How to improve shipping method organization?

A store may have wonderful products, but what the use of it when they were lost during shipping or came a month later? This is the difference between web and conventional stores - a client can’t just take a product from a shelf and take it home when buying online. A good shipping method creates, in this case, a satisfied customer who is more likely to buy something from you next time. Here are some tips on how to improve your shipping and get higher customer satisfaction.

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Adopt Returns

A detailed Return Policy is a must for a web store, as many clients are afraid of getting the wrong size, color, etc. and they want to feel secure just in case. Considering this and the fact that nearly 63% of potential online clients try to check the refund possibility at first, it is better to set a clear Return Policy.

You may reject it and keep the money in your pocket, but consider one thing: by not providing returns, you will lose more profit due to abandonment rate than save. According to the statistics, for one case of saving money on returns, there are five missed clients.

Moreover, it is better to make returns easier for your clients. For this purpose use the Return Merchandise Authorization extension - it will perform its task effortlessly from your side.

“Remember me”

It is always pleasant when someone you used to deal with in the past, and he still remembers both you and your preferences - it gives a sense of importance. Then provide your customers with it and make your website remember their preferences, payment methods, and delivery options in order to save their time during next purchase and gain more trust. It is simple, but a lot of merchants doesn’t clutter up their minds with these trivialities and lose their clients.

Provide more shipping methods

Remembering the client’s delivery options is a good note, but you should also give him or her a list of what to choose from. That’s great if you can offer a super cheap delivery in a week, but some users would prefer to overpay to get the product sooner. Don’t restrict your customers - instead offer them a number of possibilities. By doing this you will decrease the abandonment rate. Let your users choose what they want and next time they will return to you. For providing multiple carrier options within one shipping method, use Extended Table Rate Shipping extension. Thus, you will easily give your clients a wide choice.

Free shipping

Free shipping may look like a complete loss for the shop owner, but it has more advantages than meets the eye. Shipping cost is one of the most influential parts of the buying decision, as nearly 53% of the purchasers in 2017 abandoned the carts because of the price - it was too high. But how to implement free shipping and be sitting on profits?

• Offer your clients free shipping on orders of a particular price. Make sure to keep your profits. It will also increase the overall value of the purchase in the eyes of the customer.
• Think about a loyalty program for valued customers with free shipping. You may add more benefits if you want, but this must be the main one. In this manner, you will inspire customers to buy from you more in order to get these privileges.
• Add free shipping to a particular product. Thus, you will politely recommend your customers to buy this commodity among others, especially if it sells badly.

International shipping

There is no product that is valued only in one location. International selling is an opportunity that may bring you more income and expand your business greatly. Still, before building your international market campaign, it is better to make a research in order to determine the region which is more likely to become profitable for you. Browse other related stores in this or that country and see what they offer.

Or there is even an easier option. You definitely know about Amazon and Ebay. Then why not to use analogies from other regions in order to learn your product’s reviews before the huge campaign? Here is a short list of large marketplaces and the regions they cover:

• Alibaba - Asia, mostly China
• Taobao - Asia, mostly China
• Flipkart - India
• Etsy - the USA
• Rakuten - Japan
• DaWanda - Germany
• Otto.de - Germany
• Mercado Libre - Latin America You may think that expanding outside the borders of your homeland will be difficult. It is true, but the whole process of eCommerce is difficult, though quite profitable. International selling is just another stage of it that also may increase your Conversion Rate and, as a result, revenue.

Ordering out-of-stock products

There may be various reasons for it, but sometimes it happens that some of your clients appear to order out-of-stock products. Not a good thing - you have to deal with both a website bug and the client, who has already paid.

Even though it is an unpleasant issue, there is little you can do. But at first, it is better to interact with the client. Restore his trust in you. Try to reclaim a fault - give him a discount or a special offer. All in all, he is not to blame for having a deep wish to buy your products or experiencing some bugs. You can avoid these situations by tracking the amount of items in your stock with the Low Stock Indicator extension.

No possibility to track the order

Everyone wants to be informed about the condition of his or her package - this wish is fully understandable. The thing is that a lot of potential customers consider the tracking option as the prior condition for every online store and they are more likely not to use your services if you don’t provide such a possibility. No one wants to play the lottery - knowing the status of the order is more important here.

Moreover, applying any tracking software will release you from some problems as well. Even if the delivery is delayed, the customer is less likely to become anger if he sees it by himself and can track its location or reason of delay. It gives you a kind of transparency in your business.

When shipping is delayed

Touching upon the issue of delays, it is better to continue the topic. It can happen to anyone apart from how many years you have spent in this business. After all, you can’t ask whether not to ruin your delivery deadline with a sudden hurricane. Still, you can narrow down the probability of a trouble by following these footsteps:

• Remember about information errors. Human attention is an unsteady thing, so try to check everything once or twice. Especially it touches upon the information your client inputs and the tracking number, as even a small typo here may lead to big consequences.
• Take customs into account. When talking about international delivery, you should remember that your products may stuck in customs and stay there for quite long. Add some extra time just in case.
• Promise only those things you can implement. There are not many issues that worsen clients experience more than the failed expectations. So, be quite precise when talking about the delivery deadline and conditions.

These are just little hints that will help you to minimize the possibility of delay. Some issues may appear because of the specification of the product you sell, so take it into consideration as well.

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In conclusion

Every client wants to receive orders on time and with no problems. They have a right for it - they have paid after all. Therefore, it is your crucial task to provide them with good shipping.

To achieve this, it is not necessary to change the whole system. Just consider the tips mentioned in this article to enhance your shipping methods and get more satisfied clients.