Auction Business & Shipping Frank Ross on 26 Jan 2007 08:38 pm
Priority Mail versus Parcel Post on eBay
If you sell on eBay, do you offer Priority Mail or Parcel Post? How about both? Priority Mail is great for speed - it’s generally faster than UPS Ground and can usually get to the other coast in 2 or 3 business days. But it costs more. Parcel Post is noticeably slower, but costs less.
You can offer both choices to your buyers and let them decide. eBay will allow up to three different domestic shipping rates for a single listing.
Many buyers love you when you send Priority Mail because it gets their item to them faster then they’re used to on eBay. But they may not necessarily want to pay the ‘premium’ for it. So just give them the choice and explain the difference in your listing; perhaps by way of an example like this one.
A 5 pound package sent from Seattle zip code 98133 to Miami zip code 33178 (two continental extremes) will be 2 business days for $12.80 with Priority Mail. It’s 7 business days for $9.94 with Parcel Post.
Buyers on eBay appreciate choices! You could even add a third choice for UPS Ground or Express Mail. Little adjustments like this can help get you more activity on your auction and BIN listings.
Tags: eBay Shipping, eBay Postal Shipping, eBay Priority Mail, eBay Parcel Post
on 26 Jan 2007 at 11:31 pm 1.Randy Smythe said …
If your items weigh less than 1lb. you can ship them First Class for less than Priority Mail with relatively the same transit time. Just identify the items as expedited not Priority Mail because if you say you ship PM the customer is going to want to see the little PM sticker on the package.
on 27 Jan 2007 at 3:41 pm 2.Frank Ross said …
Thanks Randy, that’s a great tip for all you media sellers out there, as well as sellers of other lightweight goods.