Every business faces challenges in shipping to Guyana, especially with the riveting turnaround that happened since the COVID-19 pandemic. Shipping can be a challenging aspect of the business because it’s multifaceted – from determining the best shipping carriers to deciding on the shipping containers – and it can prove to be overwhelming for small and even large companies.

When thinking about shipping, you must also find a way to connect it to customer experience. How is your customer’s journey with your brand? Are you meeting the mark in terms of customer satisfaction?

The key to overcoming the challenges of shipping to Guyana is to be aware of these challenges and to implement systems or processes ensuring that your customers get their orders on the specified time and without any damage or issues.

In this guide, we will discuss in detail the most common challenges encountered by companies when shipping to Guyana – and how you can overcome these problems so you can ship with ease.

Business Challenges in Guyana

Guyana is composed of roughly 750,000 people. With a small population, the market is great for startups or small and medium enterprises that would want to dip into business in Guyana.

One strategy for foreign companies is to merge or partner up with local businesses to gain familiarity with local business market conditions and challenges. However, due diligence is advised to those who want to do business in Guyana.

One of the main challenges here is the wide proliferation of red tape. Businesses and governments are mostly paper-based too and not as advanced as other countries. More so, government processes here are sluggish and very centralized.

In fact, public procurement heavily focusd on low-cost bids compared to high-quality projects. Guyana is ranked as the 134^th in the Ease of Doing Business category which is far from impressive. Moreover, Guyana has serious gaps in terms of infrastructure and technology.

The country has poorly maintained ports, bridges, roads, and lack railways. Guyana also has frequent power interruptions or outages which make electricity very expensive.

Top 17 Shipping Challenges When Shipping to Guyana

It’s not easy to run a business and one of the complicated areas to manage is shipping because you have to understand and get in the loop of how it is to move goods in today’s challenging phase with countless decisions to make in terms of destinations, ports, costs, and regulations – and it’s never easy.

The goal right now is to overcome the challenges of shipping to Guyana and hit your targets.

Lack of Supply Chain Resilience

The goal of logistics is to build an efficient supply chain leaving zero room for error. However, when the COVID crisis happened as well as the Brexit and other environmental problems, it has been increasingly tougher than ever to move goods on a secure, efficient, and timely basis.

With these pressing issues at hand, it’s important to build redundancy into the supply chain or having different carries for important lanes plus additional stocks that can help you reduce risks. For instance, if you have multiple carriers and one of your top carriers is experiencing problems with shipping then you can easily tap on other suppliers to keep everything moving seamlessly.

Another way to increase supply chain resilience is to use technology, like artificial intelligence, analytics and digital platforms, to connect your supply chain with a seamless flow of data and create end-to-end visibility. This way, if a disruption occurs, you can quickly and effortlessly find a solution in your supply chain.

Late Shipments

When you’re moving a lot of cargo, it’s impossible to ensure 100% of it will arrive on time. The trouble is, late shipments aren’t happening just occasionally, they’re happening all the time. In 2020, the industry saw record highs of late shipments.

You can never completely eliminate lateness from your supply chain, but there are several things you can do to reduce your number of late shipments:

• Plan ahead for busy seasons, such as the Christmas holidays or New Year
• Use digital freight software that can forecast delivery times
• Track your container’s delivery status using digital tools so you’re aware of potential delays early and can start working on a backup plan
• Monitor which of your carriers have the fewest delays so you can create a pool of your most punctual carriers
• Prioritize time-sensitive shipments, so you reduce lateness for your most important containers

If all else fails, it’s always good to have a plan B: Air Freight is one of the most expensive ways to move goods – but it’s also one of the fastest. If you’re moving something time-sensitive or you need to urgently replace a delivery that won’t arrive on time, using airfreight can be the solution to ensure your goods arrive on time.

Expensive Freight Rates

Since 2020, global freight rates have been rapidly increasing, and contracts rates are indicating these prices are here to stay. High freight rates eat into your logistics budget and ultimately increase the cost of your goods to the consumer, which can reduce sales.

