PLEASE FIX THE SHIPPING CALCULATOR!!!

[gopetersen]

I just received a notice that eBay is updating the shipping calculator to accommodate the new zonal USPS prices.

Since the software is being updated PLEASE fix it so it includes a decimal point for lightweight items.

Currently it works incorrectly. The amounts are rounded to the nearest ounce BEFORE adding multiple purchases.

We learn in GRADE 4 that you don't do it that way. It's important to ADD THE WEIGHTS BEFORE rounding up to the next ounce for USPS.

Due the lack of a decimal point, it is currently impossible to calculate lightweight items correctly and also, items that weigh something-and-a-half that are bought in multiples also come out with wrong shipping calculations.

NOW IS YOUR OPPORTUNITY TO FIX IT. Just add a decimal, so we can record the weight in tenths of an ounce, the same way most digital postal scales will weigh it.

[gopetersen]

I cannot overly stress how important it is to FIX the shipping calculator now that you have the chance.

EXAMPLE:

A Disney pin weighs 0.3 ounces.

Buyer buys 10 Disney pins, total packed weight less than 4 ounces, but the eBay shipping calculator rounds up to an ounce FOR EACH PIN and erroneously quotes a shipping weight of 10 ounces. Buyer sees the inflated shipping price and abandons the purchase.

There are MULTIMILLIONS of lightweight items on eBay... screws, nails, brads, photos, postcards, trim, game cards, trading cards, etc., that currently cannot be calculated properly.

Add a decimal to the shipping weight calculator and this problem will be alleviated.

[nobody*s_perfect]

While you're waiting for eBay to do that, you could try a different strategy: Instead of weight-based, just charge for the first item and then set the flat cost of each additional item to zero. Since the cost to ship a 4-ounce package is the same as to ship a 1-ounce package.

[gopetersen]

That's what I do, nobody*s, thanks for the suggestion (it's probably helpful for those who haven't thought to do it that way) but it really doesn't work because a single-step increase for each item doesn't mesh at all with the USPS breakpoints for shipping weights, and doesn't take into consideration the different classes of service (First Class, Priority Mail, etc.).

It's a workaround (the only one we've got), but it's still only a workaround and not very effective. Now that eBay actually has to CHANGE the shipping calculator to incorporate the new USPS Zonal Pricing for FCP it's a REAL OPPORTUNITY to fix this terrible problem with the shipping calculator.

It is in their best interests to FIX it (to add the decimal to correctly calculate lightweight items and items that fall in between even ounces) because buyers who see an inflated shipping quote are going to abandon the sale.

[gopetersen]

eBay is a software company. They provide a SOFTWARE platform for e-Commerce.

A software company should be capable of providing a proper shipping calculator that can handle lightweight items and which rounds up to the next ounce AFTER the weights of the items are added together.

SHOWING THE BUYER THE WRONG SHIPPING WEIGHT IS BAD BUSINESS. Inflated shipping estimates scare away customers.

[nobody*s_perfect]

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@gopetersen wrote:

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 .... Now that eBay actually has to CHANGE the shipping calculator to incorporate the new USPS Zonal Pricing for FCP it's a REAL OPPORTUNITY to fix this terrible problem with the shipping calculator....

They might not be changing the programming at all.  I'm pretty sure that the shipping calculator just goes and looks up the USPS cost for the weight/distance/service that eBay arrived at. When the rates change it will find the varying zonal rates for FC, but that's due to USPS programming, not eBay's.

The obstacle here is convincing eBay that setting up such programming is worth the trouble.  They are apparently very selective with what they bother to program and do not have a seller-oriented attitude. For instance, they stated outright that they aren't going to bother setting up a Regional Boxes option in the shipping calculator because there's not enough demand for it.

[gopetersen]

As a software developer, I think that's ludicrous. If you have the code in place, adding the Regional Box option is trivial. It's no skin off their teeth to include it, and we know from discussions on the forum that sellers DO use it (next to FCP, it's my most common shipping choice). Even if it's a small percentage that uses it, why NOT have the option?

Sigh. I think I'm going to hang up my shingle. I really get no joy out of selling here any more and eBay's attitude is one of the biggest reasons it isn't any fun any more. They don't want to improve it—they only want to homogenize it.

