Whether you are an SME or an E-commerce entrepreneur, going global is no small feat. With international shipping, there are numerous hurdles and complications, the most difficult of which is acquiring consumers from all over the world. No doubt that the prospect of selling your products on a larger scale is appealing and intimidating. However, the temptation of worldwide success is a much more compelling element, which is why companies today aspire for expansion.
So, how do you make that happen? By partnering with a reliable and fast international logistics service provider like DHL Express. The global partnership will help companies achieve new growth prospects and progress to the next level, which is one of the greatest advantages.
Continue reading on to learn how businesses can go global with DHL Express.
To begin with, DHL Express is a subsidiary of the DPDHL Group. With 2.7 million clients from all around the world, the company has three global and 19 regional hubs. Plus, to ensure seamless international shipping, DHL Express has 30,900 vehicles and a fleet of 250 dedicated aeroplanes operating around 60,000 service points. DHL's express is one of DHL’s major divisions, handling courier and parcel delivery services in more than 220 countries and territories. The primary backbone of the company is its 100,000 employees who work tirelessly to complete deliveries from one port to another, ensuring that goods reach customers or business owners/merchants on time.
What’s new?
In year 2022, DHL has placed an order for six additional Boeing 777 Freighters. This Boeing 777 travels through the intercontinental network, and because it is huge, it can transport a great amount of cargo in the quickest amount of time. Here are some key highlights:
- The first of 14 Boeing 777 Freighters ordered successfully completed its maiden flight.
- New aircraft bolstered DHL’s unmatched intercontinental network.
- Helped DHL in meeting rising global express delivery demand with the world's most fuel-efficient and environmentally friendly planes.
Furthermore, to improve the global air network, DHL has also expanded the services to three major hubs across the globe. These hubs are Cincinnati in the US, Leipzig in Germany, and Hong Kong in Asia. These expanded services help in speeding up DHL’s deliveries with transit times as short as two to three days across the globe.
In Singapore, DHL’s transit time performance is at 96.8% thanks to the quick and smooth clearance process. On top of that DHL can also perform pre-noon city deliveries.
For example, If you are sending shipments to Taiwan, Japan, Korea, Thailand, Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore, and you are sourcing from China or Hong Kong, it takes only one to two days for DHL to deliver those products. This helps in inventory cost reduction and cash flow.
How is DHL Express able to achieve these milestones?
DHL’s network is defined by three key products, namely, Same Day, Time Definite and Day Definite products.
Same day: For mission critical international shipments that need immediate pick-up and door-to-door delivery within the shortest possible time.
Time definite: For international door-to-door delivery by specific time, or by the end of the next possible business day.
Day definite: For international door-to-door delivery within a certain number of business days for less urgent and heavier shipments.
When you are shipping your goods, you should specify which shipments are urgent and which are not. This will help DHL ensure that your urgent products reach on time at your warehouse or to your clients.
About DHL’s Import Express
When importing products from overseas, you'll face several obstacles due to the numerous middlemen involved in the process, such as various points of contact, multiple agencies and so on. However, in DHL, we provide solutions such as one pick-up and one delivery. This means that all the coordination is integrated on a single platform.
Here are some key benefits of the DHL Express Import Account:
- Ease of importing from 220 countries
- Simple upfront pricing
- A single invoice in your home country
- One account number
- One point of contact
DHL also offers a variety of optional services to dedicated account customers, including insurance, packaging, invoicing services, and most importantly, customs services. So, if you're a small business owner selling and buying goods for production, DHL express will be your perfect logistics partner.
So how can DHL help in tracking your shipments?
DHL’s tracking tool, ProView is a web-based service solely for DHL Express account holders. It helps you track all your import shipments in real time. In addition to that, the tool also helps in estimating the number of shipments that will arrive and the amount of inventory that will need to be sold. The tool sends automatic notifications to you and anyone you specify. The key benefits are:
- Quicker access to shipment information
- Notification via text or email message
- Easy-to-use
- Free of cost.
All these benefits will help you manage your business and costs efficiently.
Apart from that DHL's track and trace system covers 17 checkpoints, including customs clearance. If you are a seller and have DHL on-demand delivery service enabled, you will receive notifications of your shipments by SMS or email. This allows you to receive your shipments at your convenience with 6 alternative delivery options.
Shipping prohibited and restricted commodities with DHL Express
DHL’s restricted items require approvals for import. For that, you need to first inform your account managers and they will guide you through the process. They’ll help you understand what type of products you can ship and what rules you must follow prior to sending your shipment. For example, lithium-ion batteries and cosmetics are the most common restricted items.
Now, to import into a country, you need to go through the clearance process. For that, you can leverage the De Minimis and Express Clearance. Reading about DHL’s Trade Automation Services will help you understand country-specific import and export regulations for a variety of commodities. Additionally, if the price of your goods exceeds a certain amount, you may require formal clearance. Prior to shipping, you must register as an importer with the government of the country and have the following formalities ready, such as power of attorney and other licences.
When you ship with DHL, the team can assist you with product clearance through brokerage. As mentioned above, you must keep all the documents ready prior to shipping. You can ask DHL’s account manager to help you set up a few things below:
1) Most countries have a duty and tax account to settle tariffs and taxes. However, in Singapore, you must create a JAIRO account in order to connect JAIRO to tax.
2) Important paperwork, such as licences and permits must be prepared for customs clearance, and once that is done, shipping goods to any country will be seamless and smooth. Most importantly, prior to shipping, make sure that all the information on the commercial invoice and AWB are correct. Incorrect information will result in delays.
Talk to DHL’s customer service agents to know more about the services.
