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Todays post was originally published November 29, 2007 and is part of our Get Elastic Best Of rerun series. Though the examples do not reflect current site design, they are still helpful in crafting your own strategy for communicating shipping deadlines as Holiday 09 rapidly approaches.

Picture of Tips for Showing Holiday Shipping Deadlines [source:getelastic.com]

Though you may only have a few early-bird holiday shoppers this time of year, before you know it youll need to calm the will it get there on time? fears of last-minute shoppers. Great online stores address this anxiety by making holiday shipping cutoff dates easy to find on home pages and product pages. Lets take a look at some examples and tips:

Bed Bath and Beyond dedicates some central home page real estate to its holiday shipping information:

The tagline is not as clear as it could be - what exactly does holiday info mean? Behind the link lies the shipping cut off dates:

Art.coms FAQ-style page has information for US and European customers, but looks like Canadians are out of luck.

Tagline: Gifts on Time / Its Not Too Late For 12.24 Delivery

Great placement in top right of the home page where it will be noticed first:

And in case you missed it up top, its showcased on the left side of the homepage:

Tagline: Its Never Too Early To Shop And Get Free Super Saver Shipping

Amazon clarifies that the deadlines only apply to items bought from Amazon.com, not from the seller marketplace:

These deadlines apply only to items shipped from and sold by Amazon.com and refer to delivery on or before December 24, 2007. For products fulfilled by other sellers, that sellers shipping deadlines apply. Check under Availability on individual products pages to determine the seller. For complete holiday shipping information and information on restrictions, click here.

My hunch is most people will read the pretty table and ignore the text below. Just a hunch.

I like Best Buys Guarantee approach. It communicates additional value:

Guarantee means that they will credit your shipping charges and offer you a $10 or $20 digital coupon for your trouble if your order arrives late:

Its nice that Best Buy will refund shipping on late orders, but its also competing with retailers that offer free holiday shipping. But, Best Buy adds to the bottom of its home page a box showing its extended returns policy, complete with a little calendar icon showing January 31 (so you dont even need to click through to get the gist). Reducing consumer risk and easing online shopping anxieties may influence shoppers to stay on the site for all their shopping rather than checking out competitors offerings.

Tagline: Holiday Delivery - Order by December 15 for Standard Shipping

I like how Domestications shows the date right up front, so you dont even need to click through for details:

Whats novel is that Domestications has an interactive map (Im dubbing this Domestications Destinations) where you can click on any state and see specific cutoff dates:

Tagline: Holiday Delivery and Shipping Options

The chart shows cut off dates for the different holidays and shipping methods, and includes a reminder that frozen foods may need a few days extra to thaw:

Hickory Farms also takes the opportunity to remind customers that electronic gift cards always make it on time (good idea):

Nordstroms shipping details page lists various product categories shipping deadlines.

Shipping deadlines are also listed on product pages:

Saks one-ups your run-of-the-mill Free Shipping offer by adding Rush. Great value messaging.

The Sharper Image includes a link on the home page, further down in the footer but makes it stand out in red text. The footer is a common place for shipping information anyway, so its likely customers will be able to find it easily from any page:

Headline: Order By 1 PM PST December 22, 2007 For Guaranteed Delivery Before Christmas

The most detailed of the bunch, this deadline-headline eliminates any need to click through to a detail page, stating not once, but twice, the cutoff date:

1. Use clear wording like Shipping Deadlines, Shipping Cutoff or Order By December ___ rather than just Shipping Details or Shipping Info.

2. Make sure the information is easy to find on the home page and product pages.

3. Include where you ship on your detail page. If different states or countries have different cutoff dates, make this clear.

5. If different products have different shipping times, make sure to make that clear.

6. Include all shipping options: standard, expedited and express.

7. Remember that Christmas is not the only holiday of the season.

1. Offer a guarantee on your schedule. If the order arrives late, issue an e-coupon and pay for shipping.

3. Remind last-minute shoppers about electronic gift card options.[source:getelastic.com]

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