eBay Fees are too High

[ten_o_nine]

Well, didn't you read?

Yes, I did. Thank you.

[isaiah53-57]

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@richard1rst wrote:

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@ebeths_eclectic_collectibles wrote:

What I am trying to say is that is that the higher shipping cost has the same fee percentage but the total fees cut more into your profit unless you offset with adequate handling fees. If the category fvf rate is 15% and shipping is $10 the fee on that is $1.5. If you ship with a more expensive option say $20 the fvf fee doubles. Unless you offset this it wii cut into your margins. The buyer may be paying for the shipping but your fees are higher

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NO !!! They are NOT your fees. The BUYER also pays the FVF - it costs you nothing. If shipping is $10.00 you charge your buyer $11.76. If shipping is $20.00 you charge your buyer $23.53. NONE of that cuts into your profit margin.

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What?? That $3.53 cents you overcharge on the $20 shipping example? It's not compensating for fees - That $3.53 cents in most cases wont even cover your time spent in packing and shipping the item! If you are not accounting for time involved you will get poor quick.

And you cant compartmentalize any portion of a retail transaction - It is what it is - After all is said and done the fees are yours to contend with - and higher fees mean LESS PROFIT - This is retail, not manufacturing production cost analysis, which by the way, is also constrained by value - a product can only absorb so much cost and can only be sold for so much - And when it comes to production cost, TIME is a HUGE factor, as in the time it takes to pack and ship an item as mentioned above in relation to retail...

[inhawaii]

You're worried about paying fees on shipping and taxes. Why not factor in the HIGHEST  shipping and the HIGHEST taxes and set your price based accordingly?  If the actual fees are less, better for you. You make more money.

[mam98031]

You can't go by FB count to determine how many transactions a seller has in a given period.  Most buyers don't even leave FB anymore.  So FB is not a good indicator.

[mam98031]

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@ten_o_nine wrote:

You guys are missing the point, you can set your price, but you can't control the fees on shipping and taxes because it depends on buyer zip code.

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I don't think anyone missed your point, many just don't see it as a big issue as you do.  Now that is not to suggest you should not be concerned.  Clearly it is something that bothers you a great deal.  That however doesn't mean that everyone else feels the same way you do about it.

No seller EVER controls fees charged by the site they are selling on, in this case Ebay.  If you are looking for control here, you just are likely to be forever disappointed.

With that said I disagree with you that we can't know what the FVFs will be on a sale.  We can estimate that to within a reasonable range if you are creating a Fixed Price listing.  And on an Auction you just need to make sure you have considered all these costs when you set your starting price.

[casey-86]

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@inhawaii wrote:

You're worried about paying fees on shipping and taxes. Why not factor in the HIGHEST  shipping and the HIGHEST taxes and set your price based accordingly?  If the actual fees are less, better for you. You make more money.

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Because people are trying to sell stuff, not have their items sit on eBay for weeks, months or longer while other listings that are listed for cheaper sell. No one ever considers much outside their own "solution" as to how it effects other people. Do you not think people have already thought about doing this? If you're selling something that 500 other people are also selling on eBay you have to price your stuff competitively to increase your chances at a sale.

[mordecai8614]

My favorite is the "international fee" I'm sometimes hit with despite the fact I do not accept international orders & the item is shipping to a U.S. address... Someone explained that the reason is despite the item shipping to a U.S. address, it's because the buyers account is international. Ok, so why on Earth is that fee passed onto the seller instead of the buyer?

[mam98031]

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@mordecai8614 wrote:

My favorite is the "international fee" I'm sometimes hit with despite the fact I do not accept international orders & the item is shipping to a U.S. address... Someone explained that the reason is despite the item shipping to a U.S. address, it's because the buyers account is international. Ok, so why on Earth is that fee passed onto the seller instead of the buyer?

