When the manufacturer makes their product, they have to get that product to the consumer. Physical distribution is how efficiently you can move finished goods from the production line to the consumer or the business buyer. Physical distribution includes transportation and other elements that help to bring the buyer and seller together. You can increase customer satisfaction by making sure that your product is delivered safe and on time. The transportation that is used to ship products depends on the type of product, how far it has to travel and the cost. The distribution manager has to decide the type of transportation that is the best to choose for what they are trying to deliver.

There are five major types of transportation to deliver goods; they are trucks, railroads, water carriers, air freight, and pipelines. Of course, the faster the transportation, the more costly it will be. About 80 percent of all goods sold in the United States are delivered by truck. Railroads are also used to make deliveries. Choosing the distribution channel or which way the goods will travel from the producer to the consumer has to be thought out. The distribution channel should uphold part of the company's marketing strategy. Everything has to be taken into consideration including the market, types of goods being distributed, and how their competitor's are delivering the goods to the consumers. Each of the following goods that will be mentioned has a different way of being effectively transported from the producer to ultimately the consumer.

One product that is shipped to the customers is natural gas. The transportation system for natural gas consists of a network of pipelines. These pipelines transport natural gas from its origin to the areas where it is in demand. Pipelines can be characterized as interstate or intrastate. Interstate pipelines carry natural gas along state boundaries, in some cases across the country. Intrastate pipelines transport natural gas within a particular state. From those sites, fuel trucks are loaded up ready to go to service or gas stations. A product like dried pasta would more than likely be delivered by truck to a warehouse, it would stay in the warehouse until it was picked up locally and distributed to grocery stores or specialty shops to sell it. The reason for this is that dried pasta is preserved until it's needed; also it has a long shelf life.

As far as oranges and grapefruits are concerned, for example, they do not as long a shelf life as pasta. So, fruit is transported by refrigerated railroad cars, it is then transported by truck to a cooled warehouse where it is then distributed to grocery stores and produce markets. Teak furniture from Thailand would more than likely be shipped on a cargo freighter. It would then be picked up by trucks to deliver to furniture stores or for home delivery. Air more than likely wouldn't be used unless it was a custom ordered on a few pieces due to the size of most furniture; it would probably be very costly to have it shipped by plane.

Say, Redwood lumber from California is mostly shipped by truck. Lumber can be delivered other ways; it depends on the amount and the type. It can be shipped by truck, by boat and by plane. Industrial machine parts can be delivered by rail, water, truck, or air. It depends on the size of the part, the quantity involved, and how fast the requests are to receive the product. Customer service plays a great part in deciding which way to deliver the manufacturer's products. A lot of companies make the claim that they can get the product to you with in 24 hours. To do this, the distributor has to plan out the best strategy depending on the product sold.