Flat Rate Shipping: How To Increase Sales, Prices and Speed (2024)

Whether you’ve just launched your enterprise or have been in the sport for years, determining shipping will be one in every of the most important headaches. There’s no one-size-fits-all shipping strategy, but a flat rate is usually a game-changer when offering a greater checkout experience and inspiring repeat business. 

Customers today are searching for fast, inexpensive shipping options that manage their expectations and supply flexibility. That’s where flat rates are available. By offering predictable, transparent shipping costs, you may give your customers the boldness they should hit the Buy button.

From managing early price expectations, communicating delivery speeds, and offering inexpensive pricing based on cart totals, flat shipping rates can allow you to increase sales while balancing your costs. Here’s the way to offer it through your ecommerce website. 

What’s flat-rate shipping?

Flat shipping rates are predetermined shipping amounts you charge a customer based on their order. You may offer general flat-rate shipping that is still the identical no matter what you’re shipping, or conditional flat rates based on aspects like product weight or order price. For example, you would possibly charge $10 for domestic orders, $15 for international orders, and $5 for all orders over $100. 

Advantages of flat-rate shipping

Manage customer expectations

Certainly one of the major reasons flat-rate shipping is appealing to customers is it manages expectations and provides transparency. With flat rates, you may tell customers exactly how much you charge for shipping before they even reach the checkout step.

A recent study found unexpected additional costs at checkout were the primary reason for cart abandonment. But by communicating your flat rate shipping costs upfront, either through an announcement bar or in your shipping policy page, you may minimize surprises and construct customer trust. This transparency can significantly reduce the likelihood of consumers abandoning their carts attributable to unexpected shipping fees.

Increase average order value

Price-based rates can motivate customers so as to add more products to their cart to qualify for cheaper shipping options. While this implies you’ll absorb more of the shipping cost, it could be a wise move if it increases cart totals. 

Consider offering free shipping on orders over a selected total to incentivize customers so as to add extra products to their cart, boosting your average order value. It’s a win-win: Customers feel like they’re getting a deal, and also you’ll see a lift in sales.

Lower packaging costs

Shipping carriers like USPS, FedEx, and UPS offer flat-rate shipping boxes with set rates for delivering items contained inside them. This is commonly cheaper than buying your boxes and getting a custom shipping quote.

This will be especially helpful for businesses that ship a high volume of products or sell items that fit well into standard flat-rate box sizes. Plus, carrier-provided packaging can assist be sure that your products are adequately protected during transit, minimizing the danger of injury and reducing the necessity for costly returns or replacements. It’s an easy solution to lower your expenses and keep your customers comfortable.

How much to charge for flat-rate shipping

Estimating your average shipping cost is the most effective solution to determine how much to charge. You’ll must know the utmost weight and dimensions of your products and packages. 

Use a web based shipping calculator to get estimates and calculate the common cost. Your flat rate should ideally be a round number, making it easy for patrons to grasp and remember your shipping costs. For instance, in case your average flat-rate fee for domestic shipping is $11.72, round that as much as $12. 

Depend on flat-rate box prices from shipping carriers

Most shipping carriers charge set rates to deliver boxes of a particular size. For this selection, you’ll should forgo any branded or custom-size boxes, but shipping tends to be less expensive. You may pass those savings on to your customers.

Here’s a breakdown of shipping rates amongst the highest three carriers based on the smallest flat-rate box size as of publication of this text:

Take note that flat-rate envelopes are inclined to be cheaper. While they provide less protection than boxes, they’re a greater option in the event you’re shipping low-value or small items that may fit inside an envelope. This could allow you to keep your shipping costs down and offer more competitive rates to your customers.

Use weight and price conditions

Weight-based rates allow you to charge a certain quantity for shipping based on the overall weight of all of the products in your customer’s cart. For instance, let’s say you desired to charge different rates for orders below and over five kilos. Using weight-based rates, you would set a flat shipping rate of $7 for orders under five kilos and a flat shipping rate of $15 for orders over five kilos. 

Using the instance above, a customer with a cart that weighs seven kilos combined would have only the $15 shipping option appear at checkout. This feature is useful in the event you’re shipping heavier products and need to avoid absorbing the upper costs of shipping bulkier packages like furniture. 

With price-based rates, you may charge a certain quantity for shipping based in your customer’s total cart value. For instance, let’s say you desired to charge different rates for orders below and over $50. Using priced-based rates, you would set a flat shipping rate of $4 for orders under $50 and a flat shipping rate of $10 for orders over $50. This approach can encourage customers so as to add more items to their cart to qualify for the lower shipping rate, boosting your average order value.

Offering free shipping

With regards to increasing sales, free shipping is a robust tool. Shippo’s State of Shipping report found that 62% of shoppers won’t buy from a retailer if it doesn’t offer free shipping. But while free shipping can increase sales, someone’s got to pay for it—often your enterprise. 

Luckily, there’s a more manageable solution to offer free shipping: making it available over a particular cart total. Offering this type of incentive, like free shipping over $50, can allow you to balance out your shipping costs and increase your average cart total while still providing a pretty delivery option on your customers at checkout. 

