new buyer
so i just had someone who was recently made an account, buy 7 of my listings seperately paying shipping for each, i know it may not seem like anything, but should i be worried?
11 comments
so i just had someone who was recently made an account, buy 7 of my listings seperately paying shipping for each, i know it may not seem like anything, but should i be worried?
fashunu4eeuh
·3 years agoCongrats on your multiple sales! That’s awesome.
Since this buyer is new, it is quite possible they are not aware that one could potentially save money by requesting a combined invoice for shipping costs.
Like others said, every transaction on eBay carries risk. If you frequent the boards, you hear about scamming buyers all the time.
But my experience has been different. In the 12 years i have been selling on eBay, i have never been defrauded by a buyer. Seemingly, the wide majority of buyers are honest. I even offer Free Returns (and have been since long before eBay began pushing for it) and very rarely get any returns either.
My point being that most sales will go off without a hitch, and therefore less to fear than you might think after reading the forums.
This said, i still advocate caution for new sellers by avoiding high scam items and categories (until one is thru the eBay learning curve). This can include PCs, smartphones, gaming items, high end designer-wear, and electronics.
Being a thorough lister also helps, insuring that complete information is available to the buyer by crafting good titles, accurate conditions, strong Item Specifics, clear descriptions and buyer-friendly policies.
Wish you much continued success in your eBay endeavors.
byrd69er
·3 years agoI wouldn't worry. I'd try to find a way to combine ship them all and refund the savings to the buyer.
ckimodog
·3 years ago@cbasingles
I personally would be thrilled. If they paid you thru Ebay and Ebay says "Ship it"...Ship it.
Happy Selling.
luckythewinner
·3 years agoEvery transaction on eBay carries risk.
I see nothing in this transaction that makes any more or less likely to be a problem.
inhawaii
·3 years agoBeing concerned about it is fine. Human nature.
But you have it treat it like any other sale.
Just do everything by the book.
What if a newly registered buyer bought 10 of my items?
If they pay, I ship.
anasazirose
·3 years agoWhile I understand and agree with your desire to save the buyer money, there are some things I would consider before combining the items without buyer 'permission'.
Some people like multiple packages.
If you're using Ebay Standard Envelope, you're only protected to $20 total per envelope.
What will you do if you ship together and the buyer claims to only have received 4 out of 7 or some other amount?
If you upgrade to Priority shipping, the insurance increases to $100, but the available refund goes away.
As has already been mentioned, you paid an additional 30¢ per item transaction fee, you're not getting that back at all.
You also paid 15% (?) of the shipping they overpaid in fees. I think you get the fees back on a refund, but I'd make sure of that as well.
When I had shipping overpaid (usually on seeds), I send extra seeds with a note, "I appreciate your purchase, shipping was a bit high so I'm sending some extra seeds." or more rarely, I'll upgrade to Priority.
This is ebay, so one has to consider that there may be a scammer right around the corner.
dryophelia
·3 years ago@cbasingles
There is nothing for you to be concerned about.
The concern is down the line to other sellers, if there is any concern.
The buyer could be testing a stolen credit card to see if it works. They could be testing the shipping address.
soh.maryl
·3 years ago"There is nothing for you to be concerned about."
And then offer several reasons that could be of concern?
dbfolks166mt
·3 years agoGiven the dollar value of the items you are selling or have sold recently there is probably little cause for concern. New buyers come on eBay everyday not to mention the number of guest accounts that are used to make purchases. I would however see if you can save the buyer some money on the shipping costs, it may build some good will for potential future purchases. You can most likely combine these items into a single shipment and refund the buyer for any excess postage cost. @mam98031 has done a pretty good job of walking you through that.
soh.maryl
·3 years agoWhat do you think would be a cause for worry?
Not all buyers are aware that a seller might be able to put all their things in one package and give them a discount on shipping.
mam98031
·3 years agoHappens all the time to me. What I do is send the buyer an email and I explained that they paid for each item separately which doesn't allow for a shipping discount. Let them know that you will give them a refund on the shipping they paid, but it won't be as good of a discount as it could have been with one payment for all items.
I have this stated in all my listings. You are welcome to use it or some variation of it for your own listings if you'd like. It doesn't look as nice here as it does in my listings IMHO, but you get the idea.
COMBINED SHIPPING DISCOUNTS
For those of you interested in multiple listings, I do combine shipping charges.
· PLEASE Check with me or request an invoice BEFORE you pay and I will give you the combined rate / discount on the shipping.
· If you want combined shipping discount you should allow me to invoice you for all your purchases in one invoice.
· Please do not pay each item individually. The fees are just too high. If you pay individually I may not be able to extend you a combine shipping discount.
Back to your problem. Figure out what you would have charged them if they had asked your for a discount. The subtract what you got paid by the buyer.
Let's say they paid you $7.70 for the 7 items, normally lets say you would ship additional items for 50 cents each. So that would be 1.10 + 3.00 = 4.10 for all 7 items [if that were to be correct] So 7.70 - 4.10 = 3.60 refund to the buyer.
Now the problem is because each payment was separate, you paid a per transaction fee on every item. So that is 6 x .30 in fees you can't get back or $1.80. So then you would take the 3.60 and subtract the 1.80 in fees you can't get refunded, now the refund it down to $1.80 refund.
Now my numbers are just guesses. It of course is up to you what you would charge for each additional item.