Are you paying a high cost for your shipping? On average, you can save about half of your shipping costs. If you’re an Amazon FBA seller, you should know about the Amazon Partnered Carrier program and how it can help your e-commerce business tremendously. Amazon sellers who aren’t using the amazon partnered carrier are spending much more than they need to. In this article, we’ll break down what is the amazon partnered carrier program, their benefits, and how to become an Amazon partnered carrier for yourself.
What is the Amazon Partnered Carrier Program?
To improve the seller’s experience, Amazon created the Amazon Partnered Carrier program to provide cost-effective transportation rates that were negotiated explicitly by Amazon with UPS to cover shipment of small packages from your address to an Amazon Fulfillment center. From there, the packages are seamlessly received and will be available online for sale quickly.
Amazon will give you a shipping label to print out. Use this label with Amazon’s carrier. From there, you have the option of dropping off your shipments to your carrier, such as UPS, or simply sending a scheduled pickup driver your way and dropping it off.
If your shipments are over 150 lbs, you need to use the Amazon Partnered LTL/FTL Carrier Program. Essentially, your shipment will share space in a trailer, and you would be paying a fraction of the area that you’re renting out within the shipping trailer. Many sellers will share space in the same truck, and you’ll only pay your portion. This is by far the most cost-effective way for bigger shipments in freight.
Benefits
Save on Shipping Expenses:
Lower your shipping costs with their special discounted rates to any fulfillment center in your country.
Coverage for Potential Losses:
According to the FBA policy, Amazon will assume full responsibility for any damaged or lost inventory during transportation for up to $2000 per unit.
Fast Processing:
If you’re looking to get your products out to customers faster, Amazon Partnered Carrier does that! They prioritize shipments sellers in this program, so orders are processed faster at these fulfillment centers.
No commitment:
It’s super simple to get started. There’s no sign-up required. All you need to do is use their PCP for each shipment, and no minimum shipments are required. Ship as little as one or as many as you need to.
Convenience:
Amazon makes this entire process extremely seamless. All you have to do is have your packages picked up or sent out via UPS. Then from the Seller Central Hub on Amazon, you can estimate the rates, make payments for the shipments and track them all in one convenient place.
Heightened Security:
For bigger shipments, especially, Amazon will pack your shipment onto pallets to add additional protection to your package.
Detailed Tracking Information:
With the Amazon Carrier Program, you’ll be able to locate the shipping reference number, pickup date, lading number, PRO number, and PO number.
Eco-friendly:
By using the same truck, it saves fuel meaning less carbon is emitted in their air.
Step By Step on How to Become an Amazon Partnered Carrier
Follow the steps laid out before to use the Amazon Partnered Carrier for your next shipments. You’ll need to first go to your Seller Central Hub, then the UPS website, to schedule a pickup date for the driver to come.
Step 1: Head over to your Amazon Seller Central Hub page.
Step 2: Then, under the “Inventory” tab, select the option that says, “Manage FBA Shipments.”
Step 3: From here, you scan through the list of shipments that you currently have in the queue. Click on the “work on shipment” yellow button located next to each shipment that hasn’t been sent yet. If the shipment has already been dispatched, instead of work on shipment, you’ll see a “track shipment button.”
Step 4: You’ll then see the details of shipping this package. Under the “2. Delivery Service”, check the box that says “Small parcel delivery (SPD),” which also means Amazon Partnered Carrier.
Step 5: On the same page, under the option “3. Shipping packing”, you need to type the number of boxes that you’ll be needing for your shipments. Also, below that, enter the dimensions and weights of each box that you are planning to send. You may add additional boxes with specific dimensions and weights as needed.
Step 6: In section 4, you’ll see a “calculate” button. Click on that, and your total shipping cost will be calculated. Once that’s completed, check the box to confirm that “I agree to the terms and conditions.” Then click on accept charges.
Step 7: Then under the “5. Delivery labels” section, click on the “Print box labels” button. These are labels that you’ll stick onto the box that you’re shipping out to verify that you’re using the Amazon Partnered Carrier program. When you’ve finished printing your shipping labels, click on complete shipment.
Step 8: You’ll then be shown the summary page. This is where you can find the Amazon Reference ID, Amazon fulfillment center address, tracking number, carrier status, date created and updated, and other details about your shipment.
Schedule a UPS Pickup
This is where you’ll go to the UPS website to schedule and pay for your shipment to be picked up by a UPS driver.
Step 1: Head over to the UPS website. Then click on the click start button. From there, select the option “Schedule a Parcel Collection.”
Step 2: You will be prompted questions about your shipment. Select “yes” to confirming that you have a pre-printed UPS shipping label.
Step 3: In section 2, you’ll be asked to fill in your address where the shipment will be picked up from. And if you have a UPS account, then enter the UPS account number.
Step 4: In the third section, you’ll be asked for information such as the total weight of the shipment, number of packages, and the type of UPS domestic service that you’d like. Also, check if your shipment weighs more than 150 lbs. When selecting the UPS domestic service type, select the UPS standard option to access the Amazon Partnered Carrier. Also, enter the same weight and packages that you’ve entered when you were on Amazon’s Seller Central Hub.
Step 5: You’ll then be asked about when you want to have your shipments collected, such as the specific date, earliest and latest time, and any special instructions needed for the UPS driver. Please fill out this information accurately.
Step 6: In section 5, you can choose your payment option for the shipping cost. You may pay via debit, credit card, or PayPal. When finished, select next.
How To Become An Amazon Partnered Carrier – Final Thoughts
There you have it! Now you know how to become an Amazon Partnered Carrier to help save you time and money on your next shipment to the Amazon fulfillment center. With Amazon, you get an insurance policy and additional convenience knowing your shipment is in good hands. I recommend all sellers to use. You’d only be losing money if you’re missing out on this program!