New canadian sellers selling on ebay.com can sell and ship items to U.S buyers?

Just wanted to know if a new Canadian seller that started selling on ebay.com is allowed to sell and ship items to U.S buyers?  Thanks in advance.

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New canadian sellers selling on ebay.com can sell and ship items to U.S buyers?

"it is not showing in search anywhere.'

 

That is because you have listed on eBay.com with shipping to the USA only.  As such, the listing will not be seen when searching on eBay.ca or anywhere else unless you have a US address.

 

Enter the listing number in the search box and it is easy to identify the problem.

Message 21 of 60
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New canadian sellers selling on ebay.com can sell and ship items to U.S buyers?

Thank you, based on everyone's comments, I now understand this.

 

But how do I figure out the cost of shipping, based on Canada Post tools (they ask for destination info).

Message 22 of 60
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New canadian sellers selling on ebay.com can sell and ship items to U.S buyers?

Baby steps....

 

Take you item, package it but do not close it, take it to the post office or postal station - preferably at a time when they are not busy - and ask for assistance.  What are my options to ship within Canada, to the USA? overseas?

Message 23 of 60
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New canadian sellers selling on ebay.com can sell and ship items to U.S buyers?

I was searching on ebay.com. I mean it's there if I search by the ID, but when I search by the key word (e.g., manufacturer) it is not showing.

Message 24 of 60
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New canadian sellers selling on ebay.com can sell and ship items to U.S buyers?

As stated earlier, that is because you are located in Canada and your listing shows shipping to USA only.  As such the search engine on eBay will not show your listing to you - or anyone else located outside the USA.

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New canadian sellers selling on ebay.com can sell and ship items to U.S buyers?

Hmm ... by why do I see listings by others with US shipping only? In fact I bought from some who had US shipping only but then did make an exception to ship to me ...

Message 26 of 60
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New canadian sellers selling on ebay.com can sell and ship items to U.S buyers?

Do yourself a favour and make life easier for yourself.

 

KISS

 

Until you have achieved a certain level of experience selling on eBay, stick to listing on eBay.ca only.

 

By showing you ship to Canada and USA in your listings - and providing a shipping charge for Canad and the USA - your listings will be seen by members from Canada and the USA.

 

There is no point in listing on eBay.com at this time when eBay.ca will do the job for you.

Message 27 of 60
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New canadian sellers selling on ebay.com can sell and ship items to U.S buyers?

Well, I tried ... but my ebay.ca listings would not show up on ebay.com, as I don't have any sales and don't qualify for international selling (which apparently also includes US)...so I can't really sell to the US customers.

 

I thought this would be a workaround. As well, this is also a learning experience.

Message 28 of 60
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New canadian sellers selling on ebay.com can sell and ship items to U.S buyers?

"my ebay.ca listings would not show up on ebay.com,"

 

That is because your eBay.ca listing did not provide a shipping charge to the USA.  Forget "calculated" for a while.  List "stuff" where you can offer a fixed shipping charge (using Light Packet or Small Packet to the USA for example). 

 

Better yet, find something where the value is high enough to offer "free shipping" (meaning the shipping charge is included in the price).  More than half the listings on eBay offer "free shipping".  That's the growing trend.

 

You may not make any profit on the first few sales.  So what?  It is a learning experience.

Message 29 of 60
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New canadian sellers selling on ebay.com can sell and ship items to U.S buyers?

I can see your item on .ca by using Advance search and entering the listing number.  It's possible that the reason you don't see it when using key words, like the brand name, is because you are at the bottom of the list due to your lack of selling history.

 

Spend some time on the Canada Post site, calculating rates for various sizes and weights of packages.  They have various tables for delivery estimates, rate zones, etc.  It's worth the effort to familiarize yourself with these.  Don't get discouraged - shipping is the hardest part of selling on eBay, but once you have it figured out, you will find a method that works for you.

