There are about as many different ways to ship ebay items as
there are ebay sellers. That being said, there are many eBay
sellers who don't ship using the correct packaging or the least
expensive service. These 10 tips are written to help sellers get
started shipping their ebay items correctly.
1) Always Pack the Item Properly The biggest mistake you can
make when shipping an item is to go lighty on the packaging and
send an unportected item. Buyers will instantly leave negative
feedback if the item arrives damaged due to bad padding. Make
sure you look into the proper packaging for the item you are
shipping - a book is different then a china doll, and both
require proper materials.
2) Never Pay For Packing Materials Right behind improper packing
is over paying for shipping materials. There are far too many
sources of free boxes and free padding to need to buy them. I
have been a powerseller on ebay for 4 years and not once have I
paid for packing materials. EBay and USPS offer free boxes, UPS
offers free shipping labels. Local retailers will generaly have
old boxes lying around also - this is perfect for those large
items.
3) Ship Promptly After the Auction Closes So you've just spent
$400 on the newest game console - purchased it from an eBay
Seller. Do you want to wait a week just for the seller to ship
the item? Neither do your customers. Always ship the item as
soon as possible after the auction is closed.
4) Box the Product Before the eBay Aucton is Over It is a good
habit to get into packaging your items before the auction is
finished. This makes it exceedingly easy to ship within a day of
the buyer paying. Shipping quickly will grab good feedback more
than anythign else.
5) Use UPS Ground Shipping for Large Items It is generally the
best to use UPS ground for anything that weighs more than 10lbs.
It is very inexpensive to ship large items with UPS. Though
slower than USPS, it is far more cost effective on larger
frieght.
6) Use USPS Priority Mail for Sending Small Items Anything less
than 10lbs is best shipped with priority mail. Priority mail is
very fast, and very inexpensive for small things. Shipping with
priority mail is also very good for your buyer, as it will get
them their item quickly and effectively.
7) USPS Media mail is Best for Shipping Media Items If you are
shipping a book, cd, dvd, or any other item that fits in the
media catagory - it is probably best to ship with media mail.
This is a very cheap service, and is great for the items it is
meant for. If your item is expensive, however, it may be better
to use priority mail to please your buyer.
8) Include a Thank You Note in Each Package This is one of the
most overlooked methods of creating return customers. You need
to ship the package anyhow, why not attempt to get another eBay
purchase out of each customer? Almost all of the big players on
eBay use this tactic.
9) Use Paypal to Print Shipping Labels Printing eBay shipping
labels from Paypal is one of the easiest and most time saving
features availible to new sellers. Larger eBay sellers might
want to look into furthor automation, but for everything under
50 packages per week - electronic labels from Paypal are the way
to go.
10) eBay Shipping Takes Getting Used To - Don't Quit Not
everyone gets into a rythm immediatly. Shipping on eBay can be a
trying task - but keep going and you'll soon be rewarded with
happy customers and efficient practices. It is important to
learn and rethink and establish you're own personal best
practices. With time, anyone can ship like a PowerSeller.
About the author:
Mason Hipp has been an eBay Powerseller for over 5 years. During
the last two years he has dedicated most of his time to
helping people learn to sell on
ebay. More information can be found at his website.
Click here to
learn more about eBay Shipping.
