I have a lot of old or unneeded photo gear that I need to clear out. Some Nikon, some other brands, some general film-related. But ship costs, either USPS or UPS ground, or maybe USPS Priority, are a killer for less expensive items. On eBay some sellers quote a ship cost under $10 for items that have to be boxed up. How do they do that?
Misc. Question actually: how to minimize ship costs
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It's a can of worms, but I'll give you the biggest worms.
1. If those sellers are in China or Japan, there is a service that is contracted with USPS to provide insanely cheap shipping costs for them to ship to the USA.
2. If the seller is in the USA, they most likely have selected "flat rate" cost for all buyers and have calculated that shipping this item, at it's current weight and size, will cost (for ex.) $9 to ship across country. So they charge $9. If the item ends up selling to a someone in the same state, it will end up only costing them $6, and they pocket the $3.
3. Some sellers will select "calculated shipping", which tells ebay "go ahead and display an estimated cost to the buyer of what it's going to cost to ship this to them at their location, considering the weight and size information I have given you". If the buyer is across country, the estimated shipping cost will be much higher for that buyer. As opposed to a buyer who lives in the same state as the seller, the cost will be lower.
My best recommendation (option a), without knowing the size and weight of your items, and without knowing who's gonna buy it, and from where...is to do "standard shipping" flat rate. Ship your item using "ground advantage" service from USPS. When you are listing your item, box it up as if it's ready to go, (label the outside of the box so you know what's inside), then weigh the item. Google "ebay shipping calculator", select "ebay rates", input the information, and towards the bottom you will see "select major city". Choose a major city far away from you and see what the estimated costs are. If the farthest away price is $14.99, then go with a price like...$12. In my experience, depending on what the product is, people are willing to pay $15 shipping for something that weighs 3-4 lbs. If the buyer ends up being closer, you win. If the buyer ends up being at the farthest point, AND your item is heavier than 4 lbs, it may cost you $20 to ship. But if you're willing to eat the rest of the cost, then your chance of selling the item faster will increase compared to a seller who has "calculated shipping" selected.
My best recommendation (option B) is to look into USPS priority mail flat rate options. You can use their boxes and/or envelopes for free (pickup at your local post office or ship to your house via their website). If you can fit it in the box, it ships, as long as it's not over 75 lbs, for a flat rate.
If you're selling on facebook or craigslist or on here, use pirate ship dot com.
1. If those sellers are in China or Japan, there is a service that is contracted with USPS to provide insanely cheap shipping costs for them to ship to the USA.
2. If the seller is in the USA, they most likely have selected "flat rate" cost for all buyers and have calculated that shipping this item, at it's current weight and size, will cost (for ex.) $9 to ship across country. So they charge $9. If the item ends up selling to a someone in the same state, it will end up only costing them $6, and they pocket the $3.
3. Some sellers will select "calculated shipping", which tells ebay "go ahead and display an estimated cost to the buyer of what it's going to cost to ship this to them at their location, considering the weight and size information I have given you". If the buyer is across country, the estimated shipping cost will be much higher for that buyer. As opposed to a buyer who lives in the same state as the seller, the cost will be lower.
My best recommendation (option a), without knowing the size and weight of your items, and without knowing who's gonna buy it, and from where...is to do "standard shipping" flat rate. Ship your item using "ground advantage" service from USPS. When you are listing your item, box it up as if it's ready to go, (label the outside of the box so you know what's inside), then weigh the item. Google "ebay shipping calculator", select "ebay rates", input the information, and towards the bottom you will see "select major city". Choose a major city far away from you and see what the estimated costs are. If the farthest away price is $14.99, then go with a price like...$12. In my experience, depending on what the product is, people are willing to pay $15 shipping for something that weighs 3-4 lbs. If the buyer ends up being closer, you win. If the buyer ends up being at the farthest point, AND your item is heavier than 4 lbs, it may cost you $20 to ship. But if you're willing to eat the rest of the cost, then your chance of selling the item faster will increase compared to a seller who has "calculated shipping" selected.
My best recommendation (option B) is to look into USPS priority mail flat rate options. You can use their boxes and/or envelopes for free (pickup at your local post office or ship to your house via their website). If you can fit it in the box, it ships, as long as it's not over 75 lbs, for a flat rate.
If you're selling on facebook or craigslist or on here, use pirate ship dot com.
There is something wrong with the eBay shipping estimating tool. For some light objects, such as camera backpacks, I have seen estimated shipping shown as $70 to a USA address (US seller). That does not make sense. Or are these sellers trying to scam the system?
MattKing
Moderator
Volume of package has a huge affect on shipping costs. This actually makes a lot of sense - the size of the package limits how many packages can fit on a truck.
Only the seller knows that answer @Kodachromeguy - what I can say to that though, is the seller either has "calculated shipping" turned on and has entered dimensions of like... 24x14,5 with a weight of 5 lbs. For someone who lives 4 or 5 states over, the cost is crazy. Some buyers pay that, then the seller pockets the rest. The other thing is, some sellers will sell an item worth $90 for... $10 plus $70 shipping; ends up being a $90 item for $80, but since the $70 is labeled "shipping" some buyers will be turned away. The reason this "trickery" exists, is because back in the early 2000's sellers were not having to pay fees on shipping payments, that changed since then, but some sellers still do it. It doesn't benefit them anymore, so I don't see the point, other than to confuse and turn away buyers.
I’ve been pretty happy with this service.
www.pirateship.com
Cheaper USPS Priority Mail rates | Pirate Ship
Pirate Ship offers Priority Mail shipping rates BELOW Commercial Pricing. Get the cheapest rates available with Pirate Ship's free shipping software.
www.pirateship.com
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If the seller is using PayPal, Paypal offers a shipping service link thru Shipstation which gets you a cheaper rate. Sometimes a little and sometimes a lot.
This. This is how I ship my film. If it fits in a 6x9 padded envelope, then it ships for $5 using Ground Advantage. I have yet to see something that fits in there that ships for more. After that, $10 flat rate padded envelopes are the way. If it’s not breakable, throw it in the envelope and your done. If it is breakable, wrap that shit up in a ton of bubble wrap and then shove it in.
There are shipping services such as Shipstation and GoShippo that offer discounts. One advantage of them is that once you enter destination, weight, and dimensions you can see the cost using various shippers (USPS, FedEx, UPS). Each has it's own algorithm; so lowest cost might be a factor of an inch in one dimension.
Also, I use USPS padded flat rate envelopes frequently. I'll put the item in a box, inside the padded envelope, for extra protection.
Also, I use USPS padded flat rate envelopes frequently. I'll put the item in a box, inside the padded envelope, for extra protection.
MattKing
Moderator
Just a reminder, all the shipping issues are very location/country dependent.
True. And god help you if you need to ship internationally OP, there is no “cheap” way to do that. $25 just to Canada, for an envelope!
I have been using Pirate Ship for over 3 years with great results.
In one case a mistake was made (by me!) and all was fixed by them
I highly recommend it both for the US and abroad
In one case a mistake was made (by me!) and all was fixed by them
I highly recommend it both for the US and abroad
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