eBay

surpluspartsgalore · ‎09-25-2014

Hello!

I just started using eBay as a regular seller a few months ago. In the last couple months I've been bombarded with people telling me that they keep getting told their shipping location is invalid. I called eBay three times about this. The first time the girl told me she'd look into it and call me back. She never did. The second time the girl told me that it was a known issue and that it had been resolved in the last few days. When problems continued I called a THIRD time and the guy told me it was actually a problem on the buyer's end because they were entering in their address wrong. I was satisfied with that and ended the call. Then I realized that that explanation didn't make any sense because many of the buyers were experienced eBay users and were therefore very unlikely to be committing such a simple error.

My next issue, which very well may be related, is that sometimes I'm able to invoice people and sometimes I'm not. Sometimes people tell me they had issues with their order because their shipping location was invalid and I see that I'm able to send them an invoice. I would LOVE to be able to invoice people every time. The shipping estimate on eBay is flawed in that I never package anything before it sells so how am I supposed to realistically get weight and package dimensions unless I pack my items as I put them up? A lot of these things may not sell so that is too many man hours (I sell surplus inventory and a lot of it just sits there).

Then just tonight I had a guy who made three separate orders. He paid for shipping on the first two by through two automatic Paypal transactions and the third one I was able to invoice. I didn't realize he was the same guy who already paid two separate shipping costs so I ended up billing him again. This guy has now been charged for shipping three separate times for a total of $52.50 when I can get him this stuff for $20.00.

How much of this is my fault and how much is it eBay's? How do I set up a smooth process? Is there a way I can invoice people every time? The shipping situation is a cluster**bleep** on here and the busier I get the more I'm slowed down by these situations I have to rectify.

Thanks in advance!

-Brad

pjcdn2005 · ‎09-25-2014

In the last couple months I've been bombarded with people telling me that they keep getting told their shipping location is invalid.

This can happen when the dimensions entered in the shipping calculator are smaller than the minimum dimensions for the service specified. For example, USA Expedited Parcel has minimum dimensions of 21cm x 14cm x .5cm.

Expedited Parcel within Canada has smaller min. dimensions of 10cm x 7cm x 1mm

Tracked Packet and Small packet can be as small as 14cm x 9cm x 1mm

The same problem happens if the service entered is not available in that country.

Some of your smaller inexpensive items really shouldn't need expedited or tracked packet shipping. If you send them in an envelope that is 2cm or less, you can use lettermail within Canada and either letterpost, light packet USA or light packet international to everywhere else. There is no tracking or insurance but the mail service is fairly reliable and I don't think that you are selling in a high fraud category. Technically, you are not supposed to send 'goods' via letterpost to other countries as you are supposed to use light packet USA or light packet international. I would use letterpost for something like a washer.

The small parts that won't fit into the 2cm thick category can be sent small packet USA or small packet international. There is no tracking or insurance on those services either.

pjcdn2005 · ‎09-25-2014

sometimes I'm able to invoice people and sometimes I'm not. Sometimes people tell me they had issues with their order because their shipping location was invalid and I see that I'm able to send them an invoice. I would LOVE to be able to invoice people every time.

ebay automatically sends out an invoice to the buyer if the shipping information is set up for the buyer's location. Otherwise, you have to fill in the shipping info and send the buyer an invoice. But if the shipping cost isn't in your listing, your listings may not be seen by as many people. Plus, there are many people that are not going to buy something unless they know the shipping cost and rather than ask what it will be, they just move on to another seller's listings. I realize that it is tough to know how much to charge for shipping but it shipping costs really need to be listed. I weigh each item when I list it so that I have a good idea of what it is going to cost to ship.

surpluspartsgalore · ‎09-25-2014

Thanks for the information, I appreciate it!

Adjusting the dimensions has worked for at least one person but then someone else sent me a message saying they had shipping trouble and the dimensions were fine. I just haven't seemed to be able to get it down to a smooth process.

Also, I would love to use a cheaper shipping service for all my small parts but I was under the impression that eBay didn't really like it when you used untracked services...

mr.elmwood · ‎09-25-2014

@surpluspartsgalore wrote:
Thanks for the information, I appreciate it!

Adjusting the dimensions has worked for at least one person but then someone else sent me a message saying they had shipping trouble and the dimensions were fine. I just haven't seemed to be able to get it down to a smooth process.

Also, I would love to use a cheaper shipping service for all my small parts but I was under the impression that eBay didn't really like it when you used untracked services...

eBay does not care how or even if you ship. That is between you and the customer. I do not use tracking as it costs way too much money, does not work, serves no purpose.

The only time tracking is required is in the event of an INR dispute.

I have had three INR claims in the last 2500 sales. Each was fictitious, but, I had all the other sales I would not have had if I had used higher shipping costs.

You can ship how ever you want, eBay does not care.

