As marketers, we love creating exciting campaigns. We brainstorm creative concepts, craft compelling messages, and calculate potential conversion rates. But there's one crucial aspect that often gets overlooked until it's too late: logistics costs.

Let's talk about why some of our most brilliant campaign ideas might actually be losing money and, more importantly, how to prevent this from happening.

Understanding the True Cost of "Free"


We've all been there - sitting in a campaign planning meeting, suggesting irresistible offers like "free shipping," "buy one, get one free," or "free gift with every purchase." 

These tactics work wonderfully, giving that extra nudge for customer acquisition and boosting sales. But here's what many marketers don't realize: even a tiny change in package dimensions can significantly impact your profitability.

Let's break down some surprising statistics:

  • A single centimetre increase in package size can add €4 to your shipping cost
  • Moving from one size class to another increases shipping costs dramatically:
    • XS to S: 17% increase
    • S to M: 34% increase
    • M to L: 23% increase

*This calculation is based on DPD pricing. 

It’s noteworthy that the most considerable price fluctuations happen on a local level where the distances are tiny. 

To put this into perspective, imagine you're running a "Buy X, Get Y Free" campaign. 
Your regular product fits perfectly in a size S package, costing €10 to ship. 
You create a fantastic campaign offering a free travel-size product with every purchase. 
That small addition pushes your package into size M, and suddenly, your shipping cost jumps to €13.  

Across 1,000 orders, that's an additional €3,000 in shipping costs alone. If you're also offering free shipping as part of the campaign, these costs come directly from your margin.

The Complex World of Logistics Pricing


What makes this even more challenging is that logistics pricing isn't straightforward. Each courier has their own sophisticated pricing structure based on various factors:

  • Package dimensions and weight
  • Delivery distance and zones
  • Service level (express, standard, etc.)
  • Seasonal variations
  • Fuel surcharges

A package that costs €10 to ship with one carrier might cost €15 with another. When you're shipping internationally, these differences become even more noticeable.

Smart campaign planning


As e-commerce continues to grow and shipping costs rise, understanding the logistics impact of your marketing campaigns becomes increasingly crucial. The most successful marketers are those who can balance creative campaign ideas with practical logistics considerations.

To ensure your campaigns remain profitable, consider implementing these strategies:

  1. Simulate different scenarios before launching
  2. Check package dimensions, not just weight
  3. Compare prices across multiple carriers
  4. Consider different carriers for different campaigns and regions
  5. Use transport management systems to get real-time pricing

The real measure of campaign success isn't just about conversion rates and sales volumes. A truly successful campaign needs to maintain profitable margins after ALL costs.