[dhbookds]

Certainly, you're right about the decimal point........but the Regional Box thing frosts me.  They tried the "people don't use it" excuse in one of the wkly chats and I pointed out that's a circular excuse.....because we don't have access to use it in listing..."it doesn't get used".    Also said "since we(shipping team) don't have but one engineer" they don't anticipate getting it done in 2019.........sigh...... but they can throw out the new shipping form which, frankly, has no improvements that I can see.......

but we can try:

@Anonymous

could you look at the decimal problem and, if viable, send it over to the shipping team? 

[Anonymous]

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@gopetersen wrote:

I just received a notice that eBay is updating the shipping calculator to accommodate the new zonal USPS prices.

Since the software is being updated PLEASE fix it so it includes a decimal point for lightweight items.

Currently it works incorrectly. The amounts are rounded to the nearest ounce BEFORE adding multiple purchases.

We learn in GRADE 4 that you don't do it that way. It's important to ADD THE WEIGHTS BEFORE rounding up to the next ounce for USPS.

Due the lack of a decimal point, it is currently impossible to calculate lightweight items correctly and also, items that weigh something-and-a-half that are bought in multiples also come out with wrong shipping calculations.

NOW IS YOUR OPPORTUNITY TO FIX IT. Just add a decimal, so we can record the weight in tenths of an ounce, the same way most digital postal scales will weigh it.

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Hi @gopetersen, I recommend that you look at your Calculated shipping rule for options to combine all item weights and subtract an amount. This will help account for any rounding issues. If you are opted into eBay Business Policies you will be able to create more than one rule to cover various situations. Ultimately, adding a decimal for weight is a great idea that I'll be happy to pass along, but in the meantime you do have options to address potential concerns. 

You could also review potential promotional shipping options that would address these kinds of issues and would also serve to draw more attention to your items. More details on these options and the other topics we've discussed can be found in our Help Pages.

[gopetersen]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@gopetersen wrote:

I just received a notice that eBay is updating the shipping calculator to accommodate the new zonal USPS prices.

Since the software is being updated PLEASE fix it so it includes a decimal point for lightweight items.

Currently it works incorrectly. The amounts are rounded to the nearest ounce BEFORE adding multiple purchases.

We learn in GRADE 4 that you don't do it that way. It's important to ADD THE WEIGHTS BEFORE rounding up to the next ounce for USPS.

Due the lack of a decimal point, it is currently impossible to calculate lightweight items correctly and also, items that weigh something-and-a-half that are bought in multiples also come out with wrong shipping calculations.

NOW IS YOUR OPPORTUNITY TO FIX IT. Just add a decimal, so we can record the weight in tenths of an ounce, the same way most digital postal scales will weigh it.

---

Hi @gopetersen, I recommend that you look at your Calculated shipping rule for options to combine all item weights and subtract an amount. This will help account for any rounding issues. If you are opted into eBay Business Policies you will be able to create more than one rule to cover various situations. Ultimately, adding a decimal for weight is a great idea that I'll be happy to pass along, but in the meantime you do have options to address potential concerns. 

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Trinton, I VERY much appreciate you coming in to this discussion, but I have to point out that your suggestion doesn't work. There is no way to create rules to cover these rounding problems in situations where buyers combine items of different weights and values, AND there is no way to compensate for errors that occur when the totals fall on USPS breakpoint boundaries (or class of service boundaries) where the price significantly changes.

I have done my best to use workarounds for 20 years, but there is no way to work around it if the buyer abandons the sale because the shipping quote is way off.

If eBay gives the Shipping Calculator decimal point, it overcomes 80% of these problems. It will take a little while for sellers to notice it's available and to get used to using it because we've had to try to compensate with shipping rules, but it has never worked well. We are all using workarounds and the new zonal shipping for First Class Parcel is going to compound the problem.

[gopetersen]

trinton@ebay

Here's an example that illustrates the current problem...

Better Scenario: Buyer puts a Disney sweatshirt (14 ounces packed) and 4 Disney resort pins (0.2 ounces each) into the cart. The correct total weight will be about 15 ounces. This can ship by First Class Package. If the shipping calculator is fixed so it has a decimal, the buyer gets a reasonably accurate shipping estimate.

The current situation (with sellers trying to use workarounds):

Workaround 1: Buyer puts Disney sweatshirt and resort pins in the cart and because the Shipping Calculator has already rounded up each pin to the next ounce, the buyer is erroneously quoted shipping for 18 ounces, which pushes it into the Priority Mail category and inflates the shipping quote. Buyer abandons cart (most of them do not even notice the Request Total button in the cart and often it is ghosted when the items are of different weights from different listings).

