do you pay for Ebay tape?

[keziak]

I'm almost out of Ebay tape since I've used the last several coupons for boxes. I have a large stockpile of tape that is the same dimensions as the Ebay tape, and they cost significantly less.  Do you pay for tape because you want it to mark your boxes as being from Ebay or do you figure that's just advertising for the site and not worth the extra expense over clear tape?

[coastaltechsolution]

If I run out of eBay tape then I use my stockpile of clear packing tape. 

To me it is more important to get the package out. 

[pooh333piglet]

I use clear tape for 1st class and the free USPS priority tape for priority. If I go to fedex I use their high quality tape on the tape dispenser to finish sealing the boxes if needed. I've never had ebay tape. 

[a_c_green]

Definitely the latter. I want my shipments traveling in anonymous brown boxes and not advertising that there may be valuable items inside.

[fern*wood]

I personally won't "pay" for ebay tape, except with my coupon.  If I need boxes or mailers more, they take priority over tape.

[powell-memorabilia]

I don’t use eBay tape - to me, the quality seems bad.  I like the heavy duty tape - saves a small amount of time in packing, holds together better during shipment, I would think.

[dhbookds]

We only get it with the coupons...........

As to the quality..........we ship some heavy stuff and never had a reported problem with it ..............

[buyselljack2016]

No store, so no eBay tape by coupon.

eBay logo tape use would still require me to have clear tape for my shipping labels anyway. (laser printer on plain paper labels)

I have no access to USPS Priority tape, so I use clear tape, that I buy in bulk at a reasonable price, on all classes of shipping.

[buyselljack2016]

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@a_c_green wrote:

Definitely the latter. I want my shipments traveling in anonymous brown boxes and not advertising that there may be valuable items inside.

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Always amuses me when I see posts about "eBay" valuable items😄

[tdrake]

 I don't use ebay tape and would prefer that when I buy something that the seller doesn't use it.  Last week I got a package that looked like it fell off the back of a circus wagon.

At least Amazon boxes with Amazon tape blend in and you don't need sunglasses.

[carolynnq]

I only get it with the coupons. It's not as thick as the tape I usually use, but it's held up. Also, since it's "free," I use more of it, generally taping around the whole box so the tape ends up sticking to itself.

Someone commented that they feel like the tape advertises there might be something expensive in the package. IMO, it's more likely that porch pirates will think there are used goods in the package and take other boxes instead.

One thing I like about it is that if a package goes missing, it's a way to identify the package. I had a buyer report that he hadn't received his item that had been scanned as delivered - to a UPS store PO box. I described the packaging with the eBay tape, the buyer conveyed this to the UPS store - they remembered receiving it and were able to locate it.

[iart]

We get plenty of these 'free' with the anchor store. And we use it because the post office seems to handle the packages more carefully and faster - especially since the pandemic hit. I think the post office tried to move ebay and 'the river' packages along faster for people stuck at home.

We might still buy it if we didn't get it with coupon. But we'd use it sparingly, basically just to mark the box, not necessarily to secure it.

[keziak]

thanks for all the replies. I do not see ordering any free tape in the future because I use the boxes very heavily. If the tape was the same price as regular tape I would probably go ahead and get some for ebay mail. But it's no bargain at the price and as others pointed out, the tape is of lower quality and I find myself use twice as much of it. 

It's interesting that Amazon doesn't sell branded tape (that I know of, haven't checked) but you are supposed to identify the mail as being from Amazon Marketplace so I get small labels... on ebay  for that.  ; - )

[keziak]

That is a good point. Most of the time I wrap a box in all but one dimension with clear tape, then finish off with ebay tape, usually just across the top in one direction. With bubble mailers I will use ebay tape if I remember. If I've mailed Amazon orders first I often forget to switch tapes when moving to ebay orders. (and stick an Amazon label on it, but they come off pretty easily)

[a_c_green]

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@buyselljack2016 wrote:

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@a_c_green wrote:

Definitely the latter. I want my shipments traveling in anonymous brown boxes and not advertising that there may be valuable items inside.

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Always amuses me when I see posts about "eBay" valuable items😄

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Yeah, I know, I was kind of sticking my neck out with that one. 😁

Still, the item is of value to the recipient, who would prefer that it not get stolen off the porch, and while I know a porch pirate is inclined to grab everything and sort it out later, I figure that something not festooned with all kinds of eBay frippery (can you tell I've had two cups of coffee already this morning?) is a lot less likely to tempt someone into grabbing it in the first place. (Hey, if the recipient has a brown porch, my plain brown mailing box won't even be visible from the street!)