the cost of postage is turning me off EBAY does EBAY care

[*tippy*toes*]

The postage cost has nothing to do with eBay. The seller sets the postage cost. The seller sends you the item, not ebay. Most sellers list what it costs as set by Australia Post. It should be AP you gripe to about the cost, nothing to do with eBay. 

[davewil1964]

You have bought 6 things in the last 6 months, so I doubt eBay cares.

[k1ooo-slr-sales]

just stay within your "total spend" amount for each item you wish to buy and the postage paid will not factor into your decision making.  If postage sends the total above your total spend limit for an item then don't buy it.   For auctions, take postage cost into consideration before deciding on your maximum bid amount. 

You do not need to be a rocket scientist to work out how to not overspend on eBay.  If it is too hard for you then stop using eBay.

[fixnwear]

oddbits4521,

cost on postage is nothing on Ebay - as most of the time you save on the price of the item itself.

And - I would give them twice as much not to have to drive, battle the crowds, look for parking and spend endless boring and tedious hours trawling the shops - just to come home empty handed!

You can't imagine how often it has happened to me (and everyone, I guess).

It got to the point that if that was the only choice we had to shop, I would have gladly paid someone to do all that, insted of me.

 But, don't worry, you are not the only one, we have a neighbour who continually whinges about the same thing, except she's much worse, more scungy, she expects her $1 dollar items (that's the usually the only rubbish she buys), to be post free as well.

Oh, well, that is probably why she drives a brand new Lexus and I don't.

Best advice: Stop getting all worked up about nothing, especially when you can't change a thing about it. In fact, do as I do, always give a seller a bit more, a tip, if you like - as they are the ones who have to pack, take the trouble to go the post office, all I have  to do is sit on my back side and wait for it to arrive at the door.

[digital*ghost]

Your post is actually a little too vague for me to provide any more specific advice or opinion, i.e. it's not clear to me if you just don't like postage costs in general, or if you think it's too high in general, or there are specific things where the postage cost was so high you decided not to buy them. 

If it's just a general dislike of postage, the only thing I can say about that is that postage cost is pretty unavoidable when you buy items that have to be posted....  

If it's that you feel postage charges are too high...well that's kind of relative. The cheapest I can send a parcel for within Australia is around $8 (this includes postage cost, and bare minimum packaging & printing cost, often packaging costs are higher).

In order to actually receive $8 to cover those costs, I'd have to charge more so that eBay's fees on the postage amount don't mean I get less than what postage will cost. So, by the time I get around to listing it, actual cost to provide the service of postage would be absolute minimum $9~odd, and that's without me gaining a single cent on it. Because I know there are lots of people who don't like to see postage costs like that, I wouldn't actually charge $9 in the postage section, I'd make the item price a bit higher and charge a little less for the postage - bottom line, though, the postage gets paid for, it's just easier on the eye that way. 😉 

[lizzys-allsorts]

I doubt if eBay cares...

Australia Post isn't a free service... Maybe try selling some items, then you'll see the costs involved from the sellers perspective.

If a seller is offering free postage, it's usually built into the cost of the item... so you're still paying for postage.

Maybe eBay isn't the buying platform for you 

[davidc4430]

do you think there is post fairy that when a seller sells you an item, this post fairy pops up and carefully wraps your item then takes it to the post office. waits in line for his/her turn then pays the charges for the seller then flies back with the tracking number so the seller can type it in so you know where your item is?

buyers like you i can do without!

i only charge what it costs me to post, i dont add on for wrapping/boxes and labeling.

i dont charge for the trip i take to the post office.

[springyzone]

Okay, oddbits, the answer is that nope, ebay itself probably doesn't care. It is just a business that provides a selling platform for individual sellers, it doesn't sell the items or set the postage. Think of it like a marketplace that hires out stalls.

There is a reason some of the postage costs can seem high & that is because a lot of sellers only own a small business or may even be home sellers, they are not huge corporations or shops with big turnovers where they can subsidise the postage cost or offer a set postage cost for everything, no matter what weight or where in Australia it is sent to.

The other reason is sellers here actually pay a commission on the total cost of what they sell and that includes the postage cost. So basically, if they charge you the exact amount that Australia Post charges them, they would be out of pocket.

Here is how I work out whether to buy or not.

1. Is the overall total cost in line with what I am happy to pay for the item?

-I have often found that even after I factor in postage, I have been very happy with the price of some items & the fact it is delivered. Admittedly I am only a small buyer & usually a buyer of small things but I have found it worthwhile to turn to ebay at times. I have been able to buy things here that I could not find in the shops even after a whole day of searching. Things such as ribbon (wanted a particular shade) and very narrow double sided tape leap to my mind.

2. How does the price compare to other online stores? I have not found any yet that have free postage. I have found several that have a set postage. That only works in your favour though if you are buying a lot.

To give you an example, on catch of the day, the postage per sale is usually about $10 and can be higher. I pay about $75 a year to have postage provided "free" on my purchases. So unless I buy about 8 times a year, I would be losing out. A photobook site I use charges between $4.99-$14.99 per album (depending on the size). I could go on.

No online sites have free postage- unless you are buying over a certain amount.

3. You could try gumtree or buy/swap/sell sites on facebook where you could pick up items locally & save on postage cost. But I would be surprised if you will find the items are cheap. Occasionally you can pick up a bargain but often there isn't the variety.

No one can force you to buy on any site, why not shop around and make your decision from there, but ebay sellers are not in it for charity, they can't afford to sell at a loss, they have to charge for postage if they post!

[lane-ends]

Reality is parcel posts cost these days doews prohib the sale of small cheap items from anywhere except china..

If AP were to reintroduce their 250gm rate, and maybe introduce a 1kg rate it would be an enormous boost for domestic online selling, and increased business for AP.

Not an ebay specific issue though, just a hurdle for all online businesses.