Questions with "You've been opted in to E-Bay INTERNATIONAL SHIPPING"
Hello. I am a fairly new seller and recently received an email from E-Bay notifiying me that I was automatically opted in to E-Bay International Shipping and that all of my listings would be automatically revised to include this international shipping.
My concern is that most of my listings have a flat rate shipping charge of $8.95 for domestic shipping using USPS Ground Service. How do I avoid losing $$ if E-Bay has revised my listings to include international shipping. Won't international shipping cost more than the $8.95? How do I account for this?
24 comments
zakstreasuretrove
·9 months agoI'm not joking when I say that I wish EVERY one of my sales was through EIS. It's the only way I feel close to 100% protected on eBay.
inhawaii
·9 months agoEIS:
Doesn't cost you anything.
Shipping, you don't do anything different.
No extra paperwork or anything.
Just print your label and stick it on your package just like any other order.
Don't have to worry about customs, VAT or anything like that.
It goes to ebay's US hub, and you're done.
Any returns, damage any anything goes wrong after that, ebay will handle it.
There is actually less risk shipping via EIS than shipping domestically.
It's a no-brainer.
hotwheelsbum
·9 months agoOK, I get all this, but what about the Negatives some Sellers have gotten for late shipments, INR's?
And, how does ebay handle INAD's, Returns? How much does all that run when ebay does determine it's a valid INAD? Is Seller out the money to get thee item shipped back to Illinois from Timbuktoo, then from Illinois to the Sellers address?
Ebay has tried to "Automatically" enroll me in EIS twice now. It's been years since I've shipped anything Overseas. With the crap I'm selling now, I don't want to have to deal with that crap shipping overseas. I have "OPTED OUT" both times. Ebay then sends questionnaire as to why. I tell them I don't trust them, the service.
Is it TRULY one and done? Slap a label on it, ship it to Illinois, get paid? As Is, No Warranty. All Sales Final.
I don't trust ebay. Haven't for years. I just don't think is as simple as a "No Brainer". There's always a catch with ebay. If not now, tomorrow. Next week. Next month.
tobaccocardyahoo
·9 months ago@hotwheelsbum
Ebay removes negatives left for all EIS sales.
Ebay handles all post sales returns after the item arrives at the hub. It eats the cost of INAD refunds. Part of why it has a minimum seller level requirement, and it does inspect some or all shipments.
EIS eliminates ALL of the risk that keeps sellers from exporting. It is less risk than a domestic sale. If you are selling crap you should jump at this opportunity.
DHL appears to be handling EIS as a contractor, I don't love DHL but they seem to be doing a good job. When a claim is made, sellers are notified, and I have had 2 claims since EIS was created, one of which was my fault and Ebay paid, and the customer was pleased enough to order another item from me which I shipped correctly.
inhawaii
·9 months agoEbay will remove any negative that has to do with INR or anything related to EIS.
Ebay handles any and all returns.
The seller is out NOTHING.
It costs the seller NOTHING.
I'm not trying to talk you in to using EIS.
If you don't like/trust ebay for whatever reason and don't want to use EIS, fine.
For me it's a no brainer.
ryry-jj
·9 months agoThe FVF charged against shipping is only on the shipping to the Hub. Using eIS is just like making a domestic sale to Illinois. That is why so many sellers like it. The international part /fees/costs is between ebay and the buyers. When I sell via eIS, I have no idea what the buyer actually pays to receive their item.
oh, and we do pay the FVF on the VAT, too
In addition, sellers only pay the FVF if they dont account for it in price of their listing. This is also why many add $1-2 handling fee to cover the FVF on calculated shipping and/or the packaging
jonathanbrightlight
·9 months ago@1786davycrockett gave you a great summary, and I just want to further clarify something.
When you sell to an international customer using the eBay International Shipping program, you are not, personally, shipping internationally. You are essentially sending your item to a freight forwarding service, but one run and guaranteed by eBay directly. You will never see or handle anything related to the international part of the shipment, both financially (the customer will be charged an additional amount for the international shipping as well as customs and tariffs depending on the options they select), but you won’t even see that on the order. For you, it’s just another shipment to the US like normal, except that once delivery is confirmed to eBay’s facility in the US, you don’t have to deal with or worry about anything else. If the customer doesn’t receive it, or it’s damaged, or they want to return it: eBay handles it, and you won’t be asked to refund or accept a return or anything. It’s a done deal and you get to relax at that point.
participatrophy
·9 months agoThe non-domestic parts are all handled by eBay. You just ship the order to their shipping hub in Glendale Heights, Illinois (or the other one, I think there's two) and they do all the rest. You don't have to worry about customs paperwork or returns or any of that. It's a good program really.
