eBay

xanomalisx · ‎10-18-2015

so im totally new to selling on ebay. what i would like to know if it is easy shipping with fedex, and is it cost effective. for all orders domestic and international. do canadian sellers get the same shipping discounts as us sellers using fedex?

tobyshitzu · ‎10-18-2015

There is a significant discount (off retail) for all but the base ground service. Unfortunately the retail rates are so high for anything but the not included ground service it isnt worth using

xanomalisx · ‎10-18-2015

is there any benefit on using it for fedex express pickup. my bussiness is such that it is really part time and i would not be able to ship anything during the day,i work during the day. i could only ship after 5pm.

lucitabby · ‎10-18-2015

No benefit. Best to stick with CP and the smaller and lighter the item the better.

mr.elmwood · ‎10-18-2015

I used USPS once or twice in 12 years. It was a nightmare. Part time, minimum wage, untrained, clerks. CP, they know what they are doing.

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femmefan1946 · ‎10-18-2015

Take a walk tomorrow at lunchtime. Watch for a post box with parcel pickup. You want one with 5pm or so pickup.

You may need to head out in various directions, but if you work in a downtown, a mall, or an industrial park you should be able to find one.

There may even be one within a block of your house or between your home and the bus stop.

I have posted most of my parcels at mailboxes and have never found any noticeable difference between delivery time from the box and from the PO.

You could also ask the guys in the mail room if you could leave your (stamped and ready to go) parcels with them for pickup with the company mail. If they say yes, remember to give them a small gift at Christmas.

If you print your shipping labels through Paypal, you get a discount of between 5% and 17% on most parcel services.

There is no discount on LetterMail, but you can buy stamps on eBay at substantial discounts even including tax and shipping.

Remember that although as a new seller, your customer's cleared payments will be Held by PP for 21 days, you still are required to ship within 7 days to keep your Seller Protection.

But if you use PP shipping labels, you can pay for them from the Held funds. (Plus as mentioned, discounts!)

hazels09 · ‎10-18-2015

FedEx Savings for eBay Sellers

did anyone get a message (click on the link above) from eBay regarding discounts of 30 to 65% off economy services. According to my figuring, it would cost me $15 to send a parcel weighing about 1 lb. which is still more than Canada Post. What does everybody else think?

around_again_records · ‎10-19-2015

I think eBay is setting up a Global shipping program for Canada and Fed Ex will be their main shipper.

What do you think?

pierrelebel · ‎10-19-2015

"What do you think?"

No, absolutely not.

It simply does not make sense. GSP was set up to lure reluctant Americans into exports. Canadians already ship quite willingly to the USA.

tobyshitzu · ‎10-19-2015

They already rolled it out in the UK too, suspect it is the plan to eventually have it and other shipping things like the UK argos deal everywhere they can. They are being crushed by AMZN fulfillment

mr.elmwood · ‎10-19-2015

@pierrelebel wrote:
"What do you think?"

No, absolutely not.

It simply does not make sense. GSP was set up to lure reluctant Americans into exports. Canadians already ship quite willingly to the USA.

Plus most of the rest of the world. Many Americans think there are only 48 states. Even more don't know about PR, VI, Guam, armed forces bases, etc.

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momcqueen · ‎10-20-2015

@toby**bleep**zu wrote:
They already rolled it out in the UK too, suspect it is the plan to eventually have it and other shipping things like the UK argos deal everywhere they can. They are being crushed by AMZN fulfillment

eBay just hired someone from walmart.com and let go the guy who was here to class the place up. I smell a connection.

rose-dee · ‎10-20-2015

@pierrelebel wrote:

It simply does not make sense. GSP was set up to lure reluctant Americans into exports. Canadians already ship quite willingly to the USA.

Not only willingly, and not only to the U.S.A. (as 'Mr. Elmwood' pointed out), but all over the world, and at cheaper prices than GSP could ever provide.

The personal tax-free import limit for U.S. residents is, I believe, $200 US, which means Americans can buy a lot from Canadians without paying taxes or duties anyway. A GSP programme for Canadian sellers would not only destroy our sales, but would make little sense for Pitney Bowes and eBay, who make money on all those lower-priced sales from the U.S. by charging a fee for collecting taxes that might not otherwise be collected by Canada (or other countries).

For a new/newer eBay seller, I'd recommend sticking with Canada Post [was that a pun? Sorry, unintended! ] and using Paypal labels for the tracked services to get the substantial discounts.

