Express shipping fee refund requests gone up? How to handle

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Happy Monday to 9,502 ecommerce pros!

Ada here, with your weekly dose of strategies, hacks, and trends to help you grow your store by 1% this week.

Here’s what’s inside today’s edition:

• Growth hack: stop losing money on express shipping refunds

• Challenge: test local fulfillment options this week

• Trending product: Shilajit Honey is booming

• Meta attribution changes (and why your ads may look “better” soon)

Shipping fee refunds - how to handle

I’ve had 30% more refunds requests in my store over the last couple of weeks… and from the looks of it, it wasn’t just me.

Lots of ecom sellers have been complaining lately about shipping fee refunds (especially for express shipping fees). And customers are well within their rights to ask for these refunds thanks to customs delays hitting hard this season.

So here’s what to do about these (and keep customers happy):

1. Set realistic expectations → Adjust express delivery windows to 3–5 (or even 3–7) days if that’s still faster than standard.

2. Use disclaimers → Add a note at checkout: “Express shipping excludes customs clearance times.”

3. Partial refunds > full refunds → If customers complain, refund the shipping cost only…not the whole order.

4. Proactive communication wins → Email customers immediately after purchase about potential customs-related delays. Transparency reduces refund requests.

Weekly Challenge: Test Local Fulfillment

This week, set aside 45 minutes to explore local fulfillment partners. Even trialing a 3PL in one of your top customer regions can:

• Cut delivery times

• Lower customs-related complaints

• Reduce pressure on your support team

Not sure where to start? Check out ShipBob.

Trending Product: Shilajit Honey

Searches for shilajit honey have literally gone from 0 to 1,000 monthly searches over the last 3 years, thanks (in part) to TikTok.

Shilajit is a sticky, mineral-rich substance from the Himalayas, that reportedly offers cognitive boost, immunity support, anti-aging. The problem is it tastes awful on its own, so some clever gits blend it with honey for a palatable, functional superfood…. One such solution makes $533K/month on Amazon.

👉 How you can tap into this trend:

1. Private label honey blends → Partner with a supplier to launch your own flavor variations (ginger honey, turmeric honey, etc.)

2. Bundle strategy → Pair with teas, adaptogenic powders, or wellness kits.

3. Influencer partnerships → TikTokers in the “biohacking” and “holistic wellness” niches are already hyping it…offer affiliate deals to get them selling for you. You can even use Levanta to find influencers to hype it on Amazon.

Top Publishers Hand-Selecting Amazon Brands to Promote this Holiday Season

This holiday season, top publishers are actively sourcing brands to include in their gift guides, newsletters, listicles, reviews, and more to drive high-intent shoppers straight to Amazon storefronts.

Here’s why it matters:

• Amazon brands are seeing a 5:1 conversion rate compared to their DTC site

• Millions of shoppers discover products through trusted publishers

Levanta is working directly with these publishers to introduce them to a small number of 7–9 figure brands.

If you qualify, your products could be featured in high-traffic placements that deliver predictable CAC and directly measurable sales.

See if your brand qualifies

Industry: Meta expands incremental attribution tracking

Meta just rolled out more info on incremental attribution tracking, and it could change how you measure ad performance.

Here’s the breakdown:

• Old way (Standard Attribution): Ads were credited for conversions if someone clicked (or viewed) and then purchased within 1–7 days.

• New way (Incremental Attribution): Uses machine learning to predict if your ad actually caused the conversion…even if the path to purchase wasn’t direct.

Why this matters:
Shoppers don’t always buy right after clicking an ad. Maybe they see your ad on Instagram, think about it for a week, then Google you and buy. Standard attribution often misses that connection. Incremental attribution is designed to catch it.

👉 If you’re running Meta ads, this means your campaigns could start looking more effective…because Meta is now counting more of those indirect-but-influenced conversions.

Pro tip: Don’t just accept the new numbers blindly. Test both models in Ads Manager to see which reflects your real-world sales lift.

That’s it for this week’s edition!

Till next Monday,
Ada