Shipping Made Simple: Flat Rates Apply!
When our product and engineering teams are sorting out what to build for Farmers, we do the obvious: we talk to a lot of Farmers and get their feedback. And we love to build tools and useful features that help Farmers make more money - and build consistent cash flow - while saving time. We recently added ‘flat-rate shipping’ to our Shippo integration as Farmers wanted this streamlined process to simplify pricing and packaging when they ship. It saves time and makes the buying process more intuitive for Buyers.
What is Flat Rate Shipping?
Flat rate shipping simplifies the shipping process, providing Farmers with a more convenient and uncomplicated shipping option. Flat rate shipping simplifies pricing based on standardized parcel sizes with flat-rate pricing provided by the fulfillment provider (USPS or FedEx). This gives Farmers the ability to manage shipping expenses with greater ease and predictability. As an added bonus, it can be especially helpful when shipping heavier items.
Flat Rate Shipping Benefits
Save Time
No calculator required and no more shipping price guesstimates (or losses!). You won’t need to alter the shipping cost of each product based on weight and dimensions. Instead, Farmers can offer multiple flat rate shipping options.
Clear Pricing
When you opt for flat rate shipping, you give your customers a fixed rate, which gives them a clear idea of the total cost of purchase. Clear pricing builds trust with your customers, and they enjoy the easier checkout process. This can be an advantage for your Farm business over competitors.
Simplified fulfillment process
With flat-rate shipping, the whole process can be broken down into three simple steps.
1. Get flat rate box(es) from shipping provider
Instead of packing items in your own boxes, USPS and FedEx provide a variety of flat rate boxes to choose from. There are small, medium, and large flat rate boxes; And the bigger the box, the higher the shipping prices. Simple!
2. Pack your items and address your box
Pack your items in the USPS flat rate box and address the package. If you have printable labels, this step becomes even easier. We can automate that process for you.
3. Ship your items
Bring your flat rate box to a local USPS or FedEx office and ship your package. If you have multiple orders, bring them all in together to save on trips!
Flat Rate Shipping Details
Flat rate shipping can provide big-time savings when it comes to shipping Farm goods, by having a lower, more predictable cost. It won’t make sense for every Farm, but flat rate shipping is used most often by Farmers that pack boxes themselves and run to their local shipping office to send out orders.
No variable weight calculation
There is no need to worry about weighing and calculating shipping costs for each package. As long as your package is under 70lbs for USPS and 50lbs for FedEx weight limits, you can ship it with flat rate shipping.
Shipping insurance included
Instead of having to purchase shipping insurance separately, your customer’s orders are automatically covered. Every flat rate package is automatically insured up to $50 for USPS and 100$ for FedEx. That means that if the contents are worth less than the coverage, you’ll be refunded for the value of a lost package = less risk for your business.
Track your shipments
Tracking is a shipping essential, as customers like to view the status of their order and delivery progress on demand. Buyers can simply enter the package number into the USPS or FedEx tracker to follow its progress all the way to delivery.
How it Works With Barn2Door
Within the Barn2Door store, you can select from a variety of flat-rate package sizes offered by both USPS and FedEx. This enables you to select the most cost-effective option for your fulfillment needs directly within the Barn2Door Shipping Center. Across our largest shipping accounts, we have seen that flat-rate shipping options offer time and cost savings for particularly for Farmers who offer subscriptions and bundle boxes.
Once the shipping labels have been purchased, Farmers can download, view, and print Shipping Pick & Pack lists to gather everything needed to ship out orders and pack Customers’ items per shipment. Print receipts and invoices associated with each order to ensure payments get fulfilled in a timely manner.
“This has been a much anticipated product release, many Farmers have reached out asking for flat rate shipping. To supplement the new flat rate feature, we’ve included two new shipping label sizes (4"x6" or 8.5"x11") that can be generated within the Shipping Center. These labels are printable and should help make sending out flat rate packages even easier!” - Barn2Door Engineer
To get the most out of flat-rate shipping, it’s best to fill your packages as much as possible to take advantage of the high weight limits. Heavy packages are ideal for USPS Flat Rate shipping, especially when traveling far distances. Lightweight orders might be better suited for other shipping methods.
“The whole experience of setting up the website and our ecommerce store has opened up the door for us to be able to ship easier, faster and smarter. Now we optimize what fits into different boxes and add branding elements like eco-friendly packaging.” ’ - Farmer (NY)
To learn more about Barn2Door and how we help Farms from all over America sell directly to consumers online, check out this quick 5 minute demo video.