Preparing the shipment

Many sellers decide to hire a service provider to ship items on their behalf. Depending on the services that were agreed upon in your contract, the service provider may be hired to pick up the items from your business, send your items and then report the status back to your PlentyONE system.

PlentyONE allows customers to manage their fully customised shipping processes and trigger nearly all processes automatically. Your PlentyONE system efficiently controls the entire shipping process using processes. It carries out everything from linking items with shipping profiles to registering shipments and printing shipping labels. The initial time that it takes to carry out the settings pays off when you have an efficient shipping process that automatically carries out routine tasks.

This page of the manual describes how you prepare the shipping process and which shipping service provider-specific settings you need to carry out. Some service providers offer a complete service which includes storing and packing the items. For further information, refer to the chapter Overview of fulfilment service providers.

1. Setting up countries of delivery

Set up the countries that you want to ship your items to in the Setup » Orders » Shipping » Settings menu in the Countries of delivery tab. The overview contains a list of all the countries of delivery that are available in PlentyONE. The country names used in the system are displayed in the column Standard name. The standard name cannot be changed and is not visible for your customers. Use the column Name to enter the name that is displayed to your customers in the online shop, e.g. an alternative spelling or an abbreviation.

1.1. Editing and activating countries of delivery

Use the Overview tab to edit and activate the countries of delivery.

Editing and activating countries of delivery:

Go to Setup » Orders » Shipping » Delivery countries.
Carry out the settings. Note Table 1.
Save () the settings.

Table 1. Overview of countries of delivery
Setting	Explanation
ID	Internal country of delivery ID. A consecutive ID is automatically assigned by the system and cannot be changed.
Name (xy)	Enter the name of the country as it should be shown in the online shop and on documents. *Important:* The name of the country of delivery can be saved in various languages. In the Filter tab, select the language code from the drop-down list Language (Name) and click on Search. The names that are saved for this language are displayed. You can edit the names in the column Name (xy) of the overview. Edit the names as desired and save the changes.
Standard name	This is the standard name for the country of delivery. Cannot be changed.
Active	Select one of the following options: Active = The country of delivery is available. Inactive = The country of delivery is not available. Backoffice is active = Countries of delivery with this setting are only visible in the PlentyONE system and not in the online shop. Supplier is active = Countries of delivery with this setting cannot be selected as the standard country of delivery in the Setup » Client » [Select client] » Orders menu.
Warehouse	Select which warehouse the country of delivery should be assigned to. This warehouse is automatically selected for orders from this country. Select ALL if the country of delivery should be assigned to all of the warehouses. In this case, the warehouse with the lowest ID is automatically selected for the orders. Also pay attention to the warehouse settings in the Setup » Orders » Settings menu.
Language	Select the standard country of delivery for each language. It is only possible to assign one language to a country of delivery.

1.2. Searching for and displaying countries of delivery

All countries of delivery are displayed in the Overview tab by default. Use the options in the Filter tab to specify which countries of delivery should be displayed in the overview.

Searching for and displaying countries of delivery:

Go to Setup » Orders » Shipping » Settings.
Click on the Countries of delivery tab.
Carry out the settings in the Filter area. Note Table 2.
Click on Search.
→ The countries of delivery found are displayed in the Overview tab.

Table 2. Filter options for countries of delivery
Setting	Explanation
ID	Filters countries of delivery according to the internal ID of the country.
Name	Filters countries of delivery according to the name of the country.
Standard name	Filters countries of delivery according to the standard name of the country.
Warehouse	Select a warehouse if you only want to display the countries of delivery for this warehouse.
Active	Inactive = Only displays the countries of delivery that are not activated. Active = Only displays the countries of delivery that are activated. Backoffice is active = Only displays countries of delivery with the setting Backoffice is active. Supplier is active = Only displays countries of delivery with the setting Supplier is active.
Language (name)	Select a language.

2. Creating a region

Regions are groups of all countries of delivery that have the same shipping costs.

Click on the New region tab and create the necessary regions by selecting the countries of delivery that belong to each region. The regions become available and can be edited in the Overview tab.

Before creating the regions, plan carefully which and how many regions you need for grouping together your countries of delivery in a useful way. This is important because shipping costs are entered in the shipping profiles for each region and not for each country of delivery. Sellers located in the United Kingdom would likely need the following 3 regions at minimum. Also pay attention to the different island regions for which you presumably might determine higher shipping costs than for mainland deliveries. Here you can find a list of the postcodes for island regions that are saved on the system side in PlentyONE.

Have you activated the necessary countries of delivery?

Make sure that you activated all of the necessary countries of delivery before you create regions. A country of delivery can only be assigned to one region. After it has been assigned, it is no longer available for other regions.

