I'm sure there is a better place for this thread, but I wasn't sure where. My question is, is there an eBay rule against allowing free shipping, or other incentive, if an auction passes a certain bid value? I.e, "free shipping if winning bid is $17 or higher" i ask bc I'm selling an item that at a certain bid it would be cheaper to eat the shipping and send it, but I'd like to have the best chance of getting to that 'magic number' as possible w/o getting murdered by fees by doing a BIN or a large insertion fee. I couldn't find a specific rule against this practice, but I've also never seen it done, so hoping someone who is more eBay savvy than myself could help me out! Thanks! T-Bone
Yes, I've seen it advertised before. "If bidding goes above $XX.00, shipping is free" And it's simple, you just send the buyer the invoice and edit the shipping cost to zero.
I am aware of no such rule, but your hypothesis makes no sense. If you charge $3 for shipping and $17 is your point at which it is "cheaper to eat the shipping", how on earth can you be better off to get $17 and give free shipping than you would be to sell it for $16 and get $19 to include shipping? To further complicate the situation, the buyer cannot determine if he gets free shipping. He could bid $25, but unless someone else bids over $16.50 (in the above example), he would still have to pay for shipping.
Thank you for your quick responses! And 17 was just a number I picked as an example and has nothing to do with the actual listing. In the case of a $17 item, eating the shipping would indeed make no sense Since that is cleared up, I have one more question to further complicate the matter. Can I also list a free item if the bid goes above a certain price. Example: "if winning bid is over $17, item will ship with (some accesory) free?" again that number in no way reflects what I'm selling. I just want the stuff out of my place quickly while still getting a good price wo butting any heads with eBay! Thanks again!
hmm, I personally haven't seen that before. But I have seen "If you buy X many, I will throw in a ___"
i have seen ebay auctions before that give you an extra coin if the bids get high enough. i have even seen different tiers. i will give you an example... bid gets to $20= you get a free 1911 wheat cent in F condition. bid gets to $30= 1929 wheat in xf condition. bid gets to $40= 1932-D wheat in in xf condition. bid goes over $50= 1909-VDB in G condition. i think that is exactly how the auction was, but it was a rip off and not worth bidding near $20.
I've won auctions in the past where a seller threw in a freebie along with the item won without ever bothering to mention it in the listing. I think it's a nice added touch when you receive a surprise gift with a short note on the invoice, and it gives the buyer an incentive to return more often. Don't advertise the freebie, just do it! Chris
yea, i got a surprise gift when i ordered a vinyl sticker for my computer. i was very happy and make sure i order from them, when i need there items. i also just got ripped off from another seller, not sending the same item, so it made me restore my faith that there are still some good ebay sellers out there..
There was one ebay auction that I won in the past and the seller told me that I was getting a gift along with the item that I won. That gift was a 1943 steel cent. I still have the 1943 steel cent because it was very interesting to me.
I (and I think I speak for most people who bid on ebay), usually calculate my maximum bid with shipping charges in mind. So, whatever you decide to charge for shipping, as long as it's not too much (or the ebay police will come and get you), you will probably come out about the same.
Allways nice as a buyer to recieve a free gift, it also makes you remember that seller and the chances are you will return to there auctions