 

When checking shipping costs to the US, I use 90210 as a zip code because it's easy to remember.  Light Packet and Small Packet and Tracked Packet don't depend on the specific destination in the US - but they are size and weight specific, and you do need a zip code to check prices.  Expedited has a small number of price breaks for US delivery - play around with different US states to find the most expensive.  There are also minimum and maximum sizes for parcels for these services, and they may differ depending on destination.  For example, Expedited Parcels sent within Canada have a minimum size of 10x7x1cm, but for delivery to the USA, the minimum is 21 x14 x .5cm.   Make note of these, because eBay won't tell you if you are entering the wrong dimensions for a service.  You will think you have it set up correctly, but on the listing It will just show as "Shipping cannot be calculated for this ldestination" or something to that effect.

 

For Canada, choose a few postal codes that are far from you to get a feel for shipping costs.

 

If you use PayPal to print labels for Tracked Package, Expedited and I think Expresspost, you will get discounts.

 

I'm not sure what you are referring to when you say you are not allowed to sell internationally.  As far as I know, when you start selling, you can sell to any destination, you are not limited by eBay to only Canada.  However, it's probably a good idea to limit sales to Canada and the US at first, until you get a feel for selling and shipping.  I would recommend that you list on eBay.ca, not .com for now.  There is enough to learn without getting confused by US shipping options, site visibility, etc.

 

And your listings made on .ca will show up on .com if you have indicated you ship to the US and have set up your listing correctly.   When you list something, go and look at it on .ca and .com, and note the changes you think are needed.  Make them, and check again.  Keep doing this until you succeed.

 

Do also take the time to set up your site preferences and buyer requirements.  

Message 30 of 60
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New canadian sellers selling on ebay.com can sell and ship items to U.S buyers?

Thank you very much for taking the time to reply, and for lots of good info, especially about the 'test' postal codes.

 

I will try setting up my ebay.ca selling profile with shipping to US. I just had a previous experience that led to nothing. I posted an item (a new doll of a popular brand that normally sells like hotcakes on ebay) on ebay.ca with shipping to US but it never showed up on the US site. Nobody looked at it and nothing happened.

 

I ended up selling her for $120 on local kijiji. I doubt I would have sold her for even $70 on ebay due to lack of seller history, plus shipping and ebay fees would need to be factored in.

 

But I do want to establish a selling history on ebay, and need to start somehow :).

Message 31 of 60
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New canadian sellers selling on ebay.com can sell and ship items to U.S buyers?

Thanks, I will attempt listing a few cheaper things on ebay.ca and see what happens. I believe with my one and only ebay.ca listing (the doll) which I have described in the earlier post, I did offer shipping to the US (which would be my primary target audience), but the listing never showed up anywhere (just like the one I have right now on ebay.com) which is not showing in the category where it is posted, or is searchable by key word (it is found by ID only).

 

Yes, I definitely consider posting listings with free shipping (I have a few expensive dolls where their cost will absorb the shipping) but I am not comfortable listing them yet due to my zero seller experience. But I guess you are right that I can do the same with less expensive items, even if it means losing financially a little bit for the benefit of positive ratings and obtaining required experience.

 

Thanks again 🙂

 

Message 32 of 60
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New canadian sellers selling on ebay.com can sell and ship items to U.S buyers?


@davickie wrote:

Well, I tried ... but my ebay.ca listings would not show up on ebay.com, as I don't have any sales and don't qualify for international selling (which apparently also includes US)...so I can't really sell to the US customers.

 

I thought this would be a workaround. As well, this is also a learning experience.


I think you're making things far too difficult for yourself, by looking for a "workaround" that isn't necessary at all. The tools are all there on eBay.ca for you to make a good, solid start in selling, but you do need to do some homework -- read through the "Seller Information Centre" pages (see the link at the very bottom of this page).  

 

I'm not sure why you believe you don't qualify for international selling.  As far as I know there's nothing restricting new Canadian sellers from selling internationally.  As others have told you, this probably has to do with the way you've set yourself up on eBay. 

 

Simplify your life and start out with the basics.   Take the advice you've been given on this thread -- until you have some experience, list on eBay.ca only, use flat rate shipping (using the Canada Post options), or -- even better if you can -- price your items to enable you to offer free shipping.  Free shipping will completely eliminate all your shipping troubles under you have some selling experience under your belt.  Whether you use flat rate or free shipping, restrict your "ship to" destinations to Canada and the U.S. to start with.

