So, ebay sellers, how is the USPS rate increase affecting you?

[briansraregames]

As most of you guys know, there is a USPS rate increase scheduled to go into effect monday May 14th.

http://pe.usps.com/RateCase2007/Notice123_PDF/Notice123.pdf

New International Rates:

http://www.usps.com/ratecase/_pdf/immtables43.pdf

From what I can figure...sending a game in a standard #0 bubble mailer is going to increase by about $0.55. Priority mail is starting at $4.60 for the 1st pound now ($0.55 increase) and for larger boxes, the farther you have to send it, the more it's going to cost (East coast to west coast on a 2lb package is now $7.50 up from $5.90.)

International is even more in the dark...

Really though, I'm most worried about the USPS and Paypal correctly implementing the changes on their site. I expect a very rough next few weeks as they iron out any bugs.

I'm probably going to have to increase my standard shipping charge to compensate for the new "large envelope" rate. I'll probably stop shipping overseas for a while. I'm still not sure how it's all going to play out. What's everone else feeling about this rate change?

[magiic]

How much is shipping to Canada increasing too? I hope this doesnt cut down on the number of 100 point games I can get off goozex :(

[briansraregames]

How much is shipping to Canada increasing too? I hope this doesnt cut down on the number of 100 point games I can get off goozex :(
Actually, I found it...It looks like it's going to be about $2.55 (used to be $2.25 or so) for First Class International...the new version of Air Letter Post

http://www.usps.com/ratecase/simplified_international_rates.htm

RATES:

http://www.usps.com/ratecase/_pdf/immtables43.pdf

USPS is totally reworking their international services.

[JJSP]

We got the rate increase paperwork the other day at work, and I'm not a fan.

Delivery confirmation also bumps up to $0.75 for First Class and $0.65 for Priority.

[fatbeer]

This new price is hike will not only affect many ebay users , but many cag members at well ( for trading) and general public.

When you add this up with the new ebay and paypal fees, sellers' will have to charge much more shipping to compensate for the loss. As result, customers will suffer as well. I hope this doesn't affect my ebay rating. Ebay now include a detail rating scale for seller. I going bet that majority of sellers will get one or two star on shipping cost.

[mtxbass1]

My God, as if delivery confirmation wasn't enough to begin with, $0.75 is absurd considering half the time they don't even scan the package at the source or destination.

[62t]

more reason to print label from paypal now.

[magiic]

Actually, I found it...It looks like it's going to be about $2.55 (used to be $2.25 or so) for First Class International...the new version of Air Letter Post

http://www.usps.com/ratecase/simplified_international_rates.htm

RATES:

http://www.usps.com/ratecase/_pdf/immtables43.pdf

USPS is totally reworking their international services.


thats not too bad,still costs us $5 something to send to the states and $10 something to send games within Canada.

[machoman_93]

A whole 55 cents? I'm gonna have to fill up the whole envelope with my old rolls of 37 cent stamps.

[Caliburn]

Simple solution: eBay shipping rates will go up again.

A first class envelope will now be $5... for eBayers, of course.

[YoshiFan1]

I'll be raising my shipping costs, I didn't raise them when postage increased last year but I barely cover my shipping costs and supplies with my shipping rate and will not lose money on shipping.

[addicted2games]

I just raised my ebay shipping rates by 75 cents on priority and first class shipping from what I used to charge. I still get about a dollar handling charge on each sale. Not too bad.

[Steggy]

whats the word on if paypal shipping will include free DC?

[CGH]

On Friday I shipped one nintendo DS game with dc in a bubble envelope 4 oz. $1.25 PayPal shipping from now on the same package size will cost $1.83 to ship. A 6 oz. playstation 2 game in a bubble envelope with dc used to cost $1.73 to ship today it costs $2.16. It will be even more expensive if I go to the Post Office instead of printing my own shipping labels.

whats the word on if paypal shipping will include free DC?

