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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Apr 2012
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    Southern New Jersey/Philadelphia
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    Default Flat Rate Issues for International Shipments

    I have been trying to work thru this for months now, and I am unable to find a solution to this difficult problem.
    In my store, I sell small items, Organic Seed primarily. The shipping is 9 times out of 10, a single or less than 6 packs, which allows me to use Flat Rate shipping for most of the US.
    I have no issues with the Flat Rate model, except when it comes to international shipments. I have not yet found a way to break out the Flat Rate so that someone in Canada, or another country is not offered Flat Rate shipping. Currently when I am taking orders, I am eating the shipping charged, but they are starting mount up.
    How would I change the shipping structure so that I can still offer Flat Rate for international customers, but at a different rate, say $9.99 for these international shipments?

    Optimally, I would like to be able to make it so that only the main US, Hawaii, Alaska, are the ones that have the standard Flat Rate, and everything else has the International Flat Rate basis. Even going as to removing the option of the US Flat Rate from those not located in the US.

    Thanks,
    Kirby
    www.downrightnatural.com
    Kirby Foster
    Downright Natural
    http://www.downrightnatural.com

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Aug 2005
    Location
    Arizona
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    27,761
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    Default Re: Flat Rate Issues for International Shipments

    You first need to setup zones you can use this FAQ to setup your 50 state zone and the rest of the world zone
    https://www.zen-cart.com/content.php...ne-definitions

    Then yopu can clone the flat rate module naming it maybe flat_intnl or similar use this plugin as a template but use current version files for your changes
    https://www.zen-cart.com/downloads.php?do=file&id=628

    Once cloned, you can install and specify the zone that it will be used for
    Zen-Venom Get Bitten

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Apr 2012
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    Southern New Jersey/Philadelphia
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    Default Re: Flat Rate Issues for International Shipments

    Thank you for the reply with the step by step instructions. I will be honest, that scares the whatever out of me. I am not a computer/web/etc guy, and working on the database, well, I know what will happen - I will crash it and my site will burn.
    I am going to have to try to find someone that can do this for me.
    Thank you again.
    Kirby
    www.downrightnatural.com
    Kirby Foster
    Downright Natural
    http://www.downrightnatural.com

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Jun 2005
    Location
    Cumbria, UK
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    Default Re: Flat Rate Issues for International Shipments

    Quote Originally Posted by DownRightNatural View Post
    Thank you for the reply with the step by step instructions. I will be honest, that scares the whatever out of me. I am not a computer/web/etc guy, and working on the database, well, I know what will happen - I will crash it and my site will burn.
    I am going to have to try to find someone that can do this for me.
    Thank you again.
    Kirby
    www.downrightnatural.com
    This is not difficult to do. As Kobra says, you need to set up zones. A default install of zencart will usually put all the USA states in for you, but for non-USA destinations, usually the country alone is OK - and again, these are already in a default install of ZC.

    The way to tackle shipping configurations is to firstly work out (on a piece of paper) what and where you intend to ship (or post). So determine the WEIGHT of all your products. It is very important to include the weight of each product.

    Now the USA (for some dumb reason) still works in POUNDS and OUNCES - even the postal service there does so... When you guys go to metric, you will find this very easy, because right now you have to DECIMALISE the fractions of a POUND when you configure the product's weight.

    If a pack of seeds weighs an OUNCE, then the value you would enter in the PRODUCT'S EDIT SCREEN would be 0.0625.

    0.0625 is a SIXTEENTH of 1.00 - where 1.00 is a POUND in weight,

    When you have given all your products a WEIGHT value, take a look at the SHIPPING RATES of the shipper (or postal service) you are using.

    Shippers and Postal Services base their rates on:

    1. Package size and weight (often called volumetric weight)
    2. Destination address
    3. Speed at which you want it delivered

    I use a module called ZONE-TABLES which is a mash up of the ZONE RATES and TABLE RATES shipping modules. This is a good module to use for international shipping as you can set several TABLE rates by their ZONES.

    Again... you shipper will have divided up the world's countries into certain zones. I don't know what it is for USPS, but here in the UK, we have THREE world zones, and Royal Mail lists the countries that apply to each of these zones.

    So I know what countries are in Royal Mail Zone One, and also in Royal Mail Zone Two, and then in Royal Mail Zone Three. For each of these zones, Royal Mail has a table of rates, so (for example) I can work out looking at the table for Australia (zone 3), what their price breakdowns are for packages of different weights.

    You CANNOT configure international shipping unless you know what your shipper (or postal service ) charges - so this is fundamental to setting up proper shipping in your ZC store.

    I think there is a USPS module you can install. Go check the add-ons - but if you are using a different service - like FedEx - then you must FIRST get their rate card.

    Then, you can install ZONETABLES shipping module, and, using the data off the rate card, you can configure different shipping tables, for different zones.
    19 years a Zencart User

  5. #5
    Join Date
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    Default Re: Flat Rate Issues for International Shipments

    Down RightNatural,

    Check your private messages
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