Everyone understands the fear of starting a new business.
The cost outlay, the risk, the gnawing fear in the pit of your stomach at the idea of going out on your own.
It’s a brave step, venturing into the world of owning an ecommerce business.
We like to see ecommerce businesses thrive, so we’ve talked to three ecommerce businesses and gotten the low-down on their shipping strategies.
These ecommerce masters have businesses of different sizes, and all have a different shipping strategy. Read on for insider’s tips and tricks on shipping strategies for your business.
Sheets on the Line
Sheets on the Line are a boutique homewares store selling high-quality items hand picked from around the world, with the aim to provide their customers with ‘lovely things for lovely people’. They have been selling their ethically-made wares online for six years.
How long have you been selling online?
We began from a warehouse and now have expanded into two retail stores. We ship directly to our customers from our Brisbane and Melbourne retail stores.
Do you have a shipping strategy? If so, what is it?
All orders and products that leave our stores are beautifully gift wrapped and include a handwritten thank you card. We aim to despatch the very same day that we receive the order and hope to always exceed our customer’s expectations about our online purchasing experience.
How has your shipping strategy changed over the years?
Our strategy hasn’t changed but it has evolved to be more efficient and scalable so it kept up with increasing demand and didn’t cause any disappointment to our customers. We now send in a week what we used to send in a month, so it’s great to have the ability to grow.
What advice would you give to someone who is starting an online store?
I think the hardest thing for us to fathom when starting out was how difficult it was for our products to be found and seen in a busy marketplace. It is often slower to gain traction in a noisy market such as the internet. Just because you built a website does not mean people can or will easily find it or purchase.
Do you have any advice in regards to shipping costs, returns or exchanges?
We provide our customers with free shipping Australia wide on orders over $150. This has given our customers the added value and ease that they desire.
Do you have any other comments/tips in regards to shipping?
Be prompt in despatch and making sure that all tracking information is at your customer’s finger tips. If issues arise react to them swiftly and keep your customer well informed.
Musos Corner
Musos Corner is an online store selling musical instruments and have a bricks and mortar store which has been running for 50 years. They jumped in on the ecommerce action ten years ago, selling their range of instruments and accessories. Sales manager Greg happily shared some valuable insights into their shipping strategy.
Tell us about your shipping strategy
We try to keep our shipping costs as low as possible and subsidise the shipping price. We like to offer free shipping to as many areas as possible as our customers have come to expect free shipping these days.
We offer free shipping to most locations around Australia on items under 25kg. After this, we offer very competitive prices to remote locations and on heavy items.
Our shipping strategy used to be to charge freight cost, but in the current market our customers have come to expect free shipping, and we, of course, want them to be happy with every part of the process.
What advice would you give to someone who is starting an online store?
Find your key point of difference, there are a million vendors out there.
Do you have any other comments/tips in regards to shipping?
Make it cheap, easy and quick for the customer. Ultimately the shipping company is viewed as part of your sales experience, if they let you down all the rest of your hard work can go unnoticed.
Desvalido Australia
Desvalido is a boutique lingerie site selling custom made french silk knickers since 2014. The products are made to order, with an average processing time of 1-3 weeks. Desvalido makes the products by hand, and ships a small number of packages. Director Alana shared her valuable strategies which have worked for her business.
Tell us about your shipping strategy
Because we ship internationally, we offer four different shipping options for international customers based on pricing. Offering multiple shipping options and prices allow our customers to pick the option suiting their situation. Australian customers are offered free shipping or express postage (which incurs a cost).
After we analysed our shipping strategy we saw an opportunity to increase orders when offering cheaper, untracked shipping. We still offer tracked shipments, however customers must cover that cost. We make a point to package our items as beautifully as possible to maintain the customer’s experience with our brand.
What advice would you give to someone who is starting an online store?
Don’t be afraid to make a few mistakes, you’ll get better! Always offer incredible customer service – loyal customers can be lost with a bad response from your business.
Do you have any advice in regards to shipping costs, returns or exchanges?
Don’t let international shipping costs deter you from shipping overseas. If somebody wants your product on the other side of the world, they’ll pay, & you’ll open yourself up to thousands more potential customers!
Also, offer a good return policy – this will help you build loyal customers and people will trust your business more. The best way to avoid returns is to put as much information in your descriptions as possible and encourage potential customers to ask questions if they aren’t sure. Size charts & photos of your product next to a common object for scale are also incredibly valuable.
Do you have any other comments/tips in regards to shipping?
Always underpromise and overdeliver. If you have time, a handwritten thank you note never hurts either.
Our Shipping Made Easy guide will give you all the tips and tricks you need to create a successful strategy
Contact Transdirect today for successful and easy shipping.