Interestingly, I recently bought an item from a Canadian seller that had to be sent in a box (i.e. parcel shipping), and the seller used FedEx. My cost for shipping was under $15 for a ca. 5-lb. box, which didn't seem too bad, especially since it was delivered to my door. However, this seller was an experienced, fairly large seller, so they knew what they were doing.

One significant downside to remember in using FedEx is that if the item is going to a rural or remote location, if the recipient isn't at home when the delivery truck arrives, the parcel may go back to the nearest FedEx depot, which could be many kms away, usually a lot further to travel than to the nearest P.O. or postal outlet. I don't know how many times FedEx attempts delivery before returning the item to their depot, but I'd be surprised if it's more than twice.

Even in my area, which is rural but not remote by any means, had I not been at home the day the FedEx box arrived, I would have had to drive a considerable distance (about 80kms return) if I'd had to pick it up. At the cost of today's gasoline, I would think this might not make for a very happy customer.

pocomocomputing · ‎10-20-2015

I do think a GSP program for Canadian sellers would work well for shipping to countries other than the USA. SImply because Canada Post tracked International shipping costs are crazy high.

Look at Tracked Packet International and the crazy prices of $40 to $60 for 250 and 500 grams, $50 to $70 for 1 kg and $70 to $100 for 2kg. For those prices, I could ship Vancouver to Toronto (assume it to be the Canadian GSP hub) for $12 to $20 for 750 g to 2 kg) and I have to assume that the Canadian GSP can ship to Europe (UK) for under $20-$30 and beat Canada Post Tracked Packet shipping costs easily.

And all I as a Canadian Seller has to worry about is getting the item tracked to Toronto.

Bad for buyers as they would have to pay VAT all the time but VAT import limit to Europe is 20 Euros or so ($30 Can) so theoretically the European buyers would have to pay VAT anyway.

GSP would not work for low priced items but for high priced items ($100) or heavy items for a Canadian Seller, it would be a good option.

Of course, the repacking issue would be a problem.

PS I know that small items (250 grams or less) can go to Europe for under $10 Small Packet International Air and you can insure (sell or third party). Good for items under $25-$50 including shipping cost but after that, the hit gets too high if you self insure.

rose-dee · ‎10-20-2015

I don't know, I've wondered about this, but I think the real problem arises because Pitney-Bowes (or whoever is handling the programme) wants their fee too.

So while a parcel might cost $12 to ship from Vancouver to Toronto, then to, say Europe from that hub for $20 or $30, you'd still have to tack on ca. $10 in P-B fees.

That would make the total cost (ignoring the VAT for the moment, which would have to be paid by the recipient in any case), around $42 to $52, so we're back with something close to Canada Post rates.

A European buyer of, say, a $100 item, would see shipping costs displayed on eBay of anywhere from about $60 to $70 if you factor in the VAT that would have to be included for GSP purposes. I see the total displayed shipping cost as the real problem (similar to the sticker shock Canadians get when looking at GSP-shipping items from U.S. sellers).

At least with Canada Post, it's up to the buyer to pay the VAT at their end, which means the seller's posted shipping rates are just the shipping, no fees and no VAT.

There really doesn't seem to be any solution to shipping internationally unless you're selling very lightweight items that have some considerable value.

When Canada Post boosted the Light Packet rate for over 500 gms to $21.00, and $11.50 for up to 300gm, that was pretty much the end of sales of my own pattern line to Europe or beyond, since most sell for under $20.00 US, and many weigh more than the 200gm limit for Light Packet at $7.50.

tobyshitzu · ‎10-20-2015

Exactly, it potentially could remove more costs here then in the USA. It would be like If chitchat was willing to receive, relabel and ship with his rates which would be much cheaper then CP intl even paying full CP domestic retail to get it there

Even GSP to Canada is surprisingly cheap now. The added fee is so low its cheaper then having it sent direct, if taxes are collected. The only things people complain about are low price items that slip through untaxed. And that isnt an issue to countries with higher import limits. Recently seen Canadian comments elsewhere saying they only buy GSP listings on ebay now

Ebay canada staff that used to make the news over high postgae rates in Canada are now spendig their time lobbying to lower the cost of importing merchandise. Paywalled article recently:

EBay lobbying Ottawa to reduce duties customers pay on imported ...
The Globe and Mail-Sep 30, 2015
EBay Inc. has been lobbying the federal government to reduce the duties people pay on items shipped into Canada. The online retailer has ...

pocomocomputing · ‎10-20-2015

@rose-dee wrote:
I don't know, I've wondered about this, but I think the real problem arises because Pitney-Bowes (or whoever is handling the programme) wants their fee too.

