Standard Shipping: Retailers Need to Know About eCommerce Business

Introduction

Irrespective of the starting capital, it is not feasible for you to establish your own delivery supply chain. The financial and operational strength required is massive. Also, the standard shipping services available in the market will do a similar job at a fraction of the cost and effort. 

Standard shipping services are the basic service offered by every courier company and partner. However, it also may be slow compared to other services of the same carrier. Therefore, the longer delivery time frames can hinder the delivery experience. 

Further, we will take an in-depth look at the standard shipping service as a shipping option. It will help you look at the pros and cons of using the service for your e-commerce platform.

What is Standard Shipping For Ecommerce?

The most basic delivery provided by the carrier is known as Standard Shipping. This shipping option is suitable for merchants as it is one of the most affordable yet reliable delivery options available from the carrier. The delivery service is mostly for domestic shipments and typically uses ground transportation. 

The typical delivery time frame through a standard service is anywhere between 5-7 business days for domestic parcels. Typically, a standard shipping service from any known carrier will take 7-30 days to deliver an international shipment.

4 Steps to Ship Ecommerce Orders Through Standard Shipping

These are the four standard steps for a standard shipping process for any ecommerce order:

1) Order Creation

Once the purchase is completed, the fulfillment request is created in the backend system with the order details, This process will be sent a notification to the warehouse systems with the item details of the orders. At the same time, an AWB is created with the carrier for the order and sent to the warehouse. The item is then retrieved from the warehouse shelf to be packaged. 

2) Labeling

You will have to print a shipping label generated by the courier services. The label should ideally contain the accurate shipping address, sender’s address, and contact details. Along with this, precautionary labels will allow handlers during the transit process to know the nature of the items inside. This will include fragile, flammable, top-of-the-box labels that can provide additional protection. 

3) Packaging

The item is then packed in boxes and pallets, depending on the order size. In this step, it becomes crucial that the item/s inside are secured properly and can endure some rough handling during transit. If the order has more than one item, the packages must be securely consolidated into one bigger package for easier delivery. 

4) Fulfillment

Once the item is packaged and labeled, you will have to either drop the parcel at the nearest center or schedule a pickup. Now, the package is the carrier’s responsibility, and it will travel through the package to reach its destination. The package will then be delivered to the customer’s doorstep, completing the forward flow of the ecommerce shipping process. 

How to Calculate Standard Shipping Costs For Ecommerce?

For the standard shipping option, four factors are considered while calculating the shipping cost - 

• Package size
• Package value
• Distance to be traveled
• Value-added services

Most couriers will charge you a standard fee if your package is within the dimensional and weight limit. They will usually be mentioned in the ecommerce terms and conditions document of the shipping service. You may have to pay oversized charges if you do not adhere to these guidelines. The package value usually determines the cost of insurance for the shipment. Most carriers charge 3-4% of the total value as insurance charges. 

The distance between the origin and destination is the most influential factor while determining the shipping cost. Carriers have mostly divided a country into different shipping zones and use these zones to calculate the shipping cost more efficiently. Value-added services like tracking, customer notifications, and doorstep pickup have to be purchased separately while shipping through the Standard services. 

7 Tips to Improve Ecommerce Standard Shipping

Here are a few tips that will allow you to enhance the shipping and delivery experience for you and your customers.

1) Leverage Your Order Volume

If you want to process your orders through a single carrier, you can negotiate a separate SLA with the courier company. This allows you to leverage your order volumes for better shipping rates. Along with this, the agreement can also have tailored terms according to the requirements of your product and customers. You can add various clauses like a minimum threshold for damaged/delayed shipments, pickups, improved delivery times, etc. 

2) Choose the Right Packaging

The right packaging can make a huge difference. Your packaging should ideally protect your products inside from transit damages. The use of the right packing material, like bubble wrap, packing peanuts, etc., can significantly reduce the chances of transit damage. Along with this, the size of the packaging should not be over the dimensional guidelines of your carrier. This will save you a ton by avoiding oversize charges. 

3) Enable Multi-carrier Shipping

As you continue to expand to newer regions, you will realize that one carrier will not be enough. Enabling multi-carrier integration will allow you to optimize your carrier choice for every shipment. It can be paired with an AI-based carrier recommendation/allocation engine to automate the process. This process will allow you to optimize your operations for shipping costs and enhance your delivery experience. 

4) Purchase Third-party Insurance

Shipping insurance is always a necessary step in the shipping process. However, the insurance is usually more expensive when you get it from the carrier. Therefore, you should always check out the third-party insurance providers. Establishing a partnership with these providers will allow you to insure and protect your shipments at minimal costs.

5) Integrate an Address Verification API

Customers can easily make a typing error while inputting the address. If you want to reduce the RTO percentage, implementing an address verification API in your fulfillment workflow can be beneficial. This API will verify every address before sending it to the carrier to ensure that there aren’t any errors. This will rectify the wrong address issue at the time of shipping rather than when the order is out for delivery. 

6) Get Real-time Shipment Tracking

If your standard shipping services do not come with tracking, it is imperative you get real-time tracking services. These tracking updates are a crucial part of the post-purchase customer experience as well as efficient order management systems. The real-time tracking of your shipments will allow you to resolve customers’ WISMO complaints more efficiently. Furthermore, you will have visibility over your packages for better order management.

7) Monitor Shipping Data Regularly

Data is the new crude oil. Regular monitoring of your shipping and delivery data is vital in maintaining an efficient shipping operation. Insights from this data will allow you to point out where you are facing issues. These issues can be ironed out with the carrier or warehouse. This data will also come in handy for inventory forecasting and management, so you don’t have to lose sales due to a stockout.

Conclusion

The retail sector is slowly transitioning towards the online model. However, figuring out the logistics and delivery part is still a challenge for many. For businesses looking to start out with their deliveries, standard shipping is the one-stop solution. The service offers the correct blend of affordability and quality of service that suits well the needs of almost every ecommerce organization out there.  

FAQs

1) What is the delivery period for standard shipping?

Most carriers are likely to take 3-7 business days to deliver a domestic shipment across the country. This time frame, however, is an estimate, and actual time frames will vary from carrier to carrier. 

2) Is tracking included in the standard shipping process?

A normal tracking service will be included with most standard shipping services. However, you may be required to purchase real-time tracking features separately.