5 ‘Must-Have’ Tips About Shipping From India to the USA

With the wide spread boom of e-commerce businesses and online businesses, the need for logistics companies has also grown. No matter which business you are in you will require a logistics company at some point of time in your life.  There are many logistics companies today who are providing different types of logistical and shipping services to the customers depending on their needs and requirements.

Choosing the right logistical company requires careful research, well thought out mapping of requirements, number work, and through consideration of several factors. It is important to choose the right logistics partner as they perform many important roles such as planning, controlling, implementing, and tracking.

Not just this logistics company is also responsible for the safety and security of your goods. Therefore, it is imperative that you choose the logistics company which can take care of your products as your reputation is on stake. The logistics company can directly affect the customer experience and that will determine repeat customers and customer satisfaction.

Following are the factors that you should consider while selecting the right logistic company for your business

1. Choosing the right option: There are many national and international logistics companies in India who provide very different kind of services to its clients. One has to determine which one is the best for their business. Something which is good for someone else’s business may not be good for your business. You have to choose the logistic company depending upon the nature of your business. This is a very important stage as logistics companies directly affect customer experience. If the customer is not satisfied or receives the goods in broken or unfit form then it ruins the reputation of your business. Therefore, it is important to make the right choice. There are many low cost start-ups which offer services in lesser price, however if you are dealing products that require an experienced handler then that becomes your obvious choice. Customers also want efficient and timely services these days so the logistical company should also be able to provide the same.
2. What makes one logistics company better than the other: This is an important question to ponder upon as to what are some of the criteria that we would give more importance to as compared to the other ones. Whether the company can provide timely delivery, or whether or not they can transport the goods in the best condition, the overall standards of their operations are all important things which differentiate one company from the other.
3. Capacity and Coverage: One of the important factors to consider is also the capacity and coverage of the logistics company. Amount of goods they can transport, areas where they need to be transported, whether they can transport a certain kinds of goods such as fragile or livestock etc. Suppose you want the goods to be transported USA using air freight services then you will have to determine which company is best for you and which company is experienced in doing so. Based on the same you will have to choose the best option for your business.
4. Customer Experience: This is one of the most important aspects of selecting the best logistics provider as it directly affects your business. At the end of the day customer experience is something that affects our business. If the logistics company is not good there could be delay in the delivery of services or the goods could reach the customers in the damaged form. It is important to see what is the quality of services that the logistics company provides to its customers. It is therefore important to consider reviews and recommendations that they receive from someone who is in the similar business and has used their services.
5. Start up or Experienced: There are some occasion where you could feel giving contract to the start-up is good as the product does not require experienced handler however in some cases one could require experienced handler depending on the nature of the product. Therefore, it is important to know exactly which product would require what kind of handler and whether it is important to save the cost by giving the project to a start up or to spend more the experienced handler.
6. Trust and reliability: The logistics partner should be reliable and must have a bandwidth to commensurate any losses that could happen during the transit. They should also be able to reliable enough and have experience of dealing with certain situations that could arise out of nowhere and affect the whole delivery process and shipment. They should have the ability to troubleshoot any kind of situation and do timely and safe delivery of your products.
7. Price: This is again a deal maker or deal breaker. A lot of times our selection of logistics partner depends on the budget that we have on hand and therefore many of the options get filtered out. Apart from that there are many factors such as facility to pay in installment or borrow money, payment terms, etc also play an important role in selection of a proper logistics company

AFM Logistics Pvt.Ltd. is an experienced and one of the best International logistics companies in India. The company was constituted in 2012 and is indulged in providing complete logistics solution for your business. The company has its own set up and wide network of agents throughout the world.

Exporting food from one country to another is a challenging task. Custom laws, foreign trade policies, and political factors all come into play when exporting goods from one country to another. Import and Export could be a lucrative business but one needs to know the tricks of the trade in order to run this business smoothly. India has been exporting several products overseas since many years and import and export has been a very crucial part of our revenue.

In 2016, India was the 9^th largest exporter of USA, to the tune of products worth over $46 billion. There are many things which are exported daily from India to USA. Some of the main products that are exported from India to USA are: Precious metals, mineral fuels, textile, machinery, pharmaceutical. Apart from this India also exports food products to USA such as spices, rice, processed fruits, essential oils etc.

Everyday products amounting to billion dollars are exported to USA from India. Below are some of the tips that you can use while exporting  food products from India to USA:

1. Kick start your documentation process by applying for an IE Code. Once you have that in place, you must apply for a Country of Origin certificate for the food products you wish to export.
2. To export food products anywhere in the world, you need to obtain a food export license. You will also require FDA approval, and all items must indicate and display details regarding their ingredients.
3. Book the container for export of food products, after which you must obtain a bill of lading. Submit all the relevant documents to the Indian Customs Office to expedite clearance procedures post that. After verification, the Customs Department will issue a Let Export certificate.
4. 48 hours before loading goods for American customs clearance, you will have to file an Import Security Filing.
5. Ensure you have clarity of all the documents and licenses required to start such a business.
6. The best option is to partner with a good import export shipping company which can facilitate this process and help you ease the process

Click here to find out how AFM Logistics Pvt Ltd which is the best air freight forwarders from USA to India can help you with exporting your goods

For several years technology has played a very crucial role in streamlining the processes across industries. The same revolution can also be seen in shipping companies too. Logistics has been revolutionised by technology. Many logistics companies are moving away from redundant data bases and are moving towards more tech savvy innovations in order to improve their operations and improve the quality of their services.