 

 

My advice is to forget about other international destinations for the first few months, since they are a land mine of difficulties where shipping is concerned. 

 

Although you can go to a Post Office with a packaged item and ask about options, that's the hard way to do it. The easy way: go to your nearest Wal-Mart or London Drugs, buy a $15 weigh scale (the flat kind, not the kind used to measure food), and use that to calculate the weight of your items with their packaging.  

 

Here's how to set up your shipping rates:

 

1)  Weigh your (packed but unsealed) item on your scale -- do this before you sell the item, not afterward, so you're not guessing at shipping costs in your listing.  Have the Canada Post website up on your computer, and enter the dimensions and weight of your parcel and a destination.  

 

2)  Start by picking a point in Canada that is fairly distant from where you are, and print out the page(s) of results from the Canada Post site.  

 

3)  Then do the U.S. (use 91210 as 'maggie' suggests), and print out that information.  

 

This won't show you the discounts you'll get if you're using Paypal labelling (which I highly recommend), but it will give you a baseline to work with.  Keep those printouts handy.

 

4)   Now decide on what flat rates you want to show in your listing, and write them down for now.  Remember that with flat rate, you're not obliged to use exactly what Canada Post charges you.  Many sellers like to offer lower shipping than the actual.  Remember too that a lower shipping cost may give you better visibility in buyer searches, and that in many cases it may make the difference between a sale or no sale.  Many of us "subsidize" our buyers' shipping costs in order to increase sales.  

 

5)  On the "Sell Your Item" form, in the shipping options, check off flat rate.  You should be using two flat rate shipping sections on this form -- one for "Domestic Shipping" (Canada only), and one for "First International" (which will be the U.S. for now).  There is a "Second International" shipping section available, but as I said, I'd avoid selling outside Canada and the U.S. for a while.  

 

6)  Enter just one shipping rate for Canada and one for the U.S., usually depending on the weight, size and value of your parcel and how much protection you feel you need for yourself.  

 

7) As an example, small, fairly lightweight items of lower value can go by Light Packet or Small Packet to the U.S., and can go by letter-mail within Canada as long as they aren't thicker than 2.0cm (otherwise they have to go as parcels within Canada).  Heavier, larger items will need to go by a parcel service everywhere, but you have to choose how much of the true shipping cost you want to charge your buyers.  

 

😎 Don't be tempted to use ground (non-air) shipping services, and don't offer your buyers more than one shipping service domestically and one shipping service to the U.S.  If you offer more than one option, trust me, buyers will pick the cheapest one every time, which may not serve your needs as seller.  For example, if you're selling fairly expensive items, you may rarely want to use an non-tracked, non-insured service.  

 

You'll find that shipping costs to the U.S. are often cheaper than within Canada, so you have to see over time where most of your customers are going to be and make adjustments accordingly.  It's true that shipping is one of the hardest parts of selling on eBay, but once you get set up, you can use previous listings to help set shipping costs for newer items.  Take the time to do your shipping homework before you start, and you won't have regrets.  Also, if you happen to be selling items that are about the same size and weight, you're in luck, because your shipping rates will all be more or less the same.  

 

And do read through this page and all the links in it.  It may keep you out of trouble long enough to start making a profit on eBay: http://pages.ebay.ca/help/sell/policies.html

 

Best of luck in your endeavours!  By the way, what sort of items are you going to be selling?  That will make a difference where shipping advice is concerned. 

Message 33 of 60
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New canadian sellers selling on ebay.com can sell and ship items to U.S buyers?


@davickie wrote:

 

Yes, I definitely consider posting listings with free shipping (I have a few expensive dolls where their cost will absorb the shipping) but I am not comfortable listing them yet due to my zero seller experience. But I guess you are right that I can do the same with less expensive items, even if it means losing financially a little bit for the benefit of positive ratings and obtaining required experience.

 

 


That is exactly the right approach to have!  

 

By the way, as far as search results/visibility of your item goes, be absolutely certain to fill in the "Item Specifics" area on the Sell Your Item form, and choose the appropriate eBay category.  

