Ebay Shipping Fees Too High???


Keggers

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The next time you might think someone's shipping fees are too high on eBay you might remember my story.

I sell quite a bit of wood on eBay and ship my wood via UPS. I always charge a fair rate and have never gouged a customer with excessive shipping fees.

Last week I spent two hours boxing some wood for three different buyers. I load the boxes into my new truck and head to town to the UPS Store. I get half way there and a lady pulls out from a side street right in front of me. I couldn't miss her. I had no where to go but straight and couldn't quite stop. No one was hurt which is a good thing. The lady had no insurance, an expired driver's license and expired plates on her van. That means I had to pay the deductible for my insurance. So the trip to town cost me gas, time, depreciation on my new truck after the repairs, plus $500 for the deductible. No. I'll never gripe about shipping fees again and woe be it to the person who gripes about mine.

 

Okay. My rant is over. Everyone have a great Thanksgiving!

 

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I have to apologize as I'm sure the A Hole that pulled out in front of you was from Houston. From past experience, I don't think that there are too many of us here that do have license or insurance. And that's all I have to say about that, believe it or not ^_^

And yes, Happy Thanksgiving to All! 

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Dang.  That sucks, Kent.  Sorry to hear about your new truck and your encounter with the idiot.  They're everywhere.

However...just pointing out the obvious here and not saying it's what you do...the fact that you could get into an accident on the way to UPS isn't justification to gouge buyers on shipping cost.  I try to charge people no more than actual shipping cost and cost of supplies.

I've transitioned all of my sales to "free shipping" over the years.  Obviously the shipping is not free and the buyer still pays for it, but at least they can't whine that it's too high.  It's a mental thing...people are willing to pay more for an item if they think they're getting something "free."  People aren't smart you know.  Use it to your advantage. :)

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Thanks, Eric. It does suck. It could have been much worse.

I don't think I'll go the free shipping route. I have thought about it though. It costs a lot more to ship to - say California than it does to ship anywhere in the East. I don't know how I could make sure my shipping costs would be covered without charging some folks way to much and others not enough. I think I'll stay with what I have for now. Maybe buy a surplus army tank to deliver my boxes to UPS.

 

I have to apologize as I'm sure the A Hole that pulled out in front of you was from Houston. From past experience, I don't think that there are too many of us here that do have license or insurance. And that's all I have to say about that, believe it or not ^_^

And yes, Happy Thanksgiving to All! 

I'm not sure if she's from Houston or not but I think she should move there.:P

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Thanks, Eric. It does suck. It could have been much worse.

I don't think I'll go the free shipping route. I have thought about it though. It costs a lot more to ship to - say California than it does to ship anywhere in the East. I don't know how I could make sure my shipping costs would be covered without charging some folks way to much and others not enough. I think I'll stay with what I have for now. Maybe buy a surplus army tank to deliver my boxes to UPS.

Good point, didn't think about that.  The vast majority of my items are small and it costs the same to ship them anywhere.  I just can't stand dealing with cheap people haggling over shipping costs so I roll them into my product price whenever possible.  Also, ebay is a haven for cheapskates.  Amazon is a much more seller-friendly platform...but not a good place to sell lumber unfortunately.

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I definitely understand where you are coming from and that does suck about your truck, but the logic seems faulty to me. By the same token, should people who drive further to work make more because they commute which has an inherit risk? No, I think driving to town to ship is the cost of doing business.  And as a business, you could set up a business account with ups and they will come pick up from you. 

Being in California, I understand it's going to cost more to ship here from the east coast but I see a lot of ads on ebay that someone low balls the buy it now price then tacks on $35 shipping because it's not in the selling price.   USPS has flat rate shipping boxes that if it fits, it ships for that fee. Many items could go that was but it's another way for the seller to make money.

Edited by Brendon_t
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