How to Set Up Local Pickup or Curbside Delivery on Squarespace
Updated March 2022
Offering in-store pickup or curbside delivery are great ways to combine the ease of eCommerce with the familiarity of buying from a favorite local business. It’s about more than just convenience; providing these types of options can help you compete with the big guys! I think that if more businesses knew how easy it was to set these options up that they would definitely do it - and possibly attract a whole new batch of customers as a result! I mean, how nice would it be if your dry cleaning was loaded up in your trunk for you? Or what if you could pick up a wrapped gift from your favorite little store on your way home from work? Marketing curbside or in-store pickup as a service can really give you a competitive edge.
Like I said, setting this up is pretty easy to do from a technical perspective but here are a few quick tips to make sure you’re set up for success:
Create and document the system you will use for processing incoming orders. This includes making sure that everyone on your team is educated on the in-store pickup or curbside delivery procedures. Write down every step that happens between the time someone submits an order until that order is picked up. Who monitors for orders? Who marks them as fulfilled? How and when are customers notified? Be specific.
Answer FAQs about your specific curbside pickup process on your website. It’s important to set expectations early about how long it will take to fulfill an order, what needs to be done when the customer arrives at your location, etc. This is going to vary depending on whether you’re a boutique or a cafe, whether you have your own dedicated parking area or share a lot with other businesses, etc. (When in doubt, my rule of thumb is to treat every visitor like a lost tourist 😂)
Provide directions and the information again in your email confirmation. You may have put all the info on your site like above but not everyone is going to read it. Don’t worry about repeating yourself and provide the directions about what to do again in your email confirmation email. Be explicit. For example, are they to proceed directly to your location right away or will you be emailing again when their order is ready for pickup? Is there a phone number they need to keep handy? Can they stay in their car? Is there a special line to stand in for online orders?
Put up easy-to-read signage at your location regarding curbside pickup procedures. At the risk of repeating myself, I’m telling you to go ahead and repeat yourself :) If you need people to park in a certain spot or area, call or text a certain number or follow some other procedures, let them know. Make it simple and clear. The goal is to reduce frustration and confusion but great on-site signage also has the benefit of advertising to anyone passing by that you offer curbside pickup so be sure to list your website as well!
Creating a local pickup option on Squarespace is easier than ever and you have two options based on your needs.
Option 1: If you want to be able to offer local pickup to everyone:
You can use the built-in Local Pickup option to easily offer this to your customers at checkout. This will create an option at checkout toggle between shipping & pickup.
Get there: HOME > COMMERCE > PICKUP
You can write whatever you want in the “Pickup Information” text box. The name will display at checkout and the information will be included in the Order Confirmation email that is sent to your customer. You can include info like your address, pickup hours, and other instructions that will help customers know what to do or expect next.
Local Pickup orders won’t require your customers to enter a shipping address making this a super-fast checkout option!
Local pickup is an all or nothing thing - people can’t place an order that is half pickup / half delivery.
At this time, customers choosing this method cannot pay with Apple Pay (if you offer this as an option).
These orders won’t get sent to any shipping extensions you may have connected (like Easyship) because it’s assumed that you’re fulfilling them on your own + there is no shipping address provided by the customer.
Option 2: If you want to limit local pickup to certain zip/postal codes:
What you see when setting up an in store pick up option
In order to restrict local pickup options to people in certain areas using zip or postal codes, you’ll need to create a flat rate shipping option. While it isn’t technically necessary to limit this as an option at checkout, it’s nice to only show it to people who could reasonably choose it.
Get there: HOME > COMMERCE > SHIPPING > ADD SHIPPING OPTION > FLAT RATE
Make sure you give the pickup option a very clear name like “Curbside Pickup - YOUR AREA ONLY” or something that clearly differentiates this option from any other (potentially free) shipping options you offer.
Fill out the pricing or list $0.00 if you offer this option for free.
From the Shipping Zones tab, select your country (US or Canada) then your state/province. To get even more detailed, click on the state/province and add specific zip or postal codes that you’d like to limit this option to.
Keep in mind that the curbside pickup option is going to be displayed based on the “shipping address” that’s entered first so when in doubt, I would make your circle wider than narrower so that you don’t miss out on anyone.
Taking It Further:
Offering Local Delivery - You can set the price to whatever you want - it doesn’t have to be free. This is something to keep in mind if you wanted to replicate the instructions above to be able to offer local delivery. You’d use the same steps as option 2 above to restrict delivery to people in certain zip or postal codes, call it “Local Delivery” and give it a price. Now you have a paid local delivery option, too!
Order Confirmation & Order Ready Emails - People placing local pickup orders will receive two emails from you. The first is their order confirmation email, which is the same for all orders on your site regardless of shipping method chosen. The second one is the one that is sent once you mark their order as “ready for pickup.” In this second email, be sure to include things like your pickup hours, location, parking information, or what’s required at time of pickup (i.e. photo id or printed confirmation, etc. Again, if you explained this on an FAQ page or order page of your site it’s super helpful to just reiterate any pertinent info so people have it right in their inbox. For more on customizing these emails check out this post.
