05-04-2016 09:44 AM
05-05-2016 05:03 PM
@pierrelebel wrote:"...having a PR person/marketing specialist who understands the sensitivities of a given market is an asset in the planning of the rollout of programs such as this. "
Does eBay-Canada have such individual on staff?
The evidence is somewhat lacking in that regard.
05-05-2016 05:53 PM
Doesn't give you much confidence when ebay tells us how to sell does it.
05-05-2016 05:58 PM - edited 05-05-2016 06:00 PM
ypdc_dennis wrote:
Updated with femmefan's suggestion...
12"x15" poly mailers with eBay logo
eBay: 65¢ each (qty=100) basic store discount to 35¢ each + customs fee to 45¢ each
Canada Post 14¢ each (qty= 25)
12"x15" poly mailers without eBay logo
Staples.ca 50¢ each (qty=100) with free shipping to parts of Canada
ULine.ca 34¢ each (qty=100) plus shipping
Emailers.ca 37¢ each (qty=20) with free shipping?!
I recently bought 14.5x 19.5 poly mailers for 25cent each. Who would be so stupid to pay 65 c. You have to wonder what talent is left in Ebay. This doesnt say much. No wonder Jorden went to Walmart.
05-05-2016 06:27 PM
5.75 x 9.5 inches Kraft envelopes at Dollarama (lot of 10): $1.44 including taxes, so roughly $0.14 each. I have to actually go there to buy them, but since the store is my workplace neighbour, I just go during my lunchbreak.
Same price for a lot of 6 10 x 13 inches: $0.24 each.
I rarely use bubble envelopes, but the price is quite affordable too.
05-05-2016 07:06 PM
The program was designed for eBay.com
eBay Canada was an afterthought
One can conclude that little if anything will be bought by Canadian sellers.
05-06-2016 08:29 AM
@sylviebee wrote:
Easy solution and less work than recycling used packaging.
I am not sure what you mean by this comment. Using recycled boxes is not more work. Quite the contrary, as they are already taped together. You just need to seal the top when you're done packing. 😉
05-06-2016 09:10 AM - edited 05-06-2016 09:13 AM
@lady.stark wrote:
@sylviebee wrote:
Easy solution and less work than recycling used packaging.
I am not sure what you mean by this comment. Using recycled boxes is not more work. Quite the contrary, as they are already taped together. You just need to seal the top when you're done packing. 😉
I'm not negative about these free shipping supplies the way others are. (Don't get that response at all.)
Store fees were destined to change simply because nothing is static, and pairing that change with freebies is a nice perk.
I've been using recycled packing supplies and also buying as needed.
Free shipping supplies will reduce my work load just a little.
For me, re-using boxes requires that old labels be peeled off, turning boxes inside out, cutting to the right size, and/or trips to the LCBO or "dumpster diving".
Now I can order new boxes (or whatever) which are just the right size delivered right to my door at no cost.
What's not to like?
05-06-2016 09:42 AM
I was interested in the 18" x 14" x 12" boxes.
I first saw a price of $27 US on the US site.... at about $33 Canadian
With a $75 US coupon I could buy two units of 25 boxes, and then add the third unit with the payment of a few dollars more.
A US buyer can purchase three groups of 25 boxes with $75 US. with a few dollars added.... a very good value.
--------------------------------------
Then we got the price for shipping to Canada.
These same boxes became $135 Canadian .... without any indication of how it now costs $100 More Canadian dollars than it costs for a US buyer.
$135 and more when it crosses the border..... GST/HST... customs fees... and perhaps more.
Now they give me a coupon for $105 Canadian dollars.
To buy those boxes.... one unit of 25 boxes..... I would have to add a minimum of $30 of my own dollars... and with our understanding of items being shipped from the US to Canada those 25 boxes could cost $40 and maybe as high as $50 in my own money....
I can find a source of new cardboard in Winnipeg for that money...$30 to $50
Many Canadian sellers look on the coupon as a non-workable option...
They find inventory at much less cost in Canada.....For the value of their money added on top of the coupon value....
The coupon is a lost cause.... not usable....
05-06-2016 10:56 AM
U.S. eBayers (buyers and sellers) have it easier than the rest of the world on all levels, so comparing to them can't lead to anything good.
What I see is that there are several items which I can use which are available to me at no cost.
Store prices were bound to go up sooner or later and I won't even notice $10/month so its nice to get a few free shipping supplies in the mix.
It's not all bad.
