Updating Product Weights for Accurate Shipping with FlavorCloud

Accurate product and packing material weights are critical in cross-border logistics, allowing FlavorCloud to calculate cross-border costs rapidly and precisely at checkout. As a best practice, we encourage our customers and partners to periodically review and update these weights to maintain accuracy in calculated international shipping costs.

Weight at Checkout vs. Weight at Fulfillment

FlavorCloud automatically calculates the total shipping cost of your international orders at checkout. This calculation considers the weights of individual products and quantities in the cart alongside the weight/dimensions of your packaging materials. The quote for shipping costs, customs, duties, and taxes is built in real-time, using data from your ecommerce platform.

Inaccurate weights can lead to shipping delays and additional charges. Therefore, ensuring that the weights and dimensions inputted in your ecommerce platform align with the actual values is crucial.

When the carrier scans your package, they determine the actual weight and shipping rate, which FlavorCloud settles. If the actual rate surpasses the estimated one at checkout, FlavorCloud will issue a reconciliation invoice for the difference.

Setting Default Package Information in FlavorCloud

You can set a default/standard shipping package dimension & weight in FlavorCloud. This measure acts as a failsafe to calculate shipping rates if FlavorCloud does not receive information from your store. Please note that this is not a substitute for accurately inputting this information in your store.

While these values are typically set during onboarding, we urge you to review this information periodically.

On the lefthand sidebar, select Account.

Under Account:

1. Choose “Shipping”
2. Scroll down to the “Average Package Settings” section.
3. Enter the accurate Length, Width, Height, and unit of measure.
4. Enter the accurate weight and unit of measure in the “Weight when empty” text box.
5. Click Save in the lower right part of the card.

NOTE: some exceptions exist, e.g., ShipBob customers should not edit the default package settings. If you have any questions, contact support@flavorcloud.com.

Updating Weights in your Store

The exact process varies based on your platform, but we’ve included examples for Shopify and BigCommerce below:

Shopify

On the lefthand sidebar, select Products. You will need to click on each product name and edit it individually.

Under Product Information:

1. Scroll down to the “Shipping” section.
2. Enter the accurate weight in the “Shipping weight” text box.
3. Click Save in the upper right corner.

This is a good opportunity to review your product’s customs information too:

1. Scroll to “Customs information.”
2. Update the text box “Country/Region of origin.”
3. Update the text box “HS (Harmonized System) code.”

BigCommerce

On the lefthand sidebar, select Products. You will need to click on each product name and edit it individually.

Under Product Information:

1. Select “Basic Information.”
2. Enter the accurate weight in the text box.
3. Click Save in the bottom right corner.

Take the opportunity to review your product’s customs information:

1. On the lefthand sidebar, select “Customs Information.”
2. Check the box for “Manage customs information.”
3. Enter the country of origin.
4. Click “+HS Code.”
5. From the “Destination Country” dropdown, choose “Rest of World.”
6. Enter the HS code into the text box.
7. Hit Save in the bottom right corner.

Finally, on the left-hand nav, go to “Fulfillment Information.”

1. Select “Dimensions and Weight” on the lefthand sidebar and ensure the information is accurate.

Working with a 3PL

If partnered with a 3PL, ensure your product information matches the 3PL system and your store.  Discrepancies can lead to inaccurate rates at checkout.

DIM Weight

FlavorCloud uses the greater of the actual or dimensional (DIM) weight at fulfillment. The DIM weight is calculated by multiplying a package’s length, width, and height and dividing by the DIM factor (for example, 166 for international shipments).

Length x Width X Height (in inches) / 166 (DIM factor)

For assistance, you can use FedEx’s dimensional weight calculator.

Support

For any questions about updating weights, setting up your FlavorCloud account, or anything else, please contact us at support@flavorcloud.com.