Be patient.
Resist the urge to sign the first proposal from the carrier. The goal is to receive the correct pricing, not the quickest. Often times, carriers use time to their advantage. Go in with a mindset that this process may require multiple rounds of requests and proposal drafts in order for best-in-class pricing to be achieved. Outline what you want to achieve prior to the process, and hold to it.
Know what is attractive to carriers.
Express volume. Commercial deliveries. High pickup and delivery density. Consistency in box size and quantity. Reduced exposure to Large Packages/Packages that require Additional Handling. Use these as leverage during the negotiation.
Set up a competitive environment.
Bring in multiple carriers to the bid event. The best negotiation results come from both carriers vying for your business.
Highlight projected growth.
Shining a light on anticipated future volume is extremely incentivizing for a carrier. Often times, it’s your rep who negotiates with his or her internal pricing team. Baking nuggets of growth potential will surely yield more positive outcomes during the negotiation.
Data is king.
Know what percentage of spend each of your service types contributes to your overall spend. Know the breakdown between your package costs, fuel, and accessorial spend. Determine which accessorials would be the most impactful, and seek reductions on them. The carriers don’t go handing out accessorial discounts and dimensional divisors, so make sure you have a solid grasp on your carrier data before entering the negotiation ring.
The two most important items to master in a negotiation is “what” to ask for and “how” to ask. If you have any questions on either of these topics, we’d be glad to help.
support@seekrparcel.com
