ESUS and USPS Ground Advantage

[c-r-stahl]

Hello all,

 I am not trying to start controversy, this is my personal opinion as a buyer and sometimes seller. ESUS and USPS Ground Advantage usually take a lot longer the said time and have complications. If offered as a choice, I would pick USPS Priority most every time with the increased cost. Sellers used to offer a faster choice. It has been a while since I have sold anything and don't know if something has changed. I have tried to do research on the community and have seen complaints from buyers and sellers. I understand sellers need to cut costs, especially in today's economy. If able to offer a choice in shipping, I think many would choose Priority Mail, or it's like, especially for more expensive items or items which are easily damaged. I appreciate the eBay community it is a great place to shop.

Thank you for your time and best to all.

[wastingtime101]

Many sellers do offer a shipping choice which you can find on the checkout page before you pay.

For lesser-expensive items, sometimes offering a choice increases the liability too much so sellers will stick to offering a choice of shipping options in the $1-5 range instead of a service in the $10 range.

eBay Standard Envelope (ESE) is the name of the service with ESUS tracking numbers. ESE can't be used on items that sell for more than $20. If you're willing to pay $10 Priority shipping on a $20 or less item, you're in the vast minority.

[c-r-stahl]

Hence my last 2 sentences:   Priority Mail, or it's like, especially for more expensive items or items which are easily damaged. I appreciate the eBay community it is a great place to shop.

I do not like how eBay has changed itself, but the community is still great for the most part.

[wastingtime101]

Sorry, I don't know where the confusion is coming in. My first sentence about many sellers offering a choice of shipping and how buyers can find that option on the checkout page was in response to what you said about expensive items. As a seller, I do offer buyers shipping choices (which includes Priority) on most items above a certain price point.

My follow up statement about ESE service, which can only be used for inexpensive items, was in response to your statements about "ESUS" shipping. For those lesser expensive items it's typically going to be ESE (essentially letter service) or Ground Advantage because the expense of offering Priority for those items doesn't make sense in that situation, unless the buyer is making a larger multi-item purchase.

[chevymontecarlo88]

I use Priority Mail over most other methods.  (USPS GA, UPS, FED EX)

Despite experiencing a few delays with USPS GA, I rarely encounter any issues with Priority Mail. Of course, it has to make sense with what your shipping (cost-effective) and can eat into your margins. Many dislike using Priority because of the cost but sometimes it is worth a few more dollars. IMHO (Free shipping supplies, Limited Free Insurance, Typically faster shipments) YMMV

I do not use ESE because my items do not qualify for that method.

[worldcoinauctions]

I sometimes offer priority mail, however, on a low cost item I have to increase the price substantially to cover the ebay fees on the postage! I sell a lot of low cost 99 cent items with a small shipping fee and I do offer ground advantage for another 5 bucks. The dirty secret is, if you choose the $5 shipping option my income on the items is actually negative. I lose money on any 99 cent sale with $5 shipping. Fortunately few people want to pay $5 to receive a 99 cent item!

[12345jamesstamps]

I want my items to arrive fast as possible. It's all about 'repeat buyers'.

Cost a bit more but worth it. I totally agree.

I don't want my stuff sitting on vacation in a hub or touring the country.

ESUS is just a money maker for you know who.

There was a time when tracking was not on everything mailed in the USA.

A good old forever stamp works just as good for anything under 20 bucks and makes it cross country 3-4 days.

And I am going on 2 years with nothing lost from the USPS.

Again, it's all about 'repeat buyers' and not how much I can save on shipping in my business plan.

Happy Selling.

[gator08041971]

@worldcoinauctions 

I wouldn't offer a shipping method that would eat my profits.  That just doesn't seem to make sense to even have that option available.

I try to bake in shipping costs with the items price so I can list it with "free" shipping, even though it never is.

The only advantages I can come up with is trying to sell multiples of an item, my margin increases in those cases.  I try to do a lot of multi-quantity or multi variation listings to make it easier for buyers to group similar items into one order.  With a small discount, they feel like they are saving a bit and I increase my per item net since I can combine the items into one order.

But not all items work out like that.  But never put yourself into a position where you pay to sell something, even if its a rare occasion.  Not good practice.