global shipping program is MAD!

[cokeking1907]

I can't be the only one who feels like the global shipping program is wildly expensive. Shipping from the states has always been expensive but it's starting to get ridiculous. If the seller doesn't enter the exact size abd weight small overages result in massive increases in cost. More than one I've ordered identical small items, done costing $25 more than the other for no explicable reason.

A small camera lens adapter in a container the size of 4 matchboxes and around 100grams cost me $45usd. It was shipped by the GSP through Fedex and the cheek of these people...after about a week last Monday morning the tracking said it was at adelaide airport but the estimated delivery date was Friday 6pm. Assuming the Friday delivery was a glitch I rang up to ask if I cloud pick it up since I would be nearby anyway. They were helpful and said I could. As I was leaving I asked about the Friday delivery, the guy behind the desk said that yes even though it was here and ready they were going to hold it for 4 days before delivery because it was a budget service!

In addition to all that when you search for things, particularly from the US you get the current item price plus the shipping price underneath only to find when you go into the items actual page that the estimated price is actually much much more.

I wish they would kill this GSP or at least make it easier for US sellers to also offer regular first class and priority shipping because it's starting to get crazy.

I'd be curious to hear all of your stories, I'm surei can't be the only one.

[lyndal1838]

Read the boards and you will find many threads about the GSP which will leave you in no doubt what Australians think about it.

[chezzy]

My story is simple. If I see a listing with the (dreaded) Global Shipping Program/Pitney Bowes mention I move on and look elsewhere. However sometimes I don't have the 'luxury' of other choices in which case I might message the seller and ask them if they are willing to ship direct (USPS/Post Office/First Class International etc). Fortunately some sellers are willing to do this, in fact some are not even aware what is showing our end re shipping cost or had trouble changing it etc etc etc. In fact one seller recently said they didn't even normally ship overseas so I simply took a screen shot of what I was seeing on their listing and sent it through to them.

If a listing shows an expensive GSP/PB price I tend to just message the seller. I will not ever just bid/buy without quizzing them.

Particularly as it can be so expensive for small/light/low value items going the GSP/PB route!

[chezzy]

sorry, lyndal1838, that reply was meant for the original poster

[cokeking1907]

I ran out of time to edit my message but I thought this would be a prefect example.  

I bought this small half frame camera the other day, the whole lot would probably fit in half a shoebox abd weighs around 250 grams.  It cost $57 USD to ship and it's only going through regular USPS priority shipping anyway but because it's the global shipping program it costs almost double what it would have cost the seller to put in the mail himself. Why this is I can't say abd I would be curious to know but the sellers aren't really able to help because they can't see the prices for the GSP, they simply post it domestically to the do shipping address and so they can't really do anything about negotiating the size/weight or shipping method. It's all generated automatically by eBay.

It's probably basically an OK idea but it needs a lot of five tuning, for one thing I think sellers need to see how much buyers are being charged and what effect the estimation of the size and weight of items has on the cost. I think it might help if they knew that listing a 600 gram item as 1kg because that's the size of domestic prepaid parcel it would go in could double the shipping price for us overseas.  This seems to be the most common problem, that they aren't really weighing or measuring items, just estimating (and overestimating for safety) because it doesn't have much effect on the domestic shipping cost and they can't see the effect on international shipping if they use the GSP.

[cokeking1907]

Yes I have to say your right about done helpful sellers willing to do some work abd ship outside the program. I can see how it wound make sense for small expensive collectables maybe but it's clearly a big money maker for someone as I have yet to find a single thing I've bought that used it that was within 30% of the correct already expensive USPS priority international postage price.

If nothing else I wish they would leave a note when sellers are selecting this option for their listing that correct size advd weight will have a big impact so they don't just guess at it. Or better yet a live updating quote for the cost of international shipping to the 3 most common international destinations as they input the size and weight. 

If I'm selling something locally I often simply put in a size and weight that corresponds to the appropriate prepaid express post satchel (i.e not weighing and listing a camera @1kg because I know it's fine to go in a 1kg parcel). Internationally though I make sure to be accurate thigh because there is an obvious relationship between that and the cost. I believe they are doing the former because they arent being told what the cost difference is. 

[chezzy]

Not sure if it applies to you but for 'lower value' items it is probably worth asking the seller about First Class International with e-delcon (a type of electronic tracking/delivery/confirmation) which I am seeing more and more of with small parcels. Makes it so much more reasonable (although yes a bit more 'risky' I guess) than the huge GSP/PB/PRIORITY prices.

Sometimes I use the angle that (and I let the seller know this) that if the shipping price is cheaper then I can afford to bid more on the actual item (because I am looking at the overall cost and a specific budget)

[anotherpancake52]

I agree to contacting the seller regarding posting items themselves rather than GSP. 

As ebayers in USA pay their ebay fees on Item + Postage anyway it really won't make much difference to them whether they make the  postage  cheaper and you bid more on the item.

[afantiques]

it's only going through regular USPS priority shipping anyway but because it's the global shipping program it costs almost double what it would have cost the seller to put in the mail himself.

Items are sent by airfreight, not USPS. The name International Proirity Shipping is misleadingly similar to Priority Mail International but there is really no connection.

As ebayers in USA pay their ebay fees on Item + Postage anyway it really won't make much difference to them whether they make the  postage  cheaper and you bid more on the item.

US ebayers pay fees on their lowest domestic shipping cost. I can't see how it follows that they don't care if they wind up with more money in their pocket.

It is certainly absurd what items some sellers offer with GSP, and how ignorant they are about it, but this is a consequence of the lamentable way sellers were opted in by stealth, and the near total lack of education about how to use the GSP effectively. It is pretty much like recruiting airline pilots by picking anyone over 5 foot high and letting them get on with it.

For Australian buyers, heavy items (over 2 kilos) become progressivly better shipping value the heavier they get. Anything under 2 kilos will always be a bad shipping buy, since a competent seller would be sending these by basic FCMI airmail.

[jonathd1]

I agree. there are alternative sites to ebay that are even bigger. For books for example i use Abe which is fantastic. i can ship from the UK to Australia for $5 when a similar item by the GSP would cost $50.
sadly ebay must be making a huge profit on shipping but it will be costing business too. i still use ebay but less every day... please Ebay- stop the price gouging on shipping.