Making a successful mattress purchase can be broken down into three major steps. First, you research your options. Second, you make a decision and purchase your selected product. And lastly, you receive the product at your facility.
To ensure that the final step of receiving runs smoothly, it's important to know what to expect from your shipper. Bulk orders for large products like mattresses and furniture travel as either LTL or TL. Let's take a look at these shipping methods and explore their differences.
Things to know about LTL shipments
LTL stands for less-than-load (or less-than-truckload). An LTL shipment is generally less than 15,000 pounds and is more affordable since multiple businesses or organizations can share the cost of a single truck carrying multiple LTL shipments. It's like uberPOOL for camp mattresses, metal beds, and military bunks! Therefore, if you're the director of a camp, rehab facility or homeless shelter, and you're working on a tight budget, LTL shipping may be the way to go.
Another benefit of LTL shipments is that they are assigned a PRO number (tracking number) which can be used to follow the progress of the shipment on the carrier's website. Truckload shipments do not offer such user friendly tracking.
Because LTL shipping involves multiple stops at various destinations, products are packaged compactly and carefully. Compact packaging creates optimal space in the truck for other items, and careful packaging ensures that items are adequately protected during excessive handling at various stops. All palletized shipments from American Bedding are securely strapped to the pallet and wrapped in plastic to mitigate damage.
Pros and cons of TL shipments
Truckload (TL) shipments are generally larger than LTL shipments -- but not always. Sometimes shipments that could go LTL are shipped TL by request. Someone who has a tight deadline may choose TL shipping because there isn't time for multiple stops at other locations before that particular shipment is delivered.
For our customers' convenience, American Bedding puts a seal on every truckload shipment to ensure that no tampering occurs between our dock and the delivery location.
Another reason people often prefer truckload shipments is because fewer stops means less handling and thus less opportunity for items to get damaged during transit. We've all received boxes that look like they've been through a cyclone when they finally arrive at their destination. Chances are that box was tossed, jammed, dropped or jostled several times between stops. If you're shipping precious or fragile cargo, opting for a truckload shipment provides you with a little more peace of mind knowing that your order is taking the most direct route to you.
While it's nice to know the facts about shipping options, it's even nicer to know that the sales team at American Bedding is on your side when it come to shipping quotes. They make it a priority to provide customers like you with the most reliable shipping option at the most affordable price.
Buying in bulk
Truckload shipments are common for bulk purchases -- especially if that purchase contains large items such as wood or metal furniture. While the shipping, receiving and installation process requires some planning for bulk purchases, the financial benefits of buying in bulk are completely worth it. Additionally, the more you buy, the more sense it makes to opt for truckload shipping, which is the fastest, most reliable shipping option.
If you're ready to make some purchases and get your show on the road, contact us today! Our sales team will be happy to answer all of your mattress and bedding questions before you finalize that purchase and schedule your delivery.
