Want to increase sales and recover abandoned carts for your WooCommerce store? Offering a free shipping or percentage-based shipping discount can make a big difference. This comprehensive guide will walk you through how to set up discounts for different shipping zones and methods in WooCommerce.
Why You Should Offer Shipping Discounts
Before we get into the how-to, let‘s look at some key statistics that highlight the sales impact of offering free or discounted shipping:
Average cart abandonment rate is 69.57% globally [1]. Shipping costs are a top reason for abandoned carts. Providing free over-threshold shipping resulted in a 74% decrease in cart abandonment rate [2].
63% of online shoppers say free shipping is important when deciding to buy a product online [3]. Stores with free shipping deals see conversion rates double on average [4].
Average order value (AOV) increases by 31% with the minimum order value needed for free shipping [5]. Customers will buy more items in one purchase to reach your store‘s free shipping threshold.
Clearly, integrating some form of promotional shipping discount for your WooCommerce store is extremely beneficial. It results in higher customer retention, bigger purchase sizes, and more items sold overall.
Step 1 – Install Advanced Coupons
WooCommerce has basic coupon options built-in. But for greater control over shipping discounts, we strongly recommend the Advanced Coupons plugin.
Why Choose Advanced Coupons?
The premium version of Advanced Coupons enables powerful features absent in native WooCommerce:
- BOGO Deals: Perfect for holiday promotions
- Role Restrictions: Give special discounts to customer groups
- Usage Limits: Limit to single-use or set maximum uses
- Shipping Overrides: Offer fixed or percentage discounts
- Auto Apply: Coupons apply when conditions are met
Once installed, head to the plugin‘s License tab and activate the commercial license if you purchased it.
Advanced Coupons plugin with premium license activated
Having access to these advanced options will prove useful as you create targeted shipping discounts.
Step 2 – Configure Shipping Zones/Methods
The first thing you need to do is set up your shipping zones and define fulfillment rates under WooCommerce > Settings > Shipping:
Be sure to add:
- All regions/countries you ship to
- Realistic shipping rates per location
- Different shipping tiers (Standard, Express, etc)
This gives you shipping rates to discount from later. Flat rates are easiest to work with.
Sample flat rate shipping method
With your fulfillment zones and pricing configured, you‘re ready to make shipping coupons.
Step 3 – Create a Shipping Discount Coupon
Go to Marketing > Coupons and click Add Coupon to begin creating:
- Give your discount a clear Coupon Code
- Choose "Fixed Cart Discount"
- Enter
0for the Coupon Amount
Settings to create a new shipping discount coupon
The zero coupon amount will allow this code to override shipping instead of taking a set amount off the total cart value.
How to Add Shipping Overrides
Go to Shipping Overrides tab next:
- Select the Shipping Zone it applies to
- Choose the shipping Method being discounted
- Pick the Type of shipping discount
For example, give 50% off UPS Ground shipping:
Interface for adding shipping override rules
Be sure to click Save Shipping Overrides before moving on in the menu.
Some additional settings you can leverage:
- Usage restrictions: Set order minimums or limitations
- Auto apply: Disable manual coupon code entry
- Scheduling: Create limited-time discounts
Recommended Shipping Discount Types
We recommend A/B testing both fixed discount amounts (like $5 off) and percentage discounts to see which performs best for your store.
For the initial setup, try:
- Free shipping over minimum order value
- 50% off shipping on slower methods
- $5-10 off faster shipping options
Monitor analytics to determine any tweaks needed down the road.
Step 4 – Promote Your Shipping Discount
Completing the technical integration is only half the battle. You need to actively promote any new coupon you create.
Key Ways to Promote Shipping Coupons
- Display on cart / checkout pages
- Show banner ads on site
- Send email newsletter blurbs
- Create popup modal windows
- Show sitewide bars with countdowns
- Dedicate website sidebars / widgets
- Add reminders on product pages
Tools like OptinMonster make popup creation and display easy:
Using OptinMonster to promote a coupon via popup
The more visibility you give your shipping discount, the higher the redemption rates will be.
Analyzing Performance and Optimization
Continually check your coupon reporting to detect usage trends:
- Are people actually applying it at checkout successfully?
- What‘s the impact on sales metrics like AOV and conversion rate?
- Any unexpected user behavior like stacking?
Built-in coupon analytics in WooCommerce
Based on performance data, tweak aspects like:
- Discount percentage or fixed amount
- Minimum requirements to use
- Eligible shipping zones
- Expiration dates
Don‘t be afraid to test dramatic changes like 90% off Express shipping for power users.
Additional Tips for Shipping Coupons
Here are some final best practices when leveraging shipping discounts:
- Don‘t let your overall profit margins get too low
- Prevent coupon stacking to avoid losing money
- Give your best customers special treatment
- Personalize coupons in marketing emails for higher open and click rates
- Offer site-wide free shipping occasionally as a sales driver
And that covers the complete guide to preparing shipping discounts within WooCommerce! Let us know if you have any other questions.
Sources
- https://www.barilliance.com/cart-abandonment-rate-statistics/
- https://www.bigcommerce.com/blog/shipping-cart-abandonment/#offer-free-shipping-with-minimum-order-value
- https://webretailer.com/lean-commerce/free-shipping-important-customers/
- https://www.shipbob.com/blog/why-free-shipping-works/
- https://www.shipstation.com/blog/ecommerce-shipping-best-practices/
