Chances are your normal method of shipping won’t work for your international shipments. For example, you can’t use Priority Mail to ship outside the United Statesnot even to Canada or Mexico. This means you’ll need to evaluate new shipping methods, and possibly new shipping services.

If you want to stick with the U.S. Postal Service, you can check out Global Priority Mail (reasonably fast and reasonably priced), Global Express Mail (fast but expensive), Airmail (almost as fast, not quite as expensive), or Surface/Parcel Post (slow but less expensive). In addition, UPS offers its Worldwide Express service, FedEx offers its FedEx Express service internationally, and DHL is always a good option for shipping outside the United States. Be sure to check out your options beforehand, and charge the buyer the actual costs incurred.

Given the increased chances of loss or damage when shipping great distances, you should purchase insurance for all items shipping outside North America.

You’ll also have to deal with a bit of paperwork while you’re preparing your shipment. All packages shipping outside U.S. borders must clear customs to enter the destination countryand require the completion of specific customs forms to make the trip. Depending on the type of item you’re shipping and the weight of your package, you’ll need either Form 2976 (green) or Form 2976-A (white). Both of these forms should be available at your local post office.

When you’re filling out these forms, describe the item in terms that ordinary people can understand. That means using simple, generic terms. A “greatest hits CD compilation” becomes “compact disc.” A “SimCity extension pack” becomes “video game.” And so on.

You should also be honest about what you’re shipping. Some buyers will try to talk you into describing the item as a gift so that they can save on duties or tax on their end. That’s lying, and you shouldn’t do it.

eBay offers several pages of advice for international trading at pages.ebay.com/internationaltrading/.

In addition, there are certain items you can’t ship to foreign countriesfirearms, live animals and animal products, and so on. (There are also some technology items you can’t ship, for security reasons.) You need to check the government’s list of import and export restrictions to see what items you’re prohibited from shipping outside U.S. borders. Check with your shipping service for more detailed information.

Finally, note that shipping across borders takes longer than shipping within the United States. This is especially true if an item is held up at customs. Make sure your international buyers know that shipping times will be longer than what you might state for domestic buyers.

The post eBay International Shipping first appeared on Tips For eBay Sellers & Buyers.

• When you’re using the U.S. Postal Service for shipping, try to time your visits to avoid long lines. That means avoiding lunch hour and the last half hour or so before closing; avoiding Mondays; and avoiding peak shipping periods around major holidays, such as Christmas and Valentine’s Day. Early morning and mid-afternoon are typically low-volume times.
• If you didn’t insure your packageor if the carrier didn’t offer automatic insurancethen you have a situation. eBay protocol has it that the seller is responsible for any losses in shipment, so you might end up refunding the buyer’s money out of your own pocket.

• Don’t feel obligated to ship every single day of the week. Save up your shipments and go to the post office just one or two days a week.

• When you have a lot of packages to ship, don’t go to the post office by yourself. Take a helperand, if large shipments are common, invest in a small hand truck to help you cart all those boxes to the counter.

• If you’re a heavy shipper, consider setting up an account with a single shipper and arranging daily pickups from your home. Pickup service will cost you a little more but can be more than worth it in time savings. (Most carriers will also pick up single items if you arrange so in advancebut at a much higher fee.)

• You may need to factor weather conditions into which type of shipping you choose. If it’s summertime and you’re shipping something that might melt in extreme heat (like an old vinyl LP), pick the fastest shipping method possible.

The post Tips for Less-Painful Shipping first appeared on Tips For eBay Sellers & Buyers.

The one major shipping service that doesn’t offer tracking (by default) is the U.S. Postal Service. What you can get from the postal service (at a cost of from $0.45 to $0.55) is delivery confirmation. USPS confirmation, however, does not confirm that an actual person received the package; it confirms only that the mail carrier delivered it. (Stuck it in the mailbox, that is.)

If you want a signature confirmation on a USPS shipment, you need to send your item with either Signature Confirmation or the certified mail option. Signature Confirmation costs $1.80, while certified mail costs $2.30. Both require the recipient to sign on delivery, and are good options if you’re shipping something extremely valuable.

The post How to Track Your Shipment first appeared on Tips For eBay Sellers & Buyers.

When I’m supplying quality packaging for a shipment, I find that a handling charge of $1 meets with little or no objection from my customers. If I’m using free Priority Mail packaging, I charge less.

So you should have no compunction against “padding” your shipping fees with an additional handling charge. In fact, eBay’s Shipping Calculator lets you add a separate handling charge to its calculations. It’s an accepted part of doing business online.

