Flat Rate, Free or Calculated Postage?

[oddsandendsoz]

I am just wondering which postage option you use, or find works best? I use a combination of 'free' postage and flat rate postage but of course sometimes you get 'stung' when you sell to a rural location, which seems to happen more and more these days.

I have considered calculated postage but I am a little reluctant that it might price me out of some sales because the postage might look too expensive for buyers. I just wonder if you have experimented with postage and found one that works best? A lot of my items go in small satchels these days, which is very different from my previous main account that was always different size boxes.

[eol-products]

Its very easy to work out the best postage option and it mostly relates to what you are selling.

Unfortunately there are so many different options and each one will be different depending on what you sell and if a buyer will purchase more than one item.

Here is one thing I find.

If you sell an item that has next to no competition so is at the top of search results than anything will work.

[davewil1964]

All my items can go with AP flate rate postage. I use that for parcels and large letters for those that can be sent as letters, labelled 'free'.

[oddsandendsoz]

Thanks for the input guys. The other thing I noticed a few weeks ago, and part of the reason that I asked this question is the following. I have been trying to drum up business by doing promotions like public coupons and sales across the store, and I noticed that when I do that, the option for discounting multiple purchase disappears because "the items have already been discounted', or words to that effect.

It makes me think that 'free postage' is better in a lot of ways, but it does then put the perceived price up. I rarely get a buyer purchase more than 1 item though so maybe it is not an issue, or maybe they only purchase 1 item because with the regular sales or promotions I have been running, there are not many opportunities for buyers to get the postage discount. I am not sure if I am making sense. So from my experience, there is a downside to promotions, unless you already offer 'free postage'.

[oddsandendsoz]

I think the other thing, is that because my previous main account and the items I sell on that, I never really looked in to setting postage rules so I don't really know much about those. Due to that I have been using the simplified way of allowing buyers to 'request revised total' but I would imagine not all buyers even know about that.

Does anyone know if on the postage rules, you can be specific on categories for example, or do those setting then apply to all listings? For example, if I say set a postage rule of $8.95 and then $0.50 for every other order on top, can you specify the items or does this apply to all items? I think I am coming to realise that postage can be as simple or complex as you want, but I am also realising that having good postage rules very likely can either increase or decrease sales, so I am looking at ways to not put buyers off.

[davewil1964]

My promos are blanket $ discounts. The method of posting doesn't affect that, except that they get a discount on the postage component of 'free'.