Two-day shipping benefits an e-commerce business, not just with a quick turnaround time. The following article discusses in depth what two-day shipping is, how it works, its benefits, its examples, and more related aspects. So, let’s go through them.
What is 2-day Shipping?
As implied from the name, two-day shipping is the process that guarantees package delivery from the shipping carrier to the receiver within two business days. In the e-commerce industry, offering two-day shipping is widespread for sellers to ensure reliable delivery with a fast turnaround time.
Depending on the seller, it takes two full days or two business days. The delivery countdown begins the moment the customer places the order. The two-day shipping is an outstanding option for the delivery of various items, including perishable goods, lab samples, gadgets, commercial goods, and so on.
Let’s understand the two-day shipping with an example. Suppose the customer places the order on Monday; they will receive the product on Wednesday. However, if the customer places an order on Saturday and Sunday, it might take till Wednesday or two days, based on the seller’s policies. One of the best features of this shipping method is that it promises the customers the same timeline whether they want to get order delivery in-state or overseas.
The carriers and other companies will follow cut-offs. They require time to process your order and guarantee that they will take care of all the operational steps to deliver the goods to their destination timely. Although the cut-off can differ, it will usually be before the completion of the business day. Generally, the customers must place the orders before 12 pm to let 2-day shipping work flawlessly.
How Does 2-day Shipping Work?
After understanding what 2-day shipping means, it is imperative to know how it works.
Two-day shipping begins after a carrier has the order in its ownership. The packages may be forwarded several times throughout those two days in shipment. Air and ground shipping are two principal methods that fulfill the delivery in two days.
Air shipping
Air cargo quickly delivers packages to a distant destination. TAs the name suggests, the mode of transportation is airplanes, so it is more expensive than other modes. However, air shipping may be the only shipping method that can promise a two days turnaround time. Whether within the country or overseas, air shipping can always deliver the order within two days.
Ground shipping
Ground shipping costs less than air shipping and uses trucks to transport the packages. Typically, it involves shorter distance transit. You need to assess the point of origin and point of destination to precisely determine the number of days in transit.
Those merchants who provide 2-day shipping through a ground network usually ship orders from warehouses or fulfillment centers in various regions. Consequently, they cover more areas for order fulfillment.
Benefits of 2-day Shipping
Here are the major benefits of offering two-day shipping.
Meet customer expectations
These days consumers demand quick shipping. They expect a lesser average waiting period compared to what it was a few years before. The guaranteed two-day shipping with a quick turnaround can guarantee a satisfying customer experience. Consequently, this can lead to better recommendations and customer reviews. Also, fulfilling their expectations can transform them into repeat customers. If you can’t meet their expectations through 2 day shipping, they will approach another company.
Reduce cart abandonment
Several factors contribute to why a customer reaches the checkout page and leaves it before making the purchase. The two prominent factors for cart abandonment are slow delivery speeds and high shipping costs.
You can reduce cart abandonment if you think about it from a customer perspective. For example, when they checkout, the e-commerce store can display various options, including the fastest and cheapest delivery. These options can help them choose the most suitable one and eliminate card abandonment.
Offering an affordably priced expedited delivery option can boost sales and increase conversion. This option can help avoid some customers from abandoning their carts. Make sure this option considers your profitability and fulfills the customers’ expectations.
Keep customers coming back
Consumers may approach another e-commerce store if you can’t offer them fast service. Your e-commerce business’ success and growth depend on the delivery time. Considering the competitors, offering only quality products is not enough to retain customers. Especially when offering two-day shipping, quick service is paramount to keep customers satisfied. If satisfied with your service, they may repeatedly purchase from your store and refer it to others. Offering quick services creates a sense of reliability in the market.
A significant share of customers abandons the retailers owing to a bad delivery experience. The chief reason is the slow delivery. So, you should pay special attention to fulfilling customers’ expectations to enhance your brand image and retain their loyalty.
Expand your marketing influence
Customers will likely purchase again from you if they receive an on-time delivery. You can endorse shipping offerings in your marketing strategies to encourage repeat purchases. Following this tactic increases customer retention.
You can sell directly on a marketplace; however, you don’t have your customer’s email address or other details. On the other hand, providing two-day shipping on your website helps you increase customer loyalty and expand your marketing influence. Selling on your e-commerce website allows you retain your brand image.
How to Keep 2-day Shipping Costs Low?
The two-day shipping can be very costly. Adopting the following strategies helps e-commerce companies to keep the two-day shipping cost low.
Use ground shipping and ship from urban fulfillment centers
One of the best ways to decrease shipping costs is to use ground shipping and ensure the inventory in the fulfillment centers is close to your customers. You can use urban fulfillment centers because many people live in large cities.
The shipping zones work such that if a package has to travel less distance, it will reach the customer faster and will incur a low cost. This means that the orders shipping to shipping zones in far destinations will take longer transit time and incur higher charges.
Offer 2-day shipping to only certain zip codes
Depending on your inventory’s fulfillment centers, you can cater to nearby customers using the relevant technology. For example, offering two-day ground shipping to customers in rural areas or unaccompanied parts of the country is impractical. This is because the delivery trucks can’t timely deliver the package there.
The following steps help you to understand how to offer 2-day shipping to only specific zip codes.
- The e-commerce platform integrates with a merchandising fulfillment company’s technology.
- The customer submits their zip code.
- If the zip code falls in the area of the 2-day shipping service, and the nearest fulfillment center has inventory, the customer will check the 2-day rate.