The post Determining the Handling Charge first appeared on Tips For eBay Sellers & Buyers.

If you have multiple items for sale, there is every possibility that a single buyer will purchase more than one item. If that happens, you don’t need to pack two or more separate boxes for that buyer; you can easily pack all the items purchased in a single box, which will reduce shipping costs. You should pass on that savings to your customer, in the form of a combined shipping and handling fee for all items purchased. If you’re inflexible in adjusting your shipping and handling for multiple purchases, you’re ripping people offand will lose customers for it.

You can activate the Shipping Calculator when you’re creating a new item listing on the Sell Your Item page. Just follow these steps:

1. Select the Calculated Shipping Rates tab to open the Shipping Calculator section
2. Enter the package weight, in pounds and ounces. (Round up any fractional ounces.)
3. Select a package size from the pull-down list.
4. Select which shipping service you plan to use, from the pull-down list.
5. Enter your ZIP Code.
6. Enter any handling fee you want to charge (over and above the actual shipping rate) into the Packaging & Handling Fee box.
7. Select whether you want to offer shipping insurance.
8. Select whether you charge sales tax, and enter the sales tax rate.

The post Using eBay’s Shipping Calculator first appeared on Tips For eBay Sellers & Buyers.

But how do you figure shipping costs before you know where the item is going?

Working with Flat Fees

The solution is easy if you’re shipping something that weighs (packaging included) less than a pound. For these lightweight items, you can use USPS Priority Mail, which ships one-pound packages anywhere in the U.S. for a single price ($3.85 at the time of writing). Because you can also use free boxes (provided by the postal service), you know that your cost to package and ship a one-pound item will be $3.85. Easy.

When you’re shipping light items, such as a single CD, check with your post office for the best rate. Sometimes First Class can be cheaper than Media Mail!

If you’re shipping books, CDs, or videos, you also have it easyif you choose to ship via USPS Media Mail. These rates are so cheap that you can do some creative rounding of numbers and say that any item weighing two pounds or less can ship anywhere in the U.S. for $2.00. The actual Media Mail rate might be $1.42 or $1.84 or whatever, but $2.00 makes a convenient number to state up front; the gap between actual and projected shipping can go toward the purchase of an appropriate box or envelope.

Working with Variable Fees

When you’re shipping items that weigh more than a pound, the calculation gets much more complex. The fact is that if you’re selling an item that weighs, let’s say, four pounds, the actual shipping costs (via Priority Mail) can range from $5.30 to $10.35, depending on where you are and where the buyer is. That’s because Priority Mail ratesmost shipping rates, actuallyvary by distance. So there’s no way to quote an exact shipping cost until the auction is over and you get the buyer’s ZIP Code.

That said, there are three ways you can deal with this situation in your auction listings.

First, you can calculate an average shipping cost for your item, figuring a cost halfway between the minimum and the maximum possible costs. Using our four-pound example, the minimum cost for Priority Mail shipping is $5.30 and the maximum is $10.35, so you would charge the buyer the average of these two numbers, or $7.83. (Or maybe you would round up to $8.00.) The theory here is that you lose money on some shipments and make it back on others, so over the long term it’s a wash. Of course, nearby buyers might complain that they’re paying too much (which they are, because they’re in fact subsidizing sellers who live farther away). You’ll have to decide whether you can live with the occasional complaintor refund the difference if it’s too large.

Next, you can simply state that buyers will pay actual shipping cost based on location, which will be calculated at the conclusion of the auction, and not include a flat shipping and handling charge in your listing. If you take this approach, you have to request the buyer’s ZIP Code at the end of the auction, refer to various rate charts to figure the shipping cost, and then relay that cost to your buyer. It’s a bit of work, but it gets the job done. (It’s also made easier by the fact that eBay is now including the buyer’s ZIP Codewhen availablein its end-of-auction notification emails.)

The post How To Price Shipping and Handling for Your Item Listings first appeared on Tips For eBay Sellers & Buyers.

