Always pays to check the shipping

It was 14.38 to Fla. BJ!! Some handling charges this guy added in! Just had a simular item shipped from the East the other day for 2.50!

I always send them and email saying "sorry we can't do business, I would love to bid on your item but the shipping is just too high." I usually get a "too bad" answer, but at least they know some people are onto them.

The best things in life are furry....and flowers!

If it is something I really want with excessive post & packing attached, I still bid and if I win, never ever admit to seeing their postage charges!

My standard letter to these types is always really friendly and innocently says "Could you please send it by second class (or if its in the USA Economy) mail, as I can't really afford to pay high postal charges"

They now have two choices:
a - Pay up you swine - we published our prices clearly, you pay them!
OR
b - If this guy drops out, we will have to re-auction this and might not get as good a price the second time. (That's why if you buy it cheaply, never argue about the postage)

It has never failed - honest. Every seller has then "reappraised" the situation and charged the base postage and very little, if anything, for the packing (this week I had £5.40 reduced to £2.50 with the message, I'll send it second class with "no-frills" packing)


Why don't they opt for Option a above? WEll, for one reason I never challenge their charges, I merely avoid the issue.

Go on, try it - remember softly, softly catchee monkey! Polite - perhaps over friendly letter, no mention of their postage charges (remember if they now say $37, you express genuine shock horror!) and a bit about you are not in a particular hurry (this gives them a "fig leaf" to hide behind if they drop their charges)

I always imply that I expect they normally ship first class, but I am quite willing to accept second class because I can't afford the best.

See being humble (and devious of course) can win you any battle!

I just bid the amount that takes into consideration the outlandish shipping. I throw it into the bid group and go on.


"Shop" and My Snipes

quote:

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Originally posted by ShoptillIdrop:
I just bid the amount that takes into consideration the outlandish shipping. I throw it into the bid group and go on.

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I do that too. I just picked up a spare USB cable for my digital camera (so I can xfer pics to my work PC as well). The first 2 items in the bid group had $8 and $6 s/h and the bids went for more than I was willing to pay total (something like $11.50 bid plus s/h). The third one had free s/h and no other bids. I sniped it for $10.32 and got it for the opening bid of $6.99! It retails new for $25.

Yes, I take shipping into consideration too ... which is why I check it before bidding I could buy that item from a local guy for less than the price of the shipping to my zip ... and I did a couple of years ago I just keep an eye open on them .... when your jukebox is almost 50 years old having spare parts is not a bad thing!

Mother Mary Says, 'HONESTLY! you're just ruint!'

Well, I think we are all in agreement on this! I also know the shipping before I bid because it is, of course, part of the price.

Camera, I gave your shipping cost idea a try! This however is before I bid. I wrote and asked the shipping as the item appears to be going to close at way under value. He gave me a legitimate price but added .45 for confirmation. I acted really up against it and asked (as if this big time seller didn't already know)if I showed him how, could he print my label on Ebay and save the .45 as confirmation is free there. It worked and I have the cost in writng! Ok, it is only .45, but it was fun!

very true...

although sometimes it's worth it.
this < auction >was for an oscilloscope that should have gone for ~$50 - $110, and I was certainly willing to pay that. Also shipping delicate electronic test equipment (around 30lb) isn't something you want to do haphazardly.

The seller is DoveBid, which is a well established auction company that has been around for a while (~60 yrs or so) and was the main liqudater for a number of big tech firms around the Bay Area over the last few years... Anyone recall Excite@Home?

The winning bid for sniped at $10.45 but the shipping was flat-rated for $55, and was the reason I almost passed over the auction. As it was, I needed the oscilloscope in fairly short order and figured the combined price was worth it.. Payed for the auction when it closed (asking if it was worth it to drive out and pick up the gear - about 2 hours round trip), recieved a followup call about 2 minutes later -- very professional, friendly and efficient! Turns out that they (DoveBid) prepackages the items before sale, and just flat-rates everything.. I guess when you are selling $20k electronics, it makes sense. Well, I paypal'd them the $65 at 3:30pm on Thursday and had a package waiting on my doorstep less than 24hours later! And, if you read < dovebid-tmg > feedback the packaging job gets mentioned quite a few times -- they're serious! Fully isolated with custom blown foam in a box big enough for six oscilloscopes -- they wasn't some typical garage ebay seller by any means, and one of the few exceptions to the excessive shipping costs avoidance rule I've run across.

Final thoughts? I like flat-rate on my auctions, it speeds payments and reduces confusion, even if it means that I occasionally pay overages on my UPS bill.. Once or twice my final, actual cost of shipping was almost exceeded the final buyers cost -- but that's part of doing business.

Also, buyers always forget just how much shipping supplies can cost, and time and expenses that Shipping & Handling really does go to cover. You just have to be reasonable about it.

sotty if this got a little long,

/ac

I also use a flate rate shipping for my auctions without a complaint, except for overseas, of course and they must be figured at the time.
to our forum!

I think shipping and handling is one of my biggest pet peeves. Especially after receiving a dozen children's books that had been individually seaaled in gallon Ziploc bags! Cost to ship media rate was was $3.85 when I received but I had paid close to $10 for shipping. Dummy me thought it had to do with the weight!

High exact shipping uis one thing but the handling charges are a real trip! Sorry - but the cost of packaging gets old fast. There are LOTS of ways to save on packaging without passing it onto your buyer.

Things I've used - CLEAN egg cartons, newspapers, old magazines that are ready for the trash, dryer sheets, (I put mine in a special bag to be used for that purpose,) printer paper that the note didn't print correctly or the picture (never family) that didn't print right, plastic shopping bags from Wal-Mart. KMart, grocery store, turning a box inside out, reusing the popcorn, bubble wrap, clean, old pantyhose are great for securing glass items and there are a lot more things that can be used that one would usually thrown away.

I think my biggest pet peeve is when shipping Priority mail. The last I heard, the boxes were free. So is delivery confirmation when you know how to do it.

Guess I better get off my soapbox now. I just made a bunch of sellers angry with me and I won't be able to snipe anything!!

Crafty

A friend just emailed me and said he bought a book for a dollar..forgot to ask shipping..ten dollars,,,it was shipped book rate. He is irate. I told him he should have asked before bidding.

Personally, I think it's the responsibility of the seller to disclose shipping/handling terms; and the responsibility of the buyer to agree to those before bidding.

When I see a seller with what seems like disproportionately high s/h costs I usually choose not to bid on that auction. The aforementioned case (dovebid) was a very clear exception to that rule.

It's obviously going to be a point of contention if either the buyer or the seller isn't clear on the full terms of sale.

/ac

A/c, I insist on knowing the shipping before I bid! It just saves a lot of grief that way for both of us!