Creating a region:

Go to Setup » Orders » Shipping » Settings.
Click on the Regions tab.
Click on the New region tab.
→ The Available countries column lists all of the countries of delivery that are not yet assigned to any region.
Select the desired countries of delivery in the Available countries column.
Use the arrows to move these countries of delivery to the Selected countries column.
Note: Use the double arrow buttons to move all of the countries from one column to the other.
Enter a name for the region into the Name line.
Save () the settings.
→ The newly created region is displayed in the Overview tab.
Follow the same pattern to create other regions until all countries of delivery are assigned to a region and the list of Available countries is empty.

Assign all countries of delivery

All countries of delivery have to be assigned to a region. Otherwise, it is not possible to create a valid shipping profile.

Editing a region

Proceed as follows to edit the region.

Editing a region:

Go to Setup » Orders » Shipping » Settings.
Click on the Regions tab.
Expand the region in the Overview tab ().
Make changes to the settings as needed.
Save () the settings.

Conditions for deleting a region

A region can only be deleted if it is no longer being used in the shipping profiles. If you receive an error message while deleting a region, check whether there are still settings for this region saved within the table of shipping charges. A region can only be deleted once all of these connections are completely removed.

3. Entering item bundles and shipper data

Use the menu Setup » Orders » Shipping » Shipping service provider » Settings to specify which data should be transferred to shipping service providers when item bundles are used. You can either transmit shipping data for the basic item or for the item bundle. The item bundle setting is valid for all shipping providers that are set up in your PlentyONE system. Furthermore, use this menu to save shipper data for all of the warehouses in your PlentyONE system. Shipper data is saved for each warehouse. This menu lists the warehouses for all of your active countries of delivery.

Entering item bundles and shipper data:

Go to Setup » Orders » Shipping » Shipping service provider » Settings.
Select the setting for your item bundles.
Expand the warehouse in the Shipper data area ().
Enter the data.
Save () the settings.

4. Registering with a shipping service provider

First register with the shipping service provider in order to set up the shipping service provider in PlentyONE. Visit the shipping service provider’s website for information about the registration process.

5. Setting up the interface to the shipping service provider

Set up the interface to a shipping service provider as described below. Go to the sub-chapters of the chapter Overview of the shipping service providers to get to know which data you have to enter in the menu of the shipping service provider.

Setting up the interface to the shipping service provider:

Go to Setup » Orders » Shipping » Shipping service provider.
Open the menu of the shipping service provider.
Enter the data.
Note the information about the shipping service providers in the sub-chapters of the Overview of the shipping service providers chapter.
Save () the settings.

6. Creating a shipping service provider

Create the shipping service provider as described below.

Creating a shipping service provider:

Go to Setup » Orders » Shipping » Settings.
Click on the Shipping service provider tab.
In the Overview tab, click on New ().
→ A new line is added at the bottom of the overview.
Carry out the desired settings. Note Table 3.
Save () the settings.

Table 3. Overview of the shipping service providers
Setting	Explanation
ID	Internal ID of the shipping service provider. A consecutive ID is automatically assigned by the system and cannot be changed.
Name (xy)	Enter the shipping service provider name as it should be displayed in the shopping cart and on the invoice. You can either enter the real name of shipping service providers, e.g. `DHL`, or you can enter a more general term like `insured shipping`. Or determine a combination of both: `DHL Insured shipping`. This name is visible for your customers in the online shop.
Name (back end)	Enter the shipping service provider name as it should be displayed in your system. You can either enter the real names of shipping service providers, e.g. DPD or DHL, or you can enter an alternative name that describes the shipping service provider, e.g. Swiss shipments. This name is not visible for your customers in the online shop.
Shipping service provider	Select the shipping service provider. This is especially important if you entered an alternative description under Name and/or if you did not use a tracking URL.
Tracking URL	Enter the tracking URL of the shipping service provider.
Split URLs	Select the option if you want to split the tracking URLs. In this case, a separate URL is used for each tracking number. *Example:* If the order contains 3 package numbers, the email template where you inserted the template variable `$TrackingURL` will display 3 separate tracking URLs.
Separator	If you want to use one URL for all tracking numbers, enter a desired separator in this field. *Example:* If the order contains 3 package numbers, the email template where you inserted the template variable `$TrackingURL` will display one URL with all tracking numbers separated by the separator you entered. *Note:* If no separator was entered, a comma is automatically used as separator.
Address	Enter the complete address of the shipping service provider. *Note:* If the option Agreement upon data transfer is activated in the shipping profile, the address of the shipping service provider is displayed in a checkbox in the plentyShop. If the customer activates the checkbox, they agree that their telephone number and email address are transferred to the shipping service provider. It is possible to change this decision again in the detailed view of an order.

Tracking URL

Many shipping service providers allow customers to track their packages with tracking URLs. Customers see the tracking URL when they place their order or they receive the URL in an email. Enter the template variable $TrackingURL into your email template.

