Marketplace owners may use one of two methods to calculate shipping rates. One is based on the shipping methods set up by the sellers (e.g., synced directly from their Shopify store), and the second one overrides the sellers' methods and introduces unified shipping methods set up by the marketplace owner. This article will shed some light on the second option.
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1. How to switch on the unified marketplace shipping methods
2. How to create unified shipping methods in Vendo?
3. How to set shipping rates in unified shipping methods in Vendo?
4. How to set up reimbursements for sellers?

To switch the unified marketplace shipping methods on, the marketplace owner must first enable them in the Store details in the settings section of the Vendo dashboard.

The enterprise plan is required to use this feature.
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​Please Note! This is a one-way switch. The change to unified marketplace shipping methods is not reversible!

Sellers' products will now be shipped using shipping methods set up by the marketplace owner. The marketplace owner manually sets the amount of money reimbursed to each seller for shipping products.
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Once unified marketplace shipping methods are enabled, navigate to the shipping tab of the settings section of the Vendo-powered marketplace dashboard.
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Start adding a new shipping method by clicking the green "New Shipping Method" button in the top right corner, which will redirect to the following screen:
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By defining a name for the new shipping method, please remember that this is the wording that the customer will see during checkout. A good practice is for the shipping method name to include both:

Example: FedEx Overnight, USPS First Class International

It is widespread to have several shipping methods configured on the marketplace. This field is mandatory.

From the “Display” drop-down box, choose to present the new shipping method:

Vendo recommends selecting both, as cases requiring other selections are rare. This field is not mandatory.

Zones allow marketplaces to apply shipping rules to a particular geographic region. A single zone can be defined at the country or state level.

A shipping method may serve several zones at once. On the screen below, the marketplace set separate shipping zones for the United States, the United Kingdom, and countries within European Union.
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A calculator is a component of the Vendo shipping system. It calculates the shipping price for each shipping method. There are several types of calculators to choose from. By default, a new shipping method on a Vendo-powered marketplace has a flat rate calculator set.

On the Vendo platform, marketplace owners can use calculators to set shipping rates for each unified shipping method.

Example: In this example, the marketplace uses a flat rate calculator and charges $8 for each shipment with this method.
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Vendo-powered marketplaces can use the following calculators to set shipping rates for unified marketplace shipping methods:

They are used only to calculate shipping rates for products with the digital shipping category. Digital products on Vendo-powered marketplaces omit the physical delivery step by default; the calculator is used if the customer mixes physical and digital products in one cart.

The Flat Percent calculator allows marketplace owners to set shipping rates as a percentage of the total amount charged for the order. The amount is calculated as follows:

[item total] x [flat percentage]

Example: An order has an item total of $31. The calculator is configured to use a flat percent. The percentage is set to 10%. The shipping rate is $3.10 because $31 x 10% = $3.10.
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The Flat Rate calculator allows marketplace owners to apply a flat shipping rate per order regardless of the number of items.

The amount and the currency charged per order can be set for each shipping method separately.

Example: Vendo-powered marketplace offers two UPS unified shipping methods that apply to the whole order - “UPS 1-Day” which costs $10, and “UPS 2-Day” which costs $15.

To set it up, the marketplace owner creates a UPS 1-Day shipping method, chooses the flat rate calculator, and adds $15 as the amount. Separately, the marketplace owner creates a UPS 2-Day shipping method, chooses the flat rate calculator, and adds $10 as the amount.

As a result, the marketplace's customer can now choose between receiving the order in 1 day by paying $15 or in 2 days by paying $10.

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The Flexible Rate calculator is typically used for bulk shipping discounts by setting a specific shipping price for the first product and subsequent prices for other products up to a certain amount. It's a great solution if a business ships products in bulk.

The Flexible Rate calculator fields are as follows:

Example: The marketplace owner wants to set a shipping rate that allows the customer to pay only for the shipment of the first two products. Adding more products to the basket should keep the shipping cost the same.

To do so, set the following:

With this setting:

Very similar to the Flat Rate but calculated per item, not the whole order. It allows marketplace owners to determine the shipping rates based on the number of items in the order.

Example: Flat rate per item amount is set to $10. A customer places an order with 4 items, so the total shipping price for the order is $40.

The Price Sack calculator is a way to offer discounted shipping rates to orders over a certain order amount. The Price Sack calculator takes four inputs:

Example: For orders above $25, the marketplace wants to offer free shipping. For orders below $25, the shipping price should be $8. These are the settings to add:

A customer whose order subtotal equals $23 would be offered a shipping cost of $8 using this shipping method. A different customer whose order subtotal equals $25 would be provided free shipping.

Setting up transit times minimum and maximum days will help your client estimate the delivery date. We will display this information on checkout.
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In the Partner Reimbursements section of the shipping method edit page, marketplace owners will find a place to set up how much money each seller will get after shipping an order to the end customer.

Express, 1-day, or other premium methods may require larger compensation than the standard shipping methods.
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The amount set here will be added to the money transfer the seller will receive from Stripe. It will be presented as a shipping cost on the seller's orders.
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Sellers have to match their shipping methods to the ones created by the marketplace owner if the unified delivery is enabled.
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We would love to hear your feedback at support@getvendo.com or through the chat available in the bottom right corner of your screen.