Setting Up Domestic and International Shipping

You can get to this part of the system by clicking on the Admin Button with your username at the top of the window and then clicking Settings > Website Settings > Shipping.

 

Activating Shipping and Creating Shipping Methods

To start, click the top item, Enable System Configured Shipping Options and click to turn it ON. Click the Configure button to view where you can set up your shipping methods. You will then see the following options for Domestic and International:

In our example above, we have already set up a couple of shipping methods. You can set up as many as you like, for example, for Domestic, you could have an Economy that ships a little slow but is more affordable, as well as a Priority rate that is a little more expensive but is faster. And so on.

After you have set up shipping methods, you can View, Edit, or Delete them after you check the box on the left next to the shipping method title. To create a new method for either Domestic or International, simply click the green button to Add a New Method.

 

Domestic Shipping Setup

Currency: For right now, Domestic shipping in our system can only be set up for US States and Territories, so you will choose US Dollar as the currency to be used.

Regions: If you are shipping with the United States Postal Service, their rates apply to all states and territories, the default choice. If you are using another service, you can set up different rates that would apply to different states for a specific shipping zone.

One option you might consider would be in-store pickup shipping options such as Curbside Pickup, In Store Pickup, or Pay at Pickup. Do NOT set any of these options up in here as shipping methods. Instead, on your main Shipping settings tab, there is an option you can turn on to enable In-Store Pickup.

Shipping Method Name: There is an extensive list of descriptive names for whatever shipping method you might prefer. These names to not actually do anything other than describe the method; you will set your own ranges and rates below.

Select Delivery Time: This is also descriptive (it does not tie into a shipping service), so it is provided just to give the customer an idea of the time frame shipping will take.

Shipping Rates Based On: You can base your shipping on the Total Dollar Amount, the combined Total Order Weight, or the Total Item Quantity. Most use the first option (see note below about Classes), since it works well with the flat-rate Priority shipping from the USPS. For shipping based on weight, you will need to have weight values in the system for your products. For shipping based on the total number of items, this works well if you only sell one type of product and you can project what shipping would be based on the number being ordered.

Shipping Rates: You will first enter the range, From and To, for each of your shipping costs. The important thing with the ranges is to always have two digits after the decimal point, and for each successive line to start .01 higher than before. So in our example above, line one starts at one penny (0.01) and goes to twenty dollars (20). The second line starts at twenty-oh-one (20.01). Do not put in dollar signs. Also, each field will need to have a decimal point and two digits after it, even if they are both zero. For example, this is right: 20.00. This is wrong: $20. The third column is the rate the customer will pay if the order falls within the range listed. For an example by weight, look at the international method below.

To determine your rates if you are using Total Dollar Value, we recommend bringing home the full range of packaging you will use and experiment with what will fit in the packaging at certain total dollar amounts for the items.

If you are using the weight method, you might need to set up different zones with the states that would be at similar shipping rates for different weights. If so, you will need a separate shipping method for each zone. Don't worry about having duplicated method names: the system will show the customer all rates that can be selected for their area only, so don't be afraid to create as many as you need.

Another option you have is Local Delivery. If there is a local area in which you are willing to deliver, you can set the Shipping Method Name to Local Delivery, and then you can enter the Area Codes in which you are willing to deliver. For full details on setting up Local Deliver, click here: Local Delivery Option by Zip Code / Postal Code for Online Orders Please note: this link will open in a new browser tab.

 

International Shipping Setup

Country: If you are setting up a specific shipping method for a specific country, you would only need that country in the list. It is recommended to set up a separate method for each country you plan to ship to, so your rates can be as accurate as possible. For countries that have regions with different shipping rates, e.g. Canada and its Provinces, you would need to add the country name as well as the province name(s) you will be shipping to, as in the example below.

Shipping Method Name: There is an extensive list of descriptive names for whatever shipping method you might prefer. These names to not actually do anything other than describe the method; you will set your own ranges and rates below.

Select Delivery Time: This is also descriptive (it does not tie into a shipping service), so it is provided just to give the customer an idea of the time frame shipping will take.

Shipping Rates Based On: You can base your shipping on the Total Dollar Amount, the combined Total Order Weight, or the Total Item Quantity. Most use the first option (see note below about Classes). For shipping based on weight as in the example above, you will need to have weight values in the system for your products. For shipping based on the total number of items, this works well if you only sell one type of product and you can project what shipping would be based on the number being ordered.

If you will be using online class registration that can be paid for through the website, you will need to set up your shipping using the Total Order Weight option, since your classes have 0 weight, so they will charge no shipping.

Shipping Rates: You will first enter the range, From and To, for each of your shipping costs. The important thing with the ranges is to always have two digits after the decimal point, and for each successive line to start .01 higher than before. So in our example above, line one starts at one penny (0.01) and goes to twenty dollars (20). The second line starts at twenty-oh-one (20.01). An exception to this would be one-point-five pounds, which can be entered as 1.5 just fine, as in the example above. Do not put in dollar signs. The third column is the rate the customer will pay if the order falls within the range listed. For an example by dollar value, look at the domestic method in the section above for Domestic Shipping.

To determine your rates if you are using Total Dollar Value, we recommend bringing home the full range of packaging you will use and experiment with what will fit in the packaging at certain total dollar amounts for the items.

If you are using the weight method, you will need a separate shipping method for each country. Don't worry about having duplicated method names: the system will show the customer all rates that can be selected for their area only, so don't be afraid to create as many as you need.