A functional tracking URL should include the package number and the recipient’s postcode. Therefore, make sure that your tracking URLs include the template variables $PaketNr and, if necessary, $PLZ.

The currently valid, known tracking URLs can be found in the chapter of the shipping service provider. Via the Overview of shipping service providers you can quickly access the chapters of the shipping service providers.

7. Searching for shipping service providers

All shipping service providers are displayed in the Overview tab by default. Use the options in the Filter tab to specify which shipping service providers should be displayed in the overview. You can edit the shipping service providers at any time in the Overview tab.

Searching for a shipping service provider:

Go to Setup » Orders » Shipping » Settings.
Click on the Shipping service provider tab.
Carry out the settings in the Filter area. Note Table 4.
Click on Search.
→ The shipping service providers that correspond to the search criteria are displayed in the Overview tab.

Table 4. Filter options for shipping service providers
Setting	Explanation
Search	Start the search. The shipping service providers that correspond to the selected filter criteria are displayed in the Overview tab.
Reset	Resets the selected filter criteria.
ID	Filters shipping service providers according to the internal ID of the provider.
Name	Filters shipping service providers according to the name of the provider.
Standard name	Filters shipping service providers according to the standard name of the provider.
Tracking URL	Filters shipping service providers according to the tracking URL of the provider.
Shipping service provider	Filters shipping service providers according to the option that was selected in the drop-down list Shipping service provider.
Language	Filters shipping service providers according to the language.

8. Creating a shipping profile

The individual shipping profiles are different shipping methods, which your customers can choose later on during checkout or which are assigned automatically to certain types of orders by the online shop. For example, you can offer your customers a cheap standard delivery and a more expensive express delivery. You can also set up another shipping profile for eBay listings which the system exclusively uses for orders from the market eBay. Find tips and tricks in the sub-chapters which you can make use of when creating your shipping profiles. Afterwards, it is describes how you create tables of shipping charges for every shipping service provider and region.

Now create the shipping profile for the shipping service provider. The number of shipping profiles depends on the required shipping services. Create a different shipping profile for every shipping service.

Creating a shipping profile:

Go to Setup » Orders » Shipping » Settings.
Click on the Shipping profiles tab.
Click on New ().
Select the shipping service provider that you just created from the drop-down list.
Carry out the desired settings. Note Table 5.
Save () the settings.
→ The Table of shipping charges tab appears.

