There are several suggestions on how to handle shipping and handling fees. It's advisable to consider these charges as a break-even proposition instead of a way to make more money, that tactic serves to minimize both the customers' distrust and a merchant's risk, Because the majority of consumers review these costs prior to making a purchase. Consumers are wiser to the true costs of shipping than retailers think.

It's recommended to e-tailers base shipping and handling charges on the weight of packages, not on how much a customer spends. But not all business owners agree with that. 54 % of retailers based shipping costs on order cost, while only 30 % based fees on weight. The right policy for your business depends on the nature of the products you sell.

In fact, in some instances, deviating from a weight-based method poses no real risk. For example: companies that charge shipping and handling fees based on order cost, business owners ask their customers to pay shipping and handling fees only if the order amount costs less than the company's break-even point. When orders exceed that amount, customers receive free shipping. (This approach only works in some circumstances)

It is possible for a merchant to break even on shipping and handling based on the price of the product if they sell a single product or a very homogeneous mix of products with a fairly consistent number of items in every order. But if the product mix varies, or if the order size varies, the possibility arises that many customers will get soaked on shipping and handling charges.

Shipping charges are what's paid to FedEx, UPS and the U.S Postal Service, so there is no making money on shipping. It's only critical service for encouraging customers to shop more often.

Customers spend a lot of time browsing products and visiting the site numerous times before purchasing, but once they do decide to purchase, they want it immediately we want to get our products in the customers' hands as quickly as possible for a price that does not defeat the convenience of buying online.

When there is no product line with large and heavy items, such as computers, you'd have to come up with a strategy that takes into account the relatively high cost of shipping and handling heavy items. But we must admit that sometimes the company actually loses money because of its shipping policy. Some companies beyond paying the charges for customers who buy more than $1,000, also pays for insurance on each item, Because it feels very important to offer their customers the best value and low shipping costs.

As making money on the Internet becomes increasingly important, e-tailers understandably want to seek out new sources of revenue, and charging higher shipping and handling fees may sometimes sound tempting. But inflating these charges can be dangerous. 69.4 % of online transactions in 2001 were abandoned. It seems concern over high shipping and handling costs was cited as one of the most popular reasons for online buyers to abandon their shopping carts. After all, the long-term interest of the retailer is best served if customers trust it.