1786davycrockett
·9 months ago@djzdailydealz
No -- eBay won't add ANY additional charges to any international sales.
EIS is the one of the most "seller-friendly" options created by eBay, and most eBay sellers have found it to be amazingly successful.
Once eBay informs a seller that a sale has been confirmed, the seller simply packs and ships in the normal manner, at regular domestic shipping rates.
The package is shipped to the EIS shipping hub (usually in Illinois); and, once the item has been confirmed as "delivered" to the EIS hub, the seller's responsibility for the delivery is DONE -- EIS assumes ALL further responsibility.
No customs forms to fill out -- no INR cases -- no NAD cases. And, if the buyer contacts the seller with a problem, the seller simply informs the buyer that the buyer needs to contact EIS, instead.
No more international sale nightmares.
And no more international headaches for domestic eBay sellers.
Go for it!
grann-4629
·9 months agoAh yes, great for those lazy sellers who don't want to have to move their body through space to fill out a tiny form and for those who don't care if their item ever gets to the buyer (not my job man).
Not so great for the buyer who has to pay a whole bunch of extra dough, not for a better item or faster shipping, but to make the seller's life easier.
It's a rip and another way for eBay to grab more of your (seller's) money.
1786davycrockett
·9 months ago@grann-4629
"It's a rip and another way for eBay to grab more of your (seller's) money."
The seller does not pay more for using EIS -- the seller pays exactly the same as any other sale.
And EIS provides added protection against unscrupulous international buyers, who seem to know all the "ins and outs" for opening up fraudulent INR and NAD cases.
Years ago, I stopped selling internationally, due to losing so much money because of international theft; but EIS changed my mind, and I've had no problems with international sales ever since.
grann-4629
·9 months agoeBay collects a fee on the total amount of the sale, including shipping, as has been stated on this forum. An increase in shipping costs (using eIS) will also increase eBay's fees, hence making them more money.
These fees are paid by the seller ... hence the seller pays more to eBay when using eIS vs. the other ways to ship.
Am I correct in my logic, or am I missing something here?
a_c_green
·9 months agoIf there's a difference, I'm missing something also.
I pulled up two recent sales of mine, one domestic and one international (to Sweden). Both were a $39.95 sale with Free Shipping (domestically, from Chicago to Texas) for a Ground Advantage package of 5 ounces. Here is the order breakdown for the domestic sale, with no additional charge to the buyer beyond sales tax:
...and here is a comparable international sale, with the buyer paying about ten bucks in VAT, and the package shipped by me to eIS in Glendale Heights, IL:
grann-4629
·9 months ago"Now", as the Judge says, "I'm confused here."
If we are talking about extra costs for shipping using eIS, I don't understand why your example indicates the seller provided free shipping. If there are no shipping costs, there are no fees for the seller, the buyer doesn't have to pay for it and eBay makes nothing on the shipping. This is good for us buyers.
Again, I am assuming that what I have read here is correct, that is eBay collects their fee based on the total amount of the sale, including shipping. Some say they also collect a fee based on the amount of sales tax paid by the buyer.
If that is not correct, please let me know and my whole argument is moot.
In my mind:
Assuming the fee that eBay collects on every dollar of shipping cost is 0.10 (ten cents):
1. If the seller needs $10.00 to ship an item, the FVF on this would be (10x0.10)=$1.00 from the seller's pocket
- or -
2. If the seller elects to use eIS and now needs $15.00 to ship the same item, the FVF on this would be (15x0.10)=$1.50 from the seller's pocket
Using eIS in this case would cost the seller an extra $0.50 in fees to eBay.
If the seller does not pay a fee to eBay on the shipping cost of an order, I am wrong and I apologize for wasting everyone's time trying to clarify this for me ... and shame on all the experts here who have said otherwise.
If the seller does pay a fee on the shipping cost of an order, I hope my math makes sense.😎
ETA: Posted before I read yours @1786davycrockett. Thank you very much for your explanation ... now it makes sense to me. My reason for being here is to simply learn how the system works and if I see something that I totally disagree with, I want to talk about it. Things like:
* the eIS program
* the extension of bid ending times for some auctions
I could have saved everyone a lot of time if I knew what you clarified in your post. Thanks again.
fern*wood
·9 months agoIgnorance of how eis works does not mean you are ignorant, but it does seem to disqualify you from calling those of us that use it lazy.
