TNT Express Philippines’ innovative online import booking system has expanded its worldwide coverage and now allows regular importers to conveniently and quickly arrange the collection of a document, parcel or pallet from over 170 countries in the TNT network.
Previously, the online service that enables importers to directly control how their shipment is collected, delivered and billed covers 168 countries. The expanded Express Import service, which also allows importers to choose the exact hour or day of delivery based on his budget to control shipping cost, now covers 99 percent of the global economy.
Importers can use the market-leading tool just by enrolling in the service at TNT’s website (www.tnt.com) for free. Express Import is live for receivers in 57 countries and is available in 55 languages.
John Queng, country sales and marketing director of TNT Express Philippines, explains that the company’s Express Import service has been designed to offer more benefits for import customers.
“You have better control of the shipment in terms of pick-up date, arrival, delivery and payment because everything can now be done from your end,” he says.
The delivery can also be tracked online – and in real-time.
“Once you have booked online, you can monitor where your shipment is. If there is a transit point, say from China to Hong Kong, you will see real-time what time it arrived in Hong Kong. You will also see if there is an arrival scan, which means your cargo has arrived and is already undergoing customs processing,” explains Queng.
Complementing the online import booking service is TNT Express Philippines’ flexible billing scheme. The importer does not need to send money directly to the supplier abroad to pay for the pickup. Instead, TNT bills the importer in the Philippines in local currency.
Aside from billing in the importer’s own currency, communication in the customer’s preferred language and visibility of cost up-front, the Express Import system provides users only one account number for import and export. The exclusive account is accessible only to importers ensuring confidentiality of import details.
Furthermore, Express Import users do not need to deal with different time zones, unlike in the traditional cross border booking or over-the-phone booking. All messages are relayed directly to the sender and receiver via e-mail and not dependent on TNT acting as a third party.
Since its introduction late last year, TNT's Express Import service has seen positive take-up from a number of customers. The service can shorten the coordination time between the importer and his supplier compared with traditional telephone booking.
The introduction of the new service shows TNT’s commitment to the Philippines’ export-import foreign trade. TNT Express Philippines helps facilitate imports of local semiconductor manufacturers, enabling the industry to increase exports by 19.4 percent to $2.26 billion in December compared to the same month last year, according to the latest data from the National Statistics Office.