help us new ebay buyers

There are some good answers on here. I am a frequent lurker & I registered specifically to reply to this thread. I am a regular buyer & seller on ebay & have over 1500 feedbacks & a 99.8% feedback rating. There is no "shill bidding" or other subterfuge involved in that feedback rating.
My issue is with people out there that feel they are being 'ripped off' by high shipping charges. Nothing is further from the truth. If a seller specifies the amount of "shipping & handling" charges in their acution, you are not being ripped off.
Actually, most sellers charge too much for their item & not enough for S&H, so ebay make extra profit.
All sellers should include their miscellaneous costs in their handling charges & sell their item for less. Ebay receive fees only on the selling price, as it should be.
I may charge $3 S&h for a coin that only requires an 80 cent stamp. Is that a ripoff? Here is what I believe sellers should include when calculating their handling charge.

envelope
stamp
2 x 2
any other packing material
ebay fees
gasoline
time

In addition, you have wear & tear on your vehicle, cost of digital camera &/or scanner.
So, you have a coin that on its own is worth $10. I sell it for $7 & charge $3 S&H, which is fair to cover my expenses. ebay get fees on $7.
Someone else sells it for $9.20 and charges only the cost of a stamp. ebay get get fees on $9.20.
I make a few more cents than the other guy, but you pay no more.
Would you rather see us 'little guys' make a few more cents, or ebay?
Also, I should note that I state clearly in my auctions that my "S&H" charge is not the cost of mailing only.
I have had dozens of bidders complain after auction end that the S&H should not be so high. This, after they knew what I was charging going in. Is that fair dealing? I don't believe so.

 

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its kinda funny.........i know that shipping on coins isnt so bad........but i sold two boxes of Vampirellas a couple months ago..........a bunch of the old Warrens and about 80% of the newer stuff.....
I shipped them in heavy plastic totes that cost me about $10 and then all the time to pack them and take them to the PO ......stood in line about 20 mins too.
I mean, if a guy charges $8 to ship a coin, I have no issue with it whatsoever...........hes putting work into shipping that coin.......

The only time I have ever complained is when I bid on a bunch of old conan comics then the guy informs me he will not ship them together cause he already packed them up in lots of 5..........sorry but thats BS.........how did he know someone like me wouldnt win all the lots and want them sent to the same address?

Being and Ebay seller myself, I know I wont charge anything less than $5.00 for my time and effort........I will however ship as much as i can get into the package all at once at little or no extra cost to the buyer.

Ive even held onto one item for over a week to ship it with another item the guy won later.....

 

Hi carlcoins, welcome to the forum.

You forgot to factor in the electricity it takes to run your computer, the wear and tear on your office chair, while you sit in it and conduct your business, then there's food and drink, (after all, a man's got to keep up his strength). And what about garbage pick up? Bet you have a wastebasket full of paper, candy wrappers and opened envelopes right now. Might as well pass that expense on to the customer as well.
And don't forget shoes. You'll need a new pair, if you have to keep walking out to the car, so you can make your trips to the Post Office. LOL

 

Well as one who ships out coins each and every day, I often here about shipping and handling charges. If the charges are spelled out plainly, before any purchase is made, then the seller has done his part. Now I send 100% priority mail unless the customer specifically asks for some other method. Now many of our customers around the world and even a few here on this forum that has bought from us will be able to tell you that we often lose money of shipping. We make our living buying and selling coins. Shipping is just part of the expense of doing business. If someone is charging several dollars for a stamped envelope, the customer should be shopping elsewhere.

 

ive got a better one :-D

I was readin the feedback on some sellers as I do before i buy off of them...

I crossed the neutral feedback of someone that was something like.....
''item way overpriced''

Im slow so it took me a few seconds to realize the the item was either buy it now at a fixed price .......in which the person knew the cost going in......

OR......

They had to put a maximun bid in that was probly the highest bid in which case they obviously won at a high price mebe.........but it was THEIR bid to make......

I mean......its preposterous to complain about the price in either scenario..
Either they knew beforehand or they bid more than they wanted to pay....
either way its their own fault :-D

But then the jerk left neutral FB as well.... :-D

 

Well most collectors still blame us dealers for the prices. We can only charge what someone is willing to pay. Auction prices set records across the board in 2003. This has very little to do with dealers. None of us want to pay any more than we have to.

But GDJMSP is quite correct. If the total is plain to see, no one should be complaining. I don't know of any dealer coming out to someones house and demanding you buy their coins.

Now I will not tell anyone that all sellers of coins are honest people, because we all know better.
Buying should be done with research. Know your coins, know your dealer, know your price. With these three things, you will only improve your collection.

 

Just another addition to shipping. I've had to start using signature confirmation ($1.85) or delivery confirmation ($0.55) because I've unfortunately had people say they never received something and when I call their post office and they have their signature on file, you can plainly see what's going on. With coins, if it's a particularly rare variety or high grade - you can't just go out to Walmart and get another to replace the one "lost" even if you use insurance you are replacing the COST but not the coin. So unfortunately, all of the other honest people have to pay extra for those that are shady - like all things in life.

 

Well I use private insurance for all our coins, and this includes shipping. I do however use confirmation of delivery. We ship thousands of orders a year to customers around the world. (darn that self promotion) We only lost two last year. Both international orders.
I realize it is a little harder for small shops and ebay sellers. Now I have never bought nor sold on Ebay, so I can only go by what I see and hear. It seems as if some have the habit of trying to make money on shipping. Well if they bought at the right price, they should be making money on their coins.

Some costs of doing business are just that, doing business. Nobody said the coin business was easy.