Ecommerce Shipping : A Complete Guide for Small Business Shipping Quotes

How Ecommerce Shipping Works 

Ecommerce shipping works similarly to most industry’s shipping solutions, with a handful of caveats. The foremost of these differences is the amount of drop shipping, or when a third party takes care of some or all fulfillment needs. As a result, the e-commerce shipper doesn't need on-site inventory or a warehouse facilities, and instead, they can focus attention on customer-centric needs, such as marketing and customer service. 

Because e-commerce businesses often start smaller than traditional brick-and-mortar organizations, with many running from residences, e-commerce shippers tend to be more cost-conscious and need a wide array of carriers to move their shipments for a reasonable price.   

If you are in e-commerce or considering starting an e-commerce business, logistics experts like GoShip.com will guide you to the leading freight shipping carriers in the country! You can get instant online quotes and assist with any questions you may have at GoShip.com! 

What is Ecommerce Fulfillment? 

Fulfillment, or the timely replenishment of stock and on-time delivery of products to the customers, is a critical part of e-commerce operations. The process of fulfillment involves getting the products into your warehouse facility, presenting stock on the website, packing and forming the orders, and shipping those items to end customers.  

For a company of any size, a well-planned and frictionless order fulfillment ecosystem is an integral part of the business that results in customer satisfaction and retention, and ultimately increases profitability. Developing a robust e-commerce fulfillment strategy is essential for your business’s success.  

Ecommerce Shipping Companies 

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, e-commerce skyrocketed, and buyers transitioned from paper to digital quickly to make sure they could continue to sell their products or service. With the hard shift to digital, there has been a sharp rise in the demand for quality e-commerce shipping solutions. Selecting the right shipping company for e-commerce fulfillment has never been more important. 

The first thing that buyers look for in shipping is expediency. The longer the wait time, the less likely the customer will purchase again. With GoShip, we have a feature that allows shippers to track freight, estimate arrival times, and provide constant updates on the shipping process, giving your customers peace of mind knowing that their package is safe and on its way. 

The other key factor in shipping for e-commerce companies is cost. Pricing plays a major role in choosing the right shipping company for most shippers. With most of the world going digital and skyrocketing e-commerce shipping demand, GoShip's quoting tool helps to find the best shipping deal that best suits your budget. Whether you're looking for a quick, one-time shipment or a long-term shipping contract, GoShip can help you find the best deal for your company. 

Shipping Costs for Ecommerce 

Once upon a time, buyers were beholden to sellers’ whims when it came to shipping. Freight was moved on the seller’s schedule, and weeks-long delays from the moment you purchased to the moment your shipment arrived weren’t uncommon. 

But with the mass adoption of e-commerce, buyers have raised their expectations. Significantly. 

When considering e-commerce shipping costs, buyers now expect either the lowest rates or shipping costs to be folded into the pricing (i.e., free shipping). It’s such an important factor that almost half of the buyers who abandon their cart cite shipping costs as a deciding factor. As a shipper, that expectation places the burden of protecting your margins from shipping costs on you. 

Unfortunately, costs aren’t easy to predict. Four key factors comprise a large amount of e-commerce shipping costs: 

• Dimensions 
• Weight 
• Pickup location 
• Delivery location 

The trick is when additional factors, such as insurance, accessorials, or freight market fluctuations,  influence LTL and full truckload costs. These factors are so complex they've given rise to the freight forecasting industry, where logistics professionals and economists undertake the Herculean task of predicting how the market will shift and impact pricing. 

So what do you do if your annual budget doesn't include adding a freight economist? Keep it simple. If your customers want low shipping costs, you find the path of least resistance to getting low shipping costs and passing the savings to your customers. 

By leveraging tools like the GoShip Get a Quote tool, you can find wholesale pricing and guaranteed capacity for LTL or FTL shipments whenever and wherever you need it. In GoShip’s case, over 45,000 FTL carriers and all the major LTL networks are available, allowing you to compare rates, find the carrier that is the best fit for your freight, and protect those margins from rising buyer expectations. 

Small Business Ecommerce

Shifting to an e-commerce business model can be a great way for small businesses to expand their reach, drive more sales, and differentiate themselves from their competitors.  Emerging from the pandemic, customers don’t want to have to leave the comfort of their house to buy the products they want and need, even in B2B models. 