DC with priority mail is still free. $0.18 with media and first class mail.
Signature confirmation is now $1.75.:(

[Caliburn]

I printed a label out last night, dated today. Hopefully the rate I paid before the hike is still valid and it won't bounce back to me as insufficient postage. When I paid last night, that's like locking it in a price for a few days since payment was received then.

[schuerm26]

So there is no more Airmail Letter Post to Canada, it is now called First Class or something to the extent of that. My problem though is going through Stamps.com it now says the delivery time varies for that (doesn't give a specific 6-10 days like the others). Should I expect the First Class mail to Canada to take about the same time as Airmail letter did?

Edit: Though the stamps.com isn't working for INTL postage right now. Annoying.

[Apossum]

Definitely sucks. This equals even more lost money on sales. I hate how paypal and ebay, which are essentially one company, get to double dip on your earnings--it's a freaking racket. Now the USPS is getting in on it too.

I already slightly over charge for shipping and under charge on the auction price to avoid some fees...

[Roufuss]

I already do $6 for Priority Mail, but I'm not going to raise it... sure, now I'll probably be losing money due to rate increase / ebay fee / paypal fee on what I sell, but I don't really want to do higher than $6 (even though Prority is totally worth it).

I only have 40 - 50 more items to go before I'm pretty much done, luckily.

[Apossum]

I already do $6 for Priority Mail, but I'm not going to raise it... sure, now I'll probably be losing money due to rate increase / ebay fee / paypal fee on what I sell, but I don't really want to do higher than $6 (even though Prority is totally worth it).

I only have 40 - 50 more items to go before I'm pretty much done, luckily.



I see what you mean. I wish people would not mind the shipping price as much. I only do buy-it-nows, with cheap sale prices, yet I still get complaints about a high shipping price. Buyers don't make the connection or they can't add to compare the overall price to other auctions with the same item. Often times my stuff is the cheapest too :)

[linkpwns]

It isn't the ebay sellers that care, considering the buyers pay shipping. it is the Buyers.

[Strell]

Can anyone tell me why there have been so many rate increases lately? Is it a combination of the PO losing out on regular postage due to things like e-mail, and increased competition from Fedex/UPS/DHL?

I wonder if the PO could eventually die. We could be cowboys, much like Kramer, in the pursuit of USPS destruction.

But I know that won't happen anytime soon (if ever).

[mr ryles]

I just sent out a ps2 and this shit costed me $20. It was the slim pstwo too. :-(

[Cornfedwb]

Since I ship UPS from work... I feel very lucky atm.

[mr ryles]

Since I ship UPS from work... I feel very lucky atm.

I too have a UPS shipping center at my work. They give us $3 off, so I may have to look into if it is cheaper than USPS.

[ryanbph]

I sell zippo's and have a large international customer base, and the removal of global priority is going to kill me.

[coolsteel]

It hasn't, switched to fedex awhile back and so far it has just worked out better. For smaller stuff I still use the post office but I saved a lot more in my own shipping cost by buying the materials bulk off ebay to begin with.

[Friend of Sonic]

I used to charge 3.00 for first class. I'll probably just raise it to 3.50 or 4.00, the latter which would help cover some of my fees.

[WhipSmartBanky]

It isn't the ebay sellers that care, considering the buyers pay shipping. it is the Buyers.
Bingo. This doesn't affect most sellers. They'll just bump it up some more and carry on as usual.

These days any good deal you manage to find is marred by over-estimated shipping, tacked on "handling" charges, and fees.

[RAMSTORIA]

i shipped 6 things out today. the most of them were a little more than usual but one was very expensive, much more than i thought. i talked to a friend and she asked me if it cost more, and then it hit me, the rates when up today. and i said to myself, no wonder it was more than i thought it would be.

[KingofOldSchool]

I try not to over charge so to speak.

