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Shipping Strategy is your approach to getting products to customers and what you charge for it. Free shipping increases conversion rates but eats into margins. Flat-rate shipping is predictable for customers. Real-time calculated shipping is most accurate but can shock customers with high costs. Many successful stores build shipping costs into product prices and offer "free" shipping. The right strategy depends on your margins, product weight, and competition.
Your approach to getting products to customers and what you charge for it. Free shipping increases conversion rates but eats into margins. Flat-rate shipping is predictable for customers. Real-time calculated shipping is most accurate but can shock customers with high costs. Many successful stores build shipping costs into product prices and offer "free" shipping. The right strategy depends on your margins, product weight, and competition.
When someone adds items to their online cart but leaves without completing the purchase. The average abandonment rate is around 70%, meaning 7 out of 10 people who start buying don't finish. Common causes: unexpected shipping costs, complicated checkout, required account creation, and slow loading. Reducing abandonment by even a few percent can significantly increase revenue without driving any additional traffic.
The average amount a customer spends per order. Calculate it by dividing total revenue by number of orders. If you made $10,000 from 200 orders, your AOV is $50. Increasing AOV is often easier than increasing the number of orders. Strategies include upselling (suggesting a premium version), cross-selling (recommending related products), free shipping thresholds, and bundle deals.
Improving your product pages to increase sales. Good product pages have clear photos from multiple angles, detailed descriptions that address buyer concerns, visible pricing, social proof (reviews and ratings), clear add-to-cart buttons, and shipping information. The product page is where buying decisions happen. Every element should either build confidence or reduce friction.
Reducing friction in the buying process to prevent cart abandonment. Best practices include guest checkout (don't force account creation), minimal form fields, multiple payment options, progress indicators, security badges, and transparent pricing (no surprise fees at the last step). Every additional step in checkout loses customers. The best checkouts are one page with as few fields as possible.
The service that processes credit card and digital payments on your website. Stripe, PayPal, Square are common examples. The gateway securely transmits payment information between your customer, your site, and the bank. Choosing the right one affects checkout experience, transaction fees (typically 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction), supported payment methods, and international capabilities.