should I mention postage in auction?

soolin

I usually sell low cost items, usually much less than £32 so use a COP to cover myself against loss. However I have decided to take a gamble and try a more expensive item to see how it goes. This item, if it sells so fingers crossed, will be in the £60 region. I'm just checking the competition online and am shocked that most other sellers are quoting standard 1st class or just recorded for it which makes my special delivery look expensive.

Obviously I will not compromise on my postage as I could not take a £60 loss if the item goes astray but looking really for advice as to whether I should say anything in my auction about my postage charges, ie 'this will be sent special delivery for your safety and convenience' or something, or whether that looks crass?

Soo

frivolous_fay

I wouldn't mention it.

When I list showing SD, I make it clear that's what they're paying for. (I don't use 'seller's standard')

They can see the costs are higher, but they can also see why. I've not yet had anyone grumble or request a cheaper method.

apprentice_tycoon

soo - what about using Standard Parcels and buy the extra insurance for £1? obviously I don't know what the item is and I know that they won't insure china and glass for breakages, just loss (I pack well!) but is it worth considering?

rose_sparky

It's a difficult one Soo and one I've been battling with the past week or so whilst selling collectable items for a friend which have fetched over £100.00.

I'd be very interested in your replies.

soolin

AT, the item is fairly light, certainly less than a KG so I think I have worked it out that it is only £1 more to send it special as opposed to parcel with added insurance. I might though offer parcels as well, in case people would prefer that, thank you for the idea!

Soo

martindow

Could it be that some of these sellers are buying wholesale at around the £30 mark? They could then claim the value (to them) using a CoP. Strictly speaking the PO only offer to reimburse your loss - if they realise you are a business they are expecting you to claim the cost price rather than the retail.

Hintza

You must use this to your advantage Soo. I would have very prominently in my first few lines of text "Posted Royal Mail Special Delivery within 24 hours" It will sell a lot faster than those that have "Standard Delivery" or whatever buyers want peace of mind too!

I agree with Martindow the RM can be sticky on this issue.

soolin

martindow wrote:

Could it be that some of these sellers are buying wholesale at around the £30 mark? They could then claim the value (to them) using a CoP. Strictly speaking the PO only offer to reimburse your loss - if they realise you are a business they are expecting you to claim the cost price rather than the retail.

RM will pay out on an ebay invoice as that is the value of the item lost at the time it was lost. original price should not matter, otherwise we are all losers if we sell at a profit.

I did have a look at some of the auctions and I was struck that most competitors are fairly new, some as low as 40-50 feedback, few much higher than 100-200 so they may well not have experienced a lost parcel yet so don't worry about it like I do.

Soo

Moglex

Definitely state the postage costs.

If I was looking at an item which was available from several sellers and one of them didn't state the postage I would automatically exclude them.

I know this puts you in a tricky situation but as someone else said, if these things are selling to a number of different purchasers, someone is bound to go for the faster, safer option.

The only downside is that you may get a little less since most buyers will bid on the total cost, including postage.

Good luck with you new venture.

Moglex

soolin wrote:

I did have a look at some of the auctions and I was struck that most competitors are fairly new, some as low as 40-50 feedback, few much higher than 100-200 so they may well not have experienced a lost parcel yet so don't worry about it like I do.

If you sell enough items to have a good idea of the average loss rate, you can effectively "self-insure".

Let's face it, everyone's out to make a profit so people who are offering insurance (RM or whoever) will be sure to charge enough so that they are paying out less than they're getting in.

If you're selling items for £60, you'd lose £28 for each parcel that does not arrive, so provided RM can manage to deliver at least 6 out of seven (assuming £4.50 for SD) you'll still be in pocket.

In my experience, they're much better than that!

frivolous_fay

That's assuming you don't sell to anyone dishonest who only claims the item didn't arrive.