Last year online retail sales soared to above $2.3 trillion. Shoppers have high expectations and lots of user experience, so getting your shipping right is essential for success! This is high-stakes stuff: you risk losing up to 40% of customers who have a negative delivery experience with your business. Bad reviews from poor delivery experiences can also have a negative snowball effect on your revenue. It’s vitally important to think about what shipping services you need – same day, next day, three working days, etc – and how you’re going to ensure a smooth delivery from pick up, pack and dispatch.

Here’s what you need to know:

Costs add up.

Your three main opens are free, flat or variable shipping fees. Free shipping sounds great but user experience can vary and costs quickly add up for your business. A lot of customers have had bad experiences with “free” shipping couriers. If you factor in the costs of replacing lost or failed deliveries, it quickly becomes obvious that you need to choose reliable carriers over just the cheapest ones. Most customers are happy to accept a flat or variable shipping fee, so long as delivery is fast and reliable.

Choice is key.

Customer choice is more important than ever. From outsourcing to the gig economy, customers are used to making their own calls. By providing flexible shipping options on your site you allow your customers to do shipping their way, minimising common cart-abandonment. Our game changing multiple shipping option software allows your customers the freedom of choice and the flexibility to adjust shipping options to their needs.

Think about speed.

Depending on your product, you may benefit from same-day or next-day delivery. The fashion world was shaken up when The Iconic introduced three hour delivery and now express delivery has become an essential part of buying clothing; customers just expect to be able to buy online and wear their new item the next day. But in other retail sectors next-day or three day or standard delivery options may be more common. Online bookstores typically don’t require fast-tracked shipping, whereas online florists might want to reduce the time between pick up and delivery significantly. Make your speed of delivery in response to your customer’s wants and needs.

Have an international mindset.

There are no borders in the online world, so do your research and figure out where your product will be in demand around the globe. While you may want to start out local, it’s a good idea to keep the door open to international expansion. Multiple shipping software allows you to onboard international shipping options with minimal hassle, so you might as well think big and have an international mindset from the start.