About a Hundred Dollars Yeah about.......

[Archive]

Posted By: T206Collector

...I almost always only charge $2.50 flat for shipping, no matter how many of my cards you win. Also, I throw in insurance on my dime if the total value of the cards being purchased goes over $75. That being said...

(1) If the shipping/handling charge is advertised, you need to figure that into the cost of the item, i.e., how much you are willing to bid. Don't be upset with a $10 shipping charge on a $1 card if you knew ahead of the purchase that that was the shipping charge. Chances are, the only reason you won the auction is because others were not willing to go as high on the final cost including shipping.

(2) You can't just add up the number on the stamp and expect to pay that for shipping. You also can't just factor in the cost of the envelope. You need to also factor in a number of cost considerations -- ebay listing fees, PayPal service fees, the trip to the post office, including both opportunity cost and gasoline costs. Don't forget the paper to print your invoice, and the ink that prints the invoice. These are all costs that any prudent seller must factor into the sale of anything.

I am surprised by the tenor of this thread. I have never ever ever ever -- really NEVER -- had a problem with a shipping cost because I knew what the seller was charging up front. I am surprised anyone out there begruding a seller whatever he wants to ask for shipping. Let him ask for $1,000,000 -- you don't have to bid on his item. But if he gets it, well heck, that's one hell of a business model.

I charge $2.50 for shipping flat, no matter how many cards you win because I think it encourages people to bid on more than one of my auctions and drives up the price on all of my sales. I think it's customer friendly and I value my customers. It's a little like the Honus Wagner reprint sellers -- I never bid on those because I know I'm not getting a real Wagner. But day in and day out there are people paying $10, $25, $50, $100+ for fake Wagners. If the sellers are committing fraud, they should be so charged. But if they state "being sold as a reprint," well, then blame the buyer, not the seller.