Reducing Trade Show Shipping Costs
Trade show shipping can be highly stressful but there are easy steps you can take for reducing trade show shipping costs. Will it arrive on time? Will it arrive without damage? Will it cost more than quoted? These are just a few of the questions and concerns that can arise when making arrangements to ship your rental booth to a show. This is why it is important to work with a trade show specialist and a good shipping company.
Shipping costs can fluctuate so it’s best to allow your shipper as much time as possible to efficiently move your freight. Your shipping bill will include the cost based on the weight or dimensions and will also more than likely have a fuel surcharge as fuel prices tend to fluctuate.
We find it’s helpful to take photos of your freight prior to your carrier picking it up on the outbound and then again before they pick it up at the show venue on the return. These photos can be used to resolve damage disputes and can also be especially helpful at the end of the show for your shipper to receive photos of the freight and material handling form in case the driver has problems collecting the freight during the chaos of a dismantle.
Overall, if your freight is packed well, your shipping containers well made to protect their contents, and your carrier is a great shipper, then you are in the best position to minimize costs associated with shipping your booth to and from your event.
How we help you reduce Trade Show Shipping Costs
At Exhibit People, we’ve adopted a particularly efficient way of packing in layers. This allows us to fill in spaces efficiently and effectively to help minimize freight dimensions and reduce trade show shipping costs. Shipping is another reason why we choose to design and build with lightweight materials. The result is that many of our island booths require only 1-2 crates which amount to big savings on shipping costs.
It’s important that your carrier understands what it means to ship to a trade show. Many drivers don’t understand the process of the marshaling yard when going direct to show and that waiting in line to be called up to unload at the facility is a given for trade show freight. Whenever possible, we work with an experienced shipping company that understands the ins and outs of shipping to a trade show or advance warehouse. Our freight ships in a way that minimizes terminal transfers and freight handling, often going directly from our warehouse to the shows advance warehouse or venue.
Here’s what matters:
- Minimize your freight dimensions
- Minimize your freight weight
- Find a quality shipper experienced with Trade Show freight
- Text photos of packed freight and Material Handling Form after freight is packed