Table 5. Creating a new shipping profile
Setting	Explanation
ID	The ID of the shipping profile is assigned by the system and cannot be changed. Once you saved the shipping profile, the ID is displayed in the Overview tab.
Shipping service provider	Select the shipping service provider from the drop-down list.
Name	The name in this field is displayed in the online shop to your customers. Enter a name, e.g. `Standard` or `Express`. If you operate your online shop in multiple languages, use the drop-down list to save names for every language that you need.
Name (back end)	Enter an internal name for the shipping profile. The name is only displayed in your system. It is not visible for customers in the online shop.
Flag	Select a flag from the drop-down list that is shown in the order overview. The flag indicates which shipping profile is saved at a glance.
Priority	Select the priority from the drop-down list. The priority determines which shipping profile is displayed first, second, third, etc.
Category	Select a category from the drop-down list. The category is another way to prioritise shipping profiles in the shopping cart. Category 1 is selected by default. This means that all of the shipping profiles are given the same priority. Further information can be found in the chapter Tips and tricks: Category.
Item extra shipping charge	Place a check mark to activate the item extra shipping charge that are saved in the item data record. Up to 2 extra shipping charges can be saved for the item’s main variation in the Shipping area. Extra shipping charge 1 is added to the shipping costs for the first item. Extra shipping charge 2 is added to the shipping costs for all additional items. Extra shipping charges are useful for large or bulky items that are particularly expensive to ship. Further information can be found in the chapter Tips and tricks: Extra shipping charges.
PostIdent	PostIdent is the authority verification by the Deutsche Post AG. It serves to verify customers, e.g. in connection with the proof of age for 18+ items. If you want to activate this option, place a check mark. *Note:* Items with an 18+ age rating have to be linked to a shipping profile that the PostIdent option was activated for.
Activate for new items	Select the option if you want the shipping profile to automatically be assigned to new items. You should select this option for new items for at least one shipping profile. In doing so, new items are always assigned automatically to this shipping profile. An item cannot be shipped if it is not linked to at least one shipping profile. *Note:* This setting only applies when you manually create items, but not via REST or import.
Cash on delivery	Select the option. This allows your customers to select the payment method Cash on delivery in your plentyShop. *Important:* Installing the cash on delivery plugin is required. You can find the plugin in the plentyMarketplace.
Packing station active	Select the option. This allows your customers to enter the field Packing station in an optimised way in your plentyShop. *Important:* It is required that the plugins Ceres and IO are installed.
Post office active	Select the option. This allows your customers to enter the field Post office in an optimised way in your plentyShop. *Important:* It is required that the plugins Ceres and IO are installed.
Agreement upon data transfer	If you select the option, your customers will see a checkbox in your plentyShop where they have to place a check mark to agree that their phone number and email address might be transferred to the shipping service provider. In the detailed view of an order, it is possible to change this decision again.
Transfer email and telephone number	Select whether the email address and the telephone number should be transferred to the shipping service provider or not or whether an alternative value should be transferred. If you select the option Transfer if available, otherwise transfer alternative, it will be checked whether an email address and a telephone number are available at the delivery address of the order. If this data is not available, the alternative values that you saved in the fields Alternative email and Alternative telephone number will be transferred. *Note:* By default, this data is not transferred to the service provider (GDPR conformity).
Alternative email	This setting is only visible if the option Transfer alternative or Transfer if available, otherwise transfer alternative was selected in the drop-down list Transfer email and telephone number. Enter an alternative email address that should be transferred to the service provider, if applicable.
Alternative telephone number	This setting is only visible if the option Transfer alternative or Transfer if available, otherwise transfer alternative was selected in the drop-down list Transfer email and telephone number. Enter an alternative telephone number that should be transferred to the service provider, if applicable.
Extra charge for islands	Many shipping service providers charge a higher fee when shipping to island regions. You as seller should not be left with these costs. Therefore, open each shipping profile and define a surcharge that is added when shipping to island regions. Postcodes for island regions are saved in the system. The order is automatically synchronised. If you activated the extra charge for islands, this charge is only calculated if the system recognises this postcode as an island region. The island surcharge applies for each item when using the calculation type Item shipping charge. Would you like to know which island regions are saved on the system side in your PlentyONE system? Have a look at the list of postcodes for island regions in the expandable box below this table.
Clients (stores)	Select one of the options or select the option ALL if the shipping profile should apply to all clients (shops). This option is only displayed if at least one client (shop) is set up.
Order referrer	Select one or several of the options to determine possible order referrers for this shipping profile. Alternatively, select ALL if you want to activate all referrers.
Blocked payment methods	Select all the payment methods that should not be offered for the shipping profile. If you have shipping profiles that should not include a cash on delivery option, make sure to select all of the options that are used in connection with cash on delivery.
Blocked customer classes	Block one or more customer classes for the shipping profile by placing a check mark.
Shipping groups	If you want to create groups for your shipping profiles, enter a name for a shipping group here and click on Add. Enter this name into every shipping profile that should belong to this group. You end up with various groups which contain different shipping profiles. *Example:* Shipping group A contains the shipping profiles 1 and 2. Shipping group B contains the shipping profiles 3 and 4. If you want to assign an item to shipping profiles 3 and 4, open the item and select shipping group B from the drop-down list in the item’s Global tab in the Shipping profiles area. This function allows you to easily and quickly assign the shipping profile to new items.
Shipping identification	This field is currently without any function.
Last change	The date of the last change of the shipping profile is shown here.
eBay
Account	Select one or more eBay accounts or select the option ALL. *Important:* You need to have set up at least 2 accounts, otherwise this option is not visible. Further information can be found in the chapter Tips and tricks: Shipping costs for orders placed on eBay.
Listing type	Decide which eBay listing type you want to activate this shipping profile for.
Further options
Express delivery	Select the option if you want to use this shipping profile for express delivery. *Important:* Make sure that the shipping service provider offers express delivery. This is required to use the option.
Loyalty program	Select one or more loyalty programs. You can use the loyalty programs with eBay Plus or Amazon. *Important:* If you select a loyalty program for a shipping profile, you can only use the shipping profile for orders on the marketplace that are using a loyalty program. It is not possible to use the shipping profile for the online shop. If, for example, the eBay Plus option is activated in a shipping profile, the shipping profile is only used for eBay Plus orders. Therefore, create an extra shipping profile that you only use for the loyalty program.

Default shipping profile cannot be deleted

When you defined a default shipping profile in the Setup » Client » [Select client] » Orders menu, the button to delete this shipping profile from the shipping profile overview in the Setup » Orders » Shipping » Settings » Tab: Shipping profiles menu is disabled. Thus, it is not possible to delete the shipping profile that is saved as default shipping profile.

List of postcodes for island regions

The postcodes listed in the following are saved on the system side for the island regions. The postcode is automatically synchronised in the order. If the system recognises the postcode as an island region, the extra fee for islands that you determined will be added automatically to the shipping costs in the checkout.

