DSR shipping fees under 4.5 anyone else having problems ?

[dagr8_renaud]

here is what I will try in all my next lisings , I will add the followong message in all my auction , before you read it understand english is a second language for me so any input greatly appreciated ..

If all Canadain Power sellers write a similar note in all of our listing we will get way more Exposure ... I was thinking maybe someone could make a nice lookin HTML so that we could all have the same one this way even buyer who dont read auction would be curious at one point or another read it .

anyways here it is :

" A note about DSR ( Detailed Seller Ratings ) , PLEASE READ :



While it is very hard to achieve perfection in an online transaction eBay still requires Power Sellers like me to obtain a minimum of 4.5 / 5 on all ratings ... This means when you rate a seller under 5 in any categories it is exactly like saying he does not deserve to be a Power Seller . Recently I have problems obtaining rating above 4.5 in the shipping and handling fees category ( and only in this category ), hence the need to explain shipping fees :


The only way for me to obtain Insurance and tracking information FOR ALL INTERNATIONAL ORDERS is to use Canada Post' s Xpress Post to the US and Canada Post' s E.M.S for international orders . In the United States they have more options for shipping overseas but in Canada we do NOT .

My handling fees are flat fee of 3 $ on every transaction ( sometimes it covers packaging fees sometimes it does NOT )

If you think that is too much and know how I could lower these handling fees please kindly let me know, but please remember I sell sunglasses it is a fragile item and requires to be packed carefully .

Believe me I am aware that paying 60 $ for shipping a 300 $ pair of sunglasses anywhere in Europe or Asia is very frustrating. If I could lower my cost I would sell a lot more , I receive many emails from Italy, Thailand and all over the world to tell me if shipping was lower they would buy from me . Thank you for taking the time to read this and considering how to rate a seller's DSR . "


So what do you all think ? of course this one is personalized for my listing but you get my drift , thanks in advance for your inputs , if solution like this have been posted somewhere else I apologize and thank you in advance for linking me to those solutions .

[dagr8_renaud]

Faerywishes
thanks for being precised and detailed , will definitely use all of your advices .

Xena ,

'negative statements' .. of course I know all about Paypal ' s policies , sometimes buyers dont I wont hide the fact that I am tryig to take advantage of it . I been scammed one time too many and I still think paypal has it wrong but that is another story (please dont get me started on this one ) bottom line is I need paypal so I have to live with there policies ...

I will take your advice and remove all those you mentioned, a few of them I was already suppose to remove since with Extended seller protection there is no need for them . ( was just too lazy I guess )

Yes I am targeting younger buyers as they are my principle clientele , 75 % , every one can appreciate a nice looking listing I will get a nice lookin HTML template.. again I should have done this a long time ago ...

about shipping I will email you and see how that will help me , I have a very good understanding of witch service I can use with Canada post.. I been power Seller for only 8 month but I been shipping stuff for more then 3 years .

Last but not least , even tho I agree raising the overall quality of my business will impact my incomes and surely my DSR , I still think the only problem I am facing is the fact that I need Extended seller protection ( only available to Power Seller) but the only thing putting me at risk atm is the shipping cost (call me stubborn if you like )
I tried using the shipping calculator , it gives average 10 - 15 $ higher quotes then my flat fee (even with no handling fees ) it is only accurate for US sells . so it defeats the purpose of using it, or are you suggesting it will reassure buyer to use it ?

main thing I learned from this thread , I will continue to try and improve my business , I am a bit discouraged about the fact that nobody faces the same problem as I . therefore you don' t really have the feel for my MAIN problem ( witch is Shipping cost to international buyers)

[coxengines]

I am a bit discouraged about the fact that nobody faces the same problem as I

Many, many sellers face exactly the same problem, and that includes us.

therefore you don' t really have the feel for my MAIN problem

Many of us, including ourselves when we mail $200 packages to Europe (happens at least once a week) have the feel of your main problem. We just deal differently with it.

