Online Product Prices May Rise as Shipping Costs Increase Due to Demand Exceeding Delivery Capacity
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A number of factors may soon contribute to imminent prices increases for online products. These may include increased minimum pay, increased cost from trade tariffs, increased interests rates, pressure on the USPS to earn more, rising fuel prices, etc. Well, here is another factor that is looming on the horizon…
Trucking companies are charging factories and stores a lot more for delivery, threatening the future of free shipping. The demand for online shopping has increased so much that there aren’t enough trucks and drivers, so trucking companies are raising their prices. The increased shipping costs are projected to result in products soon costing more, higher minimum spending requirements to earn free shipping, or sites no longer offering free shipping. Meanwhile, the higher prices offset trucking companies’ costs for improving capacity by building more shipping facilities, buying more trucks, retaining truck drivers by giving them raises and/or bonuses for things such as having good gas mileage or safe driving records, etc.
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Amazon Prime or in-store pickup works for us. We use Amazon Prime for TV anyway since the only station we can pick up with our outside antenna is the local PBS station. Between what’s available for free with Amazon Prime and using the $1 digital credits earned with choosing the slowest delivery time on Amazon to buy or rent a series or movie now and then, we manage to find enough to watch. Most of the other places we shop, like Lowes, have in-store pickup. I agree that prices are going to rise, though, so it’s more important than ever that we share genuine good deals whenever we find them.
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@dionaea said in Online Product Prices May Rise as Shipping Costs Increase Due to Demand Exceeding Delivery Capacity:
Amazon Prime or in-store pickup works for us. We use Amazon Prime for TV anyway since the only station we can pick up with our outside antenna is the local PBS station. Between what’s available for free with Amazon Prime and using the $1 digital credits earned with choosing the slowest delivery time on Amazon to buy or rent a series or movie now and then, we manage to find enough to watch. Most of the other places we shop, like Lowes, have in-store pickup. I agree that prices are going to rise, though, so it’s more important than ever that we share genuine good deals whenever we find them.
The problem with increased prices is that you pay more even if you opt for in store pickup… and you spend your gas money and time on top of that. I suspect some retailers will both raise prices AND raise the minimum spend requirements for free shipping, so they’ll get you either way, but maybe I’m being too pessimistic.
Also, you pay a shipping premium already with your prime membership. Yes, you reduce it by your high use of their digital media and not paying for traditional cable (and maybe high volume purchases?), but Prime membership is still a cost and one that keeps rising and rising by large percentages at a rate a lot higher than inflation. You’d have to use the $1 digital credit A LOT to make up the difference. Also, some like me often can’t opt for the $1 digital credit because we’re only offered other slow shipping offers that are “useless” to our needs (like credits for prime pantry, prime now, or the toy department).
We’re similar in that I do the things you do, just less frequently. However, I am concerned that no matter how often you do them they will no longer be enough to offset the coming price increases. So I definitely agree that we need to step up our sharing of high quality deals!
