posted on March 20, 2012 08:43:44 AM new
Well, I have given it some thought about the new eBay policies. We have received the 20% discount since it was offered (with exception of 1 month due to a low shipping cost DSR rating).
Now that we are losing our 20% discount because it is impossible for us to offer 1 day shipping service, I am seriously considering going back to not offering free shipping any longer. The whole idea was to meet eBay DSRs to get the discount, but what is the point if I won't qualify anyways?
I am uncertain if I will do it, or perhaps consider a hybrid... a flat shipping fee (to make up for the loss of 20% discount).
eBay has every right to take away the discount... it is their site, but what motivation do I have now to ship things out for "free"??? or within 3 days for that matter? Seriously, there is none.
The only downside I see is if eBay changes things back, but I am not holding my breathe on that one.
posted on March 20, 2012 08:53:20 AM new
Shag, I have similar thoughts. Since I will not be getting the discount (cannot have the pressure of jumping through the requied hoops), I am going to list items with the TOS to suit my items, not to please Ebay's growing demands. To me it is a no brainer.
I am going to charge for reasonable shipping, ship in a timely manner & decide on the return policy on an item by item decision. No returns on many items.
posted on March 20, 2012 09:38:45 AM new
I am not a TRS and I dont get 20% discount,but I have a question-
Is Ebay asking you to upload shipping information or does it actually expect you to ship within 24 hours?
posted on March 21, 2012 02:08:06 AM new
Having 3 IDs I have 3 decisions to make.
On my jewelry - I going to do it the EBAY way. Free shipping, 14 day returns, one day shipping etc and see how it goes.
My main ID - no returns, no free shipping and I'll ship when I good and ready. (it takes time to pack large items.)
On my 3rd ID - I'm thinking of just closing it down all together.
The sad part is I rarely have a return - maybe once a year if that, I ship small items in one day and always have.
You are so right shag - ebay has every right to do what they are doing as it is their site. I just don't think this one is going to turn out the way they planned.
posted on March 21, 2012 05:46:22 AM new
I agree ebabetreasures, they have the right to do changes such as this, but I think it is going to turn so many people off that it is going to backfire. For me, why try so hard if it is impossible to achieve. They have set the bar too high.
When they introduced the 20% discount is was touted as a gimick they had lowered fees when in reality they had raised fees but used this as a way to convince sellers that they really hadn't increased fees when they added the fees to shipping cost. It is all a game and I choose to sit this one out.
posted on March 21, 2012 06:14:02 AM new
20% may not mean much to you,but to some sellers whose bill goes into a few thousand dollars per month,it is a big saving!
I have come across some sellers who are very accomodating when it comes to return,they will pick up the return shipping fee with a smile and they are all TRS!
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posted on March 21, 2012 06:27:46 AM new
Hwahwa, I am TRS, & yes, the 20% meant a big deal to me, I have received it every month but one when someone dinged my *s. I was obsessed with raising those stars & getting my discount back. It was quite an incentive. BUT, now it is impossible for me to achieve that with these new standards, so I am raising the white flag, I GIVE UP!
I will continue to sell on Ebay to suit my standards. I cannot / will not do 1 day shipping or 14 day returns.
I did several searches & discovered that there are many more listings with NO RETURNS than before. Yes, we all lnow there are ways around that, but the scammers are going to be there no matter your TOS.
posted on March 21, 2012 07:22:53 AM new
I only offer free shipping on orders over $45.
I love how eBay likes to back door us on a fee increase. It will be almost impossible to maintain TRS now so instead of worrying about it I am raising my prices to compensate.
posted on March 21, 2012 07:28:13 AM new
Your guys still have not answered my question on shipping-
does Ebay want you to upload tracking information within 24 hours or does it expect you to ship within 24 hours?
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posted on March 21, 2012 08:16:33 AM new
Ggardenour: exactly, protect & work for yourself. No gimicks, no hype, no jumping through hoops.
Hwahwa, don't know the answer to your question because it does not interest me one way or the other. I am no going to try to maintain 1 day shipping either way. I would think they mean ship in 1 day. If you upload tracking & but do not ship for several days, what is the point?
posted on March 21, 2012 08:27:44 AM new
when we print a shipping label on Ebay,the tracking information is available on ebay in order details,but not everyone ships same day.
I doubt a buyer is going to click on that tracking number same or next day,usually they wait for a week for an item to arrive,some may not even know this feature is available to them.
I still think Ebay wants to wield out the sellers who use dropshipping,these sellers do not have the merchandise,they rely on the dropshippers to ship and have no control over when these dropshippers ship.
