Don't know how to move foreward

[mirlka]

It's been a long time since I sold anything on Ebay and things have changed a lot. I have some things that I want to sell now that should bring $50 or better per listing but I have to list them over time or I would be my own competition. I am just trying to clean out my storage, not looking for a new business or hobby.  These things would all be in the pottery & glass or antiques category.  The problem is, I do not have a working printer. I can't find anywhere in FAQs anything about shipping the old fashioned way, write the address on the box and take the box to the PO and have it weighed and scanned. Can I even do it this way anymore? Not sure how to go about this and it has me stuck. All advise is appreciated.

[mr_lincoln]

@mirlka  You can take your packages to the Post Office or other carrier (UPS or FedEx), purchase postage at the counter and get their receipt.  It will have a Tracking number for each package.  You take that receipt back home and you manually load the tracking number on the Sold item.

The Sold item has a little pull down menu on it and one of the choices is to "Add tracking", click that the next screen will have a little window to type in the tracking number and then identify the carrier.

As for a Printer, they are farily cheap these days and if you use eBay - PayPal to print your labels you get a discount for First Class and Priority Mail servicces ... which in time will help defray the cost of the printer, paper, ink, etc.

But of course how you wish to clean house and ship is certainly up to you ... best wishes to you with Selling.

Oh, almost forgot ... if you are activating an older account or starting a new one they may put limits on the number of items you can list as well as the total dollar amount until the account gains experience (again).  PayPal will also possibly "hold" your $$ up to 21 days but most $$ clears 3 - 5 days after tracking shows the item has been delivered.

[mirlka]

Thank you for your response! I am glad to know that I can do it the old way, at least to get started. A printer might be in my future, but not until I make enough to make it worth the cost as I have no use for one otherwise. This is my 2nd selling ID, on my first I have over 700 positive feedbacks with no negs, but I let that one go as too many people knew who I was and that makes it hard to buy gifts for family and friends. I have been reading these boards and all I see are problems. In the past I have had some issues with people buying my thing and sending back their broken thing that they were replacing, claiming that is what I sent, so it has put me off a bit on selling again. I am trying to keep in mind that people come to the boards to complain but not so much when things are good. Thanks again!

[lja440]

I also sell pottery. I use a sellers mark written in pink blacklight pen (I got mine on Amazon for like $5), also I sell a lot of thrown pieces they will have a distictive mark or two and I make sure I have close up pictures posted of these making swapping as tough as I can.

If you have a library close and you have a scale for weight you could log in and print your labels at the library, mine only charges 10 cents per page.

[lintbrush*]

Unless you are shipping via Flat Rate, you really should know the weight (and dimensions) before you list it.  The customer needs to be charged appropriately - which can be acheived using Calculted Shipping in the listing.   Even if you go the Free Shipping route and will pay for the shipping out of the item cost, you need to know those potentials costs.

At the counter, you will pay retail prices.  If you purchase your label through eBay or PayPal, you will be charged the commercial base rates.

Also, eBay selling fees and PayPal processing fees are based on the total amount of the sale - including shipping.

Let's say your item is 3 lbs.  The retail price would range from $7.80 to $17.15 depending your buyer's locations.

If you charge the retail rate and it's going coast-to-coast (Zone 8), of that $17.15, eBay and PayPal are going to take 13%.  That leaves you with $14.92.  That $2something in fees has to be covered somewhere.

Now if you paid Commercial prices, the 3 lb Zone 8 package is $14.90.  If your listing charges the retail rate to you customers, and you pay commercial rates, that savings can go to those fees.

Just food for thought.

