Jack Mindy said:
Michael -
With all due respect, I don’t think theseller “low-balled” you on the shipping charges. I just checked the USPS website for the shipping charges for a 4 pound, 0 ounce large package (any one dimension longer than 12 inches), and the charge is about eighteen dollars no matter how you ship it from my location - western New York - to San Francisco area where you are.
I buy stuff occasionally on eBay and I occasionally sell stuff there. The first thing I do when trying to set a reasonable price is check the USPS website. I enter my zip code and I use 94123 for the destination which would be pretty close to the farthest distance (actually its Cow Hollow in San Francisco where I used to live back in the day when normal people could afford to live in San Francisco). If I knew a zip code from way up in Maine and a zip code from the bottom of California, I’d bet the cost would be even more. The worst news is that, generally speaking, UPS and FedEx would cost MORE than any USPS rate.
I agree with Greg’s suggestions too. I recently had a big old Heathkit unit on eBay that didn’t sell. Not surprised, it weighs 28 pounds. The eBay shipping calculator gives the buyer a good estimate of shipping price. I wouldn’t want to ship it to my own zip cose.
Jack
Hi Jack - (Hijack) You probably get that often. (http://www.largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-smile.gif)
I understand what you’re saying, but please help me here. I recently saw a reefer on Ebay and they wanted $7 and some change to ship it. The owner is from Napa, CA. And as I said previously, I won a reefer on Ebay last week and it shipped from Galt, CA. It costed $6 and change to ship to me in Milpitas, CA. The weight of both cars are approximately 4 lbs. each. Were those “low” costs to ship the car to me related to the distance between the seller’s house and mine? If so, how were the shipping costs calculated on Ebay even prior to my bidding on the car and the final sale? Is it automated and Ebay “knows” where I live based on my profile or cookie and calculates the shipping cost per the distance accordingly? If so, that explains everything. If not, then somebody is obviously over-charging for shipping.
Michael - Yup, all shippers have some formula of weight + distance, or maybe, weight x distance. I guess eBay knows where you live since you logged in with your username and password. The shipping section of the auction calculates the cost based on the type of shipping the seller chose (standard, economy, etc.). I like to sell things that can go by USPS Media Matter (mostly things on paper, books, etc.) which is slower by a lot cheaper than Priority. As for non Media Matter, which is most stuff, anything over 8 ounces has to go Priority, which is more expensive, but sometimes faster, 2 or 3 days. Often a small package can get to a nearby destination by First class, just as fast as Priority.
What’s funny is to be looking at one of my own items for sale and see my zip code filled in in the shipping area, telling me how much to ship it so myself. Sometimes you can do better shipping by UPS or FedEx, but usually not. I keep all three website addresses in my Favorites column so I can check and compare. But one thing I’ve learned is to figure out how much shipping will be to a distant buyer. When you’re selling ten dollar items, shipping plus the selling fee plus what the merchandise cost you in the first place can wipe out any profit at all. That sucks!
Likewise you can spend too much for shipping and wish you’d gone to the local flea market.
Happy eBaying!
jack
A while back I shipped an empty USAT Boxcar box to a guy that was asking if anyone had one, took itt to UPS and after making my own box to ship it in, it cost $34.00 to ship the EMPTY box from AZ to PA.
I’ve been purchasing from eBay for many years, over 2100 transactions, I have had a couple of problems with shipping damage due to improper preparation and once with a large encyclopedia size train book that was obviously water damaged and the seller insisted it was not, eBay remedied the problem forthwith. I resolved said problems with a phone call or two and or an email. I have zero reservations using eBay and or PayPal.
Yeap shipping charges are often grossly over inflated, caveat emptor herein. IMO the eBay shipping calculator is part of the problem and it all depends on what the shipper inputs as well. USPS Flat Rate shipping boxes are a big money saver IMO. Businesses with Fed EX and UPS shipping accounts receive discounts that are not available to the public…
Dan,
Your comment on PayPal and payments has not been my experience, I have had a PayPal credit account for years and always funded it directly from PayPal balance and or Instant Transfer. Last year PayPal credit which is Synchrony Bank converted PayPal credit to a PayPal Extras MasterCard which is simply a MasterCard account linked to PayPal (useable anywhere just like a conventional credit card) and I pay it off with my PayPal balance and or Instant Transfers same as before…
Michael
I appreciate the OP’s story, appreciate the warning, and hope that doesn’t happen to me. I also appreciate the further lessons posted on this thread.
Just to add my 2 cents’ worth,
As a seller, I’ve used Ebay a lot, not as a business, just as an individual hobbyist and homeowner. To me, it’s a global-market auction house that I can list stuff on, charging only 10% (vs up to 30% for regular auction houses) and offering amazing tools for every step of the selling process.
As a buyer, almost all of my purchases have gone well, as far as the Ebay mechanisms are concerned. I appreciate the before and after sale communication tools. And though the constant nag for feedback is sometimes a PITA, I figure the individual sellers and small businesses I tend to buy from deserve it.
Cliff
I use to suspect that one seller was conspiring with another seller by jacking up the price of his item to make it look very rare and make the other seller’s much lower price look attractive and help to sell the lower priced item.
I know which car I’d have the common sense to bid on. These cars are currently up for bid:
LGB Reefer
Condition: New
Price: $122.95
Shipping: $14.95
LGB Reefer (Scroll down - same car, same seller)
Condition: New
Price: $125.95
Shipping: $15.95
LGB Reefer
Condition: Used
Price: $145
Shipping: $21.99
LGB Reefer
Condition: Used - Like new
Price: $347.99
Shipping: $18.00
And another one:
Title: Rare Box Car Slightly Used
Item condition: New
I’ve sold and bought on e-bay for years with only 1 issue a long time ago that was solved with very little effort. It’s always funny to see what people think things are worth, but the bottom line is what you’re willing to pay for it and how badly you want it. When I place a bid on an item, it’s only what I’m willing to pay for it. Past that point a higher bidder is welcome to the item. It may take me longer to get a certain item, but that’s ok with me.
When I bid I consider the shipping as part of the item cost.
I can usually do much better at the local shows for many items.
Dan, that is true for many things. But some things I just have to have, and if the shipping isn’t outlandish, and the price isn’t overly inflated, I will spend the bucks to get it. But one auction I saw a item I really wanted. But the shipping was well over $25. And it was an HO locomotive that cost $25. I didn’t even bid on it.