Germany
- 18565 (Hiddensee)
- 25845 - 25849 (Nordstrand, Pellworm)
- 25859 (Hallig Hooge)
- 25863 (Langeneß)
- 25869 (Gröde)
- 25929 - 25956 (Föhr)
- 25960 - 25999 (Sylt)
- 26465 (Langeoog)
- 26474 (Spiekeroog)
- 26486 (Wangerooge)
- 26548 (Norderney)
- 26571 (Juist)
- 26579 (Baltrum)
- 26757 (Borkum)
- 27487 (Heligoland)
- 27498 (Heligoland)
- 27483 (Heligoland)
- 83256 (Chiemsee)

Denmark
- 4592 (Sejerø)

France
- 20000 - 20999 (Corsica)

Greece
- 18000 - 18099 (Saronic Islands)
- 18900 - 18999 (Saronic Islands)
- 28000 - 29999 (Ionian Islands)
- 31000 - 31999 (Ionian Islands)
- 49000 - 49999 (Corfu/Ionian Islands)
- 63086 (Mount Athos)
- 63087 (Mount Athos)
- 70000 - 74999 (Crete)
- 80000 - 85999 (Kythira/Ionian Islands and islands in the Aegean Sea)

Italy
- 25050 (Monte Isola)
- 58010 (Elba with Tyrrhenian islands)
- 08010 - 08100 (Sardinia)
- 09010 - 09049 (Sardinia)
- 09070 - 09100 (Sardinia)
- 09124 (Sardinia)
- 09126 (Sardinia )
- 09170 (Sardinia)

Netherlands
- 1156 (Waterland)
- 1156AA - 1156ZZ (Waterland)
- 1791AA - 1797ZZ (Texel)
- 8881AA - 8884ZZ (West-Terschelling)
- 8891AA - 8897ZZ (West-Terschelling)
- 8899AA - 8899ZZ (Vlieland)
- 9161AA - 9161ZZ (Ameland)
- 9166AA - 9166ZZ (Schiermonnikoog)
- 1791 - 1797 (Texel)
- 8881 - 8884 (West-Terschelling)
- 8891 - 8897 (Terschelling)
- 8899 (Vlieland)
- 9161 - 9164 (Ameland)
- 9166 (Schiermonnikoog)

Portugal
- 9000 - 9390 (Funchal/Madeira)
- 9400 (Porto Santo/Madeira)
- 9500 - 9690 (Azores)
- 9700 - 9950 (Azores)
- 9960 - 9980 (Azores)

Spain
- 07000 - 07079 (Balearic Islands)
- 07081 - 07999 (Balearic Islands)
- 35000 - 35079 (Canary Islands)
- 35081 - 35999 (Canary Islands)
- 38000 - 38079 (Canary Islands)
- 38081 (Canary Islands)

United Kingdom
- IM47NL (Isle of Man)
- BT1-82 (Northern Ireland)
- BT92-94 (Northern Ireland)
- GY1-9 (Channel Island of Guernsey)
- JE1-4 (Channel Island of Jersey)
- IM1-9 (Isle of Man)
- HS1-9 (Hebrides and Scottish Highlands)
- IV1-28 (Hebrides and Scottish Highlands)
- IV 36 (Hebrides and Scottish Highlands)
- IV40-56 (Hebrides and Scottish Highlands)
- IV63 (Hebrides and Scottish Highlands)
- KA27-28 (Hebrides and Scottish Highlands)
- PA41-78 (Hebrides and Scottish Highlands)
- PH19-26 (Hebrides and Scottish Highlands)
- PH31-44 (Hebrides and Scottish Highlands)

8.1. Tips and tricks: Extra shipping charges

The following partial amounts are added together if an order includes items with extra shipping charges:

The shipping costs that were entered into the shipping profile (basic shipping charge)
The extra shipping charge 1 for the item with the highest extra shipping charge
The extra shipping charge 2 for each additional item

Example: Adding extra shipping charges for different items

In this example, a customer orders 2 PCs and 2 monitors. The following shipping costs are saved for the items:

Item 1: PC

Basic shipping charge (shipping profile) = EUR 3.99
Extra shipping charge 1 = EUR 5.00
Extra shipping charge 2 = EUR 3.00

Item 2: Monitor

Basic shipping charge (shipping profile) = EUR 3.99
Extra shipping charge 1 = EUR 4.00
Extra shipping charge 2 = EUR 2.00

The following shipping costs are calculated for the order:

EUR 3.99 (basic shipping charge) + EUR 5.00 (PC: extra shipping charge 1) + EUR 3.00 (PC: extra shipping charge 2) + EUR 2.00 (Monitor: extra shipping charge 2) + EUR 2.00 (Monitor: extra shipping charge 2) = EUR 15.99

Example: Extra shipping charges for multiple copies of the same item

In this example, a customer orders 1 PC, then 2 PCs and then 3 PCs. The following shipping costs are saved for the item:

Item 1: PC

Basic shipping charge (shipping profile) = EUR 3.99
Extra shipping charge 1 = EUR 5.00
Extra shipping charge 2 = EUR 3.00

The following shipping costs are calculated for the order:

Order with 1 PC: EUR 3.99 (basic shipping charge) + EUR 5.00 (extra shipping charge 1) = EUR 8.99
Order with 2 PCs: EUR 3.99 (basic shipping charge) + EUR 5.00 (extra shipping charge 1) + EUR 3.00 (extra shipping charge 2) = EUR 11.99
Order with 3 PCs: EUR 3.99 (basic shipping charge) + EUR 5.00 (extra shipping charge 1) + EUR 3.00 (extra shipping charge 2) + EUR 3.00 (extra shipping charge 2) = EUR 14.99

Calculating shipping costs with extra charges only

You can use the Extra shipping charge function to let the system calculate your shipping costs exclusively on the basis of ordered items. This is done by entering the shipping costs for each item into the item data record and setting all of the shipping prices to zero in the shipping profile.