I take into fact about $1-$1.50 for the box, postage, and gas (come on with gas prices I gotta make it up SOMEHOW). It only ends up being $2 or so more than the actual shipping cost.

[Vinny]

It's too much... I listed some items before the increase and forgot to take it into consideration.

I mailed 4 packages today and it cost $4 more than I expected them to. DC for media mail is now $.75!:bomb: My shipping prices are going to hurt now that I charge for gas and packing materials too.

[adezero]

USPS is pretty bad, too many bad experiences. UPS, DHL, FedEx, etc... can usually do it faster/cheaper

[SaraAB]

I just put a disclaimer in my auction saying that USPS has decided to raise postage rates, this is the doing of the USPS and is not under my control as an ebay seller.

Some buyers think they can have everything shipped for the price on the label however there is MUCH more to shipping than just the price listed on the label. Basically if you don't overcharge for shipping you are stupid and you will be losing money especially now with the rate increase. You have to factor in the costs of envelopes, packaging tape, boxes, bubble wrap... etc whatever you use for materials plus the cost of gas to get to the post office.

But please put the cost of shipping in the proper fields when filling out the sell you item form, nothing is worse than a seller that hides their shipping cost or buries it deep within the item description so you have to read through 10 pages of disclaimers in order to find the cost. This is more likely to get you bad feedback than if your shipping cost is listed up front. I always list my shipping cost up-front no matter how much it is.

[Link927]

I should really try printing out my own labels soon, I've basically just been writting in the address and using the DC slips provided at the PO.

[YoshiFan1]

A PSP game that was 5 oz with packaging cost $1.99 today to ship rather than $1.49. That's a large increase for a year.

[jd302426]

So what was the link to use if you wanted to ship something using Paypal?

[rywateska]

Has half.com done anything for the seller...or are there any plans on that whatsoever?

EDIT: Answer here-> http://pages.half.ebay.com/help/shipping_change.html

[daroga]

So what was the link to use if you wanted to ship something using Paypal?https://www.paypal.com/us/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_ship-now

[briansraregames]

Has half.com done anything for the seller...or are there any plans on that whatsoever?

EDIT: Answer here-> http://pages.half.ebay.com/help/shipping_change.html

That's one of the things that really pisses me off about half.com: The charge the buyer $3.49 for a game, give the seller $2.89, and then charge the seller 10% commision on top of that.

[jd302426]

https://www.paypal.com/us/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_ship-now
Thanks, I plan to ship Steel Batillion with controller and all wonder how much it will cost me?

[JJSP]

Dude, the people this is really killing is those overseas. They already get screwed on shipping, and it's only going to get worse.

I used to work at Smartpunk. We'd straight up RAPE kids (though not of my doing) on shipping - they added shipping charges to each item instead of the order as a whole, meaning if it was $5 to ship one CD, it was $10 to ship two. It might sound reasonable, but if two CD's ships USPS First Class and only costs $1.50 to ship, you're getting screwed. Free shirts with preorders? Ha - you're still paying the shipping on it, it's just added into the computer and tacked on undercover.

It really hurts the kids overseas who are being charged $25-30 to ship two t-shirts to England when the cost is $7 and change. I've seen orders going to Japan that are being charged $70 in shipping costs when the actual cost is $20.

[Roufuss]

I can almost guarantee we are going to see another Ebay rate increase sometime this year, or very early next year as well. Between USPS rate increases and Ebay rate increases, it's starting to get shitty to sell anything these days.

This is going to cut into trading on CAG big time, as well, because now shipping is starting to become a very real factor in trading games, even if you just use First Class or Media.

[addicted2games]

It seems the only good thing that came of the price increases is that insurance actually got cheaper. Now you can get up to $200 insurance on a package for $1.65. Before the rate increases, $200 insurance cost $3.20.

[Roufuss]

Now the Paypal shipping website wants package dimensions, in addition to the weight :roll:

Give me a break!