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posted on March 21, 2012 10:16:44 AM new
hwahwa just the tracking info has to be uploaded to eBay within 24 hrs. Actually shipping the item can be longer.
Sounds easy but Monday I spent 17 hrs in the hospital awaiting the arrival of my first grand baby and was not about to run home and print shipping labels to hit the 24 hr window.
posted on March 21, 2012 02:44:35 PM new
If you prefer to stay in the hospital and watch the birth of your grandson instead of keeping your TRS status and upload shipping information on Ebay,then it is your choice,nothing wrong with that !
A professional retailer like Shag does not have such luxury of closing shop to wait in the hospital,to him it is a job 9-5 no different than a person who works in the office.
Selling on internet is really a mail order business and FTC rule apply,you have to ship your order within specified timeframe,I dont recall how many days,if you accept credit card,credit card rule specifies you must ship within 24 hours,so it does make sense that we upload shipping information within 24 hours.
I recall buying book on AMZN from individual who has been sent to some exotic place by his employer and not able to ship,AMZN and Half.com have since made changes that if the seller does not confirm the order within 24 hours ,then the order wil be automatically cancelled.
Watch for more rules,separating the full time seller and the weekend warrior !
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posted on March 21, 2012 03:06:39 PM new
Hwahwa, I do not know where you get your info re shipping regs when using cc. Amazon many times does not ship for 7-10 days (real Amazon, not other sellers).
Zuilly, an online sellers of mostly children's clothing do not ship for 2 to 4 weeks after order. It is right on their TOS. Replacements, ltd do not ship within 24 hours. Macy's does not ship within 24 hours.
The only online retailer I can think of that ships that quickly is Zappos.
posted on March 21, 2012 03:25:23 PM new
When I applied for a merchant account,the bank officer told me I am expected to ship immediately after credit card has been successfully swiped.
This goes back to the day when most retailers are brick and mortar stores,someone walks in and pay with their credit card and leavs with their merchandise !
Mail order catalogue house may accept your order but if they cannot ship soon,they do not charge your credit card until they are ready to ship.
I know someone got into trouble on Yahoo shopping,she makes what she sells and she will charge the customer credit card when order is received when in fact she wont be completing the order until weeks later.
Paypal asks sellers to ship in 7 days,I think thats quite lenient.
Dont just go by what I said,check with VISA/MC.It makes sense,why are you accepting payment when you are not shipping say in a few days.
Some sellers who sell what they make can ask for a deposit,which is acceptable.
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posted on March 21, 2012 03:30:24 PM new
Years ago a French limoge importer told me some online sellers will post a stock picture of a limoge box ,thinking they can just accept the payment and expect the French to ship the limoge immediately,not realising most limoge boxes are handpainted and it could take weeks if not months for someone to handpaint and fire the limoge .
posted on March 21, 2012 06:50:06 PM new
hwa- the answer to your question is pretty simple.
eBay requires you to enter your tracking info within 24 hours. eBay doesn't really care when you ship it, otherwise they would have included this stipulation.
Federal Law requires that you ship the item the same day as the post mark date.
So, if you combine the two, you are technically supposed to ship the item the same day you print the label with the post mark. This applies to Post Office, I am unsure about Fed Ex.
My experience in the past was if you printed a label via USPS and shipped it next day, the DC info would not show you shipped it until the item has arrived at its destination. I haven't had any of those pesky, "where is my item" emails in awhile, so I haven't paid attention if that still holds true.
posted on March 22, 2012 06:11:55 AM new
My experience in the past was if you printed a label via USPS and shipped it next day, the DC info would not show you shipped it until the item has arrived at its destination.
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The reason why it does not show you shipped is because you did not take it to the post office to be scanned by the postal clerk at the counter.
If it is picked up by your mailman,it does not get scanned at your post office.It happens to all my packages since I either leave them in my mailbox or the postman comes to my door to pick them up.
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posted on March 22, 2012 06:25:36 AM new
Shag,
if all Ebay wants is for you to upload the shipping label and not when you actually ship the item,this should not be a problem for most sellers selling small items in their possession.
The ones who have problems are the ones shipping large items such as furniture or the ones who are using dropshippers or consignors/consignees who dont have the items onhand or people who are away for days.
This may be the beginning of a trend- Ebay is amassing an elite group of sellers who have a continous supply of good merchandise to sell,know how to price and take good pictures and describe the items accurately and always around to provide customer service such as shipping promptly and allow 14 days return.
