eBay

nicbyar6 · ‎02-03-2018

I have just went international. After researching the pros and cons, I felt it was extremely necessary to do so. One reason that enticed me was the possibility of increasing sales up to 15%. Well, that and the fact that all you have to do is ship your item to eBay's global shipping center, then they take care of the rest. I'm sure a good portion of you reading have already converted to global shipping, if so, give me some feedback on what to expect.

This is how I make my living now, so im trying to do as much research as possible, watch as many how-to videos on youtube, and talk to experienced eBayers so I can minimize costly mistakes and learn the tricks of the trade. Any feedback or criticism is greatly appreciated. I look forward to any advice you may have for me. Thanks a lot.

Thanks again!

orangehound · ‎02-03-2018

wrote:

This is how I make my living now, so im trying to do as much research as possible, watch as many how-to videos on youtube, and talk to experienced eBayers so I can minimize costly mistakes and learn the tricks of the trade. Any feedback or criticism is greatly appreciated. I look forward to any advice you may have for me. Thanks a lot.

Thanks again!

I'm assuming that you sell primarily on another platform (or another account), because your sales are barely a few dollars a day on the store you mention above. Not enough to make a living off of ....

Broadly, my one suggestion is that you need to get the dollar level of your items up. Selling one-of-a-kind items under $10 is OK if eBay is your hobby, but not for a business upon which you are making a living - at the end of the day you are making under minimum wage with single listed $10 items.

Also, my international sales through the GSP tend to be more expensive items, probably due to the very high shipping costs charged by the GSP. It is the rare buyer who is going to pay $30 in shipping for a $10 item. More specifically, though I list items from $10 to $200, the minimum sale I'm seeing through the GSP is $35 and the average sale is $58. You have only 3 items in your inventory above $35 ... so if your experience is similar to mine, then I would guess you won't see much action internationally.

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orangehound · ‎02-03-2018

wrote:

This is how I make my living now, so im trying to do as much research as possible, watch as many how-to videos on youtube, and talk to experienced eBayers so I can minimize costly mistakes and learn the tricks of the trade. Any feedback or criticism is greatly appreciated. I look forward to any advice you may have for me. Thanks a lot.

Thanks again!

I'm assuming that you sell primarily on another platform (or another account), because your sales are barely a few dollars a day on the store you mention above. Not enough to make a living off of ....

Broadly, my one suggestion is that you need to get the dollar level of your items up. Selling one-of-a-kind items under $10 is OK if eBay is your hobby, but not for a business upon which you are making a living - at the end of the day you are making under minimum wage with single listed $10 items.

Also, my international sales through the GSP tend to be more expensive items, probably due to the very high shipping costs charged by the GSP. It is the rare buyer who is going to pay $30 in shipping for a $10 item. More specifically, though I list items from $10 to $200, the minimum sale I'm seeing through the GSP is $35 and the average sale is $58. You have only 3 items in your inventory above $35 ... so if your experience is similar to mine, then I would guess you won't see much action internationally.

nicbyar6 · ‎02-03-2018

I sale solely on eBay.
Should I open an amazon account also?
And I’m just starting out, so I figured I would sale things that I already own before investing and sourcing.
Any more advice is greatly appreciated. Thanks again.

frodobagginskennedy · ‎02-03-2018

GSP is a total ripoff. Expensive and at times charges buyers fees that they woiuld not face if they purchased directly. No way in Hades would I ever go into that cesspool of a program. I would stop selling internationaly before I participated.

This quest stands on the edge of a blade...stray but a little and you shall fail to the ruin of us all.
"The Lady Galadriel"

rosevelyn · ‎02-03-2018

I've been selling through the Global Shipping Program for years and have been happy with it as have my customers.

thallidguy · ‎02-03-2018

I hate to disllusion you, but what you have listed now is poorly suited to the Global Shipping Program. eBay once admitted in the FAQ that lightweight, low-priced items are poorly suited to the GSP. I consider it negligent, bordering on criminal, that they don't do so now. The GSP will drive the buyer's cost of shipping way up beyond what it would cost if you shipped it directly. You'll just wind up with a lot of unhappy buyers, at least some of whom will leave you unfavorable feedback based on that.

