When it’s time to renegotiate your carrier contract, what do you bring to the table?

For most companies, the answer is:

• Last year’s invoice total
• Some carrier-provided summaries
• A hope for better discounts

That’s not negotiation — that’s showing up unarmed to a knife fight.

FedEx and UPS walk into that same conversation with complete visibility:

• Lane-by-lane performance
• Surcharge behavior
• Peak volume trends
• Your service mix
• And their internal margin on your business

Unless you’re using your own granular shipping data, you’re negotiating on their terms — not yours.

⚠️ The Problem with “Topline Negotiation”

Too many shippers go in with just the basics:

“We spent $450,000 with you last year. Can we get better rates?”

But carriers don't set rates based on topline alone. They factor in:

• Zone spread (do you ship locally or cross-country?)
• Service levels (are you using high-margin Express services?)
• Package size & weight trends
• Surcharge exposure
• Seasonal volume shifts

Without this insight, you have no leverage. And that leads to bloated accessorials, weak incentives, and recycled rate structures that no longer fit how you actually ship.

🧠 What You Should Bring to the Table

To truly renegotiate — not just renew — you need:

✅ Detailed Spend Breakdown

Where every dollar is going: base rates, surcharges, fees, by carrier and service.

✅ Volume by Lane

How your shipping patterns are shifting — and what lanes should qualify for zone-specific discounts.

✅ Surcharge Analysis

Where you’re overexposed to fuel, DAS, or other charges — and where you can push for caps or waivers.

✅ Missed Refund Insight

How much service failure recovery you’re leaving on the table — and why that matters to your cost-per-package.

✅ Competitive Benchmarks

How your contract stacks up against similar shippers in your space.

💡 RCS Arms You for Real Negotiation

We don’t just recover refunds — we collect intelligence.
Every weekly audit gives you clearer insight into how you ship and where your deal is failing you.

Our contract optimization process builds from actual performance, not estimates.
So when it's time to renegotiate, you walk in with:

• Real numbers
• Clear trends
• Competitive leverage
• And a partner who knows how to speak the carriers’ language

You don’t get better rates because you ask nicely.
You get them because you show up with better data.

Let us prepare your next renegotiation

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