Tips on how to arrange flat-rate shipping

Should you’ve decided that flat rates are the most effective solution to charge for shipping, here’s the simplest solution to set them up:

1. Measure your product sizes.
2. Select a shipping carrier.
3. Order samples of the carrier’s flat-rate boxes.
4. Determine what number of products can fit inside each flat-rate box.
5. Select the flat-rate shipping cost for every parcel size. 
6. Save this parcel information in your ecommerce platform.

These steps ensure your flat-rate shipping options are arrange accurately and able to go. By streamlining your shipping process you reduce customer confusion, and ultimately, drive more sales for your enterprise.

Best practices for flat-rate shipping

Consider product margins

While you need to offer customers a great checkout experience, you could also consider the fee of shipping orders. Your shipping strategy should cover each elements to extend sales without cutting into your bottom line. 

When you’ve calculated how much it costs to ship a product based on size, weight, or volume, set the common as your general flat rate. Which means, depending on the order, you would possibly make a little bit money on shipping or lose a little bit money. The goal is for all the things to balance out so shipping costs don’t eat into your profits. It’s all about finding that sweet spot that keeps your customers comfortable and your enterprise thriving.

Record product weights and box sizes accurately

Most flat rates are based on product size and weight, so it is smart to measure each product and enter the information into your ecommerce platform for automatic calculations. 

Shopify, for instance, has a weight section in each product listing. Use a weighing scale to weigh your product in kilos, ounces, grams, or kilograms. Every time a customer adds an item to their shopping cart, Shopify will pull these product weights and use your rules to calculate the flat-rate shipping cost. This ensures you’re at all times charging the proper amount for shipping without manual calculations or guesswork.

It also helps to measure the boxes you’re using to ship products. You likely have a choice of box sizes depending on which product a customer has ordered or what number of items they’ve purchased. Shopify can store these package measurements to calculate flat-rate shipping costs at checkout, making the method seamless and accurate. 

Go for lightweight packaging

Packaging has a major impact on shipping costs. Bulky or heavy packaging, like double- or triple-walled cardboard, is heavier, so most carriers charge higher fees to deliver it. Go for lightweight materials like paper or plastic to cut back flat-rate shipping costs on your customers. Not only will this prevent money, however it’ll also make your customers comfortable after they see lower shipping prices at checkout.

That is an awesome time to contemplate how sustainable your packaging is, too. Studies have shown 28% of US participants consider the environmental effects of shipping methods when making online purchases. Eco-friendly packaging constituted of corn, sugar cane, or recycled materials helps your customers feel they’re doing their part to combat climate change. They’re also lightweight enough to pass on discounted flat-rate shipping costs on your customers. 

Upsell expedited shipping or insurance

Flat-rate shipping works since it tends to even out over time. While it’s possible you’ll cash in on shipping for low-value orders, you would possibly fork out some money to pay for shipping on more oversized orders. 

Upsells like expedited shipping or shipping insurance can allow you to increase profit margins at checkout. Customers will pay an extra fee to get their order faster or feel more confident that you simply’ll replace their product totally free if it’s damaged in transit. These little extras could make an enormous difference in your bottom line, giving your customers more options to customize their shipping experience.

Mix shipping offers with promotions

The flat-rate shipping strategy you choose on today is probably not the most effective strategy in any respect stages of your enterprise, and even in any respect points of the 12 months. For instance, during peak periods like Black Friday and Cyber Monday, you would possibly offer a more attractive flat rate as a promotional strategy, helping you stand out from the competition and driving more sales during these crucial shopping periods.

Some carriers also increase their prices or extend delivery commitments during busy periods. Look ahead to changes in carrier shipping costs and alter your flat rates accordingly so that you’re not omitted of pocket fronting the difference between what you’re charging customers and the worth of shipping labels. Staying on top of those changes and being proactive together with your shipping strategy ensures your enterprise stays profitable and competitive, irrespective of what the season brings.

Integrating flat-rate shipping with ecommerce platforms

Most ecommerce platforms are equipped with the features it’s essential charge flat rates for shipping. Shopify, specifically, lets you save flat-rate box sizes and record product dimensions and weights, so your customers at all times get essentially the most appropriate flat rate at checkout. 

Here’s the way to set it up:

1. Out of your Shopify admin, go to Settings > Shipping and Delivery.
2. Next to the shipping profile to which you need to add a shipping rate, click Manage Rates.
3. Next to the zone to which you need to add a rate, click Add Rate.
4. Enter the name and amount for the speed.
5. Optional: Add weight-based or price-based conditions.
6. Click Add Conditions.
7. Select whether to base the condition on order weight or price.
8. Enter the minimum and maximum values for the conditions.

Should you’d moderately not cope with the complexities of shipping, consider outsourcing all the order success process to the Shopify Achievement Network. It’ll connect your store with Flexport, a number one third-party logistics company that may handle packaging, shipping, and delivery for you. That is an awesome option if you need to give attention to growing your enterprise and leave the shipping headaches to the experts.