Overseas Sales - There has to be a better way!

[bundled0]

First post on this forum. (All $ AU)

So I found a rare Japanese DVD for $2.00. It sold for $25.00 + $16.50 shipping to an Italian buyer. The Buyer was also charged $9.13 VAT. So he is all in for $50.63.

EBay fees $7.64, Advertising $6.13. Australia Post $1.39 Padded Mailler plus $25.75 (less discount $3.22) shipping.

All up I make $1.81 profit on a $50.63 sale. (I get it $1.81/$2.00 doesn't look that bad..)

Australia Post are out of control on their charging. It's almost not worth doing business in Europe. I spent 30 minutes at the Post Office filling in forms...

Any thoughts?

BDK

[sugar249]

Before you sell anything,  work out what the on costs are,  not Australia Post fault you didnt do your research.   

[davewil1964]

I can see $6.13 in savings right there.

Why pay to promote a rare item? It's not like you will have a lot of competition.

As far as postage goes, why not find out the cost BEFORE listing the item?

Also be aware that Italy is notorious for less than efficient internal postage services, so you could well end up making a significant loss if the buyer claims Item Not Received and it is stuck in Customs or the Italian postal service.

[*sons_n_daughters*]

Unless you promoted your listing, advertising should have been free. Has been since Managed Payments came in. For your items, I certainly wouldn't be having them as Promoted Listings. Not worth it.

As for the padded mailers, if they are something you post in quite a bit, there is a seller on ebay that sells in bulk, so you're only paying a few cents each. I'm not allowed to mention the seller's name as it's against the rules, but it can save a fortune if you use them regularly.

As for the shipping cost, the buyer should have been paying that, so technically, you're not out of pocket for that amount if you had advertised the shipping accordingly for the buyer's country.