Rate Shopping
Updated
by
Tony Runyan
Rate Shopping
Rate Shopping is a feature offered by RSF that allows a user to choose a "virtual" shipping method which will evaluate the available shipping options that satisfy the criteria and choose the cheapest one for you. It can even choose a different shipping method for different origins on the same order. For example, if you have a warehouse on the east and west coast and an order for items that are not available in both warehouses, choosing the "Cheapest 3 Day" method for the order may result in one part of the order shipping via "UPS Ground" for the closer warehouse and "UPS Three-Day Select" for the further warehouse. The methods that may be enabled are:
- Cheapest 2 Day - two-day air and ground methods from all enabled carriers
- Cheapest 3 Day - three-day air and ground methods from all enabled carriers
- Cheapest All - all enabled methods from all enabled carriers
- Cheapest Ground - all strictly ground methods from all enabled carriers
- Cheapest On Time - all enabled methods from all enabled carriers that can reach the destination by the user's provided "Desired Delivery Date"
- Cheapest Overnight - all 1-day methods from all enabled carriers
- Cheapest Postal - all postal service methods and last-mile postal service methods enabled (e.g. FedEx SmartPost)
When one of these methods is chosen, our system will use all of the rating data provided to it to determine which carrier and service is the cheapest. The data required includes:
- Days In Transit Maps (map country and postal code to a maximum days in transit)
- Zone Maps (map country and postal code to a carrier's zone)
- Rate Plans (map package weight and zone to a shipping cost)
- DAS Maps (optional - tack on Delivery Area Surcharge for greater accuracy of cost to rural areas)
