eBay

foulger_tyson · ‎03-30-2018

I cant seem to get views on items and cant seem to sell stuff. Even popular Items on eBay that I post for sale are the same thing. Any views that they do have are from me.

How can I get views and sell stuff?

momcqueen · ‎03-31-2018

If the item is small and flat, it can go lettermail. That's the only way to offer cheap domestic postage. Use flat-rate postage for that in the listing. Check the price of stamps for 'envelopes' on the Canada Post website.

femmefan1946 · ‎03-31-2018

And you can reduce the cost of stamps by Searching for Canada Postage mint never hinged on eBay.

or MNH Canada postage which means the same

foulger_tyson · ‎03-31-2018

Where on the website can I find the price for stamps for envelopes?

Is it the same price for all to go anywhere in Canada?

The dimensions are:

20cm Long X 14cm Wide X 2cm Tall/Thick

What about the other one I have listed (HO Model train cars) and others that go in a box? Do I just put in the dimensions when listing the item? What is the cheapest shipping service for boxes and thick bubble envelopes?

The dimensions for the HO Model train cars are:

19cm Long X 9.5cm Wide X 5.5cm Tall

momcqueen · ‎03-31-2018

Also, on your parcels, don't use Standard Regular Parcel; use Expedited Parcel. It's faster, has included insurance, and is often cheaper. Print your labels via Shippo to get a discount. You're offering counter rates, it looks like, for parcels. Ebay sellers get a discount, I think I have my calculated shipping settings for Canadians set to 15 per cent less than counter and it's about one dollar less that I subsidize on postage per order.

When you add five bucks to the asking price of your item and subtract that amount from the postage cost, buyers see that as a better deal on postage for an item of greater value. Money spent on postage is regarded as a throwaway expense, it stops having value as soon as the order is in their hands whereas the order will feel more valuable for the money spent.

Femme likes to give the comparison about what seems like a better deal:

$10 item and (actual cost of) $10 shipping

$15 item and $5 shipping (subsidized by the seller with the higher asking price) or

$20 item and 'free' shipping ...? (Free shipping is never free, of course. It means included in the asking price but buyers prefer it, ebay tells us continually.)

The buyer might look at the first example and feel, 'Meh, too much for postage.' Maybe they look at the last item like '$20 for that?' with no idea of the actual value of the postage cost to their address so then the $15 item seems fair with most people prepared to accept that it might cost $5 to mail them something.

It's a shell game.

momcqueen · ‎03-31-2018

@foulger_tysonwrote:
Where on the website can I find the price for stamps for envelopes?

Is it the same price for all to go anywhere in Canada?

The dimensions are:
20cm Long X 14cm Wide X 2cm Tall

What about the other one I have listed (HO Model train cars) and others that go in a box? Do I just put in the dimensions when listing the item? What is the cheapest shipping service for boxes and thick bubble envelopes?
The dimensions for the HO Model train cars are:
19cm Long X 9.5cm Wide X 5.5cm Tall

Your trains are too tall to go lettermail.

The others? https://www.canadapost.ca/cpo/mc/personal/ratesprices/postalprices.jsf?LOCALE=en#canada

It costs the same in stamps whether you send lettermail across the street or to Yellowknife.

foulger_tyson · ‎03-31-2018

@momcqueenwrote:
Your trains are too tall to go lettermail.

The others?

I know the trains are too tall to go in the letter mail. I was talking about the RAM. That's what I was asking is what do I do for shipping for the trains?

The others meaning the other stuff I have to sell that is too large to go in lettermail also including the trains.

foulger_tyson · ‎03-31-2018

And what if it need more than 1 stamps to go where it needs to go? Should I raise the price by $5 and put a $5 for shipping, Canada only? I need to remember that eBay gets %10 and PayPal gets like what, %2.9 or something like that?

around_again_records · ‎04-01-2018

@foulger_tysonwrote:
Where on the website can I find the price for stamps for envelopes?

Is it the same price for all to go anywhere in Canada?

The dimensions are:
20cm Long X 14cm Wide X 2cm Tall/Thick

What about the other one I have listed (HO Model train cars) and others that go in a box? Do I just put in the dimensions when listing the item? What is the cheapest shipping service for boxes and thick bubble envelopes?
The dimensions for the HO Model train cars are:
19cm Long X 9.5cm Wide X 5.5cm Tall

Here are some links for Letter Mail and Oversize Letter Mail shipments. Print them out and use them every time you are making a listing. If you can keep your shipment within the specifications then you can use Flat Rate Shipping and put in the price shown on the sheet. Study them carefully for dimension and weights

https://www.canadapost.ca/tools/pg/prices/Canada.pdf

https://www.canadapost.ca/tools/pg/prices/US.pdf

https://www.canadapost.ca/tools/pg/prices/International.pdf

If those links don't work, here is the link to the page where they are located. You will find them under Postal Price Fanfolds

https://www.canadapost.ca/tools/pg/prices/default-e.asp

If your parcels are over 500 grams and thicker than 2 cm you will have to use Calculated Shipping.

