The Ultimate Guide to eBay Postage
When selling your products on eBay it can be a competitive market, but a vital way to get your products recognised by customers is through its shipping! This can be an overlooked element of your business but understanding shipping can help build your customer base and improve profit margins.
So whether you’re new to the game or a seasoned eBay seller, we have put together this guide to eBay postage with all the best tips. Resulting in more happy customers and more money in your back pocket!
1) eBay Selling Policy
As eBay is notoriously strict on shipping charges, so let’s get started with some of eBay’s basic rules regarding shipping.
Transparency is key when including shipping costs on your eBay products, meaning you have to clearly specify the actual postage cost and postage options to your customers. So before listing an item consider;
- Packaging required for the listed item
- Carrier, cost and speed of delivery
Any additional services such as proof of postage, recorded delivery, signature information, etc.
And basically, the clearer this information is, the better the listing!
eBay definitely takes shipping and delivery seriously. This is proven by the fact two out of four detailed seller ratings are shipping related.
These are;
- Postage time – How quickly did the seller post the item?
- Postage and handling charges – Were the costs reasonable?
Therefore, choose wisely when determining your packaging options and cost, then stick with what you have offered to build trust in your customers and your seller rating!
2) FREE Shipping
Everyone likes to get things for free… or at least feel like we are. So most of us know from our own online shopping experience that free shipping can be the determining factor in making a purchase.
Research backs this up, showing for 81% of consumers free delivery is their number one concern while shopping online and in 2019 71% of all purchases on eBay were shipped for free.
On eBay there are many advantages to offering free delivery to your customers, including:
- Automatic 5-star DRS for postage and packaging charges
- Higher visibility in best match search results
- Higher conversion rate (buyers love free delivery)
- The ability to receive the Premium Service badge on your listings.
In fact, it’s worth offering free delivery for the last point alone as having Premium Service listings is a real trust indicator for buyers.
So, if you can, always offer free delivery to your buyers, or go for the cheapest option. It’s worth putting yourself in your buyer's shoes. Would you be looking to a competitor for a cheaper deal? If so, then it’s time to square up to your rivals in order to come out on top.
3) Parcel Packaging
We then move on to packaging, a subject our expert team at Boxed Up are well-versed in. Packaging your items with care shows you have high standards of customer service, which can only result in positive feedback and a continuation of sales
Common Problems:
- Using a box that is too small or large may damage the item during delivery.
- Forgetting or not using enough packaging material to support your item.
- Using weak or not enough tape to secure your box in place.
We’ve got the solution all Boxed Up:
At Boxed Up we offer a wide range of postage boxes manufactured using high grade corrugated cardboard to ensure maximum protection for all of your items.
And to make understanding packaging sizes and costs simpler, we have put together a range of packaging guides with everything you need to know.
4) International Shipping
There are obvious plus points in taking your shipping overseas, including substantially increasing your potential consumer base. But particularly with Brexit heading our way you need to take a couple of things into consideration.
Countries to ship to
Think about which countries you would like to ship to before you post a listing.
Remember eBay includes Eastern bloc countries such as Russia in the Europe shipping options. You may wish to specify which countries you are most happy to ship to in the description box.
Cost and timings
Check the shipping costs carefully, don’t just guess. They can mount up fairly quickly when shipping internationally. Plus, you need to know how long the shipping times are for your selected countries as they will vary.
After that, you’re ready to start offering international shipping!
We hope you found our tips useful and are now ready to take your eBay selling to the next level!
If you would like any further packaging or postage advice don’t hesitate to get in touch with our team. We have friendly experts ready to help.
