100% Parcel Spend Optimization is Now Possible … With the Right Tools

For decades, parcel shipping has been a complicated business. But it’s getting even more complicated in the 21st century.

Shippers are now dealing with new surcharges, constantly shifting service levels, and customer expectations that change faster than parcel strategies can keep pace. RFPs and parcel contract reviews are pivotal, make-or-break moments whose outcomes can reverberate for years, influencing costs, performance, and service.

For these reasons, Intelligent Audit has built and launched a Parcel Optimization Tool. This Tool is a practical decision-making engine built around today’s parcel shipping realities and designed to support shippers in the pursuit of parcel shipping optimization.

Modling: It Matters More Than Ever Now

Evaluating carrier proposals the analog way (with just a spreadsheet) is tough. Making it tougher is this: The costs and services are both varied and nuanced, which makes an apples-to-apples comparison is nearly impossible.

All the carriers are different, with their own tier-based pricing, dimensional weight adjustments, zone-based charges, accessorials, and fuel surcharges. It all adds up in a hurry, and it cuts deep enough into margins to dampen profitability. Unfortunately, most tools that promote parcel optimization capabilities treat these numbers in isolation.

Intelligent Audit’s Parcel Optimization Tool takes a different approach. Using the Tool, you can model your company’s data against contractual terms to identify how offers will perform in your network. This approach to parcel spend optimization provides a clear picture of what each option means for your bottom line and customer experience.

Built for Real-World Decisions (Not Just Reporting)

When you cut through all the fluff, shippers really have a series of pressing questions that demand answers. These simple yet essential questions include:

• How much would this new proposal really save me?
• What happens to my costs if I shift volume from Carrier A to Carrier B?
• Can I improve time-in-transit without blowing up my budget?

Intelligent Audit’s Parcel Optimization Tool finally hands you the power to simulate these scenarios and test strategies before making a commitment. This is your path to find out whether rerouting through different zones, restructuring service tiers, or validating “discounts” will actually make a positive difference in your financials.

This Is How Shippers Are Using the Parcel Optimization Tool

The Parcel Optimization Tool isn’t just for one industry. Any business that ships parcels in volume can use it to make better, more confident decisions about carrier networks. In practice, some customers use it to prep for negotiations by modeling rate structures and service levels in advance; others stress-test their networks to find inefficiencies they didn’t know were costing them money. Those inefficiencies might include:

• Unnecessary accessorials
• Mismatches between service tiers and delivery zones
• Flawed TMS logic that prioritizes the wrong carrier at checkout

Still other shippers may use this parcel spend optimization solution to understand how changes in volume or service strategy would play out over different time horizons. These shippers may ultimately find the right paths to diversifying a carrier base, consolidating a carrier base, or simply finding better ways to move products from Point A to Point B.

The ultimate key is this: No shipper can afford to make decisions in the dark. Gone are the days of reactive planning. To minimize cost and maximize service performance, shippers need real data and dynamic modeling to achieve true parcel shipping optimization.

Shippers Now Have the Optimization Magic Wand They’ve Always Needed

We all love saving money, but there’s more to minimizing costs than just choosing the lowest rate. Long-term, sustainable savings naturally emerge when you build a resilient and flexible network that can scale along with demand, persist through disruptions, and support keeping promises made to customers.

Intelligent Audit’s new Parcel Optimization Tool is the magic wand that turns this vision into a reality. It helps you make the right choice for your business, every time.

‍Learn more about our Parcel Optimization Tool, or get in touch to schedule a demo of this solution and how it can benefit your business.