8.2. Tips and tricks: Shipping costs for orders placed on eBay

Set up the shipping costs for orders placed on eBay in the Setup » Listings » Checkout menu. To do so, select Transfer from eBay or Have it calculated by PlentyONE. under the option *Shipping costs for new orders coming from eBay.

If shipping costs should be calculated differently for eBay than they are for orders coming from the online shop, a separate shipping profile has to be created for them. In this shipping profile, select eBay only under the option Order referrer. This shipping profile has to be activated for every item that you want the setting to apply to. Thus, at least 2 shipping profiles are activated for these items: One is the shipping profile that contains the "normal" shipping costs and the other one is the shipping profile that contains the shipping costs for eBay.

Own shipping profile per eBay account

If you activated several eBay accounts in your PlentyONE system, you can define an individual shipping profile for each eBay account. Go to Setup » Orders » Shipping » Settings and use the option eBay account in the Shipping profiles tab and there in the Base tab to select one of the different accounts.

8.3. Tips and tricks: Category

The category option is another way to prioritise shipping profiles. You can use this option to decide which shipping profiles should be displayed in the shopping cart. Category 1 is selected by default. This means that all of the shipping profiles are given the same priority.

The following rules apply:

The shipping profile with the lowest category is always displayed.
For multiple items, the common shipping profile with the lowest category is displayed.
If the items do not have a common shipping profile, the shipping profile with the lowest category is selected.

"Creating a "replacement shipping profile"

Create a shipping profile that has a higher category level than the other shipping profiles. This so called "replacement shipping profile" is only chosen if none of the others apply or if they cannot be chosen.

Example: Selling 18+ items together with other items

You can use categories to sell items that have the shipping profile delivery to addressee only (e.g. items released for age 18 and older) together with other items. This is solved as follows:

Item A

Shipping profile 1 (category 1)
Shipping profile 2 (category 2)

Item B (18+ item)

Shipping profile 2 (category 2)
Shipping profile 3 (category 5)

If item A is bought alone, shipping profile 2 is not displayed because a shipping profile is available that has a lower category. If both items are bought together, shipping profile 2 has the lowest common category and is therefore the only profile that is displayed.

8.4. Tips and tricks: Shipping profile combinations that can cause errors

Make sure that all items that can be bought together have at least one common shipping profile. If there are 2 or more items in the shopping cart which do not have a common shipping profile, the shipping profile calculation takes place and the shipping charges are added together for the profiles. However, only the shipping service provider with the higher priority is displayed in the shopping cart. Shipping profiles should not be combined in this way. Such combinations cause errors to occur.

You can avoid such errors, e.g. by activating a DHL shipping profile for all items and only activating an additional shipping profile for selected items.

Example: No common shipping profile

There are 2 items in the shopping cart which do not have a common shipping profile.

Item A

DPD shipping profile
Flat rate shipping charge of EUR 3.95

Item B

DHL shipping profile
Flat rate shipping charge of EUR 2.95

The priority determines the order in which shipping profiles are displayed in the checkout process in your online shop. The customer sees a total shipping charge of EUR 6.90. However, the customer only sees the shipping service provider with the higher priority in the shopping cart.

Error message in the checkout if shipping profile combinations are incompletely calculated

If multiple items are to be sent that do not have a common shipping profile, the system calculates the shipping profile combination.

If for at least one of the items no shipping profile can be assigned due to filters and limitations set (e.g. blocked payment methods), the shipping profile combination is incomplete and will be rejected.

In this case, your customers will see the error code 53 (error in the shipping cost calculation) during the checkout and no shipping profile will be selected automatically.

Important: If you set up shipping profiles with several filters and limitations, such as blocked payment methods, check these shipping profiles and adapt them, if necessary.

The error message as well as the translation of error code 53 can be adjusted for the plentyShop LTS plugin. To do so, go to Shop » Multilingualism, expand the Notifications area and enter the translation in the line notificationsCalculatedShippingFailed.

9. Creating a table of shipping charges

Use the Table of shipping charges tab to enter shipping costs for a shipping profile. Save shipping charges for every region that you want to use with the shipping profile. Select the calculation type and the shipping charge. You see additional settings for specific service providers once you have saved and reloaded the table of shipping charges. First carry out the general settings. Note Table 6.

