WooCommerce is a popular eCommerce platform for small and medium businesses. It is built on WordPress and offers a wide range of features and plugins to help you run your online store.
Shipping is an important part of any online store, and WooCommerce offers a number of shipping options to choose from.
There are four main shipping methods available in WooCommerce: flat rate, free shipping, local pickup, and automatic (or real-time) shipping rates. Each of these methods has its own advantages and disadvantages, so it’s important to choose the right one for your store.
Flat rate shipping is the simplest shipping method to set up in WooCommerce. You simply set a flat shipping rate for all orders, regardless of destination or weight.
This can be a great option if you have a small number of products and you want to keep your shipping costs simple. However, it can become expensive if you have a lot of products or if you need to ship to multiple locations.
Free shipping is a popular option for online stores. You can offer free shipping on all orders, or you can set up rules to offer free shipping only when certain conditions are met (for example, when the order total is over $100). This can be a great way to encourage customers to spend more in your store.
However, it’s important to make sure that your free shipping offer is profitable for your business. Otherwise, you may end up losing money on every order.
Local pickup is a good option if you have a brick-and-mortar store as well as an online store. Customers can choose to pick up their order from your store, which can save on shipping costs.
This is a great option if you have customers in your local area. However, it’s not suitable for all businesses, as it requires you to have someone available to hand over the order during business hours.
Automatic (or real-time) shipping rates are calculated based on the customer’s location and the products in their cart. This can be a great option if you have products that are difficult to ship (for example, heavy or oversized items). However, it can be more expensive than other shipping methods, and it requires some technical setup.
Conclusion:
Which ever method you chose make sure its profitable for your business model!