In the span of a few years, online sales have stopped being a differentiator and become an expectation. Expanding into the e-commerce market sooner rather than later is only going to help your business. Turning to e-commerce allows you to reach new audiences you wouldn’t be able to reach in a physical retail location and ultimately sell more products. 

The costs of establishing an e-commerce website are relatively low and the payoffs can be significant. With relatively low operational costs, on top of the rest of its benefits, e-commerce has become an excellent way for small businesses to broaden their reach, develop new customers, and overall improve their business.   

Shipping Software for Small Ecommerce Businesses  

It’s easy to get bogged down in the host of shipping software options for small e-commerce businesses. It seems like everyone is offering transportation management systems, IoT integrations for trailers, tracking solutions, and on and on.  

When operating a small e-commerce business, you don’t have time for wading into the morass of freight industry technology. You're busy worrying about customers, your products, and even your store, whether it's online or in-person. That’s why GoShip exists. 

With GoShip, we can help you with all your shipping needs no matter the type of product you are selling, all in a matter of seconds through our self-serve website. We have a variety of services to offer, like LTL and full truckload freight shipping, along with a multitude of carriers who offer different rates that best fit -your budget. Like you, GoShip puts our customers over everything. 

Shipping Costs for Small Business 

Small businesses or businesses just getting on their feet need to be more cost-conscious than the average shipper. In addition to having a challenging time capturing the same rates as industry giants, smaller businesses often operate with thinner margins and have less cash in the bank should something go wrong. Between insurance, lost or damaged shipments, and lackluster rates, small businesses can be eaten alive by shipping costs. 

While GoShip can’t put cash directly in small businesses' bank accounts, we can level the playing field for small businesses by opening access to free quotes at wholesale prices from a network of 45,000 FTL carriers and all the major LTL networks. Small businesses can then work with the carrier who is right for them and their budget, without feeling the strain on their margins. 

eBay Freight Shipping 

It’s possible to buy or sell virtually anything on eBay, from an antique pinball table to a used car. Yet even though eBay makes it easy to buy or sell your items, there’s still the problem of how they will get to their new owners. Not every item for sale on the Internet can fit into a cardboard box. Some of them require pallets or crates because of their size or shape.  If your shipment is more than 150 pounds, it is considered cargo, which won’t fit as a regular parcel shipment. That’s where the extensive carrier network behind GoShip.com can help.  

If you are shipping large items sold or bought on eBay, parcel delivery service may come up as too expensive. Your shipment cost is determined by several factors, like freight type, dimensions, weight, destination, etc. Eventually, there will be a few options when it comes to shipping large items bought or sold on eBay: LTL shipping or full truckload shipping.  

eBay Shipping Options 

Anyone who has sold an item on eBay knows that shipping your product to the customer is a bigger hassle than it should be. That’s why GoShip makes things as simple as possible to get your product shipped to the customer in a timely, efficient manner. With over 45,000 carriers in our network, guaranteed capacity, and great rates, there's no easier way to ship your eBay products. And not only that, our partnership with TaskRabbit allows you to hire someone to help with any pre- or post-delivery needs, such as moving or assembly, all in one place! 

How to Ship large items on eBay 

Shipping large items like a furniture set, several pallets of apparel, or heavy equipment may require a bit of extra room to ship. For particularly large items, full truckload or flatbed shipping may be the best solution for shipping your oversized or overweight pieces (exceeding six pallets or 5,000 pounds), and GoShip has your back. 

When considering a full truckload for the shipment of your item or items, first look at dimensions and weight. Do you need an entire truckload for your shipment? The next step is to consider packaging. The customer is expecting their purchase to come in one piece and preventative measures when it comes to damages cannot be overlooked. 

Insurance is another way to prevent customer dissatisfaction. Loading items into the truck is another task the shipper is responsible for. If you cannot load the items yourself, consider hiring a Tasker from our partner, TaskRabbit, to help you load your items for you! You can also arrange Taskers to unload your goods at the time of delivery.  

eBay Shipping Calculator 

eBay is a multi-billion e-commerce company where businesses or private sellers go to sell their products. The e-commerce industry has taken over a major part of the business world, which has allowed eBay to grow rapidly over the past few years. But while eBay has grown tremendously in size and reach as a marketplace, a key component of your experience—shipping—is out of their hands. 

