4 ways to communicate your shipping details

By communicating your shipping details the right way, you can achieve two main goals. Firstly, you will leave your customers happy - they will know what to expect and when. And who doesn’t want happy customers? Secondly, the way you talk about your shipping details on your website or ads can also work as a unique selling proposition (USP) and get you even more customers.

Read this blog post, and you will learn how to present your shipping details so they would bring you value!

1. Be transparent with your shipping costs

50% of customers abandon their carts because of high extra costs, shipping costs included, says a 2020 research by Baymard. People don’t like surprise costs.

Image source: baymard.com

So your rule number one is: don’t hide your shipping costs. Though leaving them out at the beginning may make your product offer more attractive, in the end, it will cost you potential customers for good.

Be upfront, break down your total costs clearly so that people know what to expect, and have no awful surprises at the checkout. You may have a little less interested customers initially with the higher price. However, those who will be willing to pay more won’t drop out, and you’ll move them through your customer acquisition funnel successfully.

Below are some ways how to explain your shipping costs.

Break down your shipping costs on the product page

Amazon does an excellent job of providing a detailed yet concise look into what makes up shipping costs for this food processor.

Image source: amazon.com

You can see the shipping price right away on the product page (no unpleasant surprises once you press the Add to Cart button). If you click on the ‘Details,’ you can see what makes up the shipping costs.

Make additional shipping information easy to access

Image source: ebay.com

Ebay does a great job of providing more information on shipping details. If you click on “See details” next to Shipping, the page automatically scrolls down to additional information on how the shipping is handled. You can change your shipping country, if you want to, see your estimated delivery time, as well as domestic handling time, and more.

2. Have a shipping FAQ page

An FAQ page is a place where you answer Frequently Asked Questions. With a FAQ page, you can help your potential customers get answers to specific questions, clear their concerns or objections, and push them towards making a purchase.

An FAQ page done right can also help you to:

• Take some pressure off people responsible for your customer service.
• Improve your store’s SEO.
• Prevent getting negative reviews about your store.
• Earn trust from your customers.

Below are some of the typical shipping questions you could explain on your shipping FAQ page.

Explain your shipping costs

If you have shipping costs, no matter how small or big, it’s always a good idea to explain what they consist of. After all, people want to know what they’re paying for. Maybe you buy the products you sell from abroad? Or you make them yourself but need to source materials from different places? Maybe your shipping includes import fees? Whatever the case, be transparent about it.

Tracking an order

“When will my order show up?” - this is the question that’s already in your potential customer’s mind even before the order is made. It’s a good idea to repeat your estimated shipping time and explain available tracking options.

Return policy

Customers also want to be reassured that they can return the items they bought, and they also want to know how to do it. By providing a detailed explanation of how your return policy works, you’ll earn trust. It’s also important to state if it costs to return an item. Though, keep in mind that free return shipping these days is something customers expect from brands.

Package insurance

As much as you’d like to, you can’t control every step of your customer’s journey with your brand. Unless you’re delivering the products you sell yourself, the shipping experience falls into those hard-to-control parts of your business.

What if your shipping is delayed? What if it’s lost or damaged? Who’s responsible for that, and how it affects your clients? Chances are, your customers will expect you to cover the financial losses they may experience fully. That’s why it’s a good idea to invest in package insurance and state very clearly that you have it on your shipping FAQ. Yes, it will cost you some extra money, but eventually, your customers will feel safe ordering from you, and you’ll be able to sleep well at night, too.

3. Consider offering FREE shipping

Walker Sands found out that 79% of US shoppers are more likely to make an online purchase when they can take advantage of free shipping. Such an offer removes the fear of having any hidden costs that will blow up the purchase’s final price. It’s all about consumer psychology!

Free shipping can be your great unique selling point (USP) that will help you beat your competition. But how do you offer free shipping without hurting your bank account?

Image source: upsellit.com

One way to offer free shipping is to include its cost into the product’s price, where possible. However, if you can’t bundle up your product and shipping prices, there are more ways to make your shipping free

.

• Give free shipping when your customers order goods for a certain amount per one purchase. This way, by playing with the concept of free, you’ll boost your average order value.
• Offer limited-time free shipping. To create even a greater sense of urgency, you can also set a countdown timer on your product pages.
• Give free shipping for signed users. This way, you’ll get your customers’ data in exchange and be able to target them with personalized ads. It’s a great opportunity to turn more of your clients into repeat purchasers.

If you use one of those pieces of advice (or a combination of them) and offer free shipping, speak about it loudly!

Communicate Free shipping as your USP

Now, if you do offer free shipping, make it very visible on your product pages. Write in another color, animate it… you get the point. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg. To maximize your sales chances, you need to draw attention to free shipping in your marketing campaigns. Have a look at how the brand below does it in their Facebook ad.

This brand highlights the fact that they offer free shipping both in the image and in the share message. It’s really tough to miss it! They also use this selling point to increase their average order value (with every $30+ purchase). It’s a win-win situation!

Ads like these are incredibly effective when used to retarget your visitors who were checking out your store but left without making a purchase. Free shipping can be the final push that they need.

4. Send well-crafted emails on the order status

If you’ve ever ordered anything important online, you know how frustrating it can be if you don't know what's happening with your purchase. Being in the unknown can be overly emotional and hurt the retail customer experience. That’s why excellent communication during shipping is something all online store owners must aim to keep their customers reassured that everything’s fine.

What makes a good shipping email

Here are some things to consider before sending an email with shipping details.

• First of all, make sure that your customers open your shipping emails. Write a short and engaging subject line that will catch your customers’ attention. You can also include emojis if your company’s tone allows it.
• Be concise. A shipping email is not the place to write a novel. Your task here is to inform your customers about the whereabouts of their orders. Write in short sentences that are to the point, don’t use too complicated words.
• Be proactive. If you see that there will be delays, inform your customers first before they start reaching out to you. Timely shipping emails will improve your customer experience and prevent negative reviews.

TIP: If you want to really take your shipping communication to the next level, use chatbots or SMS marketing to show your customers extra attention!

Final thoughts

Shipping communication is still somewhat underestimated by retailers. According to E-Commmerce Shipping Study 2020: Fashion Edition, only 7% of the retailers who participated in the survey said they maintained communication with their clients about shipping. For you, as an online store owner, this is a good chance to stand out among your competitors! Communicate your shipping details before and after a purchase is made, and your happy clients will bring you even more sales.

About Julija

Julija Televiciute is a freelance copywriter at sixads, an app that helps online store owners accelerate sales with easy ads. Specialized in copywriting, social media, and dog memes, Julija helps businesses get creative with ideas for content that creates value and sells.

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