05-06-2016 12:58 PM
12" x 6" x 6 = $2.84 each (and .40 each more when they get charged $10 by CP on arrival)
uline, .56 + shipping. Shipping is high if you don't buy many, but still a fraction of the price of ebay's. Even with a premium store that would get 1 bundle of 25 for free, you could end up paying almost as much as uline just with the import charge. WIth a basic store, people would pay way more then just going into a staples store and buying 25 boxes at a time
05-06-2016 01:20 PM
Staples Boxes......
18" x 12" x 12"........................25 to a bundle
$25.49 per bundle, with free shipping to a local store
One order per month.... $150 per year......
and then picked up by me.......
Less expensive than the similar sized boxes 18" x 14" x 12" by eBay...
Much easier to deal with Staples than with eBay boxes
05-06-2016 01:31 PM
That's one way to look at it.
The other way i s that I can order (25 8 by 10 by 6 inch) boxes (my size) at no charge.
There is a small chance I'l have to pay import fees but it's a very small chance and there's always the option of refusing the shipment should that materialize.
To me that means only that II've received 25 boxes at no charge and I think that's OK.
05-06-2016 01:31 PM
To me.... with one box from Staples, the box is split in half... from top to bottom
and it allows me to ship two books....minimum
My source of recycled boxes, at zero cost to me, has disappeared
I do have a source of sheet cardboard
05-06-2016 04:12 PM
@ricarmic wrote:Hmmm I think I'm toast anyway....
My store is registered on .COM
My coupon says it is only valid on the ebay shipping store on .COM and it says it is $75 US$
So I am supposing that I can't use my coupon on the Canadian one anyway..... sigh.....
The problem on the .COM side is the shipping won't be covered by the coupon I am assuming?
When I have time I may experiment....
I just tried to order and found that I'm blocked out of both the .ca and .com sites.
Have you been able to use your coupon?
05-07-2016 02:34 AM
As usual eBay is always very vague. Does it means that we have to pay amount of $$$ every quarter for mailing supplies??
In fact I don't need as I get FREE mailing supplies except the sturdy thick hard card board inserts (which I ordered in custom-made to my prefer size at 2 cents each for 8x10 photos and 3 cents for 8x12 photos) in my local town) and in excellent high quality.
It is just another way for eBay to make $$$ for themselves!!
I am sure that many US sellers are aware that they can get the free mailing supplies from USPS in excellent quality than Canada Post offer!! So why eBay needs to jump in trying to make $$$????
05-07-2016 03:18 AM - edited 05-07-2016 03:20 AM
honeybed1950 wrote:
I am sure that many US sellers are aware that they can get the free mailing supplies from USPS in excellent quality ...
USPS boxes are for USPS use only. Not all sellers use the post office for shipping.
As for quality, the USPS boxes I've seen are pretty flimsy.
05-07-2016 08:49 AM
Hi Sylvie! No I haven't tried yet. I was waiting to hear back from Raphael. I sent him a private message as I think he misunderstood my question. Haven't heard back yet and haven't had time to experiment....
05-07-2016 08:58 AM
Thanks Ric. Please let me know if you make any progress.
It looks like I'm the only poster wanting to use the coupon and I'm blocked out of both sites.
On .com I get the message that it doesn't ship to my location.
On .ca I get the message that my code does not apply.
05-07-2016 11:01 AM
@sylviebee wrote:Thanks Ric. Please let me know if you make any progress.
It looks like I'm the only poster wanting to use the coupon and I'm blocked out of both sites.
On .com I get the message that it doesn't ship to my location.
On .ca I get the message that my code does not apply.
You are probably one of the few Canadian posters that have a coupon. According to the announcement, the coupons will be sent out by email sometime before the end of this month. Did you find the coupon in the manage my store area? If so, I'm guessing that the only sellers who received those are sellers who registered before .ca was around. If you got the code by email, maybe I'm one of the few who hasn't received one by email yet.??
I don't think that the coupon will be that useful for me. When I looked at the options available on .ca yesterday, the least expensive item was about $20 more than the value of the coupon for a basic store. If I purchased the same boxes from my usual supplier they would cost me about $20 so I would be saving 0.00. That's the only item that I've compared so far.
05-07-2016 12:47 PM - edited 05-07-2016 12:48 PM
@pjcdn2005 wrote:You are probably one of the few Canadian posters that have a coupon.
Oops! I thought that everyone had a coupon.
I found it where Ric said it would be in another thread on the topic.
I could see some items that should work. Not the way US sellers can buy, and not something I'd actually purchase because the prices are not competitive.
Still, since my items are small I think I can use the coupons for one item every 3 months.
That is, if I ever get a coupon. I seem to be a "glitch" so it may never materialize.