What is a Mixed Cart?
Mixed carts are online shopping carts that contain products that will need to be shipped from separate locations.
For example if my shopping cart contains an item that is only available fromĀ Endless AislesĀ and a product that is only available in the store.Ā When I check out online you will have to send those products to me from two different locations. That is a mixed cart.
By contrast, if I ordered two products that you had in your store. Then you just need to take them off the shelves and send them to me. They are coming from the same location. Therefore, that is not a mixed cart.
Products available from Multiple Locations
Mixed cartsĀ are complicated. One reason is because there are often overlapping or duplicate products. For instance, aĀ products in the typical pet store and the products available from the Endless Aisles warehouse overlap. For instance, many stores carry Blue Buffalo Chicken and Brown Rice Dry Dog Food. Endless Aisle carries this too.
What if this product is in the cart? Will the store choose to fulfill it by using Endless Aisles or directly from the store? This makes shipping rates challenging for an online store with multiple fulfillment methods.
Due toĀ ProximityĀ , the store can choose how they fulfill this product after the order comes through. Ā Depending on how the store chooses to route those items it may be a mixed cart or it may not.Ā Thus, establishing the shipping rates can still be tricky. It is important to think through your rates and test different scenarios to ensure your store is charging for fulfillment the way you expect.
Adding Store Pickup to the Mix
When setting up in-store pickup it is really important to pay attention to your rates and how they affect your cart. Customers will only be able to select two an option that represents a total of two fulfillment methods. Accordingly, customers will not be able to select to pickup one item, ship one item and have another item delivered.
If all the products in the cart are available from Endless Aisles and in-store then the customer will have a lot of options at checkout. Assuming that the store prefers to deliver products thenĀ the customer will be able to select between āStore Pickupā, āLocal Deliveryā and āStore Pickup & 2-3 Day Shippingā.
Examples
To help illustrate how the rates apply we will review some examples. For the sake of these examples, letās imagine thatĀ you charge for fulfillment in the following way:
- $5.95 for Shipping
- $9.00 for Delivery
- Free Store Pickup
In addition, you offer certain incentives for your customers to have a larger order size.
- Free Delivery over $49.
- Free Shipping over $49.
- For shopping carts that contain one in-store item and one Endless Aisles only item and the cart total is less than $49, you charge a flat $12 rate.
Finally, when the cart contains an item that is available through Endless Aisles and available in your store you prefer to deliver.
How do the rates work in different mixed cart scenarios given these settings?
Scenario A āĀ EA Item Only + Store Item Only &Ā Order Total for EA items and Store items both under $49.00 + Customer within Delivery Zone
In this scenario the customer will have two checkout options.
- $5.95 for Store Pickup & 2-3 Day Shipping
- $9 forĀ Local Delivery & 2-3 Day Shipping
Scenario B -EA Item Only + EA/Store Item &Ā Order Total for EA items and Store items both under $49.00Ā + Customer within Delivery Zone
In this scenario the customer will have three checkout options.
- $5.95 for 2-3 Day Shipping
- $5.95 for Store Pickup + 2-3 Day Shipping
- $9.00 for Local Delivery & 2-3 Day Shipping
Scenario C- EA Item Only + Store Item Only &Ā Order Total for EA items over $49 and order total for store items under $49Ā + Customer within Delivery Zone
In this scenario the customer will have two checkout options.
- $0.00 for 2-3 Day Shipping & Store Pickup
- $9 for 2-3 Day Shipping & Local Delivery
Scenario D ā EA/Store Item + Store Item Only & Order total for EA item alone is less than $49 but together items are over $49 + Customer within Delivery Zone
In this scenario the customer will have three checkout options.
- $5.95 for 2-3 Day Shipping & Store Pickup
- Free Store Pickup
- Free Local Delivery
Scenario E ā EA/Store Item + EA/Store Item & Order total for both is over $49 but individually each is less than $49 + Customer within Delivery Zone
In this scenario the customer will have three checkout options.
- $12 for Local Delivery & 2-3 Day Shipping
- Free Store Pickup
- $5.95 for 2-3 Day Shipping & Store Pickup
Conclusion
These are just five scenarios using very simple examples. In reality your customers will not all be within your delivery zone. They will order more than two products. And your order totals will be vary greatly. These scenarios should give you an idea of the variations in orders and rates that youāll experience as you choose to employ more complex fulfillment methods for your online store.