What are shipping modes?

Shipping modes work as the counter, that can limit the number of packages being allocated throughout your shipping location’s working day or week. By setting up shipping modes, you can ensure your shipping locations don’t exceed volume agreements with particular carrier services for set days and time spans.

Why use shipping modes?

Shipping modes give you greater control over load-balancing your outbound volume allocation to carrier services.

Common use cases include:

  • Scaling up volume during peak periods, then returning to normal levels.
  • Limiting the number of packages sent to higher-cost services within a 24hr period.
  • Controlling package volumes based on shipping location capacity.

How to create / edit a shipping mode

Shipping modes are defined in the Ship user-interface:

  1. Go to Settings > Shipping Modes.

  2. Click Create New or Edit on an existing mode.

  3. Give your shipping mode an appropriate Name and Description.

  4. (Optional): Set the Valid To and From. Set the time span for the shipping mode to be active.
    Leave Valid To blank to have the shipping mode work all the time.

  5. Select the Carrier services to include.

  6. Select the Shipping locations to include.

  7. Set Allocation Properties
    Set up the allocation windows for 7 days a week (each 24hr period).

    1. Set the Start Time and Time Zone you want the shipping mode to start from.
      (This lays out 7 separate 24hr allocation windows).
    2. Set the Volume Limit of shipments to be allocated in any given 24hr period.
    3. Set the Allocation type:
      • Hard: When the volume limit is reached, it is removed from the available carrier services for package allocation (for the 24hr period).
      • Soft: If the volume limit is reached, the package can still allocate to a carrier service (for the 24hr period).

  8. Click Save or Update at the bottom of the page when you’ve fully set the details you want to include.

Great job, you’ve created a Shipping Mode, what now?

What now?

You can further enhance your allocation workflow by defining how specific packages, based on size, value, origin, and other attributes, are handled, as well as by excluding or restricting carrier services according to your chosen criteria.

In Ship, we configure this using Shipping Rules.