Shipping With Barn2Door
At Barn2Door we not only appreciate, but actively seek feedback from our customers on ways we can support them— to make sales and marketing easier for their Farm. Farms use our software to manage direct sales to both retail and wholesale customers. Whether it’s the ability to handle variable-weight items or manage unique schedules with a range of logistic options (local pick-up, direct delivery and/or shipping), we build features Farms need. While most of our Farms use Barn2Door for local direct delivery and pickups, some Farms are also keen to leverage door-to-door shipping as an option.
Of course, how and why a Farm chooses to ship is highly dependent on their product type. For example, a Farm with dairy goats may offer raw milk locally off the Farm, while their goat milk soap is a big hit 3 states away. Farms selling with Barn2Door can offer both products in their store, with item-specific fulfillment options for the customer to choose from. Since shipping goat soap is different than shipping frozen grass fed beef, we built our shipping capabilities to account for both! Farmers who use our software to manage orders and (in this case) shipping, can accommodate shipping by either total weight or total price, and account for packaging and dry ice as needed.
Our shipping integration is easy to use, and calculates rates according to price, weight, location and expedience. Printing labels and tracking orders is built in, including automatic notifications to Farmers’ customers with tracking numbers(s).
If you are currently offering shipping or want to add shipping, here is how to set it up:
1. Set up your shipping rules.
Shipping rules dictate how much it will cost a customer to have a product shipped to them. You can create up to 10 tiers for pricing, based on the total product’s weight or the total price of items in the cart. If you’re selling dried garlic bulbs, for example, you could set shipping cost by price and lower the cost for shipping as a customer chooses to purchase more garlic. On the other hand, if you’re selling frozen grass fed beef, you can set the shipping cost to rise with the additional packaging and dry ice required for it to arrive fresh. You can also add a note to appear by shipping items, such a timeline for delivery or how to handle dry ice.
2. Add the shipping option to items in your store.
In the Inventory Tab, edit the item you’d like to ship. Under fulfillment options, select “shippable item” and enter a ballpark weight for the item, so customers see an approximate shipping cost when they add the item to their cart. Repeat this step for any items you plan to ship. Since many Farms don’t want to (or can’t— think goat milk vs. goat milk soap) ship all of their products, we made sure you could customize your store to identify shipping by specific items.
3. Start filling orders!
When a customer orders an item for shipping, Farmers can easily enter dimensions and weight, print a label, and send tracking information automatically. In the Orders tab, click the dropdown menu next to the order, and click on “Manage Shipping”. Click on the order in the Shipping Center and select “+ Add Parcel”. You’ll be prompted to enter the parcel dimensions and weight, and select whether the item is perishable or not. Since dry ice is a necessary inconvenience for shipping frozen goods, we made sure price calculations by weight don’t include the added weight of ice.
Farmers can now select flat rate shipping options which simplify the shipping process. Flat rate shipping has straight forward 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. Check out this blog on flat rate shipping with Barn2Door to learn more.
You’ll have an opportunity to edit and proof the shipping address before you are presented rates from multiple shipping providers for that specific package. We’re lucky to work with Farms across the country, and due to that volume are able to pass on up to a 45% discount on shipping costs to our Farmers. Farms can choose from UPS, USPS, and FedEx delivery options and prices, select what works best for you and the customer, and click “Generate Label”. Your card on file will be charged, and the customer is notified by email with a tracking number automatically. The customer will also receive an email when the package is delivered, giving them (and you) peace of mind.
Stay tuned for more resources on shipping for Farms, coming soon! If you’re a current Barn2Door customer, explore the Learn Center for videos detailing set-up (accessible when you are logged in to your account), or ask your Farm Account Manager about offering shipping.
Not using Barn2Door yet? Schedule a conversation with us here to see how we might help your Farm.