Delivery is an important part of any web site plan. How will the goods or services be delivered to the customer? Internet shoppers are becoming very savvy. They are aware that the shipping and handling can add a substantial amount to the total cost of their purchase. Therefore, this process needs to be handled with care. There are a number of different ways that delivery costs can be charged:

1. Free Delivery!
   
   We recommend this method for an e-commerce web site wherever possible - with a prominent highlight on the homepage that says FREE DELIVERY! Online customers do not appreciate having to go through almost the entire shopping process (product selection, order submission etc.) before finding out what their delivery charges will be. They are often wary of, and discouraged from purchasing on the Internet, for fear of incurring costly shipping charges, as well as being confused by additional charges for rural, Saturday or special deliveries.
    
2. Delivery rate based on delivery address
   
   This delivery method works well. It rewards bulk orders and covers the cost of small orders via your web site. You don’t need to do complex calculations based on the weights or volumes of each product and you do not need to store the weight or volume of every product.
   
   Example:

   Delivery Area	Cost
   Auckland	$5
   North Island	$10
   South Island	$20

   
    
3. Delivery rate based on product price or number of products
   
   This delivery method works well for shops that sell a range of products of similar size, shape and price - where the delivery cost is similar. It can reward bulk orders and covers the cost of small orders. You don’t need to store and manage the weight or volume of every product and it is simple for customers to understand.
   
   Example:

   Product price or number of products	Cost
   $0 - $20	$5
   $20 - $30	$10
   $30 - $40	$15
   $40 - $50	$20
   $50 +	Free

   
    
4. Custom shipping (Delivery rate based on the product weight / volume / price / number of products and the shipping address and express options)
   
   This delivery method is technically difficult to set up on a web site and requires a large amount of extra information to be loaded about every single product or service (as often you will need to store the weight or volume for every single product). It can also be very confusing for a customer. Make sure you approach it with care and use it only when there is no other possible option.
   
   Example:

   Service	Area	Weight / volume / price / number of products	Cost
   Standard delivery	Auckland	0 - 2 kgs	$5
   		2 - 3 kgs	$10
   		3 - 4 kgs	$15
   	North Island	0 - 2 kgs	$7
   		2 - 3 kgs	$12
   		3 - 4 kgs	$17
   	South Island	0 - 2 kgs	$10
   		2 - 3 kgs	$15
   		3 - 4 kgs	$20
   Express delivery	Auckland	0 - 2 kgs	$10
   		2 - 3 kgs	$15
   		3 - 4 kgs	$20
   	North Island	0 - 2 kgs	$12
   		2 - 3 kgs	$17
   		3 - 4 kgs	$22
   	South Island	0 - 2 kgs	$15
   		2 - 3 kgs	$20
   		3 - 4 kgs	$25