The latest bar type in FooBar Pro, the WooCommerce Free Shipping Bar, is now available. This bar allows you to set up a Free Shipping notification, as well as show customers when they have spent enough money to qualify for the free shipping.
This is a great addition to any online shop that uses WooCommerce to sell products. Not only does it serve to notify customers of the free shipping offer, it also incentivises shoppers to buy more.
Let’s take a look at some of the benefits of this bar, before we give you a quick rundown of how it works.
Why You Need A Free Shipping Notification
Online shopping, as we’ve mentioned in previous posts, is on an upward trend. Many existing retail outlets have introduced an online element, while other shops can only be found online. But that means that there is plenty of competition, regardless of what you’re selling. So you need every advantage you can get.
One way to do this, is to offer free shipping. But then, of course, you need to let your customers know that free shipping is available. This is where the WooCommerce Free Shipping Bar is so useful. It tells your customers that they’ll be rewarded for shopping with you, by getting their items delivered for free.
Using a reward system, such as loyalty points or (as in this case) free shipping, helps to build brand loyalty and encourages customers to return. The other benefit of free shipping is that customers usually have to do something to get this reward. In the case of the FooBar free shipping bar, this requires a minimum spend. In other words, anyone who wants the free shipping, has to spend a certain amount, be it $50 or $100.
Placing the free shipping notification bar on the ‘shop’ pages of your site, keeps it front and center, so customers are continually reminded of the offer. As they add items to the cart, the notification keeps customers informed about how much progress they’ve made towards the free shipping. The notification continually reminds users that they can qualify for the free shipping by adding items to the cart. After all, who can resist adding just a few more items to get the saving of free shipping.
So the bar works for you in two ways. One, it inspires customer loyalty, as it offers a reward to those who spend at your store. And two, it encourages customers to add items to their carts until they qualify for the free shipping. It’s a great way to motivate customers, while giving them something in return.
How The WooCommerce Free Shipping Bar Works
This bar is made up of three parts, or different slides, that display to customers as they shop. The first part is the initial message, or offer. This will be something to the effect of ‘Free shipping on orders over $100’.
Here’s a look at this slide. In this case, the bar is displayed on any ‘Shop’ pages on the site, but also includes a toggle button on the side, so customers can close the message.
As soon as an item gets added to the cart, the bar will change to the next slide. This will show the progress made towards the minimum spend amount – in the screenshot below, you can see that the target amount here is $100, but the customer has only added $80 worth of products to the cart. As items are added, the bar automatically updates, letting you know how close you are to the free shipping.
This slide can show the text only, informing visitors of how much they have spent and what they need to spend to get the free shipping. You can also include a visual cue, the progress bar – with the spend percentage and an icon – which is a more eye-catching element. The progress slide can be an enticing way to motivate customers to add items to their cart until they qualify.
The final slide, displaying the Qualification message, will appear once customers have enough items in their cart to qualify for free shipping. Here you can choose to add buttons to direct customers to their cart and/or the checkout, making it easier for them to finalise their purchase.
The WooCommerce Free Shipping bar, as the name suggests, integrates with WooCommerce to pull in the amount spent, as well as the target amount. Users can set this up easily in the WooCommerce plugin, setting the countries or zones for which the offer will apply, as well as the minimum amount that customers need to spend in order to qualify.
Once the WooCommerce Free Shipping is set up, it’s a simple matter to create the bar. The default messages will automatically pull in the required numbers, but you can update the rest of the message to read as you wish. As we mentioned above, you can include buttons in the final slide – again these are linked by default to the checkout and cart pages, but you can change these as well. And, should you wish, you can add a link in the initial message on the first slide; for example, you could link to your delivery FAQ, your return policy, or your T&Cs.
The WooCommerce Free Shipping bar is included in FooBar PRO, which means you also get the advanced customizations and icons. With this, you can add custom or gradient colors, choose the icons for the progress bar and toggle buttons, and change the font size.
You’ll also be able to choose the position of the bar – we like it at the top of the page where it’ll get the most attention, but you could position the bar at the bottom or on either side. You can also use the scheduling feature to set when the bar will appear, and when it will stop showing. And finally, you can choose to show it site-wide, or use the conditional visibility feature to only show the bar on specific pages, such as your shop and cart pages. You can find out more about how this bar works in this article.
With all of these benefits and features, it’s easy to see how the WooCommerce Free Shipping bar is a worthwhile addition to any online store that sells products for shipping. Not only does it reward customers, it also motivates them to spend a minimum amount at your store. Plus, with eye-catching effects, you can grab your customer’s attention.
The WooCommerce Free Shipping bar is now available with FooBar PRO!