How to pass shipping discount onto customers?

[tabithabeaton]

In our listings, I really want to be able to have the discounted Canada Post rates applied so potential buyers have the lowest possible shipping price showing to help them make their purchase decision. Other than the global setting I found of letting there by "X% off domestic shipping" and "X% off international shipping", I can't find anything that lets me customize 8% off domestic Regular, 20-25% of domestic Expedited, 20-25% off US Expedited.

All our shipping is calculated due to the variety of product sizes we carry.

We offer a variety of shipping options, particularly for US customers that are used to paying much lower shipping costs in their own country. I need to be able to offer them a small packet surface/air option as well as Expedited, because those small packet costs are usually less than Expedited, even with the 20-25%discount.

For our Canadian customers, I could see offering just the Expedited rate with the global 20-25% off applied and removing the Regular Parcel option completely since it usually is more. But how do I help our US customers see these rate cuts without also having non-US International customers getting the discount applied also if I use that global discount setting?

And I always feel awkward when potential buyers e-mail me complaining about the shipping cost and I have to say, "Actually, I could ship Expedited for less." It looks like I am marking up our shipping to someone who doesn't understand the Ebay shipping discount system, and I hate that perception.

Anyone doing this with success, other than refunding the discount after you ship (which loses you FVF fees as well)?

Thanks for any advice. With such a busy season right now, any way I can make our shipping as appealing as possible is important!

Take care,

Tabitha

[pjcdn2005]

I can't find anything that lets me customize 8% off domestic Regular, 20-25% of domestic Expedited, 20-25% off US Expedited.

You can't be that specific. You can have one discount for all domestic and another amount for all international. For domestic,there is no point in offering the choice of regular shipping since expedited is less expensive.

That means that there is no way to give a discount for expedited parcel USA without also discounting small packet international.  I don't usually offer expedited USA unless the item is more than 1 kg or over $100 and I want to have delivery confirmation.  The price of expedited throughout the US doesn't vary by that much (perhaps $5 from one end of the U.S. to the other?) so if you want to use it, you could figure out the rate for that size of parcel after discount and then use a flat rate and charge the highest amount or average it out.  I usually  figure out the price to a southeast state such as Georgia and then put that amount as my shipping price.

Unrelated to your question but thought that i would mention it.....I know that some sellers say that USA ground is fast or almost as fast as air but I have always hesitated to use it. If I want to give it as an option I will list it but will  put the small packet air price first as the buyer will see that price in search. It's my way of directing the buyer to the faster

service.

Simply because of population, the majority of my U.S. customers are in the east so while an Ontario seller might not have a problem using ground to an eastern state...I'm a bit wary about using it from Alberta...but that's just my opinion....I haven't used ground enough to know how fast it is. Because the post office is so busy this time of year, you might want to consider using only air to the U.S. right now and then try ground in the new year.

[reallynicestamps]

I come at this from a different point of view.

If the shipping comes to a lesser amount than my advertised fee, I send the buyer a refund when I ship.

The refund is adjusted to allow for eBay's refusal to refund their 9% FVF on shipping when there is a refund made

So if I had charged $10 for shipping and it turned out that I only needed to charge $8, the buyer would get a cheery note and an unexpected refund of $1.20 or so (I'm dysnumeric and DH has wandered off with the calculator again, please don't hold the numbers as being exact.)

Everyone loves a discount, especially when it is unexpected.

[brandeentertainment]

Discounts is why there are no more Twinkies 🙂 Consumers want it cheaper so factory need to go overseas or close there doors .. Poor Canadians Forcing outselves out of work by always wanting consumer goods for less 😞