Are you concerned about the amount you spend on business related travel and transport every month? This is often a business cost that can be greatly reduced. However, many businesses don’t realize this and spend way more than they need to spend on shipping, visiting business associates and other travel related activities. Below are some of the most effective ways to reduce your travel and transport costs.

Shipping Containers
If you transport goods in large quantities, it’s vital to find ways to ship these products in larger containers to reduce the cost per unit of shipping. You can do this by investing in new and used shipping containers provided by companies like Shipping Container Depot. These providers have a range of containers available to buy at wholesale prices and could save you a lot of money when they are put to good use.

Partner with Other Importers or Exporters
If you do ship large quantities of items in containers, there may be times when you don’t fill these containers. This free space could be put to good use in a number of ways. Additional products could be shipped along with products for other departments in your organization or you could partner with other importers or exporters, which benefits both parties. This takes a bit of organizing and you will have to partner with others who are importing or exporting from the same location as you are.

Research and Planning
In most cases, carrying out a certain amount of research has the potential to save a business a lot of money each year. This is particularly true when it comes to travel and transport related costs.

Transporting inventory, duties and freight costs are just some of the factors that need to be accounted for and you should look at the options you have available. If you import from countries where products are much cheaper to manufacture, these additional costs could make these cheaper products more expensive to import than items manufactured closer to home.

The type of transport you decide to use for various business activities also needs to be investigated further. As part of your research, you should compare the different types of transport options available such as planes, road transport and trains. In many instances, air travel is usually more expensive than other forms of transport, so you should consider alternative methods of transport. 

Use the Latest Communication and Internet Technologies
The latest communication and internet technologies have made the world a much smaller place. Over the course of a year, the amount businesses spend on visits to client sites, suppliers, conferences and other business related events eats into profits. Video conferencing, email and a wide range of other technologies have the potential to reduce the need to leave your workplace for many of these types of activities.

As you can see, stepping back from the day-to-day activities in your business and looking for ways to reduce transport and travel costs is a worthwhile exercise. The tips above are just some of the ways you can reduce the amount of money wasted in your organization and put it to better use in your business.