1. Priority Mail. This is the preferred shipping method for many experienced auction sellers, if only for its relative convenience. Although Priority Mail used to be predictably low-cost (with flat fees based on weight, not distance), recent price increases have left the service less competitive than before. (You also have to factor distance into the pricing equation, for packages over one pound.) There’s also the advantage of getting a flat rate on small packages shipped in one of their flat-rate envelopesjust $3.85 to go anywhere in the U.S. Service is typically in the one-to-threeday range, and the postal service has lots of free Priority Mail boxes you can use. And you can print out Priority Mail shipping labels and postage on your own PC, direct from eBay/PayPal, as we discussed previously.
2. Express Mail. This is the USPS’s fastest service, offering guaranteed next-day delivery 365 days a year, including weekends and holidays. Merchandise is automatically insured up to $100. Express Mail is considerably more expensive than Priority Mail.
3. First Class Mail. This is an option if your item fits into an envelope or small package. It also provides the benefit of shipping directly from your mailbox, without necessitating a trip to the post officeassuming that you can figure out the correct postage. Delivery is similar to Priority Mail, typically three days or less.
4. Parcel Post. This used to be known as the “slow” USPS service for larger packages, but it has gotten faster of lateand it’s priced lower than Priority Mail. Still, shipping something Parcel Post from coast to coast might take seven to nine days, as opposed to Priority Mail’s two (or three) days.
5. Media Mail. This is what USPS used to call “book rate”; it can be used to ship books, DVDs, videotapes, compact discs, and other printed and prerecorded “media.” The rates are much cheaper than those for Priority Mail, although delivery is typically in the Parcel Post rangeseven to nine days. Still, this is a good, low-cost way to ship many popular items; the cost for shipping a CD across the country is less than two bucks, compared to $3.85 for Priority Mail.

Media Mail is reserved for publications without advertisingso you can’t use it to ship magazines, newspapers, or comic books.

Using UPS

UPS is a good option for shipping larger or heavier packages but can be a little costly for smaller items. UPS offers various shipping options, including standard UPS Ground, Next Day Air, Next Day Air Saver, and 2nd Day Air.

You can find out more about UPS shippingand access a rate calculatorat the UPS website, located at www.ups.com.

Using FedEx

FedEx is probably the fastest shipping service, but it can also be the most costly. FedEx tends to target the business market (which can afford its higher rates), so it isn’t widely used for auction or retail shippingwith one significant exception: FedEx Ground.

FedEx Ground is a terrific choice when you’re shipping out larger items. It’s designed for bigger and/or heavier packages, and its rates are well below similar services offered by the Postal Service and UPS. I use FedEx Ground to ship DVD players and various audio equipment, and it’s extremely cost effective. For example, FedEx charges almost $5 less than Priority Mail to ship a five-pound item from coast to coast. That’s a big savings!

FedEx is also a convenient choice for many sellers, especially since you can now ship from any Kinkos location. (The stores are now called FedEx Kinkos, by the way.) You can find out more about FedEx shipping at its website, located at www.fedex.com, and can access the company’s rate finder directly at www.fedex.com/us/rates/.

Because weight is an important part of the shipping equation, here are a few tips for bringing down the weight of the items you ship:

• Use peanuts instead of paper for cushioning; peanuts are much lighterand don’t leave ink stains on the merchandise.

• Even better, use air instead of peanutsin the form of those air-filled bags that Amazon.com uses to cushion their packages.

• Use less heavy-duty boxes, if you can. (This is generally an option only when you’re shipping light objects.) You’d be surprised at the difference in weight between similarly sized boxes, based on the thickness of the cardboard.

• Don’t use oversized boxes. If the box is too large, either trim down the unused portion of the flaps or move to a smaller box.

Finally, be sure to include the weight of the box and the cushioning material when you weigh your item for shipment. A big box with lots of crumpled paper can easily add a half-pound or more to your item’s weightexcess weight you’ll have to pay for.

Shipping Large or Heavy Items

Most of the standard shipping services I mentioned earlier in this chapter, such as the U.S. Postal Service, won’t handle packages that weigh more than 70 pounds, or have a combined length and girth of more than 130 inches.

Some items are just too big to ship via conventional means. Suppose you just sold an old pinball machine, or a roll-top desk, or a waterbed. How do you deal with items that big?

Assuming that the item is too big even for UPS, you have to turn to traditional trucking services. Some of these services will pack or crate the item for you (for a fee); others require you to do all the crating. In addition, some of these firms require you to deliver the item to their shipping terminal, and for the buyer to pick it up from their dock. (Other firms offer door-to-door serviceagain, sometimes for a higher fee.) In any case, it helps to make a few calls and ask for specifics before you decide on a shipper.

The post Shipping with USPS, Fedex and UPS first appeared on Tips For eBay Sellers & Buyers.

If these questions make you nervous, you’re not alone. For many users, the scariest part of the entire auction process is shipping the item. Not packing, not labeling, but actually taking the box to the shipping center and sending it on its way.

