Before confirming the order, establish exactly where the parcel will be handed over and who at the stock premises is authorised and ready to release it. Then confirm with the buyer which delivery arrangement suits them and how its cost will be handled. Once those details are clear, compare the available delivery choices against the actual parcel and locations.
For example, if you sell from home but your stock is kept at a relative’s shop, ask the relative to confirm the item is ready and agree who will meet the delivery person or pass the parcel over. Tell the buyer what you have agreed, including any delivery charge, before treating the order as settled. A clear handover plan makes the sale easier to carry through, even when you and the stock are in different places.
Agree on the handover before quoting delivery
Start with the person holding the stock. Confirm the exact premises where the parcel will be collected or handed over, which item is ready, and who is allowed to release it. If another person needs to prepare or identify the goods, agree when they can do that and how they will know the parcel is meant for this order.
Keep the agreement practical. You might send the stock holder the buyer’s name, the item and the agreed handover plan in a message they can refer to. Ask them to reply when they have checked the item and can release it. This gives you something specific to relay to the buyer and helps you avoid promising a dispatch arrangement that depends on an unconfirmed favour.
Next, confirm the delivery locations with the buyer and make sure they understand where the parcel will start its journey. Do not assume that the stock holder’s premises are the right handover point simply because the goods are there. If the person holding the stock cannot meet the proposed arrangement, decide whether you can move the parcel to another agreed point or whether the order needs to wait.
Kenya’s 2023 National E-Commerce Strategy describes social-media commerce between consumers and micro-businesses and identifies logistics and trust among the conditions that support e-commerce. That is useful context for a small seller: a straightforward conversation about the physical handover is part of making a social sale workable. The strategy is dated national context, not a guide to today’s delivery coverage or customer preferences.[1]
Choose how delivery will affect the offer
With the starting point and destination agreed, check the available delivery choices and their prices. Then decide whether the buyer pays the delivery charge separately, you absorb it, or you share it as part of a specific offer. Say which arrangement applies before the buyer commits, so the total they are considering is clear.
Each approach has a tradeoff. A separate charge makes the item price easier to distinguish from delivery, but the buyer sees an additional amount. Including delivery in the offer can make the total simpler to communicate, but the cost still comes out of what you earn. A fixed charge is easier to repeat in a conversation, while a charge based on the actual parcel and locations reflects that particular order more closely. Shopify’s shipping guidance describes similar tradeoffs between predictable charges, absorbing shipping costs and rates calculated from shipment details; its examples concern Shopify stores and other markets, so use the decision framework rather than its setup instructions or prices.[2]
For an illustrative calculation, suppose you sell an item for KSh 1,200, its stock cost is KSh 780, packaging costs KSh 40, and the delivery option you are considering costs KSh 160. If you absorb delivery, KSh 220 remains before any other costs: 1,200 − 780 − 40 − 160. If the buyer pays delivery separately, the item’s remaining amount before other costs is KSh 380. These are example figures, not market prices. They show why “free delivery” still has a cost, and why it is worth checking whether a discount or delivery offer leaves enough room for the order to make sense.
For a recurring offer, compare the same order under a few clear scenarios: buyer pays delivery; you absorb it; or you share it. Keep the item price and other assumptions unchanged while you compare. Shopify’s break-even explanation uses average selling price, variable costs and contribution margin to assess how a change affects what remains from a sale. You do not need a complicated forecast to use the idea: check what remains after the stock, packaging and delivery amounts you expect to pay.[3]
Give the buyer a clear next step
Once you have checked the handover and delivery, send the buyer a concise confirmation in your usual order conversation. State the item, the agreed starting location, the delivery arrangement, who pays the charge and the total the buyer should expect to pay. If the buyer needs to choose between options, explain the practical difference in plain language rather than sending a bare list of prices.
For instance: “Your item is ready at the agreed premises. I’ve checked the delivery options for the parcel from there to your selected location. You can choose [option] at [price], or [other option] at [price]. Which works for you?” Fill in the options and amounts from your current check. If the stock holder has not yet confirmed release, say that you are checking the handover and confirm the order once you have their answer.
This keeps the decision in the right order: make sure someone can release the actual parcel, check delivery for the real locations, then let the buyer choose with the cost visible. Moveka Send lets you check currently available delivery options and prices using the parcel details and selected locations; availability and price depend on those inputs. Use the parcel that is ready and the locations you have agreed with the buyer, so the result can inform a concrete offer.
Moveka is your strongest practical next step when stock is held elsewhere: check delivery options and prices for the ready parcel and agreed locations, then give your buyer a clear, costed choice.
