changing handling time

[keziak]

Some time ago I decided to work on issues of not shipping fast e nough by setting my handling time to 3 days. Have had many emails of the "when will you ship?" variety. But I was also on Amazon with a tight turnaround and unfortunately I had to treat ebay as a second-class citizen. 

I am now only on Ebay and it's my goal this year to ship faster and have been mostly successful. I've had a few I have been shipping on day 3 if I can't immediately find the stuff.  Ebay wants me to shave off a day. But my TOS all say to allow 3 days.  Is this a non-issue? It's not like everyone reads my TOS. I get "do you combine?" questions frequently even though I drone on about it in my listings. 

[wastingtime101]

It's a non-issue. You need the 3 day cushion, keep the 3 day cushion.

eBay would have every seller shipping either same or next day if they could.

You have to do what's right for your business, and 3 days is not even long enough to prompt the orange extended delivery warning flag on listings.

[centennialofthreads]

I've always done 3 day because I have a life outside Ebay, and for those pesky items that may be for whatever reason hard to find! I usually ship next day, but allow myself time for my own "safety".

[gwens*4saleitems*]

I also think it's a non-issue.

I have a 3-day shipping window. One reason was that I had a full-time job (3rd shift) so I felt I needed that cushion. I'm retired now but still keep the 3-day shipping window.

Another reason that I keep the 3-day shipping window is what if I can't immediately find, package, print label and get to the post office?. (My post office closes at 4:30p)

Then, I've had buyers "cancel" transactions.  If I don't find, package, print label, ship then the "cancellation" isn't a problem.

[flp]

I have a 5 day shipping time even though I most often ship the following day.  This is bc I live in the Northeast and winter weather can be brutal.  My husband is older and we can't count on being able to clear the driveway in time for our carrier who picks up by 8:30 a.m.

[keziak]

thank you and everyone for the replies. I guess if I don't want the queries I can  just make a concerted effort to ship soon. I asked the question because someone on here criticized my handling time and TOS as a reason why I  may lose orders. 

[sin-n-dex]

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@keziak wrote:

thank you and everyone for the replies. I guess if I don't want the queries I can  just make a concerted effort to ship soon. I asked the question because someone on here criticized my handling time and TOS as a reason why I  may lose orders. 

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I have five days handling and sometimes people ask if it will really take that long to receive the item (I tell them 5 days it to keep me out of trouble with eBay for shipping late, realistically I ship 2-3 times a week, then I tell them which day I plan to ship next).

I get maybe a couple of times a year someone who goes off on me about "why has this not shipped yet". Usually the situation is because tracking has not updated yet so they're thinking it's not shipped, but in reality Stallion Express has it and they're just going through their process to get it to UPS/USPS.

C.

[keziak]

Most of the people who ask me that are very nice once I quickly give them the deadline for when I will ship. But one of the many unknowables in this work is how often I may lose a deal for XYZ reasons. Could be price, shipping rate, delivery time, meagre descriptions, etc etc. My willingness to combine is popular but since so often people ask me about it despite the verbiage in my listings I am left to wonder if people would go for this but don't ask. 

[mam98031]

@keziak 

You need to have the handling time that best suits your needs, not Ebay's.  You are the one that will pay the price if you don't meet your stated handling times, so you just keep doing what you are doing.  

Me, I bounce back and forth between 1 day and 2 days.  Every so often I will Bulk edit my listings and change my handling time so that all my listings will re-index.  It usually provides a few extra sales.  But for me, 2 days is the most comfortable, but I do usually ship in 1 day.

You need to do what is best for YOUR NEEDS !!!

[reallynicestamps]

what if I can't immediately find,

That's an inventory problem.

Ask instead how you can improve your inventory filing .

FWIW

I put the date I shipped and the carrier into the feedback I leave on shipment.

That not only reassures the customer, but reminds them I am in Canada. And with luck keeps them away from the hard to understand tracking information.
"Thank you for your prompt payment. Shipped 9/1/2025 Canada Post Air Mail. "

[johnrj1226]

Hey  if you want to fly with the eagles don't hoot with the owls - do at least 1 day shipping or better = don't  say  you can't or cannot or cain't- trash those words  from your selling vocabulary or any thing else in life - where there is the will there is a way.  A key factor to selling  success is make it  easy for prospective buyers to do business with you and  exhibit integrity and when in doubt do what is right.

[johnrj1226]

Winter only  last a few months - lived in  the  upper mid west 1/2 of my life all around the Great Lakes.(Chicago, Detroit, Kalamazoo, Canton, Ohio - my sister sent  me pics of the snows when they lived in Pulaski, NY

Shopper/viewers, watchers only see the 5 day handling time wonder how many  shoppers do the walk on by when they see  that -  most buyers like quick ship as they want that paid for item  pronto - the days of the Sears Roebuck & Co mail order catalog are way gone by.  This 44 model looked thru that Wish Book a whole lot - time changes every thing.

[topm7326]

Some time ago, I set my handling time to 3 days to address issues with shipping delays, especially when managing multiple platforms like Amazon. This led to quite a few emails asking, "When will you ship?" However, due to Amazon's tight turnaround requirements, I had to treat eBay as a secondary priority.

Now that I’m focused solely on eBay, improving shipping speed is one of my goals for this year. While I’ve made progress, there have been a few cases where I had to ship on day 3 if I couldn't find the item immediately. eBay has suggested reducing my handling time, but my Terms of Service (TOS) clearly state 3 days. Is this something I should be concerned about, or is it a non-issue? Not everyone reads the TOS, and I often get questions like "Do you combine?" despite having detailed information in my listings.

[fbusoni]

@keziak 

I agree with everyone that it's a non-issue... but only if you are content with your current pace of sales.

I switched some years back to same day / 24 hour shipping (along with paid 60 day returns) and the positive impact on my sales (which includes books) was immediate and persists to this day.

Almost every single person who leaves me feedback mentions the fact that I ship same day.   

Some even mention that they read about fast shipping in feedback left by others and that THAT was why they purchased from me.

I think that in this day and age, when people are (sadly) accustomed to instant gratification, it helps a lot. 

Now, if only my 779 books were arranged in some sort of organized fashion.   

Gonna work on that this year.  😊

regards

[quicksilverdiecast]

Agree 100% I got tired long time ago at jumping thru the hoops...set my shipping at 3 days and 5days(gives me both weekends as well if you know what happens), however I work the board about 10
+hrs a day so as soon as a sale shows up it is processed and out the door, with the same results, great customer feedback and reviews....and 30-40% repeats