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@mordecai8614 

It is a small fee and in a climate where sales seem to be harder to come by, an additional 1.65% in fees isn't all that bad in most sellers points of view.

Have you looked at the new EIS program for shipping internationally?  Ebay takes the vast majority of the risk and sellers are protected.  And in using this program we do not pay the 1.65% international fee.

https://www.ebay.com/help/selling/shipping-items/setting-shipping-options/ebay-international-shippin...

[ten_o_nine]

@mam98031

Right, just a small fee on top of a large fee.

[stainlessenginecovers]

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@mordecai8614 wrote:

My favorite is the "international fee" I'm sometimes hit with despite the fact I do not accept international orders & the item is shipping to a U.S. address... Someone explained that the reason is despite the item shipping to a U.S. address, it's because the buyers account is international. Ok, so why on Earth is that fee passed onto the seller instead of the buyer?

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Because that's the way it is.

Are you telling us you would NOT sell a $100 item for $98.40????? (1.6% is miniscule) 

[richard1rst]

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@ten_o_nine wrote:

@mam98031

Right, just a small fee on top of a large fee.

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Not if you are doing it right.

Research and apply eBay’s rules:

If I sell a $50.00 item to a foreign buyer and charge $20.00 in shipping my fees are:

$50.00 item times 11.99% = $6.00

$20.00 shipping at ZERO FVF

$70.00 times 1.65% = $1.16

for a total of $7.16

Whereas if I make a $70.00 domestic sale including shipping my FVF are:

$70.00 times 11.99% = $8.39

In other words, I pay LESS in FVF on an international sale than I do with a same price domestic sale.

[ten_o_nine]

@richard1rst 

spare me math 101

[joliztoyco]

That's EXACTLY what I'm telling you!
I had a pretty rare Lego set up on a BIN of 389.00 about 2 weeks ago. Overseas buyer contacted me asking if I would ship it to them. I said no. And to make sure they didn't do the eBay 2 step using a freight forwarder, I ended the auction.
I'll put it back up in a week or so and easily sell it to a stateside collector.
See how simple that was??

[dbfolks166mt]

Not if you are doing it right.

Research and apply eBay’s rules:

If I sell a $50.00 item to a foreign buyer and charge $20.00 in shipping my fees are:

$50.00 item times 11.99% = $6.00

$20.00 shipping at ZERO FVF    How is this 0? FVF's are applied to shipping costs. 

$70.00 times 1.65% = $1.16

for a total of $7.16

Whereas if I make a $70.00 domestic sale including shipping my FVF are:

$70.00 times 11.99% = $8.39

In other words, I pay LESS in FVF on an international sale than I do with a same price domestic sale.

[dbfolks166mt]

@mordecai8614 wrote:

My favorite is the "international fee" I'm sometimes hit with despite the fact I do not accept international orders & the item is shipping to a U.S. address... Someone explained that the reason is despite the item shipping to a U.S. address, it's because the buyers account is international. Ok, so why on Earth is that fee passed onto the seller instead of the buyer?

@mordecai8614 

It is a small fee and in a climate where sales seem to be harder to come by, an additional 1.65% in fees isn't all that bad in most sellers points of view.

Have you looked at the new EIS program for shipping internationally?  Ebay takes the vast majority of the risk and sellers are protected.  And in using this program we do not pay the 1.65% international fee.

     EIS would not be relevant in this case since buyers using FF's have a US based address. 

[slippinjimmy]

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@dbfolks166mt wrote:

Have you looked at the new EIS program for shipping internationally?  Ebay takes the vast majority of the risk and sellers are protected.  And in using this program we do not pay the 1.65% international fee.

     EIS would not be relevant in this case since buyers using FF's have a US based address. 

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EIS can be relevant, using a forwarder can be more expensive and/or slower for a buyer, they might not use a forwarder when a seller can offer shipping (either direct or via EIS).

It's true, some buyers have a good arrangement with a forwarder and will use them even when a seller will ship direct.