Shipping Chapter 10

Objectives In this chapter, we shall: Understand important shipping considerations like tare weight, shipping boxes calculation and shipping/packing details. Run through the common shipping screen and shipping settings. Go through each shipping option separately.

Introduction Enable shipping module will appear as shipping options to customers based on their delivery address Zen cart comes with a number of default shipping modules Shipping modules are classified according to the methods they employ to calculate shipping charges, such as: Online – Shipping charges are calculated in real-time by an external shipping processor and sent back to your store for display to customers. Offline – Shipping charges are calculated based on the rates a store owner sets for a particular shipping module.

Tare Weight is the weight of an empty container and packaging materials For example weight of box, packaging, wrapping, strapping, etc One subtracts the tare weight from the total weight of a good being shipped in order to arrive at the weight of the good itself. In shipping, tare weight is extremely important, because it is used to determine the value of a load, and to calculate taxes.

Calculation of Shipping Boxes Zen cart can used the weight of your order to determine the number of boxes you require the way the number of shipping boxes is calculated can be wrong The formula for the calculation of the number of shipping boxes required is:

Shipping and Packaging Details To set the general settings for all your shipping-related activities: Click on Configuration > Shipping/Packaging to access the Shipping/Packaging screen The information displayed here can be categories as follows: Shipping Origin Information Weight-Related Information Display-Related Information Shipping Origin The following fields are required if you are shipping physical items anywhere in the world. Country of Origin Postal Code This information may be used to determine your shipping rates

Weight-Related Information The following fields will affect the calculation of your shipping weights: Enter the Maximum Package Weight you will ship tells Zen Cart the maximum weight that you will allow in a shipping package – box, tube, envelope, etc. Package Tare Small to Medium - added percentage:weight and Larger packages - added packaging percentage:weight both allow you to specify a tare weight in addition to the total weight of your orders Order Free Shipping 0 Weight Status allows you to specify whether you want to allow customers to enjoy free shipping when they purchase a product for which you did not specify a weight

Display-Related Information Display Number of Boxes and Weight Status allows you to choose how you want to display the number of boxes and weight when customers are prompted to choose a shipping option during the checkout process. Shipping Estimator Display Settings for Shopping Cart toggles the display of the Shipping Estimator option when customers view their shopping cart details.

Display-Related Information (cont’d) Figure 2: Values of Display as Button on Shopping Cart and Display as Listing on Shopping Cart Page

The Shipping Modules Screen All shipping modules are configured via the Shipping Modules screen. To access this screen, click on Modules > Shipping. A shipping module can only be used if it is: Installed. Enabled. The colors of the buttons under the Sort Order column have the following meanings: Red – Shipping Module is not installed. Green – Shipping Module is installed and enabled. Yellow – Shipping Module is installed but disabled or the Shipping Zone field is enabled only for a particular zone.

Common Shipping Settings Figure 3: Explanation of common shipping settings

Figure 1: Default Shipping Options

Adding Shipping Option To configure a shipping module: 1. Click on Modules > Shipping to access the Shipping Modules screen. 2. Edit the module you want to configure. If required, install the module first. 3. In the Shipping Cost field/Shipping Table, specify the fixed amount you want to charge for customers who choose this shipping option. 4. Fill in the rest of the details for the module. 5. Click update to save your changes into the database.

Summary Shipping options are an important aspect of an online store. Finding the best option for your situation will require some planning and creative experimentation. Make sure you spend some time to understand how the module you choose actually works. It could save you a lot of embarrassing questions from customers later.