In a manufacturer’s wholesale store, the prices shown applied to pickup from the warehouse. Delivery was only available on request and only from a minimum quantity of pallets. Without a clear distinction, every trade customer would have assumed the price included delivery. So we communicated price, delivery route and minimum quantity the same way everywhere, and clearly visible. A wholesale price is only a price when it’s clear what’s in it.
The case
In consumer retail, the expectation is simple: price plus shipping, done. Wholesale is different. Whether goods are picked up or delivered changes the cost significantly. If you don’t say that clearly, you get orders with the wrong expectations, follow-up emails and, worst case, annoyed trade customers who feel misled.
How we structured the information
- The price says what it applies to. Right next to the price it says it applies to pickup. Not in a footnote.
- Delivery as its own, clear route. Delivery on request, with the minimum quantity from which it’s available.
- The same message on every page. Product page, cart, wholesale page and contact all say the same thing. Contradictions between two pages are what unsettles trade customers most.
- The store pre-qualifies. Anyone who reads the terms before inquiring sends better inquiries. Sales has less explaining to do and can send a quote faster.
Your takeaways
- Wholesale prices are always logistics too. Pickup, delivery, freight and minimum quantity belong with the price, not in the terms.
- Don’t hide minimum quantities. Anyone who only finds them in the small print feels tricked, even if everything was correct.
- Check every place a price shows up. A single page that says something different is enough for misunderstandings.
- Good information saves sales time. Every question the store answers is one nobody has to answer on the phone.
Do you sell to trade customers and keep getting the same questions? We set up price and delivery information so your store answers them for you.