These sellers would be awarded with discount fees,visibility via search and possibly financing via Ebay finance company and display Ebay logo in their brick and mortar store,accept consignments and dispense advice and run local promotions.
AKA Full time sellers who will always be around to run their Ebay sales like a business.
Stay Tuned !
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posted on March 22, 2012 06:55:06 AM new
I think the one day upload of tracking is also to encourage people to use Ebay or Paypal postage tracking. You use the money that you already paid a PayPal fee for so it is a win win for Ebay.
posted on March 22, 2012 07:13:14 AM new
But the fee goes to the post office.
We cannot print first class shipping with DC on USPS website.
Now it looks like AMZN is not offering this feature,2 days ago I have an AMZN order so I went to its site to print a shipping label and that feature has disappeared?
Barnes and Nobles does not have this feature,only Ebay and Half.com do.
It is a nice feature,as soon as email comes saying we have made a sale,I just clicked on the link which takes me back to the item sold and I print a label.
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posted on March 22, 2012 10:15:39 AM new
I am not talking about the postage fee, I am talking about the fees you already paid Paypal. Instead of you banking it, you are using funds post paypal fees. So they get their cake & eat it, too. I know the convenience is worth it, but ebay profits, also.
posted on March 22, 2012 03:58:59 PM new
I am lost,stamps is not free,are you saying you would rather wait a few days and go to post office and pay cash or use your credit card?
I print many $1.64 shipping labels either on Ebay or Paypal,and 1.64 goes to the post office.I know Bill prints priority label on USPS with his Paypal debit card,and earn 1 1/2% rebate back,but for 1.64,how much is 1 1/2% back?
2 cents and I have to type in the shipping address on USPS website,I think Fluffy does that ,she keeps all these shipping addresses on USPS as she has repeat buyers.
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posted on March 22, 2012 04:04:08 PM new
When I go to Barnes and Noble or AMZN site and find out I cant just click and print a shipping label,I find it rather annoying and worse they want the DC information so I have to come to Ebay and do a print another label on any item I have sold and then copy and paste the DC on AMZN or B & N site,we dont realise what a good deal we are getting when we find out other sites lack this feature.
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posted on March 22, 2012 05:58:25 PM new
I believe what Merrie is saying is that Paypal collects their fee for the transaction, plus they save money when you use your Paypal account (instead of using it as a credit card) to pay your USPS through Paypal.
Basically, Paypal gives you 1% back for using their Paypal card as a credit card. Paypal doesn't pay you the 1% for those shipping charges they take.
In essence, it is a way for Paypal to skim 1% off your money by providing the convenience of a shipping system for items you ship through Paypal.
If you USPS Click n Ship with your Paypal card you will get the 5% online discount, free tracking, plus you get 1% back from Paypal for your credit card purchase through the USPS website.
posted on March 22, 2012 06:35:14 PM new
Thank you, shag, that is what I was trying to say.
Even when I buy a few items on Ebay, I always clean out my Paypal account so that it goes onto a credit card rather than PayPal balance for basically the same reason.
posted on March 23, 2012 06:28:28 AM new
Thanks,Shag,now I understand what Merrie is saying,she is right,spend down some of our paypal balance !thats what Paypal always want us to do instead of using our credit card.
but what you said -
If you USPS Click n Ship with your Paypal card you will get the 5% online discount, free tracking, plus you get 1% back from Paypal for your credit card purchase through the USPS website.
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But it is my understanding that 5% discount on USPS priority and Express mail is offered via Paypal as well,or is it not?
I am an oldtimer with Paypal debit card,so I am getting 1 1/2% not 1% when I use my Paypal debit card as a credit card,but I dont expect Paypal to offer 1 1/2% forever.
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posted on March 25, 2012 02:53:55 PM new
I was browsing VISA website on chargeback and came upon this information,thought I would post it here-
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Delivery of
Goods and
Services
Deliver the merchandise or services to the cardholder at the time of the
transaction. Cardholders expect immediate delivery of goods and services
unless other delivery arrangements have been made.
For card-absent
transactions, cardholders should be informed of delivery method and tentative
delivery date. Transactions cannot be deposited until goods or services have
been shipped.
Delayed
Delivery
For a delayed delivery, obtain where applicable two authorizations: one for
the deposit amount and one for the balance amount. Some merchandise, such
as a custom-covered sofa, requires delivery after the transaction date. In these
delayed-delivery situations, the customer pays a deposit at the time of the
transaction and agrees to pay the balance upon delivery of the merchandise or
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