The GSP does provide some advantage to you if you're shipping large and/or valuable items. But otherwise, you're better off shipping directly yourself.

mpirie · ‎02-03-2018

Sadly, the GSP is why I stopped buying on eBay. Used to be I could get my small item mailed to me from the US to Canada for $5.00 or less, now with the GSP, the cost of shipping averages 3 or 4 times that amount, often the same as the item costs. I went from being an avid buyer, to next to nothing, maybe 1 - 2 items a year vs. 1-2/week. I guess it works for the buyer because they ship it off and have someone else deal with the mailing. However, they probably don't realize that a lot of people are simply not buying when they see the high shipping fees.

nicbyar6 · ‎02-03-2018

I’ve opted out since the first comment. I guess I didn’t read into it as much as I should have.

Thanks for the replies and criticism, I’m gonna just take it slow and work my way up to where it would be profitable and worth my time in the future, thanks again.

nicbyar6 · ‎02-04-2018

Pretty much what you're saying is my store needs to grow substantially before I can make that kind of move. Is it safe to say that you should at least have a Premium or Anchor store before considering joining the Global Shipping Program? Thanks in advance for your reply.

orangehound · ‎02-04-2018

wrote:
Pretty much what you're saying is my store needs to grow substantially before I can make that kind of move. Is it safe to say that you should at least have a Premium or Anchor store before considering joining the Global Shipping Program? Thanks in advance for your reply.

No, you do need a store. But, you should gain experience as a seller, learning policies, customer service, profits, etc. while you expand appropriately.

thallidguy · ‎02-04-2018

wrote:
Pretty much what you're saying is my store needs to grow substantially before I can make that kind of move. Is it safe to say that you should at least have a Premium or Anchor store before considering joining the Global Shipping Program? Thanks in advance for your reply.

No, what I'm saying is that you should only use the GSP if you're shipping heavy or valuable items. You might benefit from it when selling certain items, but not with most. It has nothing to do with how much you sell or whether you have a store.

In fact, the higher your sales volume, I would say that the less you need the GSP. The risks involved with international shipping are actually lower than many people make it out to be. The problem is with people who have such a low sample size of transactions that outlier events take on unusual importance. If you have a large enough sample size of transactions, the odds even out the bumps.

7606dennis · ‎02-07-2018

I'm not sure I would call the GSP scheme much of an upgrade.

"It is an intelligent man that is aware of his own ignorance."

pjcdn2005 · ‎02-07-2018

Actually, none of your items global shipping showing right now.

witcha_satthaworaphong · ‎06-20-2019

Most international buyers are now aware that the Global Shipping Program by Pitney Bowes Inc. is a scam and a total cheat on international buyers! For a single item, there's absolutely no charge in any parts of Asia! But this scandalous and fraudsters GSP by Pitney Bowes Inc charges us twice, the moment we depressed the Buy It Now button! Once for the ludicrously exhorbitant shipping cost and right after that another exhorbitant "import charges" that no customs in any parts of the world would charge so much!!! Then Delivery takes forever to arrive!! Royal Mail takes less than a week to arrive and GSP - Pitney Bowes Inc. takes 47 days to bloody arrive!! U.S. literally takes over 60 days to arrive; whereas USPS is only two weeks! How Outrageous can this get!?!

Somebody should take this unscrupulous fraudster Global Shipping Program- Pitney Bowes Inc. to task for Frauds! They are neither a courier nor logistics company! They are just a middle man out to make a quick buck!!! I IMPLORE ALL SELLERS NOT TO JUST BELIEVE WHAT YOU READ, IT’S IMPERATIVE YOU FIND OUT THE FACTS FOR YOURSELVES! For what it was worth: GOOD RIDDANCE TO BAD RUBBISH!!!