It just tried to tell me a package weighing 1 pound 3 ounces costs $6.55 to ship, yet at 1 pound it only costs $4.60.

[YoshiFan1]

Because unless things changed, Priority goes by pounds so that $6.55 would cover up to 2 pounds but it sucks for those items like the one you mentioned just over a pound increment.

[Vinny]

It seems the only good thing that came of the price increases is that insurance actually got cheaper. Now you can get up to $200 insurance on a package for $1.65. Before the rate increases, $200 insurance cost $3.20.

Wow, that's actually some good news out of all of this. I have been considering insurance required for all eBay transactions.

[Lost_In_Shadows]

Wow, that's actually some good news out of all of this. I have been considering insurance required for all eBay transactions.

Insurance isnt a bad idea. I get insurance on items 50 and over. Im going to start making it required on everything. Like the idea :D.

[JJSP]

Now the Paypal shipping website wants package dimensions, in addition to the weight :roll:

Give me a break!

It just tried to tell me a package weighing 1 pound 3 ounces costs $6.55 to ship, yet at 1 pound it only costs $4.60.
It's always been that way. Anything over 1 lb. pays the 2 lb. rate, and so on. Same thing for First Class, I believe.

[Roufuss]

It's always been that way. Anything over 1 lb. pays the 2 lb. rate, and so on. Same thing for First Class, I believe.

I know how the rate increase is (I've been selling on Ebay for over a year now), but it has never before been so drastic... it used to go up from $4.10, to maybe $5 at the maximum, but never $4.60 up to $6.55, that's ridiculous. I don't remember it being so steep to go up by a pound, and it's never bothered me before.

It was almost a two dollar increase, whereas usually it's only 50 cents, 90 at the most if it is going some place far like CA.

And this new "box dimensions" thing is wack as well.

[Dhuk]

Can anyone tell me why there have been so many rate increases lately? Is it a combination of the PO losing out on regular postage due to things like e-mail, and increased competition from Fedex/UPS/DHL?

USPS decided to get in on all of this flipping/scalping action. ;)

But if you think about it, flipping/scalping along with rising oil prices are both driven by... GREED.

Don't blame USPS fully, it's the oil prices that have driven their prices up. UPS, DHL,Fed-EX will soon follow.

[Caliburn]

I haven't mailed anything large yet, but those prices seem astronomical for a 1 lb 1 oz - 15 oz package.

Everything's going media now, which will probably be close to what priority used to cost.


I guess we'll also see eBay auction costs for shipping a PS2 game first class to jump from $5 (closer to actual cost than in the past) to $8.

In the end, this will hurt the buyers because sellers will just pass these costs onto the sellers. It'd be stupid for sellers to factor the costs into the auction price and provide free shipping (code-word for eBay surcharges on your shipping if it's provided free since your S&H will come from the surchargable total). If sellers are unwilling to list high shipping costs, they will just list less.

This move'll hurt the non-power sellers on eBay (and small, independent web retailers) and you'll see less of them online.

[62t]

I try to send a 1oz cd with 1st class on paypal and it cost me $1.31 This is insane

[CGH]

I am having my first experiences shipping via Priority Mail since the rate increase and I hate it. I was going to ship a 1 lb. 3 oz. package Priority using the USPS 7x7x6 box I was horrified when I saw $6.55 pop up on the screen luckily I found a smaller box the weight still went slightly over 1 lb but it was close enough I printed the label at 1 lb more confident the package will not be sent back to me.

Unfortunately I badly miscalculated on 2 other packages I did not charge the buyers nearly enough I am going to have to eat the costs and kill my profits. The Signature Confirmation increase is also angering me I used to include it every once in a while for peace of mind but at $1.75 unless the buyer pays for it forget about it.

A DVD size item First Class in bubble envelope is not too bad but from now on I will have to think long and hard about listing anything using Priority Mail. I should have read this thread in its entirety before. A hard lesson learned. :(

[Pookymeister]

Unfortunately I badly miscalculated on 2 other packages I did not charge the buyers nearly enough I am going to have to eat the costs and kill my profits.