Let us see some of the path breaking innovations and technology that is changing the face of shipping and logistics:

• Creative alternatives to physical transportation – With the increasing use of drones and robotics the logistics sector has benefitted largely and in many ways. This has also reduced the manual work and costs associated with transportation. Forward planning of the shipment has become possible because of these technologies and this has also made it possible to know the exact delivery date. Geofencing integration will also help in tracking of the goods and will send a notification to the team when the vehicle crosses a particular location. GPS will also enable complete visibility of the consignment.
• Increase in transparency and accountability – Use of technology has also helped in increasing the overall transparency in the shipping and logistics This is also helping businesses to improve their overall efficiency and mobilisation of the resources. By integrating technology it will help in streamlining the entire process and expediting the whole process. Increased transparency will also help in increasing the efficiency of the entire process. Detailed information can help the shipping companies to keep a track of the shipments, optimize the routes, and figure out the need for drivers and vehicles for various assignments.
• Improves cost effectiveness – The innovations in logistics are helping in making the overall businesses profitable and viable. Digitization has helped in maintaining online records of all the contracts, keeping a track of all the bidding process, and many other things. It has also enabled to provide an online platform to manage everything with an effortless ease. In addition to that it also helps in avoiding redundancies and duplicates. Also keeping the record online also helps the drivers to apply for loans. In short, technology helps to bring more financial credibility along with cost efficiency.
• Easy traceability of the shipment – Earlier customers used to book shipments and get the expected delivery day but due to enhanced GPS System they can track the exact location of the shipment, plan ahead of time and also helps in building trust. This also helps in saving a lot of time and resources as the notifications are received automatically by the customer and the logistics company does not have to employ someone to cater to customer queries with regards to shipment status.
• Filling the supply chain gap – One of the biggest challenges faced by the logistics company was the gap in supply and demand. Latest technology allows the downside and upside of the supply chain team to know the out of stock items. Decreasing human involvement and increasing tech sophistication has allowed mapping of critical aspects in real time and in identifying the glitches almost instantly.

Therefore it is safe to say that technology has changed the face of logistics business and has touched all the aspects of this business.

International freight forwarders can be defined as an organization or set of agents who take care of the shipment when sent across the country. It takes copious amounts of stress on the shoulders when dealing with the supply chain management and intricate web of documents. If an individual is to get involved in the entire process, he might not be able to see the feasibility to export the goods overseas with dozens of processes and thorough communication with the people.

In other terms, International air freight forwarders are considered as architects for plotting the whole shipment schedule. They do curate the essential documents, plan the entire shipment process and take care of the financial optimization. They need to build good relationships with the port officials, exporters, cargo organizations for a hassle free and budget friendly process. Key roles that are majorly performed by an international air freight forwarder are as follows –

1. They would help you create all the documents and insurance papers from the scratch without getting lost in the middle.
2. Freight forwarders are generally responsible for – planning the cargo for the shipment, talking to the port officials, creating the documents etc. Moreover, the assistance is provided by these officials to their customers in case of doubts.
3. They do plot the entire route and journey by mapping the shortest distance and time to reach from source to destination.
4. All the essential information flows hassle free from these international freight forwarders to the cargo companies and supply chain management.
5. Other roles include – negotiating with the cargo to crack a good deal, managing the warehouses efficiently, scheduling the entire shipment plans to avoid any delays or confusions.

IS DOMESTIC AIR FREIGHT AS SAME AS THE INTERNATIONAL AIR FREIGHT SYSTEM?

The basic role of transporting the shipments/ consignments/ goods from source to destination remains the same. Although the complexity of tasks and responsibilities sharply decreases when comes to domestic air freight.  When people want their consignment to reach thousands of miles away to a destination, they usually take help from the air freight service providers. Generally, people with relocation, organizations, businessmen and many other types of people opt for these services who want their goods to be shipped and reached on time. Some of the popular responsibilities of a domestic air freight forwarder are as follows –

1. Identify and prepare the documents and differentiate the goods under the tariff code system.
2. Recognize the type of shipment, shortest route available and cost optimization efficiently.
3. In direct contact with the cargo and port official team to ensure a smooth process flow.
4. Taking care of the insurance of goods available in the transit.
5. Updating the shipping information of portal which is visible to the customers.
6. Taking care of the warehouse, maintaining good relationships with the officials and negotiating the shipping price for customers.

Export and Import process stands as a significant step to the entrepreneurs trying to gain some business overseas. Secondly, the benefit lies in the development of country by boost of the economy. Specifically glancing on the export process, it should be acknowledged in depth, by all the businessmen to avoid any hassles during their export of goods. Custom clearance process in India is time consuming and requires a lot of documents. So, all the exporters planning to export the goods should have some time prior to do the required preparations. Given below is the detailed custom clearance procedure which is to be followed when exporting the goods from our country to overseas –

1. Business Identification number – Once you wish to export your items/ goods, the first requirement is the BIN or business identification number. It must be obtained from Director general of foreign trade (DGFT). Additionally, the businessmen should get themselves registered from a verified foreign exchange organization or a dealer.

To all the organizations in India working as trading partners should understand the fundamentals of the import and export process. The process involves a lot of documentation, essential checks and multiple stakeholders in between. Acknowledging the entire framework allows the trading businessmen to smoothly either export or import the products. All the procedure is validated and regulated under Foreign Trade policy by the central government. Given below is complete and detailed process for Import as well as export procedures in IndiaImport refers to purchase and transportation of goods from other countries to own country via air, road or ocean. Government of India has set a procedure to import goods which is as follows-