I have found the least expensive services are expedited Parcel for Canada, Small Packet Air USA and Small Packet Air International. If you are shipping very expensive items you might want to go to different International services because Small Packet does NOT have tracking or insurance.

When using calculated, measure and weigh carefully. Try to find the smallest, lightest method of packing that will still get your item there safely. Centimeters and grams can make a big difference in the shipping cost. Measure and weigh carefully - don't guess (not until you have a better idea of rates) and have your packing picked out before you make the listing, so you know exactly what the measurements and weights are.

Take it slow. Keep it simple at first. You will get to know the rates and cutoff points for rate changes, and things will get easier.

foulger_tyson · ‎04-01-2018

Thank you! This was very helpful!

So I have some stamps here with the P on them. Can I use them for letter mail that is up to 500g and no thicker than 2cm or for those is it only up to 30g? Do I only need one for anywhere in Canada?

pjcdn2005 · ‎04-01-2018

1 P stamp would be anywhere in Canada up to 30 gr for standard lettermail not bigger than 245mm x 156mm x 5mm

You can use more than 1 p stamp on an envelope for oversized mail. I never use them and can’t remember if they are counted as .85 or $1. My guess is .85.

foulger_tyson · ‎04-01-2018

Okay.

I printed this and it helps.

https://www.canadapost.ca/tools/pg/prices/Canada.pdf

foulger_tyson · ‎04-01-2018

I'm starting to get it now. Thanks everyone for your patience!

reallynicestamps · ‎04-01-2018

The P stamps are valued at 85 cents.

(the $1.00 is what the PO charges you when you buy just one stamp over the counter)

My concern is whether or not we can use P stamps on mail to international destinations.

pocomocomputing · ‎04-02-2018

@reallynicestampswrote:
The P stamps are valued at 85 cents.

(the $1.00 is what the PO charges you when you buy just one stamp over the counter)
My concern is whether or not we can use P stamps on mail to international destinations.

I asked Pierre once about P stamps and he told me they could only be used on domestic mail and had a value of the current P rate (85 cents today).

The issue with international is that some countries who charge duty and or VAT on an item value plus the shipping cost. It would be more work for the country to verify the actual postage against the declared postage value.

@pierrelebel

kawartha-ephemera · ‎04-02-2018

QUOTE The P stamps are valued at 85 cents.
My concern is whether or not we can use P stamps on mail to international destinations. UNQUOTE

Our local postmaster has schooled me on this subject. Yes, the P stamps can be used for USA and International regular lettermail but they are only valued at 85 cents. Occasionally have run out of the appropriate international or USA stamp and have substituted a P(s) and a few 5 or 10 cent to arrive at the correct postage.
For USA and International Over-Size LetterMail have the post office print the postage labels to avoid paying the GST/HST, purchases over 5.00 are exempt.

tobyshitzu · ‎04-02-2018

"

The PERMANENT™ stamp, identified with the letter P in place of a value, is always accepted at the current domestic postage price. If you buy a PERMANENT stamp today, you can use it anytime in the future.

One PERMANENT stamp can be used to mail a letter (weighing up to 30 grams) anywhere in Canada. You can also use PERMANENT stamps in conjunction with additional postage to mail larger letters, parcels or to send mail internationally"

https://www.canadapost.ca/web/en/kb/details.page?article=what_are_permanent_s&cattype=kb&cat=sending...

femmefan1946 · ‎04-02-2018

In a devil may care scofflaw mood, I would think that since the P stamps like pretty well all stamps since the 60s are actually read by machinery which sees the fluorescent tagging only , the P stamps would pass muster anywhere.

That's the source of the 'penny postage' scam that was popular at one point. (The scammer sold the mark a 'license' to mail his letters /invoices using only a one cent stamp on the envelope. Since the penny stamp was tagged the same way as the first class stamp, the machinery would pass it. If an actual human saw the short postage, the PO would come back at the mark, not the scammer.)

Anyway, best to err on the side of caution.

foulger_tyson · ‎04-03-2018

I'm starting to get the hang of it now. Just mailed first item today. Thanks!

ricarmic · ‎04-03-2018

As Toby provided, P stamps are good to send anywhere.

I'm a stamp guy and my customers want stamps on the package.

Every mail run, I'm sending many many many P stamps on international packages, never a problem!

foulger_tyson · ‎04-06-2018

So I got the shipping figured out, but still no views. Maybe they are too expensive? I put a or best offer on them. Some things I don't know what they are worth and some things I paid more for so I can't see them being too expensive.

Any thoughts?