Shipping service not available for every shipping service provider

Not every shipping service provider includes additional shipping services. If available and once you saved and reloaded the table of shipping charges, the shipping services are displayed in the table of shipping charges. They are displayed underneath the name of the service provider. Go to Setup » Orders » Shipping » Settings and open the shipping profile in the Shipping profiles tab. Click on the Table of shipping charges tab and expand the region. The shipping services are displayed in the lower portion of the table of shipping charges.

Creating a table of shipping charges:

Go to Setup » Orders » Shipping » Settings.
Click on the Shipping profiles tab.
Open the shipping profile.
Click on the Table of shipping charges tab.
Expand the region ().
Select a calculation type from the drop-down list.
→ Depending on the calculation type you select, different field names are displayed in the following.
Carry out the desired settings. Note Table 6.
Save () the settings.
Reload the table of shipping charges.
→ Additional shipping services are displayed, if available.
Select the shipping service from the drop-down list.

Table 6. Settings in the table of shipping charges of a region
Setting	Explanation
Save	Saves the settings.
Copy settings to	Transfers the settings from one region to another. A new window opens. This window contains a drop-down list which contains the regions. Select a region and click on Execute.
Delete link	Resets all settings. You have to carry out this function, e.g. before you can delete a region.
Calculation type	Select a calculation type. The calculation type is the basis for calculating the shipping costs.
Shipping costs
Flat rate shipping charge	Enter the shipping costs. The field name that is displayed depends on the calculation type that was selected.
Flat rates
No shipping costs for orders for values over	Enter the value of items starting from which deliveries should be free of charge for the customer. The value of items refers to the gross value of items. *Important:* If a promotional coupon is redeemed and the value is again below the value entered here, shipping cost also apply again.
From an item value of …; … flat rate shipping charge of	In the field From an item value of …, enter the value of items starting from which deliveries should be at a fixed price. Enter the fixed price into the field … flat rate shipping charge of. *Note:* This amount may not be higher than the amount that you entered for the option No shipping costs for orders for values over. This is because shipping is already free of charge at that point.
Limitations
Limitation type	Select a limitation type. The standard currency is used if the item value is limited. The item’s gross weight is used if the weight is limited.
Minimum value	Enter a minimum value. The shipping profile is valid starting from this value. The limitation type specifies whether the value is a monetary amount, weight, number, etc. If you select the setting Maximum (cubic metres) under Limitation type, the value here has to be entered in m.
Maximum value	Enter a maximum value. The shipping profile is valid up to this value. The limitation type specifies whether the value is a monetary amount, weight, number, etc. If you select the setting Maximum (cubic metres) under Limitation type, the value here has to be entered in m.
General configuration
Standard package	Select the shipping package that should be used for this shipping profile as standard package. This option becomes only visible once you saved and reloaded the table of shipping charges.
Transfer email and telephone number	Select whether the email address and the telephone number should be transferred to the shipping service provider or not or whether an alternative value should be transferred. If you select the option Transfer if available, otherwise transfer alternative, it will be checked whether an email address and a telephone number are available at the delivery address of the order. If this data is not available, the alternative values that you saved in the fields Alternative email and Alternative telephone number will be transferred. *Note:* By default, this data is not transferred to the service provider (GDPR conformity).
Alternative email	This setting is only visible if the option Transfer alternative or Transfer if available, otherwise transfer alternative was selected in the drop-down list Transfer email and telephone number. Enter an alternative email address that should be transferred to the service provider, if applicable.
Alternative telephone number	This setting is only visible if the option Transfer alternative or Transfer if available, otherwise transfer alternative was selected in the drop-down list Transfer email and telephone number. Enter an alternative telephone number that should be transferred to the service provider, if applicable.
Delivery time (in days)	Enter the expected delivery time in days. This entry refers to the number of days that the shipping service provider usually requires for sending the items. *Note:* This function can be used from plentyShop LTS version 4.0.0.

Specific settings of the shipping service provider

For some of the shipping service providers, specific settings become visible in this area of your PlentyONE back end after you saved and reloaded the table of shipping charges.
Example: Amazon Prime. Here, you can select an Amazon Prime service. These services are only visible when you have created the shipping profile with shipping service provider DHL or DPD previously. This does not refer to DHL Shipping and the plugin DPD Shipping.
Example: Amazon shipping settings. Here, you can select a transport service and a shipping service.

10. Selecting a calculation type in the table of shipping charges

Calculation types in the Table of shipping charges tab are different ways to calculate shipping costs for items. For example, you can calculate shipping costs based on an item’s weight or volume or based on the number of items that are purchased. You can select a different calculation type for each region. All of the different calculation types are explained in the section below. Table 7 contains notes that apply to the calculation types in general.

