10 most common eCommerce shipping mistakes

When you think of setting up a small business, you think of many things – finances, target audience, customer experience and more. But, when you think of scaling a business, you’ll think of getting one thing absolutely right – your shipping game. It’s natural that in the process of making it right, you’ll make mistakes. Today, we discover the most common shipping mistakes that all new eCommerce business owners make. 

1. Guestimating shipping costs

The cost of shipping your products to the next door or halfway across the globe depends on a lot of different things. The problem is, if you under or overestimate any of those, your shipping costs are going to skyrocket. The smart thing to do here maybe use a shipping calculator. Tools like that help you make an informed decision. With a mix of local and global carriers, this option gives you the most affordable rates so that you don’t have to guess anymore.

2. Getting the shipping address wrong 

The most common mistake in shipping is this. Common mistakes like getting the address wrong can be avoided when you save your addresses. Because if the address is wrong, you have to pay extra on re-routing or when making the delivery again. 

3. Not automating the process 

One of the biggest mistakes that a business owner can do is thinking that everything can be done manually. An end-to-end shipping solution is an easy way to let your customers know where their order is in real-time. A platform like ShippingChimp gives you clear visibility of your orders, returns and disputes. It lets you automate the entire shipping process. 

4. Not offering flexible delivery options 

Customer is king. Not giving them enough options is a mistake that will hurt. Start with giving options that are feasible for your business. Remember, the more choices you give, the more you are empowering them. 

5. Inaccuracies on Bill of Lading 

Your BOL or bill of lading (BOL) contains all the information about the transported goods. It is considered a legal document sent to the shipper by the freight carrier. So, any mistakes here and you will have to pay a great deal later.

6. Not using a Pallet 

Palletizing your freight gives many storage opportunities. Additionally, palletized goods can be easily handled by any warehouse. So, if you don’t palletize your goods, the warehouses might find it difficult to handle your goods. Moreover, palletizing provides space for air to flow, so perishable items stay for long. 

7. No Additional Freight Insurance  

Life is uncertain. The journey of your shipment is uncertain too. Having additional freight insurance (if you can afford it) is a blessing. You can ask your 3PL or choose another company altogether. 

8. Using oversized boxes to ship orders 

Sometimes, when you are running a small business and are in a hurry to ship an emergency order, you might pick up the first box that you see. If you are shipping something small and you ship it in a large box, that’s a mistake. Not only will it be against the environment, but it will also put your reputation at stake as an eCommerce company.

9. Overpaying for Freight 

Not comparing carriers will lead to making an uninformed decision. One easy way is using a rate calculator. This way, not only do you get an accurate estimate of your shipping costs, you don’t overpay for freight.

10. Not having a multicarrier shipping strategy 

Adding only global carriers is a wrong move. A well-crafted shipping strategy includes both local and international carriers. Not having a multicarrier shipping strategy will lead to paying for more surcharges and relying on only one carrier for everything. 

Buy Now is a single step but for your customers to keep coming back to it again and again, you need to make fewer shipping mistakes and slowly and steadily, win the eCommerce step.