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INCREASE costs to the Customer? Really? What will the customer think and say?
I am leaving my flat rates at the same level for the fourth year in a row. Next January will be five years in a row with no cost increase passed on to customers.
The exchange rate is paying all of my eBay fees and giving me a profit on top of that.
The CDN dollar has gone DOWN more than postage is going up.
How does one justify increasing costs to the customer when your costs have gone DOWN.
Rose, I forgot about my TRS discount. I am making a profit on everything.
I used to run into this when I was working. ANY price change, even down, customers would see a different price and say stupidly "Pushed it up again, eh?". "Ah, no, it went down a dollar.".
Price of gas, to drive to the PO, has gone down 30% and is dropping.
On my average $30 widget, the exchange is now giving me an extra $5.
I had no price change in 2013, 2014, 2015, and I won't change in 2016. The last time I changed was January 2012.
How does one justify increasing costs to the customer when your costs have gone DOWN.
Rose, I forgot about my TRS discount. I am making a profit on everything.
I used to run into this when I was working. ANY price change, even down, customers would see a different price and say stupidly "Pushed it up again, eh?". "Ah, no, it went down a dollar.".
Price of gas, to drive to the PO, has gone down 30% and is dropping.
On my average $30 widget, the exchange is now giving me an extra $5.
I had no price change in 2013, 2014, 2015, and I won't change in 2016. The last time I changed was January 2012.
By the way, I also keep track of all my shipping losses -- I make a note on every invoice I print out for my records -- so I know I almost always lose from about $0.50 to around $2.00 on the actual shipping on every transaction.
In fact, it's so rare that I don't lose money that I really notice it (and I write a happy face on the invoice). 
However, those small losses are more than made up for in the exchange rate on the sale itself, my TRS discount, and the fact that I sell in $U.S. and almost always buy (supplies, postage, etc.) in $Cdn. Overall then, as 'Mr. Elmwood' pointed out, it's probably pretty close to a zero sum. In some cases (if the item price is, say, over $100), I may come out better than 0, since the amount I gain on the $US exchange more than compensates for the shipping subsidy. It's a workable strategy.
Oh yes, and I claim the shipping losses on my tax return too. 
@dutchman48 wrote:Hi Rose
Point taken. Now maybe Mr. E can understand that what everyone sells will affect shipping costs, increases, exchange, etc and that his shipping method WILL NOT fit everyone elses, just like yours and mine will not be the same.
My main point it light packet which I use a great deal has gone up 70% in the last 2 years which will hurt a lot of sellers, including me, selling lower priced items. They can't increase the selling price or shipping as nothing will sell, so basically sales stop as do listings, as do income.
The business is no longer viable and we have CP to blame. Plus Ebay's percentage on shipping takes another chunk the higher postage gets.
Business plans come and go but for some to use a broad paint brush is not an accurate or logical answer to a posters question.
You are getting it all wrong. Making shipping the most important line item is ignoring the overall cost structure.
Customer believe we are lying on shipping cost. Customers believe we get a discount or it is free. Actual shipping? Does not exist. How can it be actual when cutomer believe we get it for free? How can it be actual when eBay takes a cut.
Not everything is suitable for selling on eBay. Blaming your finances, or eBay, or the PO will not solve anything.
Extrapolating your experience to me? How about the other way. How about understanding that many of us have a better financial model that predicts and delivers constant profits and costs? I do not waste my time and effort on a money losing business model.
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