Instant shipping rates, integrated checkout, and curated carrier networks deliver a better buyer experience
AUSTIN, Texas, March 20, 2019 – uShip, the logistics technology platform for large-item transport, today announced the expansion of In-Home Delivery, a suite of technology tools that gives e-commerce sellers a competitive advantage in the booming $50 billion online furniture market.
uShip’s In-Home Delivery, which saw a 260 percent increase in furniture shipments in 2018, now includes instant shipping rates that integrate directly into sellers’ checkout process (via API), as well as curated carrier networks. Together these new features help furniture e-retailers large and small increase sales, reduce shipping costs, and provide a better experience for their buyers.
In-Home Delivery Overview
In the fast-growing, highly-competitive online furniture market, sellers face a multitude of challenges, including the need to display transparent shipping prices at checkout, reduce high cart abandonment rates, minimize damage claims, and access nationwide carriers. Key features addressing these challenges include:
- Instant Shipping Rates: Based on shipping intelligence data gathered over 15 years and from nearly 3 million bulky deliveries, uShip uses machine learning to provide attractive shipping rates to buyers while still keeping sellers’ costs down.
- Integrated Checkout: Custom API integration and uShip’s Shopify plugin display fixed shipping rates at checkout, helping address cart abandonment concerns. Depending on the seller’s business model, pricing strategies can include free shipping, transparent rates, or turning shipping into a profit center.
- Curated Carrier Networks: uShip gives sellers access to curated networks of feedback-rated, mobile-enabled transporters selected from its network of more than 40,000 active carriers. With traditional carriers, furniture shipments can change hands 6-8 times before delivery, whereas carriers on uShip offer single-touch, first-to-final mile, room-of-choice delivery. This reduces transit times by as much as 65 percent and minimizes damage claims, based on uShip customer data. Shipment tracking, insurance, and managed services round out the offering.
“As an emerging online collective for high-end brick and mortar furniture boutiques, we’re always exploring and testing ways to optimize our shopping cart conversions,” said Lynsey Humphrey, Founder of Design Kollective. “We worked with uShip on shipping price strategies, including the ability to display a ‘Shipping Included’ option to our buyers that has improved our shopping cart bounce rate in early testing.”
“Shipping antique cabinets, vintage armoires, and one-of-a-kind new sofas remain a major hurdle for online sellers, especially in a market where fast and free delivery is expected by buyers,” said Mike Williams, CEO of uShip. “Now, for the first time, online furniture sellers have the technology, tools, and network that elevate key points of their buyers’ experience to level the playing field with Amazon, Walmart, and big-box retailers.”
About uShip
uShip makes it quick, easy, and affordable to ship large or bulky items. From cars to cranes and furniture to freight, our straightforward and transparent platform helps people, businesses, e-commerce sellers, and multinational logistics companies ship with greater speed and efficiency. Launched in 2004, uShip is based in Austin, Texas. Find out more at uship.com, facebook.com/uship or on Twitter at @uship.
