How to Ship Products to Customers?
If you are selling things online, then you definitely need to know everything you can about shipping products to customers. The foundation of successful e-commerce is understanding the shipping process, as it’s unlikely customers will notice when you have shipped something efficiently. What they will definitely notice, however, is when you don’t do this. One way of preventing this is to use an online shipping solution, such as Fetchy, who are experts in the following steps.
Shipping on Time
If customers place an order through your store then you must act as quickly as possible. Get the product packaged, on the same day if you can. Customers are going to be furious if you take longer than a week to even get their order shipped, and they have to wait several days after that to even receive it. Figuring out the right system for shipping things quickly and efficiently leaves you with happier customers. Don’t forget that a happy customer is one that will come back for more.
Free Shipping
There are several ways to incentivize customers to shop with you. Free shipping is one of the best. While it might seem like free shipping can damage your bottom line, you’ll find that customers are often willing to spend more if you provide them with free shipping. As such, those shipping costs will cover themselves and you may find you actually make more money.
No matter what you do though, don’t turn to ship into a profit point. Customers are going to notice if you try to make money through shipping. They certainly won’t be happy about it, and keeping customers happy is the key to selling products and services online.
Calculate Shipping Costs
You could wind up losing money on shipping if you don’t do some research. When you get an order is too late to look into shipping methods. You must know how to ship them ahead of time. Get the exact details about how you are going to ship orders and what this will cost you.
You need to buy the right packaging for your products. If they move around too much in a box that’s too big for them then something has gone wrong. Consider what would be best for your products. That includes the size of the box, package guidelines, and any packaging materials.
If you are regularly shipping products, then you should try to find out if your shipping service can provide you with lower shipping rates. They may give you a discount if you use them often enough when shipping e-commerce.
There are several online tools out there that can help to calculate shipping costs. No matter which shipping provider you use, all of them will have an online calculator to help you determine shipping costs. Services such as Fetchy allow for seamless integration with an online marketplace or online store in seconds to get great shipping rates. Fetchy partners up with lots of different couriers, giving you – and your customers – the choice you need when choosing shipping.
Be Clear
Your shipping policy should be as clear as possible. You must be upfront and straightforward with your customers about how shipping is handled. They shouldn’t have to go through several pages or register for an account to see the shipping policy. That will only make it harder to make a sale and leave them annoyed.
Consider following up with communication as well, such as sending shipping notifications and tracking information. The more information a buyer has about their package, the less potential conflict there will be.
Shipping Insurance
Shipping insurance is always a good thing to consider when it comes to knowing how to ship products to customers. There is always a risk when selling products online, but these risks can – and should – be minimized.
It’s going to be a judgement call when and where shipping insurance is applicable, but you don’t want to be left covering the costs if packages go missing or get damaged. You can choose to insure each and every package you send out, or only the most expensive products. If you are worried about the cost of insurance, then you could always pass the cost on to consumers. Be sure to explain that you have done this though.
International Shipping
International shipping is somewhat trickier than domestic shipping. When you are deciding if you should ship internationally or not, it’s important to consider the potential problems. It can be more expensive, there’s an increased risk of fraud, and there’s an overall greater amount of uncertainty involved.
There are also the benefits though; such as how international shipping will open the business up to the world stage, increase your potential market, and create potentially higher profits.
Conclusion
Choosing how to ship products to customers comes down to answering some questions. Here are the things you should ask yourself when putting together a shipping policy:
- Do you want to provide free shipping?
- How will packages be insured?
- Would offering international shipping be worth the risk?
Sarah
CMO, Fetchy