Unfortunately, you can’t change the rates, but you can tender more strategically to reduce your spend.

There are, of course, expenses associated with transporting goods safely from Point A to Point B. But if the fees are higher than you believe they should be, there are actions you can take to reduce them. For example, you should compare providers, keeping in mind that improper handling and logistical errors on the part of a “bargain” shipper can end up costing you far more than what you would pay a premier provider.

It’s also helpful to arrange for shipping as far in advance as possible. Waiting until the last minute to make your plan can result in higher fees for expediting the shipment. And if shipping multiple items, you should consider the needs of each. If some of them are required more urgently but others less so, it may be cost-effective to split the shipment up, with the different components using shipping methods appropriate for their deadline.

When freight rates are high, you need to adjust your procurement strategy to ensure you’re getting the most competitive price. Here are three ways you can do this:

• Benchmark your freight rates to compare quotes from carriers against the market rate for your lanes
• Compare more carriers so you have more quotes to choose from and can select the most competitive rates
• Tender more regularly so you don’t get locked into long-term contracts that could see you paying above the odds.

Reduced Visibility

Lack of visibility is by no means a new challenge in the shipping world – but it’s certainly an issue that’s getting worse. As the global supply chain grows, there are more ships, lanes, cargo, ports and destinations to track, making shipping data extremely complex and reducing visibility into procurement.

To get better visibility into your transport data, you can’t rely on excel sheets and manual calculations – it’s just too complicated. If you want to get real transparency into your procurement, you need to use a digital procurement platform that’s specifically designed to manage freight sourcing and procurement and create end-to-end visibility.

Digital procurement platforms give you visibility into all aspects of your freight sourcing and procurement. They provide automated scenarios, such as incumbent scenarios, so you can quickly and easily compare carrier offers. And they create visual breakdowns of your current rate sheets so you know what your rates are with every carrier at a glance.

Understanding Shipping Jargons

One of the biggest shipping challenges to Guyana is the shipping jargons or vocabulary. You may be surprised to find that some of the most common shipping issues are related to a team not knowing precisely what they are looking for when they look for shipping solutions.

Let’s break down the shipping options so that you know which may be best for you:

• Carrier Shipping: Carrier shipping is the shipping that you can do with your own delivery company.
• Shipping Carrier: A shipping carrier is a third-party company like FedEx or UPS, specializing in moving packages from one location to another within a specific time frame and on behalf of other businesses.
• Shipping Containers: A shipping container is just that – the boxes (or metal containers) that these shipping carriers use for transporting items – they come in all shapes and sizes! Knowing how much you need to ship is key to ensuring you have the suitable shipping needs covered.

Insurance of Shipments

It is very important to ensure that your shipments are insured from any potential predicaments. Insurance is a requirement if shipping internationally, and some carriers may require it domestically as well.

There are two types of insurance: cargo insurance (which covers the contents) and transit coverage (which protects against physical damage or loss).

It’s important to know what type of shipping carrier you’re using for any given shipment so that they can recommend the proper insurance based on the shipping challenges you may face.

Difficulty of Tracking Shipments

Another shipping challenge is the ability to track your package. Tracking a shipment can be done by sending an email notification or using web-based tracking, which will provide updates on where your package is in transit and when it might arrive at its destination.

Many shipping companies offer to track shipments automatically for customers once their order is fulfilled and shipped. However, you can boost your brand reputation by providing tracking from your company as well!

Lost Shipments

Once in a while, shipping challenges like lost shipments will happen.

With some shipping companies, once an item enters the shipping stream it can feel like it’s fallen into a black hole. It’s a different story with premium crating and shipping providers. They track your shipment throughout its journey and immediately take action if they lose contact with a package. The sooner problem resolution begins, the more likely it is that assets are found and get back on track.

So, what can you do to overcome the unexpected?

First of all, it is essential to remember that many shipping companies offer insurance for packages.

Next, you need to make sure that you have a built-in system for handling lost shipment requests from customers. The faster you can answer customer complaints about shipping problems, the more likely you are to retain that customer.

