Shipping price advice for auction listings

[AtariLeaf]

I posted this on the gamegavel forums but I'll repost here. I don't know how many people read those threads:

 

I was thinking of listing a couple of boxed Intellivision games on gamegavel. Now, from experience just selling on Atariage or trading with my youtube friends, shipping from Canada can be quite high. For example I sent one boxed Intellivision game to the States and it was around $12 for airmail and a couple of small loose tandy coco carts to South Carolina from Southern Ontario and it was just shy of $10, again for airmail.

 

I would never use surface mail, it can take up to two months and even airmail from Canada to the USA can take a couple weeks.

 

I'm afraid if I list these shipping prices people will balk and think I'm trying to rip them off but seriously, this is what Canada Post charges.

 

Is this going to hurt me getting any bids? Any advice? Is my best bet to tell the buyer that I'll package the item and just go to the post office and get a price that way?

 

Thanks

[+save2600]

Always seems to cost me $10-$12 posting anything like a boxed game to Canada via Airmail. Surface is worthless - not worth your trouble since people no longer know the virtue of being patient.

 

Yeah, shipping is going to be a killer on something like this, so maybe try to bundle them together or keep the listing open to domestic orders only? Unless you have some extremely rare INTV games or something that is. People would be more likely to overlook the shipping expense then.

[AtariLeaf]

Always seems to cost me $10-$12 posting anything like a boxed game to Canada via Airmail. Surface is worthless - not worth your trouble since people no longer know the virtue of being patient.

 

Yeah, shipping is going to be a killer on something like this, so maybe try to bundle them together or keep the listing open to domestic orders only? Unless you have some extremely rare INTV games or something that is. People would be more likely to overlook the shipping expense then.

 

World Cup Soccer and Mr. Basic meets Bit N Bytes both CIB.

 

Not super rare but not common either.

 

This shipping cost nonsense is part of the reason I don't try selling more stuff. Its infuriating. I did a trade with a youtube buddy for coco games. He sent me one from South Carolina and it cost him under $3 to airmail it to me. I used the same box and shipped it back to him and it was just under $10 Same box, same dimensions, same weight, but a $7 price difference.

Edited October 30, 2010 by AtariLeaf

[caver]

I'd say just explain it up front.

 

I would probably skip over your auction if you explained it up front....

 

Then again I'm actual not your target demographic. I pretty much only buy things that I consider bargains, and I'm pretty cheap to begin with. A reminder that you are in Canada, and being upfront would allow me to bid if your opening bids were low enough (I don't know the values of your games, but) assuming I valued them as bargains, whereas the "I'll calculate shipping later" or NO INTERNATIONAL would stop me from even trying most of the time (the only exceptions being a game I am currently dreaming of, or something I think no one else will see (IE you listed the item badly))

 

Besides the people who see your upfront explanation, and still ask you to lower your shipping or whatnot, are people you don't really want to be dealing with (and if GG allows it) should probably be blocked from bidding.

[Almost Rice]

For shipment from US to Canada, I can not recommend using First Class International any longer. After getting my second neg from a buyer on AZ, I will no longer use 1st Class Int to Canada. The reason is Canadian customs hold the shipment upwards of 3 weeks. My first time was to the Toronto area. They scanned everything and I could put in the Canada Post website and could see the tracking stuck at customs. This time there is no tracking information at all. I shipped 10/6 and still can not find where the package is. It is probably going to cost more much to ship to Canada than Europe for our customers now. I have set it to only have Express mail available. Priority is less than $5 cheaper, so the savings is not worth the hassle for me to offer to Canadian customers.

[coleconut]

For shipment from US to Canada, I can not recommend using First Class International any longer. After getting my second neg from a buyer on AZ, I will no longer use 1st Class Int to Canada. The reason is Canadian customs hold the shipment upwards of 3 weeks. My first time was to the Toronto area. They scanned everything and I could put in the Canada Post website and could see the tracking stuck at customs. This time there is no tracking information at all. I shipped 10/6 and still can not find where the package is. It is probably going to cost more much to ship to Canada than Europe for our customers now. I have set it to only have Express mail available. Priority is less than $5 cheaper, so the savings is not worth the hassle for me to offer to Canadian customers.

 

Sounds like a string of bad luck. I have received items via 1st class post from the States in 2 days in one instance and almost always in less than 2 weeks.

Our rules for sending 1st class is different though. Even one cartridge in a thin envelope is too big for 1st class if you go by the rules, but only by a millimetre or so, I have cheated and sent things anyway and have been lucky.

For small items Cda Post is way more expensive. Larger items sent Priority Post seems about the same rate as our Expedited Mail.

[Almost Rice]

Sounds like a string of bad luck. I have received items via 1st class post from the States in 2 days in one instance and almost always in less than 2 weeks.

Our rules for sending 1st class is different though. Even one cartridge in a thin envelope is too big for 1st class if you go by the rules, but only by a millimetre or so, I have cheated and sent things anyway and have been lucky.

For small items Cda Post is way more expensive. Larger items sent Priority Post seems about the same rate as our Expedited Mail.

 

On Amazon, if a buyer expects it in 2 weeks, they tend to bitch if they dont get it within the estimated time. FCM to Canada is not tracked so I can not get a feel for how fast something gets to the destination. I was lucky the 1st time and had tracking on Canada Post's web site and could determine Canadian Customs was sitting on my package for 3 weeks.

I ship hundreds of packages to Canada, but thousands to the US. If the person that bitches costs me sales in the US it is not worth it for me to offer the service. I just restrict all FCM International to Canadian sales on Amazon. I still offer it on my website, but they cant leave me 1 star feedbacks that damages my sales. This change has worked so far. Since the change, I have had 3 sales for multiple items on my website and none on Amazon from Canada. Looks like my change has had the effect that I was looking for. Also, my packages all follow the rules outlined by USPS for First Class International.

Edited November 3, 2010 by Almost Rice