 

If you can start with a few less expensive items and offer free shipping on those, you'll probably get better visibility as a new seller and will avoid all the shipping issues and headaches.  Don't worry about losing a bit of money here and there at the start.  If you have a longer-term plan to sell on eBay, it's worth it in order to get established.   

 

You're probably in real luck if you're selling dolls.  I think people interested in dolls, crafts, and sewing generally are some of the nicest buyers on eBay.  At least that's been my experience.  Woman Happy

Message 34 of 60
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New canadian sellers selling on ebay.com can sell and ship items to U.S buyers?

need 10 sales and an amount of time after the first sale to sell internationally

 

Looking at similar coats of the same brand its never going to sell anyway unless its at a price its not worth selling it for in Canada.  As others have said listing needs a Canadian shipping amount.  Should use calculated domestic shipping on a low price parcel item to slightly improve its prospects to regional buyers.  

Message 35 of 60
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New canadian sellers selling on ebay.com can sell and ship items to U.S buyers?

Wow! Thank you very much for such a detailed reply! I am sure many other new sellers will be grateful as well.

 

I don't expect to make a living off eBay (I am a busy professional in a totally different line of work) but would like to get rid of some stuff which may have value to others. Now I am on sick leave, so want to use the time I have to figure out how to use ebay :).

 

Main categories of my 'stuff' are as follows:

 

1) Various kids' clothing - I have been quite successful selling off kids' toys and equipment on kijiji, but no such luck with clothes.

 

2) Military stuff which was left over after my father-in-law passed away. Most museums are not interested in these artifacts, so we think that perhaps some collectors would be.

 

3) Vintage Canadiana magazines left over from the in-laws. A couple of new vintage postcards.

 

4) Sewing and knitting patterns and magazines. This is my hobby and I have acquired quite a bit of stuff, but there are items I don't really need or want. At some point I plan to sell my own knitting patterns for dolls, but this is work in progress.

 

5) Select dolls and clothes for them. I collect play dolls and will not part with them no matter what - well, unless I really have to 🙂 but I also bought some collector dolls for really cheap locally for resale purposes. These need to be managed properly, so I won't be listing them until I know what I am doing. Meanwhile,  I am planning to knit and sell a few knit doll outfits in my 'cheap, free shipping' category :).

 

6) Various books (computing, military history, genealogy) -  but I plan to sell most them on Amazon, rather than ebay,.

 

7) Miscellaneous things we don't want anymore (e.g., wedding supplies).

 

 

 

Message 36 of 60
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New canadian sellers selling on ebay.com can sell and ship items to U.S buyers?

It sounds as if you may have enough items of interest to Canadians that you can get started fairly well selling to Canada only, with calculated shipping (as 'toby' mentioned), which will be easier for you to begin with.  I prefer flat rate because I like to have precise control over my shipping rates and "subsidies". 

 

I don't know whether this will permit you to give shipping "subsidies" to your buyers , as I believe it calculates the actual, exact shipping, based on postal code.  (I use flat rate only, so I'm not familiar with calculated shipping).  However, you may be able to offer shipping discounts by using your "Selling Preferences" and entering a percentage reduction.  Someone who does use calculated shipping might be able to help with this. 

 

I wasn't aware there was an international sales restriction on new sellers (it's been a long time since I started on eBay), but you can probably get past those first 10 sales fairly quickly by offering the items that are most appealing to Canadian buyers first.  I would think that militaria would sell well within Canada, especially if you price the items well. 

 

Best of luck! 

 

 

Message 37 of 60
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New canadian sellers selling on ebay.com can sell and ship items to U.S buyers?

Thank you all for your fantastic advice, I will give it a shot :).

Message 38 of 60
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New canadian sellers selling on ebay.com can sell and ship items to U.S buyers?

need 10 sales and an amount of time after the first sale to sell internationally

 

I remember reading that although I can't find the info now. But since they are allowing  a Canadian to sell on .com which is selling internationally, is that rule still in effect?

Message 39 of 60
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New canadian sellers selling on ebay.com can sell and ship items to U.S buyers?

That's why I listed on ebay.com directly this time ...

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