How can I use USPS First Class shipping (or other cheap shipping) with Ebay.
Hi, I'm looking for help with how to do cheap shipping. I understand eBay doesn't allow you to purchase first class mail or any shipping that doesn't allow tracking through eBay. But I see a lot of people under cutting me with a lot of items simply because their shipping is free. (Rivals are selling an item for seven dollars that's costing me six dollars to ship. I'm pretty sure after fees, I'll be losing money on that.)
I want to use first class mail for some of my light & inexpensive items.
I don't want to do this with my high valued items, but I have a lot of inexpensive items (under $20 or under $10) that are under 15 ounces, then I'm willing the chance that the item gets lost or have an untrustworthy buyer saying they never received it.
Both eBay staff (I called and asked once. A Ebay staff said he'd send me some info about how and never did) and other online sources imply you can ship by a first class mail, but never explained to me the steps to do that. How do I prove I ship it, is there a way to make sure the buyer says they received it, etc.
Don't want to experiment with this and then let my seller rating get screwed up simply because I don't know how to do it and forgot to hit a button.
Does anybody have an experience and can guide me to some resources that would help doing this?
Thanks for your help.
kalyoth
·4 months agoFirst class mail only applies to flat envelope shipments + certain dimension / weight requirements / contents within them. Those requirements are coded into the ebay categories directly. First class parcels were renamed Ground Advantage & are now your lowest parcel service available.
kibble-net
·4 months agoYou can mail a non-machinable first class parcel by putting stamps on it, allowing you to mail a small parcel for $2-$3, but it can't be tracked and you can't print a label for it. Up to you to decide whether that is worth it instead of Ground Advantage for $4-$5.
Losing out on tracking & insurance for a couple bucks doesn't seem worth it for me, but you are the owner of your business so it's your call.
fm2000
·4 months agoA few years ago First Class Package was renamed "Ground Advantage" along with Parcel Post/Retail Ground. Now it is "Ground Advantage" or Priority when it comes to the USPS.
The answer to your question is really that postage has gone up dramatically in the last few years, and there are sellers who never, ever update their listings or their prices (if shipping is "free") or increased what they charge for shipping. I price research everything I sell, sold and currently listed, and there are tons of these "orphan" listings that haven't been touched in years. Some of those folks are going to lose money on many of their sales. Don't be one of them. Charge what it actually costs you AND don't forget those FVFs on shipping you charge (as part of the price or separately, you are basically paying 13%+ more for shipping than what you pay the carrier) and packing materials, which have doubled or tripled in some cases in the last few years.
As far as shipping untracked letter mail, some of your low value camera manuals and comics might be able to be sent via letter mail, nonmachineable letter mail, or large envelope, depending on how thick and flexible (or not) they are. The manuals over 13oz have to go Media Mail (never pay GA rates on those, they qualify for MM.) Untracked is a risk but I have found it is a very, very minor one, and for my small paper items and low value comics/magazines it is the only way I can sell them and stay competitive with the bonkers GA rates we have nowadays.
reallynicestamps
·5 months agoHere in Canada we can ship by LetterMail domestically if the shipment is less than 2cm thick and 500 grams. That costs between $1.24 and $6.85Cdn.
Untracked.
Contrary to general belief, eBay does not require tracking, but if there is an INR Claim, the seller will automatically lose without tracking.
LetterMail can be tracked domestically using Registration, but that costs $13.75 Cdn and there are cheaper tracked alternatives for domestic mail.
UPU regulations forbid sending merchandise internationally without customs declarations.
Mostly that means Parcel Rates.
Most Canada Post international parcel rates are tracked, and the price difference is negligible.
I don't know that USPS has exactly the same regulations, someone who uses USPS may be better informed.
christworks
·5 months agoFirst Class has to be able to go through the machines. It cannot be rigid. The OP's items appear to be all things that will have to ship in a box, rigid mailer, or bubble mailer. None of those can go First Class because they are not machineable. There used to be a First Class package service for lightweight items that were bulky, but USPS merged that and other services into Ground Advantage.
The cheapest Ground Advantage rate runs about $4.78. If you are selling something for $7.00 out-the-door, there is about $1 net profit, assuming you are shipping the package across town, are not using promoted listings, and all of your materials are free. There is absolutely nothing to gain by selling those things own their own, apart from using them as loss leaders. They still have to be things that people want, or something so cheap buyers know they are getting a great deal, etc. The whole point is to get people to buy more things from you, and if they fail to do that, then they are a loss.
christworks
·5 months ago@srewthis There is no first class package service anymore. Certain categories can ship using eBay Standard Envelope. I looked at your items you have listed for less than $10. I'm not seeing anything that would qualify for eBay Standard envelope.
Here are the type of items that can go eBay Standard Envelope:
Looking at your listings, everything you ship is rigid. This means it must ship as a package. USPS Ground Advantage, or one of the Economy Services from FedEx or UPS will be your best bet. If you attempt to ship something rigid as First Class, it will either be rejected and returned to you, your buyer will not receive their package unless they pay the balance due, or the carrier will upgrade you to their Expediated service, like Priority Mail, and your eBay account will be billed for it. None of those options are good for you, as you won't have a sucessful delivery with the first two, meaning your buyer can open an INR claim. (Buyers do not have to pay postage due to recieve their package. That is the seller's responsibility, so if a buyer refuses to do that, you will have to refund them.)
As shipping costs rise, it is less and less worthwhile to sell anything that must go as package for less than $10.
As far as what your competition is doing, who knows. They may have those items set up as loss leaders, or as a way to encourage buyers to purchase more than one item so they still net a profit. Some sellers who take a loss on small items do so because they do high volume and have agreements with advertisers to include ads in the package. This allows them to take a loss on the sale but still make a small profit from the ads.