- If the zip doesn’t fall into the areas permitted in the 2-day shipping service, the shipping option will not be visible to the customer. Consequently, merchants can dynamically offer a cost-effective two-day ground shipping option to boost conversions for eligible customers. This option is invisible to those customers who don’t belong to the two-day shipping coverage.
Fulfill orders from multiple warehouses
Using only one e-commerce warehouse is not feasible because it limits your two-day ground shipping service to a particular region. If you aim to enlarge your If you are only using one e-commerce warehouse, you are limited to offering 2-day ground two-day ground shipping coverage, and you can use multiple fulfillment centers. They help you cover various regions in the country. Therefore, you can more efficiently and quickly fulfill customers’ expectations.
Specifically, if your customers are located throughout different areas of the country, you must distribute the inventory to multiple fulfillment centers. This approach helps you encompass more customers in the 2-day ground shipping coverage. If you fulfill 2-day shipping to more customers at a lower cost than air shipping, you can eventually decrease the buyers’ cart abandonment carts.
Retaining minimum purchase value
Retaining a minimum purchase value for the consumers to be eligible for 2-day shipping helps e-commerce sellers to maintain their profit margin. Many retailers use this approach to avoid losses.
Examples of 2-day Shipping
Various prevalent examples demonstrate 2-day shipping. Let’s discuss the most common ones.
Reaching out to carriers’ locations or post office
When you deal with in-house e-commerce fulfillment, you may have to frequently visit your local or chosen shipping carrier or the post office. You can select the appropriate shipping service to provide expedited shipping to customers who buy from your store.
If your company can seamlessly handle warehousing operations single-handedly, you can have a shipping carrier approaching your facility to collect the packages. This can entail two-day shipping if you can negotiate beforehand.
Partnering with a 3PL
A 3PL is a standard option for fulfilling orders to customers who demand delivery within 1 or 2 days. Many 3PLs allow e-commerce companies to partner with them to provide 2-day shipping to customers. While partnering with a 3PL, the online merchants convey their inventory to the 3PL’s fulfillment center. Subsequently, the 3PL is entirely responsible for shipping the merchandise to customers.
E-commerce companies can access the 3PL’s multiple fulfillment centers to offer quick delivery at an affordable cost. As soon as the customer places an order on the e-commerce store’s website, the 3PL’s fulfillment center team picks packs and ships items. Moreover, it sends order tracking details to the e-commerce store so they can share them with the customers.
Shipping carriers usually provide bulk discounts to companies with huge shipment volumes. Subsequently, 3PLs can pass these discounts over to their clients. Eventually, it can further lower the 2-day shipping cost.
Should All Sellers Offer Two-day Shipping?
Yes, all sellers should offer two-day shipping because it is the simplest way to boost your business sales and conversion rates. But if your business’s 2-day shipping cost is very high, you can combine it with slower delivery options and allow customers to determine what they need.
Conclusion
The expedited shipping in just two business days helps 2-day shipping benefit an e-commerce business in multiple ways. With the two-day shipping option, an e-commerce business can effectively meet customers’ expectations, retain customers, reduce cart abandonment rates, and elevate its brand image. So, this shipping option is a win-win strategy for e-commerce companies and customers.
FAQs
How much does 2 days of shipping cost?
The 2-day shipping cost can vary significantly based on the following factors.
- Service and carrier used
- Point of origin zip code
- Destination zip code
- Package weight and dimensions
- Type of products, time, and date you are shipping at
- Peak period
The rate the merchant charges the customers for two-day shipping varies based on the seller. The 2-day shipping cost may differ for the same product on two diverse sales channels. This is because it depends on each channel’s fees and fulfillment costs. Ordering a product with two-day shipping from a marketplace can cost less/more than ordering the same product with two-day shipping from a brand’s e-commerce website.
What should you consider before offering free 2-day shipping?
Regarding online purchases, free shipping is one of the most significant drawbacks. Not all e-commerce businesses can afford free 2-day shipping. They can afford it only if it is profitable. For instance, unless you sell costly products, offering free shipping will cost you more money, especially if you offer 2-day air shipping.
Firstly, sellers can test free 2-day shipping to a smaller base of customers by using a minimum buying threshold. The merchant charges the customer for a qualifying order should be more than the average order value to make the free 2-day shipping option effective.
How long is the 2nd-day shipping?
In some instances, two-day shipping takes two business days. If you place an order on a Friday night, you might not receive it until the following Tuesday. If you want to ship a package manually and visit the post, it will take two days from when you drop off your package.
Is 2-day shipping guaranteed?
Whether 2-day shipping is guaranteed or not depends on several factors. They are the shipping carrier, cutoff time, days of operation, weather, and more. Many e-commerce sellers can fulfill the delivery within two days. Certain online sellers only use two days as a delivery estimate.
However, some e-commerce sellers provide a money-back guarantee if the order doesn’t arrive in two days. Even in that case, the seller mentions nonfulfillment of 2-day delivery if mishaps like theft, missing packages, or bad weather. An e-commerce seller shouldn’t hurriedly provide guaranteed two-day shipping but try to uphold their promises as much as possible.
Is 2-day shipping really two days?
Two-day shipping doesn’t always guarantee that the customer receives the package within 48 hours of placing their order. Typically, two days mean two business days. Two-day countdown begins after the package is shipped from the fulfillment center.
The fulfillment center staff has to pick, pack, and mark an order before dispatching it. Hence, if the customer places the order late, the order may not be shipped within two days. In some instances, the countdown of two-day shipping begins the following day. Suppose an e-commerce company works only on weekdays. In that case, the countdown for the orders the customers place on Friday starts on Monday. If you have confusion, you must ask the e-commerce seller/service provider to explain how their two-day shipping process works.
