Small businesses are busy places. No matter what kind of operation you’re engaged in, it always seems like you are one step from disaster. There’s always a situation that requires a response – a customer request for something you’ve never really thought about doing before, a limited-time opportunity to bid on a new contract, or a need to move products or papers across town in a hurry.
As the proprietor of the business, you have a vested interest in “getting it done”. If something needs to be somewhere, you’ll just take it yourself, or get one of your trusted employees to take it for you. Sure, it costs you time and money, but it’s got to be cheaper than a courier service, right?
Well, maybe not. Once you factor in all the costs associated with you or an associate delivering something, you might find that you would have been much better off hiring a courier to do it for you. Here’s a list of the costs you incur when you do an emergency drop-off by yourself, or using your in-house staff.
1) Productivity Cost – You and your employees have a job to do. If you’re driving a package downtown in traffic, you aren’t doing your job, so somebody else has to pick up the slack, which takes him or her away from their job. Eventually, you’ll pay for the lost time in overtime fees, or by calling another employee in to cover.
2) Fuel and Mileage – Gas isn’t cheap, and wear and tear on a vehicle is a real factor. If you use your own car, it might come directly from your own pocket. If it’s an employee, you have to compensate them for it.
3) Parking – Especially with the ongoing changes to the parking regulations in the downtown, it’s getting more expensive to park in Winnipeg. And you certainly don’t want to risk a ticket or a tow.
4) Insurance – If you use a vehicle for business purposes, the cost of insurance goes up. If you use your vehicle for commercial purposes without the right insurance, you risk some stiff penalties, and could perhaps not have your costs covered in the event of an accident.
Once you figure in all the associated costs, it’s probably a lot more economical (and certainly easier) to call Sierra Courier to deal with a delivery, in-town or across the world. We’ll come to your office to get it, and guarantee that it will be where you need it to be, intact and in time.