Regards,
Hi @lilwing3
I just checked your listing below and I am in 17579 zip code in PA. My cost to ship shows $ 57.40
I couldn't get an exact match without the info requested, however here's a pretty close match, shipping to Montgomery, AL from your city demonstrating the difference between retail and online rates. As mentioned above, it's within your control which rate you'd like to charge.
@nobody*s_perfect wrote:
@lilwing3 wrote: ...I put accurate dimensions & weight in the listing. ...The shipping they would see in the listing is $69 & $65 for FedEx & UPS. I then ... simulated actually buying the label for this person and the real cost is $33 & $37 !...
The shipping calculator in eBay listings defaults to show the retail price. eBay's discounts can be excellent, even occasionally reaching 50%. You can choose to charge buyers just the eBay price, adjust your site preferences here, under "Shipping discount settings":
You can use the eBay shipping calculator to compare the retail ("In store") versus eBay prices for any combination of weight, dimensions, ZIP Codes, and services:
http://www.ebay.com/shp/Calculator
I really wish eBay had a way to have the discounted rates or a % of discount set up by Shipping Zones based on the Seller's location to the other Zones. I wind up refunding a good portion of the shipping overage less eBay FVFs on the Paid shipping going to certain areas. I view Shipping as a breakeven proposition and some Customers actually mention the discount they received it the FB they leave and others drop me an eBay message with their Thanks.
My basic rule of thumb is anything over $ 2.00 (after allowing for eBay FVFs on the original Paid shipping)
Yesterday I refunded over $ 7.00 to a Customer in southern AR and had I shipped locally I would not have refund anything because shipping is so much less. What I retain simply covers or defrays the cost of packaging materials and trip to the Post Office, etc.
@nobody*s_perfect wrote:The gap between retail and eBay rates is going to get even bigger now that sellers can purchase labels through eBay at Cubic rates.
@nobody*s_perfect That actually creates a new dynamic to Selling. My Customer paid $ 24.70 to ship and my cost was $ 14.40 ... my cost came down a little because I had 11 lbs on the listing but was able to ship at 10 lbs (but just barely). But regardless of that, I "could" have lost a sale to a Seller with the exact same thing but in the same or adjacent shipping zone to the Customer.
@wastingtime101 wrote:
@mr_lincoln wrote:
I really wish eBay had a way to have the discounted rates or a % of discount set up by Shipping Zones based on the Seller's location to the other Zones.That would be a bit complicated in my humble opinion @mr_lincoln . I always thought the simplest solution was instead of setting a % off retail (as we currently can), we should have the option to set a % above commercial. That way you could set a % that factors in eBay fees and ship supplies and not worry about the vast retail/commercial differences between zones.
And, indeed, we should have the option to set above commercial and not "eBay rates" because with cubic shipping, for example:
1 item in a 7x7x7 box vs 6 items in a 12x12x12 box - if we set up combined shipping based on weight and buyer purchases 6 we would get hosed by offering carrier discounts due to cubic rates. But if we could set commercial rates instead of eBay rates, it would bypass the cubic problem.
BRILLIANT idea for setting a % above Commercial instead of the per zone approach I was thinking of, I would sign up for that and set the % TODAY!
I just printed a label for a coast to coast shipment, a very common sale for me. As hard as I try I just can't get these items under 2 lbs so most are like 1 lbs a a few ounces. So I have to round up to 2 lbs.
Another common one is 4 lbs in a similar sized box.
2 lbs - 15" x 8" x 4" box
(From zip 17579 to zip 95404)
USPS Ground Advantage Retail pricing
1 lbs = $ 9.00
2 lbs = $ 15.70
3 lbs = $ 18.60
4 lbs = $ 20.05
The BIG issue is that the jump from 1 to 2 lbs is $ 6.70. I can see where I could easily lose business to Sellers closer customers in distance zones selling the same thing.
The jump from 2 to 3 lbs is only $ 2.90
The jump from 3 to 4 lbs is only $ 1.45
I am not sure why USPS jumps the 1 to 2 lbs rate as high as they do for just one more pound considering the cost increase for the same size package going from 3 to 3 and 3 to 4 lbs is a whole lot less for "one more pound".
