Shipping costs are wrong, way too many times

[xtech3]

I know shipping has gone up, but many eBayer's are placing too high cost for the weight they are shipping.    A 6 oz item in the package is not $12-15 to ship it. 

I made a generic sell page to check some weights and measures on...  Many of them are charging way too much.  How do we inform them or eBay this is happening?  I've thought about going to my local post master to file a complaint against eBay and sellers for doing this.

Sellers also need to give you different options if they can for cheaper shipping rates.  If a region box, or ground is cheaper, then allow that & let us make the choice!

It's funny how eBay asks you on feedback how shipping rates are.  How would most of us know unless we get the weight off the package and do a check online?  And, no way to show if you did get combined shipping rates!  UGH!

[nobody*s_perfect]

USPS recently discontinued the Regional rates.

If a seller is charging too much for shipping, then best strategy is to just take your business elsewhere and find a different seller.  Sellers who overcharge won't get away with it, if buyers just avoid them. Another strategy is to shop by "total price" rather than looking at the item price and shipping cost separately.

eBay does not enforce any shipping cost limits because it would be impossible for them to track the potential weight of every item sold here. So there's no reason to inform them when you believe a seller is overcharging for shipping. Also remember that it's called 'Shipping and handling": sellers aren't expected to charge just the actual postage rate, they are allowed to add on their costs for packaging materials, insurance, etc.

[mr_lincoln]

@xtech3 

If shipping is too high on something you want then consider:

-Find it with another Seller who ships it for less

-Message the Seller and ask if they will consider charging less for shipping

eBay will not do anything about it, they are not involved with that at all, it is a Seller's decision.  Also, some Sellers are clueless on how to set shipping up to reflect actual finished package weight and size for realistic shipping costs.

[xtech3]

Good points.  However, I see too many buyers buying things because they want it, and don't care.  It's hard to get sellers to understand this and get them to do better

Thanks for the responds!

[buyselljack2016]

As others posted. Buyers should walk away if they do not like the price.

I sort of understand your position, but respectfully...................  it isn't your business, or my business to attempt to control how much a seller charges for shipping. No law for it.

It's shipping & handling, and whatever amount the seller wishes to charge isn't your business, my business, USPS's business, or eBay's business.

[nobody*s_perfect]

If the buyers don't care, then there's nothing else the sellers need to understand.

[sellenhelen17]

When Amazon target and other large retailers are giving free shipping it has spoiled consumers into everyone should offer free shipping. Small resellers like myself cannot afford to swallow the shipping costs large retailers can. I am new to eBay for reselling. The shipping is the most confusing and least explained for newbies. eBay does not make shipping easy, there’s no tutorials ect. I just discovered Regional boxes on a YouTube reseller show which would’ve made shipping easier because it wouldn’t be based on weight it would be based on the dimensions but they discontinued them end of January ughhhh , I keep trying to figure out how to lower the customer shipping cost and still cover all the materials packaging bubble wrap tape boxes and everything going up including carrier pricing and ebay raising fees. Did you know eBay charges their fees based on the total cost of the item +shipping , even though shipping doesn’t go to us? So how would it really benefit the seller to charge $50 for shipping if the final ebay fees are calculated on a higher price? Not to mention if an item is returned you have to refund the shipping and then you’re out the original shipping and pay for the return label.  it’s the worst part of the job for me. For example I lost a sale due to cost of shipping. Product was a huge lot of legos for $39.99 buyer was in California I’m in Ohio. It cost $43 freaking dollars for shipping. I didn’t charge that it was calculated on exact weight and dimensions. But when I chose the carrier during my listing it showed me starting at $9ish. I tried to find a cheaper carrier for the customer but they still were in the $20’s. Early on I didn’t account for all the added weight for packaging, I just weighed the item and then it would come out of my pocket/profit because I went over the weight I had initially put in. And if anyone can tell me how other resellers are doing really cheap shipping without cutting their profits to nearly nothing I would appreciate it. If I have an exact same item as another reseller but charge $50 vs their $95, who you going to go with? Do they have to lower their price to mine or otherwise need to be reported to eBay? I think you should have the same mentality with shipping charges. You just move on. But I just wanted to give you the other side of the coin to consider. 

[kdk8]

Yes, to all of your points! I'm new too and the shipping is so difficult for me. I'm just trying to make sure I get the weight and dimensions correct. Bottom line Ebay wins and the rest of us can only do our best 😕

[anasazirose]

I wonder also how some sellers ship free.  I've come to the conclusion that either another entity is paying the shipping ( a work or business account ) or they're just losing money.  Here's my example:  A vintage 27" tall toy weighing 8 lbs is $35 to ship via retail UPS rates on ebay to the same zone, and  $115 to ship across the country via UPS which was the cheapest available.  I see other sellers with the same toy with free shipping, $10, and $17 shipping. 

