Shippo Discount vs Canada Post

[mapleleaf-collectibles]

I just started selling again, I noticed this "shippo" thing popped up offering a discount on shipping if I print my own label. I was thinking of signing up. The real question is, if I am sending a tracked parcel to the USA and getting a 5% discount for a small business account through Canada Post, do I save more than I would using the shippo option? Can you use your 5% Canada Post discount with Shippo? First one to reply gets good Karma and a 5% shipping discount on your next purchase!

[reallynicestamps]

It can vary and has in the past, but at the moment SnapShip (Canada Post), Paypal and Shippo all have the same discounts.

To get those you need your Small Business Solutions number from Canada Post.

The advantages with PP and Shippo is that you can pay either with your PP balance and they are integrated with eBay.

SnapShip means you have to pay with a card and enter your customer's information, but not your own.

Worth being signed up for all of them.

If you need a refund, PP is fastest, while Shippo seems mostly to give credits and SnapShip takes a while to refund.

Shippo allows you to buy shipping labels from USPS if you need to send a label to an unhappy customer in the USA.

[mapleleaf-collectibles]

Great information, thanks. I think I'll stick with what has been working for me, walking to the postal outlet 4 minutes away and using my Canada post 5% off. It has never failed me yet, and reading into some of the comments on shippo I think I'll just avoid that, it is just one more thing that can go wrong. Thanks again!

[retroman_studios]

Also worth throwing in the mix there are companies like Chit Chats that offer USPS services to Canadians by taking parcels across the border (for a fee) and mailing them domestically in the US.

Chit Chats even has a Canada Wide parcel service for Canadian customers, although recent changes have limited where such packages can be inducted from.  If you are in BC, you can get shipping to most of Canada for around $12 semi flat rate. (It changes slightly depending on weight etc but better prices than Canada Post for most regions)

[ypdc_dennis]

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@mapleleaf-collectibles wrote:

I think I'll stick with what has been working for me, walking to the postal outlet 4 minutes away and using my Canada post 5% off. It has never failed me yet, and reading into some of the comments on shippo I think I'll just avoid that, it is just one more thing that can go wrong.

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Walking is good for you.  Paying at the postal outlet can help keep them happy, but often leaves less money in your pocket.

The Solutions for Small Business (formerly Venture One) membership discount at the counter is not 5% (the discount varies depending on the service you use).

I use Shippo, SnapShip, PayPal, EST Online and self-applied stamps for my shipments. They all have drawbacks (and advantages) -- just like using a postal outlet counter has drawbacks and advantages.

Using stamps has the biggest discount for me -- I figure about 30% savings in cost for my lettermail and oversize lettermail.  I do take them to the local postal outlet and hand them over the counter so they can put them directly into the proper sort tray (they have one for regular and one for oversize letter mail) -- I figure it cuts out a step at the sorting plant for the oversize ones (and I get to talk to the various clerks, some who are stamp fans).   On occasion I will also put stamps on a parcel and pay the balance owing at the counter.

Buying labels online gives you better discounts for Expedited parcel (Canada) and for Tracked Packet (USA/Intl) versus over-the-counter.

My labeled packages I also hand over the counter to get them to scan into the Canada Post system (the outlet does get paid for that).

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Discounted stamps I mostly buy online via ebay (mint, with gum, unused) -- especially when eBay.CA has a buyer's additional discount or $$ off coupon to sweeten the deal.

For me it's fun (I used to collect stamps when I was a kid back when most things came in the mail), but you do have to be organized when doing it (especially when you have multiple stamp values). Arithmetic skills, calculator or spreadsheet recommended. 

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[biljhay]

shippo adds no value - ebay is taking profit from it and making it difficult to bypass. EBAY has lost its way......greed.

[reallynicestamps]

The advantages with PP and Shippo is that you can pay either with your PP balance and they are integrated with eBay.

Shippo is apparently integrated with Managed Payments which will be a benefit when we are all using it.

If you need a refund, PP is fastest, while Shippo seems mostly to give credits and SnapShip takes a while to refund.

Shippo allows you to buy shipping labels from USPS if you need to send a label to an unhappy customer in the USA.

This is a biggie for Canadian sellers, especially in the common scam where the original payment for the disputed item is lower than the cost of tracked return international shipping.

Just being able to send a Return Shipping Label will end the scam Dispute, while honestly unhappy buyers have the job of returning simplified.  Unused labels are eventually refunded.

ebay is taking profit from it and making it difficult to bypass.

The values are:

• the 5% discount
• the ability to print a shipping label at home without manual entry of all the customer's information
• being able to drop the labelled parcel without needing the PO clerk's time
• if the seller gets a 5% discount and eBay gets a commission* of 0.01%, how is the seller worse off?

EBAY has lost its way......greed.

EBay pays its shareholders dividends on its profits.

The whole purpose of eBay is to make money.

How is this a surprise to you?

*There is no reason to believe that eBay gets any commission on postal labels, including those printed through Shippo, Paypal, or SnapShip.