Are you looking to expand your business to an international market? International shipping doesn’t have to be challenging, and with the help of our partner GlobalPost, it isn’t! In this session of our webinar series, The ShippingEasy SpeakEasy, we’ll discuss GlobalPost, how ShippingEasy can help you ship internationally, and tips for starting your own international shipping workflow. And don’t worry, as always, we’ll recap everything you need to know and drop the recording below.
What is GlobalPost? 🌐
GlobalPost strives to help growing shippers who are ready to deliver their products to more markets. Thanks to their network of global postal and commercial carriers, GlobalPost offers efficient features not found with other carriers. GlobalPost is also available on over 200 shipping applications, including ShippingEasy, so they can be easily integrated into your shipping process.
Features of GlobalPost 📦
ShippingEasy merchants can choose from GlobalPost Economy International, GlobalPost Standard International, and GlobalPost Plus when shipping internationally.
- GlobalPost Economy International can be used for packages up to 4.4 pounds, has a delivery estimate of 10-14 days, and includes door-to-country tracking.
- GlobalPost Standard International can be used for shipments up to 70 pounds, has a delivery estimate of 8-12 days, and includes door-to-door tracking.
- GlobalPost Plus can be used for packages up to 66 pounds, has a varying delivery estimate by country, and includes door-to-door tracking.
You might be asking what the difference is between door-to-country tracking and door-to-door tracking. Door-to-country tracking means that your package can be tracked until it leaves US customs while door-to-door tracking means you can track a package throughout its entire journey to its destination. 😊
How GlobalPost supports international shippers 🤳
GlobalPost support is available to help you with any questions you may have along the way! You can reach them via phone at (888) 899‑1255 from Monday – Friday, 6am-6pm PT or via email. If you’re a little nervous about calculating duties and taxes or adding HS codes, GlobalPost offers tools like their Duties and Taxes Calculator to help you estimate duties and taxes in advance.
Additionally, with all shipments passing through or going to the EU requiring HS codes, it’s best to get into the habit of including them on all international shipments. As long as the item description and other information on your customs forms is detailed and correct, GlobalPost will add the HS code for you. If you’d rather look up HS codes yourself, you can use their Free HS Code Lookup tool for up to five daily searches.
“Be accurate and honest with your customers when it comes to international transit times.”
– Rodney Small, Vice President, Sales, GlobalPost
International shipping restrictions 🚫
Some international shipping restrictions are different from domestic shipping restrictions and can even vary by country. GlobalPost follows the same international shipping restrictions as USPS, so we recommend visiting their website to confirm your products can be shipped internationally to avoid returned packages and/or expensive adjustments down the road.
Some examples of these items include:
- Nail Polish
- Perfume containing alcohol
- Dry ice
- Lithium batteries
- Alcohol
- Hemp-based products, including CBD
How ShippingEasy supports international shipping 🌎
With the holiday shipping and shopping season approaching, your order volume will soon pick up. Your business won’t have time to manually enter information for every single order, and you’ll need to double-check addresses, so your customers can successfully receive their orders. If manual entry and lack of address verification are keeping you from offering international shipping, we have good news.
ShippingEasy merchants can save tax ID numbers like VAT and IOSS numbers, so you can select them from a dropdown menu instead of manually typing them in with each order. This number will also apply to batched orders, so you can apply this number to multiple orders at a time.*
We’ll also flag addresses that can’t be verified, so you can confirm the address with your customer before sending. ShippingEasy merchants can choose from three address verification options within their accounts:
- Always prompt with address suggestions
- We’ll ask you how you would like to move forward.
- Always use Suggested Address
- We’ll substitute the address with a USPS-verified address if possible.
- Always use Invalid Address
- We’ll keep the address the same, but remember, shipping to an address that can’t be verified is at your own risk.
Like GlobalPost, we want international shipping to be a possibility for any business, and we don’t want manual entry and address verification issues to keep you from succeeding.
*Note: International and domestic orders can’t be batched together.
“ShippingEasy makes it perfect on our end.”
– Rodney Small, Vice President, Sales, GlobalPost
Tips to start international shipping ✅
International shipping is possible for your business; all you need is a good jumping-off point. There isn’t anything wrong with shooting for the stars, but being practical is also essential. As Rodney Small said, “I wouldn’t be afraid to expand, but start small.” After you’ve decided to offer international shipping, keep these tips in mind:
- Confirm all addresses before shipping.
- Familiarize yourself with international shipping restrictions.
- Start with countries that have expressed interest in your business.
- Think about the contents of your items as well, i.e., the design because some countries have restrictions around them.
- Utilize ShippingEasy international setting to streamline your shipping process.
Upcoming ShippingEasy SpeakEasy events 🗓️
And that does it! If you missed the first two ShippingEasy SpeakEasy events, you can watch the replays on YouTube. Also, If you have ideas for future ShippingEasy SpeakEasy events, reach out to us on social media. Be sure to mark your calendar for the next session on Wednesday, December 13, 2023.
Recommended Bookmarks 🖥️
- Should I Offer International Shipping? | ShippingEasy
- Shipping Unboxed: FAQs about International Shipping | ShippingEasy
- The Beginner’s Guide to International Shipping Requirements | ShippingEasy
- GlobalPost: How Does GlobalPost Work?
- GlobalPost: How To Track GlobalPost Shipments
Baillee Perkins
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