is shipping making up for low selling price???

pantera7974

ok, time to blow off a little steam....i bought a particular item for 18.99 +4.95 shipping from someone in my same state, when it arrived , the shipping label says $1.98. i know its only a few bucks but are people nowadays over quoating shipping to make the few extra bucks they didnt get in the auction???am i wrong for getting the correct shipping cost for an item BEFORE i post it? i understand prices change and all that garbage, but it seems to happen alot .ok im, fine now,thanx for letting me waste your time.

Smith & Wesson: The original point and click interface.

He Dog

Right or wrong, these days businesses consider they must make a profit on every segment of a sale, including items like shipping which used to be considered overhead. Thus, not only did they pay for the actual postage costs, but the box or other packaging to get it to you undamaged, plus the cost of having someone make that happen. Then they try to add on a bit of profit. I have had some where they made a couple of bucks and some where they lost a couple.

A balanced diet is a cookie in each hand

wipala

When I sell I list the shipping costs in the description. The cost is the actual shipping plus cost of packaging rounded up to the nearest dollar. I usually run it at 5.00 and use priority mail. The real ripoff artists are the ones who sell a lot and won't combine items to save costs but when you get them they are all in 1 box. i.e. 5.00 per item and they make 20.00 or more in extra profit. If you haven't dealt with them before email and ask if they combine to save shipping costs.

Remember here at DeeDee"s If we can't kill it, it's immortal
D.D.Snavely

interstatepawnllc

I spend a great a deal of time and energy making sure the packages that I send are securely packaged. A acoustic guitar might take 45 mins of my time. Folks should be glad I am not a Dr or a lawyer doing this stuff on the side or they would REALLY see some high ship costs.
The turds that really irk me are the ones who do not mention there ship costs. I will not bid on one of these auctions for invarible the ship costs will be astronomical. If I see an auction that I want and the ship cost are too high, I pass on that auction and sometimes write to the seller and tell them they lost out on my business because of there attempt to insult my intelligence with there high ship costs.

If your gonna be stupid you better be tough !!

offeror

I estimate actual shipping and that's how I ship. I too am disappointed if shipping is extra-high and the package arrives by slow mule. I don't think sellers fully understand the impression that gives.

I always read the shipping language in an auction and it does factor into my decision. At auction close, I e-mail (as we are supposed to do) and request a total with "actual shipping," and request a tracking number be sent at the appropriate time.

I consider shipping a necessary evil, not a profit item. It's one of the biggest impediments to competing with local stores for mail order businesses. It doesn't seem smart to me to shoot yourself in the foot by increasing your disadvantage with high shipping; some of them seem to want me to pay for the box of chocolates they eat while packing my item in U.S. Priority's free box. Those sellers, I can live without.

- Life NRA Member
"If cowardly & dishonorable men shoot unarmed men with army guns, the evil must be prevented by the penitentiary...and not by general deprivation of constitutional privilege." - Arkansas Supreme Court, 1878

ccasey612

I saw a auction a while back where the shipping was more expensive then the gun.

If you will blame gun makers for every shooting then blame car maker for every car accident.

Smoky14

I got a quote yesterday on an HK spring. The list price at HK is 2.50 and this outfit in Phoenix says it will cost $11.00 to ship it to NM.

The spring is less than an inch long. I feel that is excessive shipping.

They probably wonder why I don't do more business with them.

pantera7974

yeah, ive seen some where the item(an m44 cleaning kit)is $7.98, and the ad tells you to add minnimum of $8.99 shipping, i understand they have to pay there help but for that price ill go somewhere else.

Smith & Wesson: The original point and click interface.

Smokeeater 38

I always want to know what the shipping is before I bid on anything. If it's not listed and the seller doesn't get back to me they don't get my bid.

Item cost + Shipping cost = Real cost to me

If the "Real cost to me" is more than I want to pay I don't bid. I don't get mad anymore about high shipping.


I rush in where others flee.

Iconoclast

Like SP said, this is topic has come up before. But it's pretty easy to ID those who plan to profit on shipping. I charge $1.50 handling per pkg. I cannot (usually) ship by mail, so I pay for the boxes, etc. Then there's the pick-up fee by common carriers, since I live in the boonies, ship infrequently, etc. By trial & costly error I've found the handling charge allows me to just about break even. Then there are the actual fees - oh, residential delivery . . . add a surcharge; oh, the zip code is outside of an urban area . . . add a surcharge. It adds up quickly.

pantera, I'm not defending the seller, but possibly he was quoting a one-size-fits-all shipping charge which would cover delivery on the other side of the country, also. Some folks do that to avoid looking up the cost.