eBay

inhawaii · ‎07-11-2020

Does anyone here round up shipping weights instead of using the exact weight?

Rounding up a 1, 2 or 3 oz package to 4 oz.

Rounding up a 5, 6 or 7 oz. package to 8 oz.

Rounding up a 9, 10 or 11 oz. package to 12 oz.

Any pros or cons?

luckythewinner · ‎07-11-2020

@inhawaii wrote:
Does anyone here round up shipping weights instead of using the exact weight?

Rounding up a 1, 2 or 3 oz package to 4 oz.
Rounding up a 5, 6 or 7 oz. package to 8 oz.
Rounding up a 9, 10 or 11 oz. package to 12 oz.

Any pros or cons?

If it does not make difference in price, I always add 1 ounce.

For instance, for a 2.9 ounce package I will list it as 4 ounces instead of 3 ounces, just in case my scale's 2.9 ounces somehow shows up at the post office as 3.1 ounces.

Although I will freely admit I have absolutely no evidence this has ever made a difference.

fern*wood · ‎07-11-2020

@jack_bucks_ghost wrote:
I always round up to the highest point of the particular price increment--if it weighs six ounces, I go with 8...I'm naturally a bit paranoid, so I just don't trust my scale...lol (and I don't want to stick a buyer with postage due). I have many other quirks besides this one...lol

I guess I'm rather quirky too. I almost always round up to the top of each pricing increment. When a buyer pays the shipping, if they see a higher weight, maybe they will feel they got more for their postage money.

muttlymob · ‎07-11-2020

@jack_bucks_ghost wrote:
(and I don't want to stick a buyer with postage due).

If you are buying your postage online, the buyer should not get charged postage due for weight issues. USPS policy is that individual employees/post offices should not manually add postage due on parcels under the assumption that the difference was already caught by the automated systems in the processing facilities.

bigdeals.etc · ‎07-11-2020

I always round up because it’s quicker for me to create postage labels when I’m popping them out in bulk. Especially on Mondays when it’s crazy... I only have to deal with using 4 different numbers on the keyboard for first class packages (4, 8, 12, 16). Clothing can very easily have half an ounce swing on the higher ounce weights. Thankfully my different clothing categories range in weight falls within a certain postage price group. For instance, my t shirts will always be 8-12 ounces regardless of its size. So I would just always put 12. Much simpler, much faster.

USPS won’t penalize you for claiming a weight higher than actual. There’s even been a few times my employee accidentally enters 9oz when the shirt is actually 11oz. I just shrug and use the postage because it’s the same cost anyway. I’m not going to go thru the hassle of voiding, creating postage manually, then amending the ebay tracking record for something like that.

For my items in regards to combined shipping, they all will go into flat rate Priority packaging anyway (FR envelopes, FR Padded envelopes, FR boxes). So I just enter the weight with a good cushion (usually 2 lbs) and just go with the flat rate service.

This is a bit different and requires weighing when I ship internationally though.

I remember when PO had a unique price for like every ounce up to 13oz. So like 13 different prices. That was really tough for me but I got used to it. Then they came up with this tiered pricing and I relaxed my ounces, then they went back to more unique pricing (like ounces 9, 10, 11, 12, 13 were all different prices). So I had to revert back to my strenuous method. Now they went BACK to this tiered so I’m happy again. I swear they should just have 1 set price for 1-16 ounces.

bigdeals.etc · ‎07-11-2020

One of my suppliers who decided to sell on eBay too cuz she knew I did (sucks). She never sold online before but was making crazy sales obviously cuz she can undercut me. Anyway, she told me that EVERY item she sold she always just chooses first class 4oz, even with packages that weigh over a lb. She says she’s never been penalized by USPS.

I find that inconceivable.

muttlymob · ‎07-11-2020

@bigdeals.etc wrote:
Anyway, she told me that EVERY item she sold she always just chooses first class 4oz, even with packages that weigh over a lb. She says she’s never been penalized by USPS.

either she's lying or she doesn't realize that corrections may be automatically taken out of her account.

buyselljack2016 · ‎07-11-2020

I do it quite often.

Why? It costs me no more to do so.

Why? Even though there is no difference in the cost of the postage, there is always the possibility that some USPS employee that forgets how things work, will decide to slap a postage due stamp/sticker on for the extra ounce in the event that I broke over what I believe to be the correct weight.

Moving on out of the 1st Class range, my Parcel Select/Priority package labels are always printed for even pounds. 1 pound 7 ounce package label is done as 2 pounds for the same reason as above.

fern*wood · ‎07-11-2020

@bigdeals.etc wrote:
One of my suppliers who decided to sell on eBay too cuz she knew I did (sucks). She never sold online before but was making crazy sales obviously cuz she can undercut me. Anyway, she told me that EVERY item she sold she always just chooses first class 4oz, even with packages that weigh over a lb. She says she’s never been penalized by USPS.

