Shipping is one important factor when you own an online store. It serves as a bridge between you and your customers (literally!), and it also mirrors how much you pay attention to giving your customers the best online shopping experience they could ever have. As someone who seeks stability and only positive outcomes from their target market, it is only a must for you to make extra efforts. You must equip your business with superb customer service, which will make them fall deeper for you. One way you could do that is by implementing your own online store shipping options.
With the tough competition in eCommerce, having a set of outstanding online store shipping options is an advantage. Got zero clue how to make yours? Worry no more because, in this blog, we will introduce you to everything you need to know about shipping options and how to set up shipping for an online store.
Benefits of Having Different Shipping Methods
To start off, here’s a list we made on why having multiple online store shipping options is a secret weapon in online business.
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1. Decreases Shopping cart Abandonment
Shopping cart abandonment is one of the most common problems many online businesses face. Due to poor available shipping methods, customers prefer not to continue with their product checkout. Online shoppers are prone to abandoning their shopping carts no matter how much they love a product once they see that the available shipping methods are unsatisfactory. When studying how to set up shipping for an online store, it is crucial to consider having multiple shipping options. Having different shipping methods can help you lessen the amount of shopping cart abandonment your online store gets because customers have more choices of how to receive their products from you.
2. Increases Conversions
It may not seem like it, but online shoppers pay close attention to shipping options when shopping online. They visit online shops, search for products they want, put it on their cart, and look at the shop’s available shipping methods. When customers see that you aren’t just settling for single online store shipping options, they will be more interested in you. Rather than transacting with your competitors, you are more likely to be chosen because you have different shipping methods you can offer them. More available shipping methods mean more chances of turning your curious online store visitors into a sure buyers. Without implementing the best shipping options for your online store, your marketing strategy will be neglected, and buyers will switch to your customer-centric competitors.
3. Builds Brand Loyalty
If there is one guaranteed benefit you’ll enjoy learning how to set up shipping for online stores, it’s brand loyalty. One fact about the world of online shopping is that the kind of online store shipping options you offer defines how much people will choose you. Most consumers stay longer at businesses that can give them the best service, specifically with the best shipping options. If you seek to have a solid foundation of customers, you must give them a reason to stay with you.
Do not just implement different shipping methods on your online store carelessly. You must also ensure that each shipping option you give them is faster, reliable, easier to deal with, and transparent regarding shipping options details. Once you get to provide them with these characteristics, these previous clients will serve as your bridge towards achieving a solid group of loyal customers. Who knows, maybe they could also be the ones to help you in spreading the word about how nice your shipping options are.
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Best Shipping Options for You
Now that we’re done understanding the benefits of having different shipping methods, let’s now move on to another vital idea when learning how to set up shipping for an online store—finding the best shipping options for you.
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There is a long list of various online store shipping options you can choose from. To make it easier for you, we listed them below, along with additional key ideas you should know about them.
1. Table Rate Shipping Options
Your clients can come from different locations. As someone studying how to set up shipping for online store, you must put appropriate shipping fees for every order you get. It is important to consider giving reasonable prices for orders you get no matter where they come from. Don’t you think it can appear unfair to a client’s eye if you charge an extreme amount of shipping fees to orders coming from farther destinations? To prevent complaints about your shipping fees, consider including table rate shipping options on your available shipping methods.
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This online store shipping option allows you to create a specific set of shipping fees that are based on your client’s location and their package’s weight and size. These best shipping options also give you the power to set up your own shipping zones. With table rate shipping options, you can easily configure specific shipping options by only using data like postal codes, state information, region, or even what specific country your client lives in.
2. Per Product Online Store Shipping
If you start an online store that primarily deals with shipping large parcels, complicated-shaped packages, and boxes in bulk, you are required to find an effective way how to ship them without losing money or the package itself. One way to do this is by including per-product shipping on your best shipping options. By using these online store shipping options, you can easily set up additional fees for each product variation you have. Investing in this kind of available shipping option for your online store can greatly impact your business. You don’t need to worry about selling unique items. All you need to do is add a separate rate from the others and let your customers do the checkout.
3. Multiple Addresses Shipping Options
When there are special occasions or holidays, many are fond of sending gifts to their loved ones. Online shoppers would want to order a product and then request it to be delivered to a separate address. To be a promising business, you can offer these different shipping methods to your audience. You can allow them to make orders and set a different delivery address. This kind of available shipping method is one powerful weapon you can use, especially during holiday seasons. It is very convenient, and your customers will surely be fond of making you one step ahead of your competitors.
4. Local Pickup Shipping Options
Local pickup is another great way of adding multiple shipping options to your online store. This type of online store shipping option basically allows your customers to go and visit your own store to claim the product they ordered from you. Local pickup shipping options are also perfect for sellers who own more than one physical store in different locations. By implementing this type of shipping method, you also have the chance to give discounts to your customers who would visit your physical store. This not only allows sellers to save money, time, and effort on shipping but also allows online shoppers to get an actual shopping experience from your online store.
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5. Conditional Shipping Options
Though it is fun to get orders from around the globe, encountering unavailability is inevitable. You can’t deny that there would be instances where your business can’t do business in certain parts of the world. It is best to include conditional shipping in your available shipping methods to avoid deeper conflicts. By adding this to your shipping options, you can immediately tell an online shopper whether or not you can make transactions within their location before they can actually proceed with the checkout process. With this online store shipping option, you can easily restrict your available shipping options and avoid getting into trouble.
How to Set up Shipping for Online Store with Us
Managing your own available shipping methods is easier if you have the right partner. Here at Strikingly, we allow users to smoothly add multiple shipping options to their online store.
Once you’re done creating a free website with us, you can now easily set up your own online store and set up your desired multiple shipping options. With this feature, you can easily set up shipping fees for your different shipping methods. For pro users, you can choose from Standard or Expedited shipping options for your online store and let your online shoppers make their choice during checkout. If you wish to have only one shipping method, you can easily set it up on Standard shipping mode.
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Delivering actual products from their respective buyers is crucial in getting customer satisfaction. Many customers have a high standard of shipping options online businesses provide. A business must pass an online shopper's own “must-haves” to be the best candidate. If an online business possesses such character they believe as perfect available shipping methods, that is the time customers will proceed and make their checkout.
If you want to know more about how to set up shipping options for your online store, chat with us today, and we’ll help you get started.
