{"id":7166,"date":"2023-03-13T06:04:00","date_gmt":"2023-03-13T06:04:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shipbob.com\/au\/blog\/zone-skipping\/"},"modified":"2025-11-18T01:48:25","modified_gmt":"2025-11-18T01:48:25","slug":"zone-skipping","status":"publish","type":"blog","link":"https:\/\/www.shipbob.com\/au\/blog\/zone-skipping\/","title":{"rendered":"A Complete Guide to Zone Skipping Logistics Strategy"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Table of Contents<\/p>

** Minutes<\/p><\/div><\/div>\n

What is zone skipping?<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

How does zone skipping work?<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The benefits of zone skipping<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Examples of zone skipping<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

ShipBob\u2019s last-mile delivery partners can save you a fortune<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Zone skipping FAQs<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Key Takeaways<\/h2><\/span><\/div>
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1<\/p><\/div>

Zone skipping is a logistics strategy that consolidates shipments destined for the same region, reducing transit times and shipping costs by bypassing multiple sorting facilities and zones.<\/p><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

2<\/p><\/div>

Zone skipping allows ecommerce businesses to pay only regional rates for last-mile delivery, significantly lowering costs compared to shipping individual parcels separately.<\/p><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

3<\/p><\/div>

By directly transporting consolidated shipments to the destination region, zone skipping shortens delivery timelines and minimises the risk of damage during transit.<\/p><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

4<\/p><\/div>

ShipBob enhances zone skipping by using its network of fulfilment centres and logistics expertise to optimise delivery speed and cost-effectiveness.<\/p><\/div><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Ecommerce businesses are on a constant quest to cut shipping costs without sacrificing speed and customer experience. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet, it’s tempting to do so by finding the cheapest courier to ship customer orders. If the goal is to cut costs while also meeting customer needs, it takes some time to think through an effective shipping strategy<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

One strategy that ecommerce businesses are taking advantage of is a shipping concept known as “zone skipping.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this article, we’ll discuss what zone skipping entails and how it can cut down on shipping costs for your business. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is zone skipping?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Zone skipping is a shipping strategy that consolidates multiple parcel or freight loads destined for the same region and sends them out in a single shipment. Since the direct line haul bypasses multiple sorting facilities and shipping zones<\/a> along the way, it reduces transit times and the risk of damage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why is zone skipping important in ecommerce?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

With zone skipping, online businesses have an opportunity to save delivery time while cutting down on shipping costs. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Instead of paying to ship thousands of individual parcels separately, zone shipping consolidates them into a single shipment. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once consolidated, the businesses only pays a regional rate, which significantly brings down the cost of last-mile delivery<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since zone skipping involves directly transporting shipments to the destination region without making multiple stops in between, it can also reduce delivery times.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How does zone skipping work?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Zone shipping works by consolidating a shipment, which directly ships from Zone 1 to Zone, skipping over shipping zones in the process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The consolidated load is shipped across multiple regions and then only offloaded at the local delivery destination.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This type of shipment will only go through a sortation process once it reaches the destination region, where individual parcels are then routed for final-mile delivery. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here is breakdown:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  1. Consolidation:<\/strong> Shipments are consolidated and sent from their origin to a location closer to their final destination. <\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n
      \n
    1. Direct Transport:<\/strong> The consolidated load is transported directly to the target region. <\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n
        \n
      1. Final-Mile Delivery:<\/strong> Once at the destination region, parcels are sorted and routed for final-mile delivery. <\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

        The benefits of zone skipping<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

        With zone shipping, ecommerce businesses can optimise their shipping operations. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Here are some of the major benefits of zone skipping.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Reduced last-mile delivery costs<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

        Last-mile delivery for individual packages can quickly add up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Zone skipping allows a business to ship to the destination and skip several shipping zones during the process, therefore reducing shipping costs<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        With zone shipping, retailers can avoid the costs associated with courier sortation at different regional hubs<\/a> and only bear the regional cost of sorting in the destination zone. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

        So instead of paying national rates during the shipping process, they are only responsible for paying only a regional rate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Stronger profit margins<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

        Zone skipping can reduce overall shipping costs, which can yield higher profit margins for your business. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

        For instance, say it costs $10 to ship one package from Philadelphia to Minneapolis. Shipping 2,000 individual packages would end up costing you $20,000. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

