The estimated delivery date is an important part of online ordering for customers - at checkout it helps assure them whether the items they’d like to order can be delivered in time, and once ordered it gives them a good idea as to when to expect the delivery and make arrangements as needed so that they can receive it.
As such, it is important that the estimated delivery timescales communicated are as accurate as possible reflecting the service you can provide - not over promising, but likewise not under promising when really you offer a faster service.
A few new features have just been introduced so that the estimated delivery timescales communicated to customers for your products can be more accurate than ever.
New calculation of estimated delivery days
Estimated delivery days are now calculated using a composite of the following information:
- Number of days you need to fulfill the order and dispatch
- The cutoff time for orders within the above dispatch times.
- The days of the week that you dispatch orders on. For example, you may not dispatch orders on a Friday if your produce is best not kept in warehouse over weekends.
- Number of days your chosen delivery service takes to deliver, this can be a range. For example for 1st class Royal Mail you would put 1-2 days.
- Days of the week your chosen delivery service deliver on
Note: if you select “Guaranteed delivery” the delivery date calculated will be presented to the customer as “Delivery will be on [date]” rather than “Estimated delivery by [date]”.
The default settings for each shipping method are the following:
|
Economy Delivery |
Standard Delivery |
Next Day Delivery |
Saturday Delivery |
|
|
Delivery time (text) |
3 to 5 working days |
2 to 3 working days |
Next working day (orders by 12pm) |
Next available Saturday |
|
Dispatch Days |
Monday to Friday |
Monday to Friday |
Monday to Friday |
Monday to Friday |
|
Days to Dispatch |
2 days |
1 day |
0 days |
0 days |
|
Cut-off Time |
12:00pm |
12:00pm |
12:00pm |
12:00pm |
|
Delivery Days |
Monday to Friday |
Monday to Friday |
Monday to Friday |
Saturday |
|
Guaranteed Delivery? |
No |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
|
Days Needed |
2-3 days |
1-2 days |
1 day |
0 days (necessary logic for delivery on a non-working day) |
Editing your delivery timescale settings
You can view and edit these settings if you follow the menu path in the top right hand corner of the Seller Portal: Administration > Shipping & Taxes > Shipping Methods
Amending an estimated delivery timescale for an order
If you’re able to dispatch a particular order faster than your usual timescales, or there is an unavoidable delay on dispatching an order, you can update the estimated delivery date for a particular order where indicated.
Changing the estimated delivery date will send a notification email to the customer advising them of the new estimate.
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