Buying and Selling on eBay: Tips, Tricks, Problems & Questions - Page 126

Quote:

Originally Posted by Steve Smith 


Assuming that we are talking about clothing here, unless you are shipping from coast to coast the Priority Mail mailing boxes (weight and distance) will be less expensive than Flat Rate about 90% of the time IME.

Small Flat Rate box is never the answer for me. If it fits in that box it will go First Class.

That's true. I guess when I ship stuff, it usually isn't clothing. So, your mileage may vary.

As far as stuff fitting in the box, some sellers used to flip the flat rate boxes inside out to use them as standard packaging, but they started printing all that stuff on the inside. 

This guy wrote a guide as to when UPS or USPS end up cheaper than the other. I just don't know how much has changed since it was written.

http://mywifequitherjob.com/what-is-the-cheapest-shipping-option-usps-fedex-or-ups/

I ship Priority Mail 100% of the time.  I use their various flat-rate boxes and 9x12 padded mailers.  And I charge for shipping (though sometimes I prefer to ship something in a flat-rate box that could fit in a cheaper envelope, and in those few cases I under-charge for shipping).  I've found it to be less of a hassle vs. weighing everything, figuring out zones, buying my own mailers and so on.  Just box or bag it up, print the label, and schedule a pickup.  If someone has an issue with the shipping costs, I assume they do not bid to begin with, which is OK by me as I'm not a heavy seller.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Steve Smith 

Quote:

Originally Posted by VLSI 

For first class shipping, it won't ask for size, just weight up to 13oz. I buy 100 pack white poly 12x 15" bags on amazon.

Flat rate boxes are a type of priority mail boxes. There are basically three ways to ship priority:
Flat rate
Regional rate -by distance but not weight
Bring your own box - by distance and weight.

I rarely use my own box for Priority. USPS will ship Priority Mail boxes to you free of charge. There are several sizes which are not available in your Post Office. They like people to use the simple (and more expensive) option of Flat Rate boxes. I order the 1095 (16x14x4), the 1092 (13x12x3) and the shoe box 15x8x6. Those say "Mailing Box" instead of "Flat Rate".

For some it may not be worth the hassle of learning the ins and outs of it, but I save several hundred dollars each month by mailing 13 ounces or less by First Class and choosing the less expensive (weight/distance vs Flat Rate Box) option on Priority Mail.

Also look into Regional Rate Boxes! I use these 99% of the time when I dont ship 1st class mail. Sport Coats and most suits fit into the Regional Rate Box A which is cheaper then the medium flat rate.

If you sell on ebay, it is SUPER SIMPLE. In the shipping are they have the link that tells you the weight for ALL the available shipping methods, not really sure why this is so hard a concept to grasp. Just put in the weight and it will tell you which is cheaper.

Shipping a pair of pants...

1) are they over 13 ounce? YES ship priority, NO ship first class. (these are over 13 ounces)

2) What is the cheapest way to ship???? Cheapest way they fit is either my own package at $4.80 for priority or $4.99 for Legal Flat Rate or $5.04 for Regional Rate (these are from NJ to CT). I choose Legal Flat Rate for $.19 more as the packaging is free and I dont have to worry about the weight if I was off a few ounces. Now if they could not FIT in the flat rate envelope, I would choose a Regional Rate Box A.

Let me know if you guys think this should have its own thread, but it is the BUYING and Selling on Ebay thread, and thus far its been almost all selling dicussion. 

So, What brands/items do you guys feel like you can generally get really good value out of on the bay as a buyer. Essentially If you had a price and quality conscious friend who didn't thrift what would you recommend they look for to start building a wardrobe (i'm not talking about laying in the reeds and searching for that stupid low BIN, or checking your saved searches every day, but day in day out, whats a good value?) To start i'll throw out Oxxford, which I think we're all aware of, because there is so much super dated dross it brings down the cost of even the more recent stuff, and even the NWT Oxxford isn't priced nearly as high as comparable brands Also, Zegna shirts. I know all the thrifters pass them on the reg, but given that you can snag them on ebay for $25 or less all day they represent a very good E-value IMO. Lorenzini shirts as well. 

Please chime in with your suggestions. 

Big +1 on the H Freeman & Son. The quality is great and the general public will overlook it.

I'm noticing an aggravating trend, and that's people ending auctions.  Three out of the five items I've been on in the last week have had the bids canceled and auction ended because "the item is no longer available."  I understand things happen on rare occasions, but I think people are abusing the ability to end an auction.  And I'm talking week-long auctions being canceled after two days, not BIN items.  It's seriously frustrating and a pretty lame thing to do.

GRRRRRRRR!!!!!!