Whether you sell small, fragile novelties or bulky household items through your website, it's normal to be concerned that your shipping and insurance policies are costing too much or are simply not competitive. 

In a rapidly evolving eCommerce environment, neglecting to keep up with the newest shipping technologies and strategies can present many issues. Fortunately, there are 4 actionable e-commerce shipping solutions you can implement to lower your shipping costs while attracting more customers.

1. Optimize Your e-commerce Shipping Options For Your Customer Base 

Some organizations give little thought to their e-commerce shipping strategy. For example, they choose one option included in their e-commerce platform and forget about it. This results in a lot of lost business and inefficiencies. The e-commerce shipping solutions you choose should be tailored to the type of customers you market to and your own needs. Some marketable shipping strategies include:

• Offer Free Shipping: One popular option that some of the biggest online retailers use is free shipping on domestic orders with a minimum value. Buyers are encouraged to purchase more, and the extra revenue earned from sales goes towards shipping costs. Free shipping also decreases the chance of shopping cart abandonment when a potential buyer gets ready to close out their cart.
  
• Use a Flat Rate System: Another e-commerce shipping solution is a flat rate system. No matter how much a customer purchases in your store, they pay the same shipping. This encourages them to get the most value for their money and again, part of the increased revenue can be used to pay the extra shipping fees. 
  
• Be Transparent About Shipping Costs: You can also be completely upfront with your customers and let them know you are only  charging them what you get charged.

• Link to a Shipping Rate Calculator: Additionally, you can keep prices low for both your company and your customers by using shipping rate calculators available through UPS, FedEx, and the USPS.
  
• On-Demand Shipping Label Printing: Nothing is worse for your customers than a complicated return or exchange process. Even if you offer free returns, figuring out where to ship an item back to can be stressful and time consuming. Offering a seamless return process, which includes on-demand label printing, is an e-commerce shipping solution that will encourage your customers to buy from you in the future.
   

2. Review the Cost of Your Packaging

Tape, boxes, packing foam, and labels aren't very expensive on a piece-by-piece basis, but if you're shipping lots of orders, pennies turn into dollars and beyond. It's important to carefully review the cost effectiveness of your packaging from time to time to see if they're still priced correctly.

Traditional foam peanuts and several other modern wrapping alternatives work great to help cut costs depending on the item you are shipping. Buying in bulk can seem like a significant upfront expense, but will reduce packaging costs over time with economies of scale, where applicable.

In addition, review your packaging procedures to see if the amount of packaging material being used is appropriate for the products being shipped and there is no extraneous weight. Warehouse organization is key to optimizing your packaging. Follow these guidelines for an e-commerce shipping solution that  will save you time and money.

3. Using 3rd Party Shipping Insurance 

The shipping insurance provided by most carriers is an afterthought, meaning claims are processed slowly and the prices are usually too high. When the risk of losing a package makes or breaks your customer’s e-commerce experience, you’ll want to find a shipping solution that protects their purchase, and your reputation.

Third-party shipping insurance providers, build their businesses around providing e-commerce customers with huge savings and optimal coverage. They are positioned to offer flexible plans that offer quick reimbursements. This shipping solution for e-commerce  doesn’t have to be a challenge. You need to find a company that offers:

• Competitive insurance rates on all e-commerce shipping methods
• Seamless integration with your existing e-commerce shipping platform
• Simple and responsive claim support for e-commerce customers
• Insights into improving efficiency and risk management strategies

4. Leveraging Automated e-commerce Tech

If you're already utilizing technology in nearly every step of the shipping process, you're perfectly positioned to take advantage of more automation. For example, Cabrella's multi carrier shipping software can be integrated with your existing e-commerce shipping platforms through a seamless API integration. The software includes automated risk assessment processes, automated claim managing, and real-time notifications.

Combining both automated shipping and insurance technology is a solution for e-commerce shipping that will benefit your company in terms of productivity, accuracy, efficiency, and customer satisfaction while reducing shipping costs.

Implementing shipping solutions for your e-commerce operation that match your company's vision and commitment to customer service will give you a strong competitive edge. It's important to make your customers feel like they are getting the most for the money they pay on shipping.  There may also be other customized e-commerce shipping solutions that would uniquely benefit your specific type of product or industry. Think creatively and always look for new opportunities and technologies on the horizon.