When it comes to shipping for your home business, there's no shortage of choices. All of the major shipping companies like Fedex, UPS, the U.S. Postal Service and DHL offer some kind of small business shipping. When planning for shipping you must consider two things: cost and carrier.

Many small business owners pass on their shipping costs plus a little bit more to make a bit of profit. A good policy is making no profit at all on shipping. Many customers will feel you have taken advantage of them if you charge too much. So, maybe breaking even on shipping is the best policy. If you have the means, you may offer free shipping for a period of time. Whatever you choose to do, be honest and up front about your shipping costs. You do not want your customers to get an unpleasant surprise at check out. Posting your shipping charges next to each item will help with transparency in this area and customers will appreciate it.

When it comes to choosing the carrier, there are choices. If you choose, for instance, USPS, be aware that they have options such as Flat Rate Boxes. This way you and the customer always know up front how much the shipping is going to cost. The best way to find out what a particular shipping company can do for your business is to sit down with a representative from each of them. They will be able to explain things to you that won't come up just by calling them. They can recommend services that will be best for your home based business and show you options you may not know you had. Shipping can either gain customers or lose them. Making the right choices here will be of critical importance to your business.