Workaround 2: Buyer puts Disney items in cart, seller has used "Free" shipping instead of calculator or shipping rules, the cost works out to much more than Scenario 1 or 2 because the shipping is built into each item for the lightweight pins (almost $3 shipping for EACH pin = extra $12 in the shipping quote). In situations like this buyer rarely asks seller if a discount is possible and looks elsewhere for a better deal ("elsewhere" does not necessarily mean on eBay).

Workaround 3: Buyer puts Disney items in cart, seller has used Shipping Rules (so much for first item, so much for additional), but eBay's shipping calculator frequently does not apply the discounts for additional items when the items are different values from different listings (heavy sweatshirt versus lightweight pins) and there is a significant over-quote of the shipping cost (and it comes out to Priority Mail prices) and buyer abandons sale or goes elsewhere.

.

Adding a decimal to the Shipping Calculator does not 100% solve the problem, there are a few oddball scenarios that are possible when buyers purchase multiple items from different listings, but it does solve it to a significant extent.

An accurate shipping quote is more likely to land a sale and keep the buyer on the site than a significantly inflated shipping quote.

[obtanium_enterprises]

trinton@ebay

brian.t@ebay

heidi@ebay

bueller@ebay

bueller@ebay

bueller@ebay

anyone@ebay

The simplistic discount rules are essentially useless, and are actually ways that lazy mindless programmers weaseled out of having to write the proper intelligent code eBay certainly paid them to write. Even "free" open-source shipping calculators are way more sophisticated than eBay's current mess, they address all of the issues being raised by both sellers and buyers, and they're used by millions of e-commerce sites, so obviously they're not "too complicated" for the average seller to use. (Chuckling...) Certainly a multi-billion-dollar company like eBay can offer a world-class shipping calculator!

Today I received this message from an irate buyer:

This is precisely why sellers lose probably at least 99% of volume sales of small/lightweight items. The eBay mentality is, one, "Who'd ever buy more than one toaster???" and two, "Most sales on eBay aren't quantities of small/lightweight items so such functionality is unnecessary." I suspect the reason for the latter is both of those mentalities, and that buyers simply buy elsewhere because eBay-quoted shipping cost is excessive. Plus, on top of that, eBay's utter apathy toward addressing issues like this, even when buyers are affected.

Here's another fine example of eBay's wonderful shipping calculator hard-at-work diminishing sales by over-quoting shipping; note the amount quoted to the buyer for Priority:

https://community.ebay.com/t5/Technical-Issues/Moronic-SHIPPING-CALCULATOR-overcharging-buyers-and-k...

https://community.ebay.com/t5/Technical-Issues/eBay-HeadsUP-Issue-with-presentation-of-shipping-to-b...

https://community.ebay.com/t5/Technical-Issues/Broken-shipping-calculator-is-destroying-my-sales-and...

[gopetersen]

Thank you n2cbu, for the examples.

These are the same kinds of messages (and incorrect shipping quotes) that I have experienced when using eBay's shipping calculator.

Unfortunately, most buyers do not message the seller to ask about a more accurate shipping quote, most of them simply move on, sometimes to other sites.

[obtanium_enterprises]

Buyers want to add items to their cart, go to Checkout and pay, and then eagerly await prompt delivery.

Attention @eBay: BUYERS DON'T WANT TO WASTE THEIR PRECIOUS TIME MESSAGING SELLERS FOR ACCURATE SHIPPING QUOTES (that sellers can't even officially quote because the "Reply With Offer" function doesn't support seller-defined shipping quotes, so buyers have to trust that sellers will update it in eBay Checkout) AND BUYERS DON'T WANT TO WAIT AROUND FOR SELLERS TO UPDATE SHIPPING IN CHECKOUT.

What's the whole point of the shipping calculator again? To accurately and correctly calculate shipping cost? To facilitate and encourage volume sales? Apparently not.

These are SIMPLE CONCEPTS that are obviously way-way-WAY beyond eBay's comprehension-ability.

For how many YEARS has this shipping calculator nonsense been going on now???

Pathetic!

[r*jingle]

PLUS - we don't know what the Ebay discount will be, so we don't know how to edit listings.  And, I checked the calculator and it says $107 from New Jersey to New Jersey for a four ounce package!