Have you ever had a situation when you had to print a shipping label and attach it to your parcel? Probably, yes as you are reading this article already. The importance of shipping labels for consignors and businesses, logistics service providers, and even recipients is obvious. Thus, we will explain in which cases customers need to print a label and attach it to a parcel when booking shipping services via Eurosender platform.
The importance of shipping labels for consignors and businesses is beyond doubt when those use courier services to ship various kinds of items abroad and domestically. In general, shipping labels are in the courier’s area of responsibility. However, there are cases when both individuals and business customers need to take care of shipping labels by printing them and attaching to their packages. Our consumers are curious whether shipping labels for B2B parcel delivery are different from general ones, ask if printing a shipping label is obligatory, and wonder what is encoded in a shipping label. To make things clear, we will explain everything about labelling a parcel when shipping with Eurosender.
Discover whether printing a shipping label is obligatory
Courier companies are generally responsible for providing shipping labels to their customers. As any rule has exceptions, you might think that customers may be in charge of printing and attaching shipping labels. You are right to some extent as booking standard shipping services and “First possible pick-up time” in some countries with Eurosender means that you will have to take care of arranging printing and affixation of the label. Let’s figure out this in detail.
When do you need to print a label for standard shipping services?
There are certain cases when customers have to print a label when booking standard shipping services. In any case, you will be informed about that via a confirmation e-mail. In particular, you will have to take care of a shipping label in the following cases:
Printing a label is obligatory for “First possible pick-up time” service
If you want to use “First possible pick-up day” service, be aware that it is available only for business users who ship from Romania, Poland, Slovenia, and Croatia. In this case, you will also have to print a label and attach it to your shipment. For that purpose, create an account on our website and get a range of benefits.
Is a shipping label necessary for freight shipping, van delivery, and relocation and removals services?
Sending cargo or non-standard items usually falls under the category of customized orders. It means that our logistics experts process your request and craft the best offer with the lowest price for you. Whether you book LTL service or FTL service, our experts will inform you whether printing a shipping label is obligatory. Moreover, they will also ask you to collect all the needed documents required by the articles of CMR convention before shipping freight internationally.
Shipping labels for B2B parcel delivery, for C2C and other types of shipping services usually have some barcodes, address lines, and codes that are not clear to senders usually. Nevertheless, they are extremely helpful for logistics company workers to sort shipments and forward them to the right destination address. In particular, a shipping label displays the following:
It is necessary to note that each logistics service provider usually has its own template of a shipping label which allows optimizing the process of delivery. Overall, shipping labels are a cornerstone of successful delivery.
What is an AWB and for what do I need it?
The abbreviation AWB stands for air waybill or air consignment note. This document carries out the same functions as a shipping label with the only exception that it is used only in air freight transportation. It serves as a receipt of goods, a contract between a shipper and a carrier, and a factsheet with information about the shipment and its content, consignor, origin airport code, and destination airport.
Many customers are curious about attaching a shipping label to a package, pallet, or freight shipment. Therefore, we have prepared a list of recommendations that will make it clear how to attach a shipping label properly in order to avoid any instances of lost parcels and misdelivered packages.
Remove any old labels from your shipment
After you get your packages or pallets packed properly, you will need to verify whether there are any old shipping labels attached to the box. It is necessary to remove those from a package because they might create confusion when scanned in the terminal or warehouse.
Clean the surface before attaching a shipping label
Whether you are sending a package or a pallet, you need to make sure that a shipping label can be properly affixed to it. Check whether a label can be stuck firmly to the surface of the parcel. For cargo shipments, a self-adhesive clear pouch or window might be a good idea in some cases.
Label your shipment correctly
There are many questions on how to attach a shipping label to a parcel or pallet. The main thing you need to consider is to make a label visible and clear. Put it on the side of the box, so your parcel can be easily scanned in the terminal. For smaller packaged attach a label in the way the barcode is on one side and address information is on the adjacent side.
Protect a label
After attaching a shipping label, make sure you additionally cover it with adhesive tape to ensure it is in top condition even when it reaches the point of destination.
Labelling multiple packages
Even if you are going to send several parcels to the same address, it is necessary to put a shipping label on each of them. This is crucial because your parcels might be transported in different vans even if they are shipped to the same address.
Labelling pallets and cargo shipments
When you are going to send a pallet, you should attach a label on each side and on top of the pallet if you are instructed to take care of a label. Furthermore, you should label each piece of palletized or non-palletized freight in advance.
Let’s start with the basics and found out why shipping labels are so important. First of all, a shipping label usually serves as a coded message attached to your shipment. It saves time to all those who operate your packages or cargo when it passes through various terminals, warehouses, and depots. It provides the quintessence of your shipment details to each party involved in the delivery process. Overall, a shipping label with correct information ensures successful delivery to the point of destination.
Furthermore, the right labelling is crucial because it conceals great potential for preventing the cases of failed delivery attempts. Follow the pieces of advice above to minimize the risk of any unwanted issues and recognize the importance of shipping labels for consignors and businesses and other parties involved.