ebay shipping questions

[babla]

I would like to start selling items on ebay to make extra $ for our Disney trip. What's holding me back is trying to figure out how to do the shipping. Does anyone have advice on how to get info regarding shipping? Should I go to the post office and inquire, or go to UPS? Thanks for any help.

 

[tinksmygal]

I sell on ebay, and the best thing you can do is buy a shipping scale. You can buy them off ebay (oldwillknott has some great ones) or from the post office. I think mine goes up to 30lbs.

Check out USPS dot com for shipping prices (parcel, priority, media) per lb. You can also use the shipping calculator for your auctions if you're still not sure.

Good luck! Ebay definitely helped us with our trip.

 

[disneysnowflake]

If you aren't going to be shipping really heavy items you can buy a kitchen scale at WalMart or Target for pretty cheap.
That's what I use.
I put the item in the box I'm shipping and set it on the kitchen scale.
On eBay there is an option to use the shipping calculator so that buyers can put their zipcode and see how much shipping will be.

I ship things such as dolls, clothing, etc. This kitchen scale works great for me. I think I spent $10 on it.

I use free Priority mailing boxes. You can order them free from usps website.

 

[NotTooGoofy]

We use the USPS or FedEx web sites to estimate shipping costs. For us, FedEx is usually cheaper when shipping larger packages. Keep in mind there are limits to how large a package you can ship (it varies by company) and shipping costs can jump significantly for the larger packages. Info on package size limits are available on the web sites.

We've sold a number of things on eBay and we've learned to make sure we can ship the item in an acceptable size box before we list the item - otherwise you may be stuck paying the high cost of shipping the item.

Often, our item description gives a flat rate for shipping to any location in the US (e.g., $9.95). For larger items though, we state that shipping costs will be added to the winning bid based on the winning bidder's address. Since we live in Ohio, shipping items to Alaska or Hawaii can get expensive. We also state that the winning bidder is responsible for paying insurance on the package and should include that in their payment if they wish to have insurance.

Now if you sell any books, shipping costs are much cheaper since there is a separate "book rate" from USPS.

It does seem confusing at first but after selling a few items, it does get easier.

Good luck!

 

[babla]

Thanks so much for the helpful advice. I'm going to check out the websites first, and then probably get a scale. I am a little nervous about starting this, but I have so much stuff to sell, I know I can earn money for our Disney trip.

 

[1MegMeg]

Don't be nervous at all! Ebay is a fabulous way to earn extra money! I second everyone else's recommendations to get either a postal scale or kitchen scale. Also, I tend to use USPS more than any other carrier, unless it's a heavy package, then I'll use UPS. I love USPS because they will pick the package up right at my house - no going to the post office! It's great! Here's the carrier pickup portion of their site:
https://carrierpickup.usps.com/cgi-bin/WebObjects/CarrierPickup.woa