The biggest rookie mistake? Trying too hard and trying to figure it all out. I have been doing this for twelve years, when you get it all figured out, come and tell me because I don't know.

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mr.elmwood · ‎09-25-2014

I do not use calculated shipping. Get rid of that and most of your problems go away. I use flat rate and it is very consistent. The USA is always the same. Worldwide varies about a dollar. Canada can be tricky when ya get those folks who live a little off the grid, like in Nova Scotia.

I charge: US 0-250grams $8 251-500 $11 501-1K $16

World $11 $21 $41

Canada $11 $11 $11

Then there is the concept of tracking. That plays to risk. There is risk avoidance and risk tolerance. Many sellers avoid risk at all costs. They track and insure everything. I figure I am about $12,000 ahead, in my pocket, for not buying those over-priced services.

I worked inner city liquor stores. When you have someone threatening your life over a $7 bottle of sherry, the "risk" on eBay is fairly trivial. I ship anything, anywhere. I just do not let it bother me.

Every sale will not go perfectly. In the real world, all businesses have a shrinkage budget. Have one yourself. The odd parcel, something will happen. Put it down as shrinkage and move on. Unless, you are married to the widget. Is each widget so valuable to you that you cry when you sell it and mail it? Not me. I'm happy to see it leave home.

Business and personal. Waaaaay too many "sellers" make eBay personal. They are attached to every widget, every customer, they monitor tracing numbers, keep spreadsheets of each piece of data, maintain filing cabinets full of printout. Agonize over email. Panic at the mere thought of a case being opened.

eBay is widgets and money, nothing else.

I keep everything eBay is a separate room with a door. I close the door and it is gone. I do not allow it outside of that room.

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pjcdn2005 · ‎09-25-2014

someone else sent me a message saying they had shipping trouble and the dimensions were fine

I didn't count them, but it looks as if you have at least 30 listings (I'm not counting the freight listings) that do not show a shipping cost to the U.S. What was the item number or title of the listing the person was asking about, what country were they from, which postal service is stated and what were the dimensions and weight entered in the calculator?

To see what people from the U.S. see....

Click on one of your listings and then click on see other items

On the top right, change sort to "price plus shipping lowest first"

Below that change country to United States, enter a zip code... you could use 10019

Refresh your page

You should see the shipping prices that someone in New York would pay.

It should show you that the shipping cost to NY for a $1.65 Hobart 16DA267 Spacer would be $19.13 Cdn ($17.43 U.S.) Would you pay that? If you used letterpost USA, the cost would probably be $1.20.

I do think that ebay would prefer that all sellers use a postal service with tracking however it is totally up to you and it depends on how much risk you want to take and how much you want to sell.

If a buyer says that they did not receive an item, and you can't show that they did receive it by showing online delivery confirmation, you will have to refund. But as I said before, the mail in fairly reliable plus you are selling in a low risk category. I doubt that anyone is going to file an item not received claim for a $5 item unless they really didn't receive that item.

Because our shipping with tracking is so high, many Canadian sellers use non trackable services and will self insure. Basically, you are adding on a small amount to the shipping or item cost which goes into a virtual cookie jar. You use that amount in situations when you have an INR claim. Some sellers might use tracking if the item is more than $50 or perhaps more than $100...it's up to each seller how they do things.

rose-dee · ‎09-25-2014

I agree with Mr. Elmwood's comments above, especially regarding flat rate shipping. There is a reason eBay tells us that 70% of their sellers use flat rate. I know many sellers like calculated shipping as they can leave it to the computers to do the work, but I prefer to have full control over what shipping I charge and to where.

It really is best to weigh each item (with any box, bubble envelope, etc. needed for shipping) before you list it. Even if you're off by a few grams, having the shipping shown up front is a much better idea than trying to invoice after the fact. Buyers don't like surprises, particularly not where shipping is concerned. That's the way eBay operated many years ago -- buy an item for $20, and be told after you'd committed to the purchase that the shipping was, oh, let me see, whoops -- $50. Oh yes, that used to happen a lot.

So buy yourself a small postal scale (not a food scale, but a flatbed scale), usually around $15 in any Canadian Tire or Wal-Mart, have your packing material and Canada Post link on hand (there's a link on eBay itself, under "Sell"/"Shipping Centre", and work out the flat shipping for each item in advance. And do use Paypal shipping labels, as you'll get significant discounts off the tracked services (but not off Light/Small Packet).

One tip though: you don't necessarily have to charge the shipping that is actually shown by Canada Post for the weight, size and dimensions of the item. It's entirely up to you how you deal with the shipping charges in the listing itself -- you can reduce them ("subsidize" your buyers' shipping, to get more sales), offer free shipping on some or all items, roll some or all of the shipping cost into some or all of your item costs (not my personal choice, but some sellers prefer this), or offer discounts on multiple purchases (set up your automated discounts under your seller Preferences tab). Most sellers would probably agree with me in saying that you should be the one choosing the shipping service for any given item -- don't leave that up to your buyer (many of whom have no idea about the various Canada Post services).