At GoShip, we always set our customer's needs as our top priority. We can help with all your shipping needs with our wide variety of carriers and rates, and our trusty team of support providers. No matter if it's a one-time shipment, or you're a business selling your products to a variety of customers, at GoShip our easy Get a Quote feature allows people to quickly fill out a form, and receive a quote from a variety of carriers in minutes. Instead of handling shipping on your own through eBay's shipping system, let us at GoShip handle all your shipping needs and find the best rate that suits your companies or individual needs. 

Etsy Shipping  

Etsy is a great platform for small businesses to display their products and engage in transactions with customers. To reliably ship your products, you’ll need to set realistic expectations with your customers and follow through to meet those expectations. These expectations start with choosing a reliable shipper that will move your product in an efficient fashion and at an excellent rate. 

Over the last few years, freight market volatility has led to uncertainty for online businesses. Having a trustworthy shipping strategy is necessary to be able to run a respectable online business that buyers can depend on to get their products on time and in good condition.  At GoShip, we work our hardest to make it as easy as possible for you to ship your product timely and safely, no matter what you are selling. 

Etsy Shipping Options 

Etsy users love using GoShip to move their freight. From bespoke furniture to towering sculptures to custom-build computers, Etsy shippers need the perfect blend of low prices and quality carriers to care for their shipments, and GoShip excels in both. 

Most Etsy freight shipments move via LTL freight, usually dry van. Etsy shippers choose this option when parcel services aren’t a reasonable option (or an option at all), but they aren’t moving enough freight to fill a full truckload. The Etsy shop owner would still pack the shipment themselves, but then a carrier would pick it up from either their residential or commercial location.  

When moving freight through GoShip, Etsy shippers can get quotes from a range of local, regional, and national LTL carrier networks serving their area. Based on attributes (like freight class or weight) and required services (like liftgate pickup), you’re provided an instant, quotes from each carrier and can make the decision that’s right for your shipment. 

Etsy Shipping Calculator 

Whether you’re selling or buying items on Etsy, you are probably interested in how much does the shipping cost. The final cost of shipping is defined by many different factors, including shipment size, weight, dimensions, type of commodity, destination, and type of transportation. Luckily, it is easy to calculate the approximate cost of shipping with GoShip’s easy-to-use shipping calculator.  

Our pricing tool lets you get an immediate estimate and compare shipping rates from multiple freight carriers in real-time. All you do is fill in the information about your shipment in the online form, and the tool will calculate your estimate in seconds. It is important to give accurate data about your goods to increase the preciseness of the price estimate.  

Shopify Shipping 

Shopify is the industry-leading e-commerce company that helps businesses create and grow their online presence. Once businesses launch their virtual stores, they often treat it as crossing the finish line. But there is an additional step before they can begin to sell their product: an e-commerce company needs what shipment methods they want available for their customers. 

Shipping can be stressful and having to figure it out all on your own through Shopify can be a nightmare. At GoShip, all you must do is fill out a quote and we can provide you with a variety of options with rates and carriers in minutes. Let GoShip help you with your businesse's shipping needs, and learn more about their fast and easy Get a Quote tool. 

Best Shipping Software for Shopify 

Shopify is an e-commerce company where businesses go to create an online platform for their business. While running a business, the last thing you want to worry about is shipping problems. With GoShip, we can save you time and money on your shipping through our Get a Quote tool. 

We can help you figure out what type of service best suits your shipment type, like LTL and full truckload freight shipping, along with the carriers that best fit your shipment type and within your desired budget. Shopify is a great place to start off a small business or even transfer a larger business online but let GoShip assist you with shipping items to your customers, hassle-free. 

Shopify Shipping Rates Calculator 

Shopify powers many e-commerce businesses with flexible payment and processing options. Shippers are now leveraging GoShip’s Get a Quote calculator, which is a software solution that calculates the best shipping rates and services to our customers. This tool is designed for customers with large and small shipments to be able to easily understand the details of the service. Some of the main factors that go into the cost of our services include distance, fuel prices, truck capacity, and delivery timing. 

Using the Get a Quote tool is helpful because in the logistics industry there are many hidden costs with services that can add up, especially with a fluctuating economy. Sometimes these can even throw the services out of a customer’s price range.  

If you are ready to take your business up a notch, check out GoShip’s Shipping Cost Calculator!