So while a parcel might cost $12 to ship from Vancouver to Toronto, then to, say Europe from that hub for $20 or $30, you'd still have to tack on ca. $10 in P-B fees.

That would make the total cost (ignoring the VAT for the moment, which would have to be paid by the recipient in any case), around $42 to $52, so we're back with something close to Canada Post rates.

A European buyer of, say, a $100 item, would see shipping costs displayed on eBay of anywhere from about $60 to $70 if you factor in the VAT that would have to be included for GSP purposes. I see the total displayed shipping cost as the real problem (similar to the sticker shock Canadians get when looking at GSP-shipping items from U.S. sellers).

At least with Canada Post, it's up to the buyer to pay the VAT at their end, which means the seller's posted shipping rates are just the shipping, no fees and no VAT.

There really doesn't seem to be any solution to shipping internationally unless you're selling very lightweight items that have some considerable value.

When Canada Post boosted the Light Packet rate for over 500 gms to $21.00, and $11.50 for up to 300gm, that was pretty much the end of sales of my own pattern line to Europe or beyond, since most sell for under $20.00 US, and many weigh more than the 200gm limit for Light Packet at $7.50.

Light Packet International is only a lower rate for 200 grams. Small Packet International Air 250 grams beats Light Packet International 300 grams for western Europe (assuming you can fit in under 250 grams instead of 300 grams). ($9.49 versus $11.50) And even Australia at 10.67 for SP Air 250 grams

If you want to be competitive for your patterns, you need to buy discount postage stamps from stamps sellers in this forum at 20 to 30% off regular postage rates and they will not charge HST or shipping for most of them. This means you can ship LP 300 grams $11.50 for a cost of $8.60 (25% off used) or Small Packet Air International Europe 250 grams $9.49 for $7.11 (25% off used).

Using discount postage means using the manual CN22 forms. It means sticking on an envelope lots of stamps (up to 50+ sometimes). I Have done this for years now for Lettermail, Light Packet, Small Packet (200, 250, 300 usually, sometimes 500 grams).

rose-dee · ‎10-20-2015

@pocomocomputing wrote:
If you want to be competitive for your patterns, you need to buy discount postage stamps from stamps sellers in this forum at 20 to 30% off regular postage rates and they will not charge HST or shipping for most of them. This means you can ship LP 300 grams $11.50 for a cost of $8.60 (25% off used) or Small Packet Air International Europe 250 grams $9.49 for $7.11 (25% off used).

Using discount postage means using the manual CN22 forms. It means sticking on an envelope lots of stamps (up to 50+ sometimes). I Have done this for years now for Lettermail, Light Packet, Small Packet (200, 250, 300 usually, sometimes 500 grams).

This may work for sellers who can rely on a significant level of international sales. It's simply not worth all the time and trouble for me for the dozen or so international sales I might get per year, especially now that sales generally seem to have taken a nose-dive on eBay. Keep in mind that my international sales (outside the U.S.) are very targeted -- primarily English-speaking countries (my patterns are written in English only), which means, for me, U.K., Australia and NZ mainly.

I actually grappled with, and solved, this problem a year ago by making a decision that has allowed me to sell internationally (via another site) without having to deal with shipping issues, so although I still offer international delivery on eBay, if 2016 Canada Post rates kill that part of my business, it won't be the problem it might have been 2 or 3 years ago.

The current low $Cdn has been a surprise boost this year which has allowed me to avoid losing money on every single international shipping cost, so as long as the $Cdn stays low I may be able to continue. If CP raises international rates in the coming year, it will probably be the end of my desire to sell these items internationally on eBay.

momcqueen · ‎10-21-2015

Like I said before when R opened the floor to shipping comments on that other thread, I'd be happy to have a way to collect upfront the import fees for certain overseas buyers (UK and Germany, Italy and maybe Holland to name a few) but I don't want anyone from some mid-point hub opening and repacking my orders, undoing all my hard work. Couriers collect import fees at the doorstep and they don't examine every parcel en route for authenticity.

momcqueen · ‎10-21-2015

http://www.ecommercebytes.com/cab/abn/y15/m10/i21/s04

Walmart Has a Strategic Advantage in Ecommerce Fulfillment

By Ina Steiner
EcommerceBytes.com
October 21, 2015

Walmart opened up another large-scale ecommerce fulfillment center in October, this one in Atlanta, Georgia. It's the third next-generation fulfillment center to open in the U.S. in as many months. In July, the retailer opened up a fulfillment center in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania; and in August, it opened another in Plainfield, Indiana.