Adjust Bundle/Cart For Buyer Before Purchase

[greenmangoes]

Hi there,

I assumed this should be easy to do but I don't see how.

I have a buyer who wants to buy a few things. I want to make some adjustments for the buyer, for example:

1) Reduce the price of some of the items
2) Edit the shipping cost

Are there instructions somewhere as to how to do this?

Thanks!

[recped]

@greenmangoes 

The only way is for the buyer to click on the "request total" button in the cart. For various reasons the request total button is not available (never available on the App).

In this situation you have two options;

1 - tell the buyer to buy them and you will refund the appropriate and agreed amount.

2 - ask the buyer for a list of the items and then create a custom listing that includes all those items at one price with the correct shipping amount. Once you create the listing send the buyer a link to it and they can buy.

Yes it's a pain to have to do this but it's what you have to do if the Request Total option is not available.

[doc_scribe]

Keep in mind that the "Request Total" cart option will not work with Fixed Price listings if "Immediate Payment" is required. Revise your listing(s) first to uncheck that box before the Buyer submits a request.

Also - and this is strictly from my own experience - I've noticed that even with "Immediate Payment" removed and a buyer not using the App, the "Request Total" cart option has never worked for my International customers, only Domestic.

Hope you have better luck @greenmangoes !

[ilikehockeyjerseys]

The easiest way to do it might be to enable the 'best offer' feature and to instruct the buyer to send you an offer on each item that would total the discounted price you agreed on. Once they send all the offers, you can accept each offer at the same time. Don't accept until they finish sending you all the offers.

Then you can send them an invoice. When sending an invoice, you can adjust the shipping total. Just make sure they are completely done shopping before accepting the offers and sending the invoice. 

[recped]

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@doc_scribe wrote:

Also - and this is strictly from my own experience - I've noticed that even with "Immediate Payment" removed and a buyer not using the App, the "Request Total" cart option has never worked for my International customers, only Domestic.

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Interesting experience, my own is a bit different, many/most of my multiple item buyers (desktop users) are unable to use the request total, either because eBay blocks it or they just can't figure out how. Some buyers seem to able to without a problem and they are most often Canadian or Overseas, it's rare (for me) to have a US buyer that can use the request total button.

What is truly weird is that get a LOT of buyers that don't bother asking and just pay the full shot. Perhaps they see my Description statement that I offer substantial combined discount AND they trust me to do so (which I always do).

Then there are the ones that don't seem to care and then tell me how wonderful I am when they get an unexpected partial refund.

It has been less of a concern since eBay started to refund fees on partials but before that the inconsistency of the Request Total (yeah I know eBay's published restriction) was the single most irritating thing on eBay. What REALLY bothers me is how they actually announced they would restrict the use of Request Total back in about 2012 based on the value (under $1000) and shipping terms (no Local Pickup), it was in a Seller Update and even detailed in the Help files before silently scrubbing all evidence of the policy a year or two later. Now they even deny they ever had a "forced IPR" policy at all when they clearly still do (I have communicated with reliable buyers so I know it's not the APP/IPR/Sale restrictions).

[pjcdn2005]

I remember it a bit differently.  I thought eBay said that if they forced ipr on a listing that the buyer could still use the request total button but that seller directed ipr (along with other things) would make the ipr button inactive.   But whatever was said, imo it makes little sense to block that request total button at all UNLESS the seller blocks it because they already have combined shipping set up or for another reason. 

Regarding the op's question...even if the request total is working, they would be able to change shipping costs but not the item prices.

[doc_scribe]

@recped wrote: What is truly weird is that get a LOT of buyers that don't bother asking and just pay the full shot. Perhaps they see my Description statement that I offer substantial combined discount AND they trust me to do so (which I always do). Then there are the ones that don't seem to care and then tell me how wonderful I am when they get an unexpected partial refund.

Ditto. And yes, that is when a longstanding good rep can go a long way toward completion of a sale where the Buyer must rely on a Seller's promise to partially refund excess shipping or apply additional combined purchase discounts post-sale.

@recped wrote: It has been less of a concern since eBay started to refund fees on partials but before that the inconsistency of the Request Total (yeah I know eBay's published restriction) was the single most irritating thing on eBay.

But unless something has changed recently, it is my understanding that the "Partial Refund" process merely adjusts the sale total plus fees for the Seller, not the excess VAT/Duty the Buyer has already paid which was calculated on the original often much higher undiscounted shipping rate (e.g. International Tracked Packets). For many destinations, especially overseas, those pre-discount levies are not small change.

So the OP is correct; Sellers really do need an easier, more reliable way to apply all discounts at the cart stage...pre-sale...pre-payment...and device/browser independent.

[lotzofuniquegoodies]

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@ilikehockeyjerseys wrote:

The easiest way to do it might be to enable the 'best offer' feature and to instruct the buyer to send you an offer on each item that would total the discounted price you agreed on. Once they send all the offers, you can accept each offer at the same time. Don't accept until they finish sending you all the offers.

Then you can send them an invoice. When sending an invoice, you can adjust the shipping total. Just make sure they are completely done shopping before accepting the offers and sending the invoice. 

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Combined shipping/request total should NEVER have been as difficult as eBay has made it.  As soon as it became a problem it should have been high priority to fix. And that is taking in account any added fees that got charged.

-Lotz

[toronto_tuttle]

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@lotzofuniquegoodies wrote:

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Combined shipping/request total should NEVER have been as difficult as eBay has made it.  As soon as it became a problem it should have been high priority to fix. And that is taking in account any added fees that got charged.

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I definitely agree. 

My memory may be fuzzy, but I sold some items here a few years ago, and I thought it was easier then to combine shipping. Now it seems so complicated that I'm not even going to offer it.

[greenmangoes]

OMG! I was not expecting this. I thought there was an easy way that I just didn't know about - LOL. I recently visited a site where you can just add items to a bundle and the seller adjust things as agreed and you accept and pay - that's it!

eBay please make this easier!!

[greenmangoes]

Oh and thanks guys 🙂