Free Shipping the Key to Profitable Business – Who pays for free shipping?
Overview
Boosting your sales is not an easy task to do. How would you attract an army of buyers to patronize and prioritize your products? One way to attract customers to buy your products online is with the help of free shipping.
Free shipping or free shipping deals has become the talk of the town for years, but do you know who pays when a store lists its products with free shipping deals? And do you know that it can grow and make your business profitable?
Let’s learn the fundamentals of free shipping and why you and your company should start offering free shipping to your buyers and prospective customers.
What is free shipping?
Free shipping deals are a promotional tactic that relieves the customers of shipping fees. This means that customers pay only for the product they want to buy. Because of this tactic, most online stores’ see a significant increase in their gross sales.
Free shipping deals appear to be more of a psychological trick to the customers. You attract the customers to buy your products because they feel that they are buying them at a lesser cost.
So who pays for free shipping and why is using it profitable?
Free shipping is profitable not only because you get to attract more customers. But it is also because you do not pay for the total shipping fee at all. You can make customers pay for the shipping together with what they buy.
You can also make your products look cheaper if you add the tag’ free shipping’ on them. If your competitors do not offer free shipping, too, then it’s a plus for you. Most of their potential customers can be yours because of the free shipping you offer.
How can you offer free shipping?
Before anything else, you should know the buying cycle. You should not offer “free shipping” at random times and expect many people to click into the bait.
You should learn about how the digital cycle works.
You can then introduce the free shipping once you already know when and what triggers the buying force. Here’s how to do it:
Calculate your goal revenue
You should have a target revenue before you offer “free-shipping,” which will help you prevent losing sales and bankruptcy. You need to see if the tactics of free shipping would still fit with the price of your product and the fee you add.
You do not want to shoulder more expenses than what you’ll earn.
Have a minimum purchase rule
The power of the term ‘free shipping’ has already alienated most people on the internet. Set a minimum purchase rule so that you can make sure your profit is still set on high. Through this, you can secure a high revenue, even from just one customer.
When you set the purchase rule, make sure that it is a win-win situation for both the buyer and your business. Do not pair free shipping with an extremely high purchase requirement. Set a reasonable purchase rule that your buyer can buy and your company can profit.
Give free shipping seasonally
Most people tend to spend more when it’s holidays. Not just because of the occasion, but it is also their peak of having money most. This becomes the perfect time to implement free shipping deals- when they are vulnerable to buying.
You can also make the most out of giving occasional “free shipping,” as most buyers are looking forward to it. But keep in mind, do not offer the deal every day as most people are not always in buy-mode. People will then tend not to buy, making the free shipping deals ineffective.
Put free shipping on selected items and places
Not all items have a low shipping fee, so that means you cannot put all things under free shipping. You must consider the weight of the distance of where it will be delivered. Doing these would save you a lot of money.
Do not put free shipping on items and places that would require a higher shipping fee.
Do not offer fast shipping and free shipping all at once
Free shipping deals and fast shipping deals are two different deals that you can give to your customers. Though the two can attract customers, you shouldn’t offer them as one deal.
If you offer free shipping alone, you can add another way to profit by adding shipping choices. Though most buyers can wait, some want to receive their package immediately. You should take this opportunity to add a fee to expedite the shipping.
If you want more tips on earning a profit, check out our blog How to Make a Strong Dropshipping Profit When Selling on Amazon.
FAQs
How does free shipping apply in the FB marketplace?
Free shipping in the FB marketplace is up to the seller. Facebook does not offer delivery options for buyers. The FB marketplace is just an avenue for entrepreneurs to sell their products.
Can I still profit using the free plus shipping method?
Definitely, yes! But that still depends on how you manage your business.
When did the free shipping strategy start?
The free shipping tactic started way back on December 17, 2008. It started because of Luke Knowles. He came up with the free shipping tactic when he noticed that the sales of online shopping dropped. Their first implementation of free shipping was a blockbuster event. They earned a sum of $764 million.
Conclusion
Free shipping is one of the best deals that you can offer to your customers. It may look like it is risky or unprofitable to some, but in reality, it is one of the best business strategies that you should master.
Offering free shipping in your business also means being competitive in the industry. Get those sales up, and pair up with the cheapest delivery company.