Anyhow, you seem to going in the right direction now. Hope what I emailed you helps and

bonne chance!
Xena

[faerywishes]

dagr8_renaud I'm happy to see that you will try some of our suggestions.

I too face high shipping for International Buyers. Maybe not to the extent you do, but I do. About 30-40% of my buyers are International.

If I sell 1 item for $.99 the Light packet rate is $3.75. I charge $3.00 for shipping only. If I sell 1 box of chipboard alpha the shipping can be $7.52 and the item may have sold for $7.00 and I am still only charging $3.00. Now looking at that you wouldn't think that makes much sense. However, rarely do I get a International buyer that buys only 1 item.

If I sell 4 items at $.99 I charge $4.50 for shipping and it costs me $3.75. I break even at that point for the shipping and handling. While you can see my shipping for International is much cheaper than yours my items sell for much less than yours so my margin for profit is less.

OK that said rarely do my items sell for $.99 but that is my break even point. Selling scrapbooking items is very competitive and while I could look at selling other things this is what I love selling.

I choose to use Light Packet for a few reasons. It ships quickly, at times even quicker than to the US. It's cheaper than Expidited which will not work for me really as it is way too costly for what I sell. I have yet to have 1 parcel lost when I use Light Packet, this includes shipping to the US. I think the buyers think it works the same as expidited. The label does look pretty impressive. You can suggest they put the number at the CP website and they will see it is in the postal system.

Right now I am not sure if you can purchase more insurance with the Light Packet and honestly I am too tired to look into it for you. Not much sleep last couple of nights. I just love the hot weather here! NOT! LOL

Check my listing for 190240214383 the check my listing for 200240928688. Now I can almost be you're not a scrapbooking person, but my point is, if you were which listing is more appealing and professional.

Good thing I asked you to look at one of my listings I can see it has some of the old return info. It looks like I need to update more of my pages.

[faerywishes]

dang computer it posted this again before I was ready....

As I was saying...

It reminds me of when I had an item for auction and didn't notice until the last day(too late to change it) that I had the shipping as $11.70. Shipping for that item in Canada & US was $2.00 and International $3.75. Item should have sold for $3-$4. While I was searching the help to see what I could do, I got a bid, so emailed the bidder with the correct shipping. Then I couldn't believe it another bid, so I emailed that person. I eventually sold that item for $5.50 with the corrected shipping. See it doesn't matter so much about the shipping. It's the whole package.

Please excuse for babbling on. I just want you to see that most of us have obstacles that we feel stops us from our selling potential. Nothing is farther from the truth. We as sellers can stop our selling potential, nothing more. Other things may be obstacles, but if you really want to sell you will bull doze through that brick wall.

It's time to let it go and get a plan to correct your shipping cost DSR. Don't get caught up in the shipping cost DSR for another minute. You are looking for ways to correct that. Change some of the things we have suggested and your other DSR's will go up as well. You have awesome f/b. Specially from the newbies, quite impressive. I find at times they can be a harder sell. So I pay much more attention to them. If I am one of their newer purchase I send a welcome package to them. Info plus freebies. I make a big deal so they are excited about buying in here.

There is so much you can do to improve your buyers satisfaction and we have only touched the tip of the iceberg for you. I am excited for you, you can do this and attain the shipping DSR you want. I am also giddy from lack of sleep...lol. You absolutely need to believe you can change this and will do what ever it takes within reason to attain this.

If you like let us see your new listing info in progress and we will help you.

Xena gave you really good feed back about your listings. She or He(I'm never sure which one is commenting) really took the time to go over and point out the things that can be changed and fairly easily. If your not good with words ask for help. Cuomo or something like that in here gave you some really good tips about writing things in a more positive manner & how to address some of those tough emails from buyers. Sorry if I got the name wrong.

