Based on a June 2014 study released by UPS and comScore, 57% of the shopping carts are abandoned due to higher than expected shipping costs. Another 37% are abandoned because shipping and handling costs get listed too late during the checkout process.
Businesses either do not provide shipping & handling costs at the time of order placement, or they use a variety of approximation methods to provide “estimated” shipping costs at the POS level (website/ phone-order). These estimations can be based on a certain % table based on weight, or the $ amount of the sale, with a slight charge added to cover any additional cost that may show up when actual shipping cost is evaluated at the time of sending the package.This estimation can lead to (a) losing customer/sale due to exaggerated shipping cost, or (b) losing profits due to under-estimating the shipping cost, especially if DIM weight ends up being higher than actual weight, or other surcharges get applied which were not included in the approximation.
Having a software solution that will virtually “pre-pack” the order at the time of order placement will enable you to provide with the necessary (and accurate) information on shipping rates. This will lead to higher customer satisfaction, and avoiding the chance of losing the sale either due to wrong shipping rate quote, or a complete lack thereof.