Within Orderbot, you have a great detail of flexibility in setting up your shipping charges. You can set up different rates based on Sales Channel, Distribution Centre, Destination (Ship to Country), and Shipping Method.
Go to Prefs > System Setup > Shipping and Tax Settings. Once the page has loaded, click Shipping Charges.
NOTE: If you don't see this option on your menu, that means that you don't have the permissions to view it. You'll need to get an Admin User within your company to help you with this step. For more information about user levels, take a look at our Users guide.
Adding a Shipping Charge
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On the Shipping Charge Page (under Prefs > System Setup > Shipping and Tax Settings), you'll see a list of warehouses. Find the warehouse you would like to use for this charge.
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You'll see a list of Sales Channels. Click the plus icon to expand the sales channel you would like to view.
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Click the Add Ship Calculation button . You'll see a number of text fields appear.
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Fill out each required field.
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Method Name: This is the name you would like to give to your shipping charge. You'll see it on the shipping charge dropdown on the Shipping Destinations page.
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Minimum Shipping Fee: This allows you to set a hard minimum in addition to any other shipping calculations you're using. (For example, you could use Get Rates, but also set a minimum shipping fee of $10.) Leave blank if you don't want a minimum.
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Maximum Shipping Fee: This allows you to set a maximum ship fee in addition to any other shipping calculations you're using. Leave blank if you don't want a maximum.
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% of Order Value: Instead of flat numbers, this tickbox allows you to base max and min shipping fees on a percentage of the order total. (For example, you could set up a max shipping fee of $25 percentage of the order total.)
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Active: If your ship charge is active, you'll see a green checkmark (
). If inactive, you'll see a Red X (
). Click on them to switch between active and inactive. -
Shipping Calculations: Select a shipping calculation by clicking the circle next to one of these: Get Rates, Base Amount of, Grid Pricing as a Function of Order Value, Grid Pricing as a Function of Weight, and Grid Pricing a Function of Product Quantity (For more information on each of these functions, please see below.)
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Once all of these fields are filled, click the Submit button to save your shipping charge.
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Go to Prefs > System Setup > Shipping and Tax Setting, and then select the Shipping Destinations tab. Under each country you would like to ship to, assign a shipping charge for each active warehouse, as well as for each sales channel. Please see this page for more information on Shipping Destinations.
NOTE: Don't forget to add a shipping charge for every distribution centre and sales channel combination that you intend to use.
Get Rates
Enable this option by ticking 'Get Rates' when you set up a shipping charge. If you enter a number in the $ or % field, you'll automatically add that amount to the total when you use Get Rates.
If you have an integration with a shipping carrier (e.g. USPS), this allows you to use the Get Rates button on the shipping tab of the Orderpad when you're placing an order. You can select the number of boxes you will send. When you submit, you'll receive an estimated shipping rate from the shipping carrier.
IMPORTANT: This guide assumes that you already have set up your shipping integrations. (e.g. Fedex, UPS, USPS) If you don't already have a shipping integration for the method you're using, Get Rates will not work. If you try to place an order using a shipping method without an integration, you'll see an error message that says, “An error occurs trying to get rates.” To start a new integration, please contact support@orderbot.com to initiate a project.
Base Amount of
Enable this option by ticking 'Base Amount Of' when you set up a shipping charge. If you enter a number in the $ field, you'll set a flat rate for shipping.
Grid Pricing
Grid pricing allows you to set variable shipping charges based on things like the value of the order or the weight of the shipment. You can set different default charges for specific shipping carriers as well.
This section assumes that you are already familiar with the basics of setting up a Shipping Charge. If not, please see section on adding a Shipping Charge above. To set up grid pricing, you must also have shipping methods active for the warehouse you're using.
Grid Pricing as a Function of Order Value
- Select 'Grid Pricing as a Function of Order Value' by clicking the circle.
- On the right-side of the screen, you'll see a list of all Shipping Methods that you have active for this warehouse.
- Enter a minimum and a maximum price range, and then click the add button . If you want to set different flat rates for each shipping method, you would enter a minimum and maximum range that will cover all potential order totals. (e.g. 0-$9999999999)
- Tick Is Percent if you would like to have a percentage fee applied to your order instead of a specific rate.
Continue to add shipping charge ranges until you have all possibilities covered. If you look at our example screenshot, you'll see that price ranges are set down to the penny. If a customer has an order total of $11.02, they'll be charged a $7.99 fee. If their order is over $100, their shipping is $4.99. When you set your own price ranges, make sure that you cover all possibilities. - Repeat these steps for each Shipping Carrier and Shipping Method that you would like to use.
- Don't forget to click Submit when you're done! If you forget this step, your settings won't be saved.
Grid Pricing as a Function of Weight
This option is very similar to 'Grid Pricing as a Function of Order Value,' except that it allows you to set your pricing by the weight of the shipment rather than the order total. You'll still want to set fractional weights to be sure all ranges are covered, as well. You'd follow the same steps as Grid Pricing as a Function of Order Value.
Grid Pricing as a Function of Product Quantity
This option is very similar to 'Grid Pricing as a Function of Order Value,' except that it allows you to set your pricing by the quantity of products rather than the order total. You'd follow the same steps as Grid Pricing as a Function of Order Value.
IMPORTANT: When you set up grid pricing, make sure to cover all possibilities. For instance, if you set Grid Pricing by order value, make sure that you don't leave gaps in your price ranges. Otherwise, if you encounter an order that falls inside of an exception that you didn't provide settings for, you'll see the error message, “Grid Pricing Settings Error.”
Example: Incorrect Grid Pricing Settings
At first glance, it looks like these settings will work. If a customer places an order for $70, for instance, it will charge them a $7.99 shipping rate. It a customer places an order for $105, it will charge $4.99.
But what if the customer places an order for $100.50? Then they'll encounter a 'Grid Pricing Setting Error' and be unable to place their order. The same thing will happen to any customer who places an order for over $10000.
This is why it's important to set up your grid pricing to cover all possibilities.
Add Tax to Shipping Rate
By default, no tax is charged on shipping charges. If you would like to apply tax to shipping charges, follow these steps.
- Go to Prefs > System Setup > Site Settings. Once the page has loaded, click on the Other Settings link.
- Find the option called 'Add Tax to Shipping Rate.'
- Tick the checkbox.
- Scroll down and click the Update button (
).
WARNING: Unless directed, do not change any other settings under Other Settings. Many of them are set only during initial implementation and should not be changed.