Advise for setting up an online store and shipping

mils

Hi
We are a small size business and currently operate from units. Looking at setting up an online shop. We use a programme called Square for a till system and can create a shop through this. 
Type of products we are selling is small clothing packages (childrens sizes) 
Do i need to integrate a fulfilment programme to help with the postage/deliveries? any recommendations?
To print off packaging labels what equipment would anyone advise. Googling on amazon there are many label printers.
Any advise would be gratefully appreciated 

Thanks 
Mils

Vitor

Square seems to have a pretty compressive suite for the web-site, card processing, label-printing etc. but they do mention integration with Shippo or ShipStation which automates label generation, postage payment, and tracking updates.

Square recommends DYMO LabelWriter 4XL, Zebra GK420d and ZD420 Series, Brother QL-1110NWB label printers.

Have you trying online selling via platforms such as Ebay, Amazon etc?

DullGreyGuy

What sorts of volumes are you anticipating?

Will all dispatches occur from a single unit or will all the units be dispatching goods? 

mils

Hi So current we have 2 shops, but the online shop will be separate. Its hard to say what volumes so I'm going to be reserved and initially say lower to start with. Ideally would want collection for postage. Do I need to be signing up with courier services 

mils

Vitor said:

Square seems to have a pretty compressive suite for the web-site, card processing, label-printing etc. but they do mention integration with Shippo or ShipStation which automates label generation, postage payment, and tracking updates.

Square recommends DYMO LabelWriter 4XL, Zebra GK420d and ZD420 Series, Brother QL-1110NWB label printers.

Have you trying online selling via platforms such as Ebay, Amazon etc?

Thanks Victor that's really helpful just looking into ship station. Its the postage process i want to make as seamless as possible

martindow

The problem with postage is that it is dependant on weight but also on the size of the parcel. 

If you are confident that all of your packages would be small parcels for instance, in many shopping cart packages you can put in a weight to calculate the correct postage band, bearing in mind the weight of packaging, and setting postage prices to include these costs if you wish.  This doesn't work if you have varying parcel sizes as this won't cope well with the lower prices for large letters and higher for medium parcels.

An other approach is to have a fixed delivery charge and hope that large and heavy items which cost more are covered by small light orders where the actual postage cost will be less than you charge.  A third approach is to offer free postage and load a bit extra on each item.

I think it depends on the range of products you have, their sizes and value and your average order size to try to assess the best approach.

DullGreyGuy

mils said:

Its hard to say what volumes so I'm going to be reserved and initially say lower to start with. 

Ultimately you are going to have to set a number that you want to be able to deal with a day otherwise you spend a lot of money on systems, tools etc and end up using 1% of its capability because numbers are vastly lower than anticipated. Or you dont setup a proper system and get into a mess from day 1 when you get 20,000 orders to dispatch within 24 hours. 

A former client had done the former, spent thousands on machinery that prints letters, automatically selects the right inserts, records exactly what's been put in each envelope, automatically stuffs the envelope, seal it and sort the envelopes into one of 8 or so post bags depending on the postcode.  After 6 months they'd peaked at sending 3 letters a week. 

bluennoclue

I think QR codes can be a good addition to your shipping strategy, it should make order tracking easier and it's a fairly easy-to-set system. You can embed QR codes on labels linked to a real-time tracking system, each scan instantly updates the location, offering you and your customers precise visibility of the package’s journey. The good thing here is that once you incorporate them and get familiar with how they work, you can also use them to manage inventory or share helpful details like product care, assembly instructions, or information in different languages. So, customers and logistics staff can access what they need quickly. Down the road, you can explore how to use QR codes for marketing or to ask customers for reviews.