Ensure you know what to do should a customer notify you that their shipment never arrived and how you will communicate with your customer and rectify the problem. Fast service can solve most shipping challenges.

Delayed Shipments

If the past year taught us anything, shipping is likely to take a bit longer than initially stated at order. However, consistent delays that frustrate customers can be a death sentence for companies.

Make sure that you are clear with your customers about shipping expectations. Be in constant contact with your shipping company about any potential delays or slow shipping issues so that you can communicate with your customers with the latest shipping times.

One of the best ways to overcome frustrating shipping delays and challenges is to partner with a professional solution that integrates real-time shipment timeframe updates into each order.

Inaccurate International Customs Forms and Duties Declarations

Customs forms for shipping internationally can be a headache. Unfortunately, this problem is not going away anytime soon as more brands are looking to expand their reach overseas and ship globally.

Ensuring that international shipping forms – including customers and duties declarations – are correct is key to shipping your product internationally successfully.

One of the best ways to navigate the variety of international customs processes is by partnering with a SAS solution that can help you automatically apply any customs data necessary to the correct shipment.

Damaged Items

No doubt about it: Conditions in the shipping stream can be very harsh. The forces that items face as they’re loaded onto trucks, planes, and ships, and transported over bumpy roads, through turbulence, and on rough seas are far greater than what they experience sitting at your business location or home. However, when the proper packaging and crating scheme is developed by a trained and experienced packaging engineer, the risk of damage is dramatically reduced.

Lack of Knowledge on Shipping Internationally

The process of getting a shipment from Miami to Houston is fairly simple. Your assets might simply be loaded onto a truck that arrives at the destination a few days later. Shipping items overseas is another matter altogether. There are customs requirements, forms that need to be completed, transfers from one carrier to another, etc. The best way to ensure that your international shipping goes smoothly is to work with a crating and shipping company that has significant experience in getting goods to their foreign destinations.

For example, Zip Logistics can take the burden of learning about international shipping rules off of you because we’ve coordinated the transportation of assets to and from virtually every major overseas destination through the years. We help you with everything from securely packaging your items, to filling out the paperwork, to tracking your shipment every step of the way.

Disruptions on Shipping Routes

Many forces outside your control can impact shipping routes. Natural disasters, political unrest, and pandemics are just a few examples. While these events can’t be prevented, there may be ways to work around them in many instances.

Working with an experienced shipping logistics company provides a few benefits. First, they monitor local, regional, national, and world events in order to anticipate problems. Then, if issues arise, they leverage their knowledge and extensive network of industry contacts to determine if there is a way to modify the path a shipment will take to avoid trouble spots.

Complications of Split Shipments

In some shipping engagements, like estate shipping, items are picked up in one location but must be delivered to multiple locations. This can create a major headache for family members if they have to coordinate the process. At Craters & Freighters, we step in to handle the logistics, carefully labeling, logging, and tracking assets as they go their separate ways, always keeping shippers and recipients updated on the progress of the project.

Environmental Impact

One hidden form of damage to assets is the effects of environmental conditions—in particular, corrosion and other internal damage that can be caused to electronics like servers by high humidity levels, such as during ocean transport. However, precautions like moisture-barrier packaging, desiccants and humidity indicator cards can help ensure that sensitive items are protected.

Shipping Hazardous Materials or HAZMAT

There are many restrictions associated with the shipping of hazardous materials or “hazmat.” A crating and shipping company experienced in hazmat shipping can help you understand the packaging and handling requirements, and the related paperwork, so that you don’t break any rules or regulations in moving your materials.

Costs of Repairs and Replacements of Goods

Despite your best efforts and those of your shipping company, items can still be damaged during transport.

To keep from having to absorb the cost of repairing or replacing damaged goods, you can arrange for what’s called cargo insurance, ideally through the company that is coordinating your shipment.

At Zip Logistics, we’re authorized to pack and crate almost any type of item with coverage through our insurance company thanks to many years of very low claims ratios.