That’s because when it comes to shipping, there are so many choices involved. Which carrier do you use? Which specific service offered by a carrier should you choose the fastest one or the cheapest one? And what about all those extras, such as insurance and delivery confirmation? With all those choices, how do you avoid making the wrong decisions?

If shipping is somewhat foreign to you, don’t worry. It isn’t quite as difficult as it seems, and it will become old hat after just a few trips to the shipping center.

You have several choices when it comes to shipping your package. You can use the various services offered by the U.S. Postal Service (regular mail, Priority Mail, Express Mail, Media Mail, and so on) or any of the services offered by competing carriers, such as UPS or Federal Express. You can deal directly with any shipping service or use a local shipping store to handle the shipping (and even the packing)but at a cost.

As you’ve no doubt gathered, there are some significant differences in shipping costs from one shipping service to another. The cost differential is typically based on a combination of weight and distance; the heavier an item is and the farther it has to go (and the faster you need to get it to where it’s going), the more it costs. As an example, the costs of shipping a two-pound box from New York to Los Angeles run from under two bucks to over $30. For this reason, it’s a good idea to “shop” the major shipping services for the best shipping rates for the types of items you normally sell on eBay.

Which shipping services do I use? For small items, I default to USPS Priority Mail; it’s inexpensive and relatively fast, plus I get free packing materials from my local post office. For CDs, DVDs, and books, I use USPS Media Mail, which is cheaper and almost as fast. For really big items (over 10 pounds or so), I go with UPS. But I find that, 9 times out of 10, Priority Mail or Media Mail does the job for me.

Of course, cost isn’t the only factor you want to consider. You also want to compare how long it takes the package to arrive, what kind of track record the shipping service has, and how convenient it is for you to use. If you have to drive 20 miles to get to a UPS office, and you have a post office just down the street, that might offset a slightly higher cost for Priority Mail.

All that said, which shipping service should you use? That’s a good question, but not always an easy one to answer. Ultimately, you have to strike a compromise between cost, convenience, and speed.

The post Shipping eBay Items first appeared on Tips For eBay Sellers & Buyers.

If you want to splurge, you can even purchase labels with your name and return address preprinted at the top. This is a good idea if you do a lot of shipping (a dozen or more items a week); otherwise, it’s probably not cost-efficient.

You can also purchase or create your own return address labels, to use in conjunction with your main shipping labels. It’s easy enough to print a full page of smallish labels in Microsoft Word; most printing firms (such as FedEx Kinko’s) can also do up a roll of address labels for a nominal charge.

If you use computer-generated labels, you can program your label-making program to include your return address when it prints the label. This is a good (and lower-cost) alternative to using preprinted labels.

The best-packed box won’t go anywhere if you get the label wrong. For fast and efficient delivery, keep these points in mind when addressing your package:

• Write, type, or print the complete address neatly.
• Always use complete address information, such as the suffixes Dr., Ave., St., and Blvd.
• Include the recipient’s apartment or suite number, if applicable.
• Always use correct directions, such as N, S, E, W, or SW.
• Use the correct ZIP Codeand, when possible, use the four-digit add-on, ZIP+4 (example: 46032-1434). Be sure to hyphenate the ZIP+4.
• Always use the proper two-letter state abbreviation.
• When addressing to a P.O. Box or rural route destination, include the recipient’s telephone number on the label.
• When shipping outside the U.S., include a contact name, telephone number, and postal code on the labeland don’t forget to include the country name!
• Always include your return address information.
• If you’re using any special services of the U.S. Postal Service (Priority Mail, First Class Mail, insurance, and so on), note this above the destination address and below and to the right of the return address.
• Place the delivery label on the top (not the side) of the box. To avoid confusion, place only one address label on the box. If using a packing slip, place it on the same surface of the box as the address label.
• Do not place the label over a seam or closure or on top of sealing tape.
• To avoid ink smudges and rain smears, place a strip of clear packing tape over the address label. (Notable exception: do not tape over any bar codes on a label with pre-paid postage; bar code readers have trouble reading through tape.)
• If you’re reusing a box for shipping, remove or block out all old address labels or markings on a used box.

Don’t know the ZIP code for the address you’re shipping to? Then look it up at the U.S. Postal Service’s ZIP Code Lookup at www.usps.com/zip4/.

And here’s one last tip. Make a duplicate of your shipping label and stick it inside the box, before you seal it. This way if the original shipping label gets torn off or destroyed, anyone opening the box can read the duplicate label and figure out where the box is supposed to go.

The post Right Shipment Labeling first appeared on Tips For eBay Sellers & Buyers.