You can also use Activa which has free templates. They are not as nice as Seller Source Book. The great thing about both though you can have several photos free instead of only one. So you can save some money. It may even save you enough for the subscription from Seller Source Book. You can also store your pics for free if you happen to be paying for Ebay storage, that can save you more. The huge bonus is though your listings look much more professional. I too had gotten lazy and was only using them periodically, but now I have more time and I'm going back to them. You can save your listings there if you happen to sell many of the same items and then it is only seconds to re-list. Or just change the template look and you've refreshed your listing. Speaking of which I have put off doing that today and should nget back to it.

Again, Good Luck! and get excited about selling again. B-)

[coxengines]

She or He(I'm never sure which one is commenting)

Whoever signs his/her name is posting.

However, Bernie, having learnt his lesson, will likely not post again.

Xena

[dagr8_renaud]

thanks for the encouragement guys ( and gurlz)

well here is my last 3 hours of work Im exhausted kid will wake me up at 5 am again um sure anyways it was worth it , found some free template I liked and did allth ework , I used img shack btwm anything wrong with that ? its free too

if you dont like it feel free to bash me I dont mind hehehe

anyways its just a test I revised one of my 25 C listing

here is number : 300245362125

[dagr8_renaud]

will definately put the pictures form the side on top , it looks awefull onthe side but im done for tonight .

[faerywishes]

WOW what an improvement. It looks so much better. I know it takes time now but next time you list it will be easy.

WTG...hope you slept well and hit the ground running today.

Have a Wonderful Day.
Colleen

[faerywishes]

Sorry Xena if I offended you. I was so tired then and I am still am. But off to bed finally.

Have a Great Selling Day Everyone. 😄

[pierrelebel]

"feel free to bash me I dont mind "

Great improvement!

A few points, if I may.

The template (on top) refers to "This Auction is For:"

At the bottom: "Please note that EMS is mandatory on all my auctions that end over 100$" and "happy bidding"

The listing is NOT an auction but a fixed price listing; the wording should be modified accordingly.

You also invite potential buyers to give you a reasonable offer - indicating you will accept less than the listed price of $400.00.

Different sellers have different policies, based on their market. As a long term policy, I never ever accept an offer at a price lower than listed. I understand other sellers see it from a different perspective anf that's OK.

However, the fact ytou are willing to accept a lower price indicates to me your $400 price is on the high side. As such, potential buyers may find it more attractive if you offered a $10.00 shipping charge instead of $20.00 (whatever it costs you is irrelevant in this context).

Your listing reads:
Shipping insurance
Domestic: Not offered
International: Included

Both should read "Included".

Your refund policy is confusing. KISS.

"They are 100 % authentic or your money back !" "or" implies the possibility they are not authentic!

Keep your message positive, always.

Good Luck .

[dagr8_renaud]

Pierre , of course you may ( and its appreciated ) .


Everything has been corrected , inputs greatly appreciated .



About best offer that listing is set on buy it now or best offer , some type of client will die to have 10$ rebate it seems it gives them the feeling they got a deal .. truth is I sell these for 300 all the time (in Auction style listing) , others prefer to have them right away and pay a bit more ..

[dagr8_renaud]

one more thing , I kept my return policy simple . truth is on this kind of item it is very risky ( get damaged very easy ) to accept refunds , witch is why I only accept 3 days on exchange in case it is not authentic ( i.e they are o dotn bother ) I know that is nto the best ormula so if you have inputs on this one its appreciate too .

[dagr8_renaud]

Aight just to wrap up the whole thing ..

First I wanna say thanks to all for the response and for encouraging me .. I polished my listing and I am Proud of the way they look now , (some cant be modified atm but I already have them ready for relist in new version)

I already have my DSR back at 4.5 , I guess it was just a bad timing for me sort of speak.

Special thanks to Xena and whoever created the 'leavingfeedback' site ,, that link is exactly what I was looking for I should have ask for solutions instead of suggesting some maybe that link would have pop out a few days before.

B-)]:)