[mirlka]

Thanks for much for your replies! I just ordered my priority boxes, it's been so long since I've sold anything even shipping has changed. If I remember correctly, in the past there were two little forms I filled out, separate ones for insurance and tracking. Now all I see is one, does it cover both now or do I need one that I did not see at the USPS website? I do still have my old postal scale, in the past I always weighed the box and figured shipping to the west coast. I am in the midwest so that was usually a fair price for shipping and I never had a buyer complain. I never added anything for packing supplies which can get expensive when shipping a set of stemware, maybe I should start, but I'm afraid it will make the shipping look too high. Maybe I will have to decide shipping on a case by case basis, some can be calculated and some might even be free, would that get too complicated?

[duchess-at-speakeasy]

No more forms for tracking or insurance. Tracking is free and included automatically. Priority Mail includes up to $50 insurance at no extra charge. If you sell higher-priced items, then you might want to pay for insurance.

You can include all or part of the shipping cost in your item price if you wish. However, zoned rates for heavy items vary widely, so be careful. Depending on the size and fragility of what you sell, you might be able to make use of FRB's or the Regional rate boxes. I use them to help buyers in Zones 7 and 8 save money, especially if the weight is over 3 lbs. In any case, make sure your expenses are covered.

I suggest you consult the latest USPS rate charts:

https://pe.usps.com/text/dmm300/Notice123.htm

A personal postal zone chart is handy, too:

https://postcalc.usps.com/DomesticZoneChart

USPS rates will be increasing in January. Try to sell and ship as much as possible before the cost goes up!

~~C~~

[chung-lee-2]

Printers are for sale in the 30 dollar range all over buy one , problem solved .

[mr_lincoln]

@mirlka  You are very welcome ... as to the comment about reading about problems here ... well, that is one of the reasons for The Community, members being able to share issues, discuss and get help or a sympathetic ear.  Just keep this in mind, eBay has over 800 MILLION items listed, they ahve over 25 MILLION registered Sellers and over 170 MILLION registered Buyers ... issues here represent less than 2 % of all transactions which is very very low ... BUT, most threads here are about issues so it may seem like things are worse than they are ...

[mirlka]

@mr_lincoln,  I have been spending a lot of time on this board and have learned quite a few preventative measures to take, so I am grateful for that, but now you have me worried about whether any of my items will ever even be seen at all! HAHA.

The thing I have to decide now is wether to accept returns or not. In the past I always said no returns, but on the rare occasion that one was warranted I did allow it.  I am just worried that if I do accept returns buyers will return things for no reason other than buyers remorse or because they find the same thing a day later for a dollar less.  

I really appreciate everyones help and suggestions, it is very encouraging.

[mr_lincoln]

@mirlka

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@mirlka wrote:

@mr_lincoln,  I have been spending a lot of time on this board and have learned quite a few preventative measures to take, so I am grateful for that, but now you have me worried about whether any of my items will ever even be seen at all! HAHA.

The thing I have to decide now is wether to accept returns or not. In the past I always said no returns, but on the rare occasion that one was warranted I did allow it.  I am just worried that if I do accept returns buyers will return things for no reason other than buyers remorse or because they find the same thing a day later for a dollar less.  

I really appreciate everyones help and suggestions, it is very encouraging.

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I think "preception" is important in online selling and by Accpeting Returns, the perception the Buyer has is you are not trying to hide anything and are confident in what you are selling.  I recently started to offer 60 day Returns as I understand it may help items come up higher in search.

Bakc to shipping for a second, you will have choices like Flat Rate, Free or Calculated ... I suggest Calculated, that way the Buyer pays the shipping NOT you nor do you get caught with a large heavy item set up for a small flat rate box ... since you are not new to the game ignore this next suggestion if you already know what to do ... I usually add 1 - 2 inches to the size of the item them 8 oz to 1 lbs for box and packaging to determine shipping weight the Buyer will see and use for their shipping estimate.  They simply click the little calculator, put in their zip code and get the shipping estimate.

You can also offer several shipping methods ... Like USPS Pacel Select, USPS Priority Mail, FedEx Ground, UPS Ground, etc. all on the same listing giving the Buyer choices on how they want it shipped (those I listed would be for anything at or abouve 1 lbs ...)