The holidays are here and you may be wondering how you can capitalize on the extra spending in these upcoming weeks. One factor ecommerce companies tend to overlook is the value of marketing your shipping benefits or discounts. For many the decision to buy from comparable companies can come down to the shipping policies. Below are a few shipping tips and tricks that will help convert your visitors into buyers during the holidays.
1. Offer free shipping or free upgraded shipping promotions.
Aside from Free Shipping Day on Dec. 17, offering free shipping during the whole season will increase your sales and make your customers happy. Free or discounted shipping is one of the top things buyers look for when comparing different sites for the same products. The availability of multiple shipping options is also a strong conversion tool. Give your customers peace of mind by letting them feel like they’re getting a great deal, and sweeten the deal by guaranteeing shipping to arrive before Christmas day.
2. Think globally – your customers are everywhere.
Don’t limit yourself to domestic sales if a good percentage of your customers are actually abroad. You can do this by opening your own warehouse in another country or working with an order fulfillment partner (such as Shipwire) that already has locations in many international regions. Your partner would help you package, handle, and (inexpensively) ship your products to your customers wherever they may be. This way you don’t have to lease a warehouse, buy equipment, or hire personnel.
3. Diversify the channels through which you sell.
Create and update your portfolio of e-commerce channels so that your products reach the broadest audience possible. If you’re selling through your own online store, consider adding social selling on Facebook, marketplaces like Amazon or eBay, or flash sales to your channels. Increase your brand’s reach so you don’t miss the opportunity to sell your products.
4. Refine your checkout and automate returns.
A hassle-free shopping experience is a happy shopping experience. Make sure your checkout is easy to use and uses as few checkout pages and fields as possible so customers are less likely to abandon their carts. Review your return policy to make sure everything is up-to-date, seamless and straightforward. Automate your returns if you can – your order fulfillment partner should be able to handle your returns management for you!
5. Lower your prices by lowering your shipping costs.
Your customers want good deals so if you lower your prices you’ll have a better chance of attracting shoppers to your website. FitForCommerce, in their 2012 report on e-commerce, said that leading retailers are using warehouse operations to drive additional growth and profits. This means you should be leveraging regional warehouses by outsourcing order fulfillment for your best-selling products. This will allow you to cut shipping costs while offering faster shipping times, making your customers happy with both your price and speediness of delivery.
What are your shipping policies? Has shipping deterred you from purchasing from an online company in the past? We’d love to hear your thoughts on this topic in the comments section below!