Table 7. General settings of the calculation types
Setting	Explanation
Maximum values	If the maximum saved value (volume, weight, price, quantity) is exceeded, no shipping costs can be calculated. Therefore, the maximum should always be high enough.
Flat rates	A flat-rate shipping charge can be defined starting from a particular value of items. If the order reaches or exceeds this value of items, the flat-rate shipping charge is used for the calculation. These flat rates take priority over the values saved for weights, volumes or quantities.
Limitations	Limitations allow you to specify minimum and maximum values for each shipping profile. If an order does not meet or exceeds these values, it is not possible to use the shipping profile for this order. You can create another shipping profile as an alternative, e.g. a profile for a different shipping service provider. It should have values that go beyond the limitations.

Calculation type: Flat rate

This calculation type treats shipping costs as total prices. In other words, regardless how many items a customer purchases, they only pay the shipping costs entered here.

In this case, it would be wise to set up an extra shipping charge for each additional item. You can do so by saving extra shipping charges within the items' Shipping area and by activating the Item extra shipping charge option in the Base tab of the shipping profile.

Calculation type: Weight-dependent

If you select the calculation type Weight-dependent, enter the maximum gross weight in grams into the column Maximum (g). Enter the corresponding shipping costs into the column Amount (EUR). This way, you create a sliding scale of shipping costs according to weight. Click on Add to add further graduated prices.

Calculation type: Volume-dependent

If you select the calculation type Volume-dependent, enter the maximum volume in cubic metres into the column Maximum (cubic metres). Enter the corresponding shipping costs into the column Amount (EUR). This way, you create a sliding scale of shipping costs according to the item’s volume. Click on Add to add further graduated prices.

Dimensions have to be saved for the item

The volume is only calculated correctly if you saved the item’s length, width and height within the main variation’s Settings tab in the Dimensions area in the Item » Edit item » [Open item] menu. It is not possible to calculate the volume if these entries are missing. Therefore, it is not possible to calculate the shipping costs based on the volume either.

Calculation type: Quantity-dependent

If you select the calculation type Quantity-dependent, enter the maximum number of items into the column Maximum (no.). Enter the corresponding shipping costs into the column Amount (EUR). This way, you create a sliding scale of shipping costs according to the number of items. Click on Add to add further graduated prices.

Calculation type: Price-dependent

If you select the calculation type Price-dependent, enter the maximum order total into the column Maximum (EUR) and the corresponding shipping costs into the column Amount (EUR). This way, you create a sliding scale of shipping costs according to the value of a particular item. If all of the items use the same shipping profile, you have a sliding scale for the total price of an entire order.

Calculation type: Item shipping charge

If you select the calculation type Item shipping charge, the shipping costs depend on the number of items. Depending on which amount you enter in the field Each additional item, the shipping costs for each additional item increase by this amount.

11. Calculating the shipping costs

In the Calculate shipping costs tab, you can configure the shipping costs that are needed for exporting items to price comparison portals. The general shipping profiles are not used for price comparison portals. Configure settings that are appropriate for all of the items that are exported to price comparison portals. If these settings are not configured, the shipping costs are exported incorrectly or they are exported with the entry "0".

For further information, refer to the FormatDesigner page of the manual.

Select the most general default referrer possible, e.g. Client (store). Select a standard shipping region that includes all of the countries of delivery for the items that you want to export.

Cash in advance payment method

Be sure to select the payment method Cash in advance from one of the drop-down lists to allow that this payment method can be used as an alternative in case the other payment methods are rejected.

Calculating the shipping costs:

Go to Setup » Orders » Shipping » Settings.
Click on the Calculate shipping costs tab.
Select the default referrer, default shipping region, payment method 1 and payment method 2 for both configurations.
Save () the settings.

12. Activating the shipping profile

You are not able to ship an item with a specific shipping profile until you open the item data record and activate the profile. Activate at least one shipping profile per item. Otherwise, the shipping costs may not be calculated correctly.

Activating the shipping profile:

Go to Item » Edit item.
Open the item which you want to activate the shipping profile for.
Click on the Global tab.
Activate the shipping profile.
Save () the settings.

Default shipping profile

If an order contains items for which no shipping profile was activated, the items are given the default shipping profile of your plentyShop. The standard shipping profile can be selected in the Setup » Client » [Select client] » Orders menu. If no default shipping profile was specified, the shipping profile with the highest priority is used.

13. Controlling shipping processes

Processes are a tool that you can use to manage all of your shipping processes. It is possible to set up and customise very specific processes and carry out these processes automatically. For example, you can use the procedures Polling, Return label, Return slip and Shipping centre to process your shipments.

14. Viewing the log

The Data » Log menu contains information about shipments that were registered in the Orders » Shipping centre menu. Select the shipping service provider from the drop-down list Integration. Select the date and the time, if needed. Click on Search () to display the log entries.

For further information about the log, refer to the Data log page of the manual.