        On the other hand, a truckload of 2,000 packages shipped to the courier\u2019s sorting facility in Minneapolis costs around $3,000. From here, you pay an additional $7 per order to deliver the packages all within the same zone. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

        That means you end up paying $17,000 overall, saving you a total of $3,000. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Shortens last-mile delivery timelines<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

        When you send individual packages across several shipping zones, they typically have to make a stop at each zone, where they go through a sortation process so they can be routed to the right destination. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

        This process can significantly increase last-mile transit times.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Meanwhile, in zone skipping, a consolidated truckload would directly travel from one zone to the final zone without making any stops in between. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

        This means that it would take less time for the shipment to reach its destination region, allowing retailers to deliver their orders faster. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

        So what would\u2019ve taken 4 to 5 days might only take about 2 to 3 days, for example.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Who can benefit from zone skipping?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

        Any ecommerce business owner that wants to optimise their shipping strategy and reduce costs can benefit from zone skipping. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

        This is particularly true for retailers that often have to move a large amount of freight into a specific region.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        For example, if a businesses notices they are shipping a high volume of customer orders in a specific region, they can choose to implement zone skipping. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

        However, zone skipping isn’t as beneficial for low-volume monthly orders or when a business doesn’t see a high volume of orders come in from a specific region.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        With the promise of improved transit times and reduced transportation costs, zone skipping is a great shipping option for many ecommerce businesses \u2014 especially if a business is seeing a high volume of orders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Examples of zone skipping<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

        Let\u2019s say a retailer has to ship thousands of packages from their fulfilment centre in Georgia (Zone 2) to customers in California (Zone 8). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Some of the orders need to be delivered in Los Angeles, while others need to be delivered to San Francisco, but essentially, they\u2019re destined for the same region. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Instead of shipping those packages individually, the retailer chooses to consolidate them into a single shipment. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

        The packages are first pre-sorted at a Georgia fulfilment centre<\/a> and the shipment is then transported via freight shipping<\/a> directly to two different sorting hubs \u2014 one in Los Angeles and one in San Francisco. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

        The truck doesn\u2019t make any stops before reaching the final regional hub because all the packages are headed to one direction and do not need to go through additional sorting at other regional hubs in between.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Once the shipment arrives at each sorting hub, the packages are then sorted based on their destination to various regional cities. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

        For instance, packages sent to Los Angeles would then get sorted to deliver to cities like Santa Monica or Long Beach.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        \n

        \u201cUtilising ShipBob\u2019s network of fulfilment centres allows us to lessen our carbon footprint as well. We\u2019re currently storing inventory in some of ShipBob\u2019s Southern California and Chicago facilities, which means that when we receive an order destined for someplace like New York, we don\u2019t have to ship it from all the way across the country. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

        By shortening the transit distance, we get to shorten transit time and reduce the amount of pollution produced in the shipping process. Even in the final stages of fulfilment and last-mile delivery, ShipBob enables us to stay true to our mission!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Juliana Brasil, Director of Operations at Food Huggers<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

        Another similar approach to zone skipping is distributing inventory across distribution centres. For instance, if you want to serve customers in Australia and the US, you can split inventory across both locations. That way, when orders come in, they are routed to the nearest fulfilment location to reduce costs and delivery times. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Inventory that is shipped to an international fulfilment centre location in bulk, so you don’t have to pay for individual shipments each time an international order comes in. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

        \n

        \u201cWe currently use ShipBob fulfilment centres in the US, Canada, Europe, and Australia. Global fulfilment<\/a> is a huge need in the corporate gifting market and a necessity for our clients. At Postal, we\u2019re building and actively executing an international strategy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

        There\u2019s no way we\u2019d be able to do this ourselves \u2014 but ShipBob\u2019s combination of tech-forward APIs and logistics expertise allows us to scale globally with ease.\u201d<\/p>\nBen Jablow, VP, Alliances at Postal<\/a><\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

        ShipBob can save you money<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

        Developing a shipping strategy that optimises costs and meets customer expectations on fast, affordable shipping can be a challenge. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

        That’s why many businesses partner with ShipBob. ShipBob is an omnichannel fulfilment provider that offers:<\/p>\n\n\n\n