Many businesses require transport. Whether that is of equipment, employees or goods, most businesses will need transport at one time or another. Especially considering the boom in online shopping, companies need efficient transport now more than ever.
But when it comes to transportation, the options available to you may seem endless. How can you know what will work most efficiently for you?
Is it smarter to hire transport of your own? Or look to other businesses for your transportation needs? When it comes down to it, considering these three factors can help you make your decision.
Know Your Company’s Needs
Each business is different. So, naturally, each business’ transportation needs are different.
For some, transportation will be needed to deliver goods. But for many, transport will actually leak into the process of creating goods and services.
For those who solely need transportation for delivery, it’s likely finding external delivery services will be the smartest transportation choice for your company—especially those looking to post internationally. Unless you have the delivery powers of Santa Claus, its unlikely you’ll be handling it yourself.
Contrastingly, there is a chance that, for more local businesses, you may be able to handle delivery yourselves.
But for those who need transport as part of the process, assessing your needs is a little more complex. Depending on your industry, the questions you need to ask yourself will differ.
However, some common issues will be:
- What do I need to transport?
- What are the specific needs of this thing I need to transport (e.g. heavy items, fragile items, living items)?
- How much do I need to transport?
- How far do I need to transport this?
All of these answers will factor into what type of transport you need to use.
Assess Which Mode of Transport Suits Your Needs
Once you’ve figured out your business’ needs, you can begin to decide which mode of transport suits you best.
For long journeys, often train travel makes the most sense, whereas local transport of equipment can be done with vans and lorries.
This step in the decision-making process is often easiest but is necessary for the next, more important step.
Consider the Cost-Effectiveness of Your Options
The best way to manage your money will depend on whether you control your transport or leave it in the hands of transportation companies.
Should you buy or rent?
The decision to buy or rent will depend on the profitability of your company.
Take the example of a local log delivery company – buying transportation may not be affordable at first, so finding commercial flatbed rentals can really help out your business. Once the company has been built strongly, investing in owned transport will pay off.
How can you get the cheapest offer?
When it comes to transport types that you cannot own personally (e.g. trains, shipping), it’s important to find the cheapest deal for the highest quality service—research into government schemes for businesses. Often governments can subsidize transport for certain sectors. Alternatively, you can strike bulk deals with transport companies to haul more for less.
When it comes to transportation, each company will be different. The most important factor is to make sure your transportation suits your business’ needs. By fitting well, you should reduce inefficiencies.