One thing I have done since I'm on the east coast is to list shipping options, like Priority, UPS, and FR Priority Large Box.   I've also noticed the order in which I list these options in my Shipping Business Practices is the same order that they show up on the item page, so I am careful to list lowest to highest.  That doesn't always work though, if the buyer is on the west coast.  Ebay doesn't list the lowest option first to the buyer. 

[anasazirose]

This used to be a common practice.  List an item for 1¢, and charge $30 for shipping, another seller would list the item for $20 and $10 shipping.  It made no difference to buyers which they purchased, but the seller would pay fees on the 1¢, and no fees on the $30.  Ebay was losing money because of the loophole, so they began charging their fees on the entire sale amount, including taxes, which the seller does not profit on.  

Also, ebay allows a handling charge to be added to the shipping and handling costs, which just shows as higher shipping.  Sellers can use this for whatever they want, boxes, bubble wrap, gas...  For a smaller seller, one bad transaction can take multiple future transactions to recoup from, so a seller may charge higher shipping for that as well. 

When you search for an item, ebay shows sponsored items 1st.  They don't care if the item costs more or not, they do this because they make more if you buy that item.  They make even more on the sponsored / promoted items because the seller has agreed to give them a higher percentage of the sale.  Ebay is not here to save the buyer money, they're here to make money.   As a buyer, your best bet after you search is to click on the 'best match' box, scroll down to price + shipping : lowest first, and you might be pleasantly surprised.

Also, if the seller has 'best offer' enabled, you can always send an offer which lowers the cost of the item and therefore the total, bringing the total spent more into your comfort zone.  I have best offer enabled and find in a few cases, the offer amount basically just subtracted the shipping amount.  If I am comfortable with that, I'll accept, if not, I'll decline or counter offer. 

[stainlessenginecovers]

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@xtech3 wrote:

I know shipping has gone up, but many eBayer's are placing too high cost for the weight they are shipping.    A 6 oz item in the package is not $12-15 to ship it. 

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@xtech3   

Yes, it is $12.

$12 minus $1.60 Ebay Fees, minus $5 shipping label, minus $2 Envelope, minus $1 packing/label materials and ink leaves $2.40 for someone to actually pack it and then take it to the Post Office.

[blingfling123]

It costs me as much as $9 in supplies to ship somethings, and that is before the carrier charge. I know folks that spend even more. 

Shipping is not just the cost to move the package but the package itself. 

While a 6oz thing should not cost that much to ship, if it is breakable, rare, expensive or requires other stuff to get it to the buyer in one piece, the shipping cost will always be more than what it actually costs. 

Sellers also pay fees on the shipping amount. Did you take that into account when you were looking at pricing as well?

[bettimoor-0]

Could you have used a Flat Rate Priority Box for your Legos, either medium or large, that is what I do for heavy items.

I live in NC and when I first started to sell on EBay I had one of my postal clerks to quote this to me and I have never forgotten it.

"Anything that ships past Chicago, weighs 1 pound or over and is longer than 12 inches is going to be very expensive. Boy were they dead on!

[monica-sells]

There is some retail 'mentality' behind shipping rates....

perceived value and a sense of satisfaction are involved in the buyer's psyche.....

First off.....an 'established, trusted' store with many repeat buyers is almost always going to get more "total sale" for an item than a part-time seller that throws up a one-line description with minimal specifics and a poor picture. In other words, little to no effort to make a selling page......this is called perceived value.....

as far as engaging the shipping variable, I have often taken the total I want for an item, and added a portion to the Buy It Now Price, and deduct that from the shipping. It just "looks better" and appeals to the buyer. Buyers understand pricing for an item is usually different from seller to seller, but they are absolutely turned off by what "appears" to be a "rip-off" shipping charge.

Look and see for yourself....what "looks" more attractive?

Item 15.99

Shipping 12.99

OR

Item 19.99

Shipping 8.99

Actual shipping cost is in reality 12.99, but I have found the the item with 8.99 shipping would sell before the 12.99 shipping even though they both total the same. (28.98 with FREE Shipping does not work at all for me)

Even though the 12.99 shipping is accurate, the buyer feels like the seller is inflating the shipping. They hate that.

In response to the title of the thread...the shipping cost calculated by ebay has for the most part been spot on over the years. It is usually input error causing problems, and not understanding ALL the options

.....done rambling for now

[toomuchstuffagain35]

And then there's ebay getting minimum 12% of that shipping charged to the buyer.

Not exactly an incentive to worry about it, is it?