ForumsInternet/eCommerce

I just made a change, will see if it works. But shipping cost strangle us.

Well, I think shipping free on $50 minimun order is a basic. The problem is you cannot please the customers under $50 and give away a discount, because if someone buy for $51, the customer have free shipping (it can cost your $16) plus the discount, in this case if there are more customers buying for more than $50 you dont make any benefice. Finding a good balance is pretty hard.

Please note, we are retailer and we need to buy the products from Hawaii. when we buy our products from the manufacturers, the shipping cost is not free, so each time it is less benefice, + shipping free for our customers + gifts, will not give much. Basically when a customer buy $50 or products we make $10 of profit. We make more money when a customer buy under $50. The only way we can make it is on high quantity of orders.

Retail is hard, I had a photographer/graphic design/broker printing business before, and I made more money. I cannot work in this field because I am taking care of my son at home and I don't have a lot time. This is why I started this business online, more flexible. My wife help me a lot but she has a better and more stable job than the graphic design business I had.

I will go back in the graphic business when my son will go to school

Well we use USPS and UPS for shipping. We use sometime the flat box priority mail, but our products dont' fit well in these boxes.

I could use Fedex on my template, but we don't have a Fedex account, perhaps I should check and compare with UPS.

Thank you for your advises.

I use flat box sometime. For example if a person order a lip balm tin, a flat box will cost $8.95 instead of a regular small box or envelop with bubbles the shipping cost will be $4.60, so the decision is pretty simple and the customer will be happy to spend less in shipping. For some big orders I cannot fit our products in a flat box. We are selling around 100 differents products, so the shape are different.

I have a friend who run an e-commerce of tee shirts, caps, he is using flat boxes, most items are the same.

We try to secure and protect the contents as much as we can, sometime we spend more money on shipping that we get from our site/customers. We are seeking 100% satifaction from our customers.

We also give the choose between USPS and UPS, people can take the provider they want.

No, we are just retailer. All our products come from Hawaii, and main manufacturers ship in 3 days air, if we want surface ( by boat it will take 2 or 3 months the get the order from manufacturer)

Drop shipping is another concept, not all our manufacturer do the drop shipping. Drop shipping cost more money because most of the time the manufacturer charge $5 fees per order. These manufacturers are also online, one do drop shipping, but you make peanuts benefice, so it is not worth it

Also with drop shipping you don't master the order, it takes time to process. There is more manipulations and you make less money that way. Advertisers will consider you as a Affiliate, and they will not list you on most directories, or else, this will penalize you pretty bad.

The problem is, if you don't make enough benefice, you can't advertise, you can't buy sponsor links, etc...

We process speedy orders. In general we process the orders the same day, and drop off same day or next day, customers are in general very happy to receive their orders very quick.

Yes but look at the prices lol You cannot compare but it is a well made marketing.

Can I do that? No because if a customer order a $2.50 lip balm stick from New York, it will cost more to ship, as you can see.

Of course sometime I give free shipping under $50 but only specific occasions, and when customers don't ask for that.

Amazon.com start doing a shipping free from $25 orders but on specific products, but I bet they've got a special shipping discount deals.

I don't offer FREE shipping on my web site. I sell 1-of-a-kind handcrafted necklaces and when someone purchases one, they get paperwork including a signed certificate with their individual necklace, a beautiful satin-lined velvet necklace folder, tissue-paper, a Tiffany-style box with lid and satin imprinted ribbon all FREE. I usually send everything out Priority Mail with Delivery Confirmation. My clients tell me not to have SALES and not to ship for FREE. They are classy and say that offering FREE shipping is bringing your business down to an average level. Customers should know that to even send a letter first class will cost 41 cents, and just because people are buying something, they should not expect to receive FREE shipping as the norm.