEMA Show November 3^rd through 6^th in Las Vegas www.semashow.com.  The SEMA show is the premier automotive specialty products trade event in the world!  If you’re thinking about going, let’s connect!  661-702-5050.

Vision Consumer Products Fulfillment has decades of experience and industry expertise in consumer products fulfillment services.  No matter who your customer is, we treat your customer as our own.  We know what makes a raving fan out of an individual customer, as well as what makes a business partner trust you with their business.  Call or email us to learn how.  We’re certain we’ll be the best fulfillment warehouse partner you have ever had!

http://visioncpf.com

                                                             

CPFSales@VisionMediamgmt.com

¹ http://www.mytotalretail.com/post/oops-fedex-increases-fuel-surcharges-products-effective-nov-2-2015/

² http://www.mytotalretail.com/post/fedex-announces-2016-general-rate-increase-changes-shipware-analysis/

How to Reduce Your Abandoned Shopping Carts

According to the Baymard Institute (baymard.com), 68% of all ecommerce visitors abandon their shopping carts – leaving behind merchandize valued at approximately $4 trillion!¹  How can you reduce this trend, and close the sale with your customers?  Fortunately, the same research tells us that 63% of those abandoned carts are recoverable.  Following are three significant reasons causing those abandons:

• Not ready to buy yet 16%
• Having to create a new user account 23%
• Unexpected shipping costs 28%

Addressing just one of these factors can have a positive impact on your sales, so let’s look at the biggest factor – unexpected shipping costs.

A well-designed ecommerce site focused on the user experience can support your efforts to close sales.  Your billing and shipping page should provide multiple shipping time options, with the delivery time and cost clearly displayed.  Set the least expensive as the default.  Include descriptions and input examples for input fields – you want to make completing the forms as simple as possible, and not leave room for questions or errors that result in the customer walking away from the cart.  And always provide an option to select the shipping address as the same as the billing address – never make your customer input the same information twice!

Your 3PL fulfillment partner can help you fine-tune your shipping options and ensure that you meet your shipping deadlines, to help maximize your cart close rates.  They can be a key partner in crafting your inventory and shipping strategies.  Talk to your partner today, and start recovering those abandoned carts today!

Exciting news: Vision will be at the SEMA Show November 3rd through 6th in Las Vegas www.semashow.com.  The SEMA show is the premier automotive specialty products trade event in the world!  If you’re thinking about going, let’s connect!  661-702-5050.

Vision Consumer Products Fulfillment has decades of experience and industry expertise in consumer products fulfillment services.  No matter who your customer is, we treat your customer as our own.  We know what makes a raving fan out of an individual customer, as well as what makes a business partner trust you with their business.  Call or email us to learn how.  We’re certain we’ll be the best fulfillment warehouse partner you have ever had!

http://visioncpf.com

CPFSales@VisionMediamgmt.com

¹ https://econsultancy.com/blog/66680-top-10-digital-marketing-stats-from-this-week/?utm_source=Econsultancy&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=5922660_1836-daily-pulse-us-2015-07-10&dm_i=LQI,3IXYC,9O32IC,CN17Z,1

Managing Rising Consumer Expectations for Shipping

Ecommerce is on the rise. Consumers are visiting vendor sites, carting goods, and checking out more often now than ever! However, as online sales surge, so do consumer expectations for shipping their purchased goods. Let’s take a look at the kinds of expectations customers have these days and what you can do to keep up.

                                                       

How Many Days to Wait?

As consumers come to expect more and more from online retailers, the amount of time shoppers are willing to wait for their products to arrive decreases. The exact number of days a customer is willing to wait depends on the cost of shipping. When shipping is free, 85% of consumers are willing to wait five days or more, while only 66% of customers paying for shipping are willing to wait that long.

Shipping Fees and Shipping Free

Anyone who’s ever mailed a letter knows that shipping isn’t free. Although many companies opt to absorb these costs as a way to attract customers, the fact remains that shipping a product is going to cost somebody some cash.

Despite this fact, studies have shown that 76% of consumers expect some sort of free shipping option when shopping online. This disconnect between shopper expectations and reality creates increased costs for vendors.

Customers Expect the Unexpected

Shoppers maintain lives as complex as the ecommerce stores on which they shop. As a consequence, many consumers find the need to change shipping details days after the transaction is complete. Some shoppers want to change a package’s destination, while others want to push a delivery date back to ensure they’re home to receive it.

According to a recent study, less than half of consumers are currently satisfied with their options to change delivery dates or destination after their order has been placed.

How to Meet Expectations

If there’s one thing to be said about shipping expectations from online shoppers, it’s that they’re constantly in flux. The best way to meet the ever-changing needs of consumers is to work with a fulfillment warehouse that is constantly dedicated to matching those needs. You need professionals who are always updating, refining, and perfecting order fulfillment services.

Vision Consumer Products Fulfillment has decades of experience and industry expertise in consumer products fulfillment services.  No matter who your customer is, we treat your customer as our own. We know what makes a raving fan out of an individual customer, as well as what makes a business partner trust you with their business. Call or email us to learn how. We’re certain we’ll be the best fulfillment warehouse partner you have ever had!

http://visioncpf.com

CPFSales@VisionMediamgmt.com

How To Keep Shipping Costs Down

It seems that every time you turn around, your shipping costs are increasing.  FedEx and UPS increased fuel surcharges and implemented dimensional (DIM) weight pricing for all ground practices.  Consumers are demanding fast and free delivery.  What are the best practices you can use to manage those shipping costs and protect your profit margins? 

As Rob Martinez, the CEO of Shipware LLC, discussed recently, a key strategy in reducing your shipping costs begins with evaluating your options.  For example, “Regional parcel carriers offer many benefits when compared to the national carriers, including a larger next-day delivery footprint, later pickups, earlier deliveries, easier contracts with fewer accessorial charges, same day-delivery options and customized solutions. Furthermore, most regional players offer better pricingand more favorable dimensional policies compared to FedEx and UPS.”  The U.S. Postal Service offers other options as well.  And ensure your packaging is as efficient as you can get it, to reduce the impact of DIM weight pricing.  But how do you evaluate the options, choose the best for your business, and get them implemented? 

The answer is to leverage your fulfillment services partner.  They should be dialed in to the latest industry news and ready to employ those options on your behalf.  They can provide ideas on transportation, logistics, carrier operations, warehouse technologies, packaging optimization, customer service, and more.  Here at Vision, we embrace change and help our customers to leverage change to maximize return and strategically grow their business.

Vision Consumer Products Fulfillment has decades of experience and industry expertise in consumer products fulfillment services.  No matter who your customer is, we treat your customer as our own.  We know what makes a raving fan out of an individual customer, as well as what makes a business partner trust you with their business.  Call or email us to learn how.  We’re certain we’ll be the best fulfillment warehouse partner you have ever had!

Vision Consumer Products Fulfillment

Fulfillment Warehouse

CPFSales@VisionMediamgmt.com