Setting the Order Service Level

The service level is one of three order fulfillment expectations:

• Ship-By - The ship-by date defines when an order must leave your warehouse. Customers expect to see tracking movement by this date.
• Deliver-By - The deliver-by date defines when the order must arrive at the customer’s doorstep.
• Service Level - The service level, or shipping speed, defines the shipping method to use. Customers expect expedited shipping when they pay for it.

There are five service levels:

• 1 Day - Overnight shipping.
• 2 Day - Expedited shipping.
• 3 Day - Extended expedited shipping.
• 5-7 Days - Standard shipping.
• Economy - Economy shipping, typically 7–20 days, with no guaranteed delivery date.

After assigning a carrier to the order, Goflow uses the order service level to determine the shipping method. For example, if the service level is 2 Day and the carrier is UPS, Goflow selects UPS 2nd Day Air. If the carrier is FedEx, Goflow selects FedEx 2Day.

Service level is closely related to deliver-by date, but they represent different inputs. The service level defines the expected shipping speed, while the deliver-by date specifies the exact date the order must arrive. Depending on the channel, orders may include one or both inputs:

• Both - The channel provides both a service level and a deliver-by date.
• Service Level Only - The channel provides only a service level. You may create a rule to calculate and set the deliver-by date on the order based on the channel-provided service level.
• Delivery Date Only - The channel provides only a deliver-by date. Goflow infers the service level from the number of days between the order import date and the deliver-by date.

If the channel provides neither a deliver-by date nor a service level, the service level defaults to 5-7 Days.

Service level and deliver-by date do not always align exactly. For example, an order with a deliver-by date two days away may still arrive on time using ground shipping if the destination is near the warehouse.

Updating the Service Level

Use shipping policies to automatically set or update the service level on orders. You can apply a policy to all orders in a store, or only to orders that meet specific conditions. For example, you might target:

• Expedited - Orders where the channel requested 2-day shipping. Create a condition: Service Level: Is Exactly: 2 Day.
• Warehouse - Orders assigned to a specific warehouse. Create a condition: Warehouse: Is One Of: NJ.
• In Zone - Orders with a shipping address near your warehouse. Create a condition: Ship-To Address: Northeast.

For the Action, select Service Level and choose one of the five service levels, such as 5-7 Days.