Keep in mind that the new Small/Light Packet shipping labels will display the shipping you paid, so over-charging on shipping is not a good idea, even if the extra charges may represent handling (i.e. packaging costs).

Lastly, tracking is something you'll have to make a decision about. Don't think of it in terms of what eBay likes or doesn't like, but in terms of what your risk tolerance is for defects, what your selling volume is, whether your items are prone to fraud, theft, etc., and where you are shipping to. You can custom-set your shipping options based on these considerations for individual items if you use flat rate shipping. And you can exclude some countries or buyer types that may be more trouble than they are worth (again, use your "Preferences" tab).

I would say that, generally speaking, for most items under about $100 going to the U.S., unless they are high-risk (like jewellery), you can skip the tracking. But be prepared to have to provide for the occasional refund for INR.

One thing you're absolutely right about is that the whole subject of shipping on eBay is not simple or easy, but there are many things you can do to make it less problematic for every transaction. Take 'pj's advice and make sure your shipping options are set up correctly, whether you use calculated or flat rate shipping.

pjcdn2005 · ‎09-25-2014

A couple more things...

If you really want to use tracked shipping to the U.S., Tracked Packet is probably slightly less than expedited parcel when you are shipping light items.

When you print your labels,use Paypal shipping as you will receive up to 18% off of counter price for expedited Canada and USA; about 14% off for Tracked Packet and 8 or 9% off for Xpresspost.

mr.elmwood · ‎09-25-2014

What you charge for shipping is your choice. Ignore the "actual cost" model. How you ship is your choice. What options chosen are your choice.

You do what ever you want. At the end of the day, eBay is nothing but an advertising venue connecting buyers and sellers. The buyer and seller then complete the transaction. The over whelming vast majority of transactions are 100% trouble free. Do not make the rare exceptions the rule, they are not.

This is my routine:

list, sell, collect, ship

repeat

OP, yer selling eclectic stuff. You buyers are going to be more intelligent, far less dishonest. Treat them as such.

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rose-dee · ‎09-25-2014

@mr.elmwood wrote:
Canada can be tricky when ya get those folks who live a little off the grid, like in Nova Scotia.

Uh, er, I just got this -- sorry, you're dead wrong. It's most of the rest of you guys who got tacked on after the fact.

mr.elmwood · ‎09-25-2014

I have been sitting here waiting for your indignation to rise.

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surpluspartsgalore · ‎09-26-2014

You guys have been a tremendous help, thanks a lot for all the information. I'm leaning towards flat rate shipping now. I'll have to try it out and see how it works for me. Would it make more sense to do flat rate shipping for the U.S. and Canada and a calculated cost for everywhere else?

My concern with what eBay thought was with seller levels in mind. I'd like to reach Top Rated one day if I keep going with this.

Again, I really appreciate everyone's help.

treasure.hunter.d · ‎09-26-2014

@mr.elmwood wrote:
@surpluspartsgalore wrote:
Thanks for the information, I appreciate it!

I do not use tracking as it costs way too much money, does not work, serves no purpose.

The only time tracking is required is in the event of an INR dispute.

You state those points as if they are a matter of fact instead of what they are "your opinion"

No offense but there are many factors involved and making blanket statements such as these do not serve the interest of new sellers looking for solid information.

On many items, because of size/weight, tracking is only pennies more than non-tracked service and it is good piece of mind for starters. Tracking works quite nicely and I would be interested as to where you get your facts/stats that enable you to claim that tracking "doesn't work"

Canada Post rates are too expensive across the board but that's another discussion entirely.

Telling the OP that tracking is a waste of time simply because that is your opinion really doesn't help him at all.

Tracked mail/parcel service serves a definite service, and in many cases, not using it is just asking for trouble. Given the type of items being sold, their size and weight, where they are being shipped to, are all factors needing to be considered before anyone can decide "for themselves" whether or not to use a tracked service.

Cheers,

thd

Cheers,

thd

ricarmic · ‎09-27-2014

For the OP below is a link to a thread of mine regarding my self insurance loss rate.

I track very very little, usually only what I have to, because it is large enough that I have to use expedited or expresspost.

I do choose to upgrade tracking in situations where it is a problem country (China would be an example) or my spider senses are tingling for a given buyer (a new buyer, odd communication, country, whatever).

Note that I only use flat rate shipping. I have 4 sizes of boxes from a pizza style box to bankers box(s) for material that is large enough to require same.

I'm also one of those "free shipping" people, and build my shipping in. It works for me in my category (stamps), doesn't for others.

Here is the link....

http://community.ebay.ca/t5/Seller-Central/My-experience-Updated-Self-Insurance-statistics/m-p/22247...