I find that inconceivable.

That's a whole different issue and rather despicable in my view. Then to brag about it like it's nothing. That's fine if she only wants to charge her buyers for 4 oz, but she needs to be honest when she ships. I'd be pretty unhappy to be undercut and then also find out they cheat on postage would be like salt in the wound.

kinum-65 · ‎07-11-2020

Pros:

Convenience, yes I know that's real general but I'm not in the mood to type it all out so lets just say it's convenient.

Cons:

* Multiple orders of same item will really throw off the grand total weight.

* Every year when the USPS increases their prices the cut-offs from one price range to the next can change as well... Some years 4-8 ounces is all the same, other years 5 costs more and 6-8 is the same and so on, these are not actual but just an example but it does happen!

kinum-65 · ‎07-11-2020

@bigdeals.etc wrote:
One of my suppliers who decided to sell on eBay too cuz she knew I did (sucks). She never sold online before but was making crazy sales obviously cuz she can undercut me. Anyway, she told me that EVERY item she sold she always just chooses first class 4oz, even with packages that weigh over a lb. She says she’s never been penalized by USPS.

I find that inconceivable.

It is possible, I have had a few packages over the years slip under the radar for various truly inadvertent reasons but I have also heard that once you're on the USPS radar you will have a terrible time coming off their watchdog list.

@muttlymob wrote:
@bigdeals.etc wrote:
Anyway, she told me that EVERY item she sold she always just chooses first class 4oz, even with packages that weigh over a lb. She says she’s never been penalized by USPS.

either she's lying or she doesn't realize that corrections may be automatically taken out of her account.

Or it arrives at the buyer's door "postage due" and so far her buyers haven't said anything, but the day of reckoning is coming.

inhawaii · ‎07-11-2020

@bigdeals.etc wrote:
One of my suppliers who decided to sell on eBay too cuz she knew I did (sucks). She never sold online before but was making crazy sales obviously cuz she can undercut me. Anyway, she told me that EVERY item she sold she always just chooses first class 4oz, even with packages that weigh over a lb. She says she’s never been penalized by USPS.

I find that inconceivable.

I find that despicable.

I may have leaned towards 4 on a package that was just between 4 and 5 oz. leaned towards 8 on a package that was right between 8 and 9 oz. or leaned towards 12 on a package that was right between 12 and 13 oz.

But never as blatant as 4 oz for a package weighing over a lb.

Zero To Sixty In Five - Pablo Cruise

nobody*s_perfect · ‎07-11-2020

I suspect that she's being regularly caught by the APV system and just hasn't noticed the billing.

https://link.usps.com/2017/10/05/what-is-apv/

http://pages.ebay.com/sellerinformation/ship-smart/ebay-shipping-partners/avoid-extra-postage-costs....

vintage-car-magazines · ‎07-11-2020

@krazzykats wrote:
Yes, I round up.

1, 2 or 3 oz package to 4 oz.
5, 6 or 7 oz. package to 8 oz.
9, 10 or 11 oz. package to 12 oz.

Pros: It costs the same to ship 4 ounces as 1 ounce. It costs the same to ship 8 ounces as 5 ounces. It costs the same to ship 12 ounces as 9 ounces...

If the package weighs 5 ounces, I know I can add up to 3 ounces of additional packaging materials.

For those who round up and use 4 oz for a 1 oz package, 8 oz on a 5 oz package and 12 oz for a 9 oz package......

What weight do you enter for a package that weighs 4, 8 or 12 oz?

buyselljack2016 · ‎07-11-2020

@inhawaii wrote:
@bigdeals.etc wrote:
One of my suppliers who decided to sell on eBay too cuz she knew I did (sucks). She never sold online before but was making crazy sales obviously cuz she can undercut me. Anyway, she told me that EVERY item she sold she always just chooses first class 4oz, even with packages that weigh over a lb. She says she’s never been penalized by USPS.

I find that inconceivable.
I find that despicable.

I may have leaned towards 4 on a package that was just between 4 and 5 oz. leaned towards 8 on a package that was right between 8 and 9 oz. or leaned towards 12 on a package that was right between 12 and 13 oz.

But never as blatant as 4 oz for a package weighing over a lb.

So............... there are degrees .

Rather than despicable, are you just "naughty"? 😋

buyselljack2016 · ‎07-11-2020

@vintage-car-magazines wrote:
@

For those who round up and use 4 oz for a 1 oz package, 8 oz on a 5 oz package and 12 oz for a 9 oz package......

What weight do you enter for a package that weighs 4, 8 or 12 oz?

I do 4, 8, and 12. Would make no sense to pay about 40 cents, 70 cents, or a $ more than is required for the shipping.