1786davycrockett
·9 months ago@grann-4629
" An increase in shipping costs (using eIS) will also increase eBay's fees, hence making them more money.
These fees are paid by the seller ... hence the seller pays more to eBay when using eIS vs. the other ways to ship."
No, that's NOT how it works -- the seller only pays a FVF on the shipping charges to the EIS hub -- NOT the shipping fees applied by EIS after the item has been shipped from the EIS hub.
Sellers would have definitely brought this up over the last few years, had sellers also had to pay FVF on EIS shipping.
And, since you claim to only be making purchases from Canadian eBay sellers, why does any of this concern you?
slippinjimmy
·9 months agoYou are missing something, eBay fees for sellers are based on the domestic shipping rate. That is true for EIS and it's true for sellers that ship direct.
eBay makes their money on EIS by charging buyer more for shipping than what it costs eBay.
I'm with you on the direct shipping, my international sales get to my buyers faster and cheaper than if it was going through EIS and I make a greater amount of money because I charge a bit less than EIS but my cost for shipping is MUCH lower so I can have a very healthy handling charge that goes right to the bottom line.
jonathanbrightlight
·9 months agoIf you think we’re lazy for using it, feel free to shop from other sellers. When you don’t understand the risks and challenges of international selling, and want to simplify it to just laziness, though, you only reveal your own ignorance.
grann-4629
·9 months agoThanks for the tip.
I do, in fact, shop only from sellers who don't use eIS.
I buy only from Canadian sellers so the only knowledge I have of the International risks is what I read here.
I don't think I'm ignorant. ... I'm just not interested in International sales and have no desire to read up on the ons and outs.
I respectfully request you delete your last sentence.
Thank you for your anticipated co-operation 😎
jonathanbrightlight
·9 months agoI respectfully decline. Ignorance of it is not an insult, but commenting out of ignorance leads to incorrect information that others may believe.
As for your comment about Final Value Fees, sellers who sell via EIS pay FVFs on the total for the domestic shipping only, so it is the same as a domestic sale.
tobaccocardyahoo
·9 months agoThe only buyers I have ever had complain about the cost of EIS are Canadian, and they are usually complaining about having to pay for the shipment to the hub.
My European and Asian buyers seem happy with the speed of delivery and their cost, as indicated by the feedback they leave.
grann-4629
·9 months agoFirstly, I appreciate the work you have done to make eBay work for you ... nice going!
I am the party of your first part ... Canadian, and I just don't like paying two shipping charges for one item. The cost to ship from the seller to the hub, or the cost to ship from the hub to me is irrelevant.
I have stated my opinion on this issue, and it appears I am in the minority. No problem. My opinion won't change, I will continue to use eBay the best way it works for me, and won't waste any more time bringing it up.
Certainly has been an interesting and informative discussion 😎😎😎
tobaccocardyahoo
·9 months agoWhen I gave up shipping internationally, two countries were my prime reasons - Italy and Canada.
Italy because the Italian post office has been corrupt and unreliable for at least 75 years.
Canada because although the bulk of the Canadian population is close to the US border and receives shipments from the US quickly, my orders were coming from other parts of that large country and Canada Post deliveries to Thunder Bay and other remote areas were slow and unreliable. I assume that they were more likely to place orders to the US because of limited local availability of many things, and were anxious enough to receive their orders that they impinged on my time. US Postal Clerks when they were involved in delayed shipments would all explain them with "A CanadaPost truck does not leave unless it is full". Whether that is true, I do not know, but we in the US are evolving toward that situation.
BTW I do not pay Ebay FVFs on the EIS charges though I do on GST. And the waiver of the International Fee adds to the attractiveness of EIS to me.
For years I lived without International Sales, refusing to make exceptions for international buyers who messaged me asking me to ship to them. Never missed the money. EIS was a free riskless sales boost to me, and if an international buyer chooses not to buy from me, that is no loss.
Canada and the US are very different countries, I think many Canadians will agree, and they have been different for a long time. The old saw "it is a great place to visit but I would not live there" has applied with a brief exception period during the war in Viet Nam for some Americans.
IMO Ebay has not offered a new service which was as well accepted as EIS has been. It might even have lured more Ebay sellers to it than there are Canadian buyers.
djzdailydealz
OP9 months agoThanks so much for the clarification! I will leave it on then! 🙂 Happy New Year!