I just use calculated cost with eBay. Then i add $2 handling or whatever, so i know im covered.

[io]

Yeah, I got nailed on a 5+ lb package the other day. I had to pay $3 MORE than I charged for shipping. After that and ebay and PayPal fees I think I made $1 on it :lol:.

I have standard shipping for small items ($4 for 1st class, $6 for priority) and I didn't feel like bumping those up by some odd amounts for this postal increase, so it has resulted in a flat-out cut to the amount I'm making. I've responded by "underestimating" the weight on my PayPal shipping ;). Nothing big - but using 6 instead of 7 ounces when it is 6.2, stuff like that.

[62t]

Yea I always underestimate the weight. I figure when I finally get caught I would saved a lot already.

[Caliburn]

I got caught on the first time I accidentially underestimated by one ounce - it was 9.3 and I paid 9 oz, and the damn thing came back to me with additional postage due.

I weigh it at home and also when I hand it over the clerk since I don't want anything else bouncing back to me.

[Vinny]

I've been miscalculating many of my packages lately... some of the ones that I called $5 (books/guides) ended up being $7.90. And I keep forgetting to change my insurance price to $1.65- it's still at $1.30.

I'm so lost with this new system.

[Roufuss]

I haven't mailed anything large yet, but those prices seem astronomical for a 1 lb 1 oz - 15 oz package.
.

It gets worse the more you go up... just had a 5 pound package cost $14 and some change.

Luckily, I'm done selling all my big box items.

[Caliburn]

It gets worse the more you go up... just had a 5 pound package cost $14 and some change.


That wholly goes against economies of scale although the USPS knows shippers depend upon them for items too light to ship FedEx/UPS/third party carrier... but a 5 lb thing costs $14 now? Damn.

[Chanash]

this shipping increase sucks for the buyer since I raised my rates, and I only ship USPS Priority. In addition I will no longer send anything to Canada since its so freakin expensive now...I sold a bunch of stuff to verified Canada buyers too.. They always bidded the crap out of my auctions. <3

[Pookymeister]

That wholly goes against economies of scale although the USPS knows shippers depend upon them for items too light to ship FedEx/UPS/third party carrier... but a 5 lb thing costs $14 now? Damn.

FedEx is usually cheaper once you hit the 3-4lb mark

[62t]

well i sent something 9 lb and it cost about $14 too

[Roufuss]

well i sent something 9 lb and it cost about $14 too

Using Priority Mail?

I don't even see how that is possible.

Maybe under Media Mail, but I ship all my Ebay stuff exclusively through Priority. I also hate shipping big box items across the coast, because it costs a few dollars more to send to the west coast rather than the east coast.

[arfin]

this shipping increase sucks for the buyer since I raised my rates, and I only ship USPS Priority. In addition I will no longer send anything to Canada since its so freakin expensive now...I sold a bunch of stuff to verified Canada buyers too.. They always bidded the crap out of my auctions. <3

What kind of reason is that to not ship to Canada ... just state the cost of shipping and let the buyer decide if it's too much. As a Canadian i would really appreciate it! btw USPS kicks ass .... canadapost sucks. (although considering population of Canada vs usa CP isn't THAT bad ... )

[62t]

I used Parcel Post. It was also in the same state

[Pookymeister]

Using Priority Mail?

I don't even see how that is possible.

Maybe under Media Mail, but I ship all my Ebay stuff exclusively through Priority. I also hate shipping big box items across the coast, because it costs a few dollars more to send to the west coast rather than the east coast.

It all depends on the Zone of start and finish. If I send something from PA to NY, its pretty cheap compared to PA to CA. 30lbs to NY costs $16 priority. 30 to CA costs $45.....so $14 for 9lb is feasible.
Maklershed sent me GHero2 for $8 priority.