Standard Post items now showing FREE Express Post

[parts_lunacy]

Anyone else having the issue, I have hundreds of listings with both FREE standard post and PAID Express Post options all under the same business policy.

All of a sudden, some, not all and by no means any reasoning behind which ones, now show as FREE Express Post with the option of FREE standard post.

Even very similar items are different with some performing nomally and others showing this FREE Express Post, most items are less than $20 so can not afford to pay $12 for express post.

Any help would be appreciated as I have at least 100 that I have found so far....

p.s. yes I have contacted eBay and "their technical team will get back to me", not that they EVER have in the past!

[twyngwyn]

A.P. are no longer express posting??

https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/coronavirus/australia-post-suspends-its-express-next-day-delivery-gua...

[digital*ghost]

Have you signed up for eBay Plus, and is that an eBay Plus listing?

Buyers who are in major metro areas, and who are eBay Plus members, now get free upgrades to express post on Plus listings (eBay will fund up to $4 of the price difference - so if the upgrade costs $2, the seller gets $2 from eBay, but if the upgrade costs $8, the seller only gets $4). 

I'm not a plus member, so I can take a look at one of the affected listings to see if it's showing as free express for me as well if you like (if eBay are showing free express to non-qualifying buyers, that's going to be a problem).

[parts_lunacy]

HI digital*ghost, thank you, I think you are onto something there as I just checked and they all appear to be "eBay Plus" above the shipping note "Free Express Post"

Now I'm even more confused as only some listings are and not others and I don't believe we ever signed up as a seller to do so, I even believe we asked to be removed as sellers ourselves, so will be re-checking again.

$20 item

-$4 ebay refund

-$2.20 normal postage

-$1.00 Postage Padded Satchel

+$2.00 For Box able to be used for Express Post

+$12.00 Express Post fee

Still means we have to come up with an extra $6.80 on an item we are usually pushing at making $2.00 on after fees etc.. makes no sense.

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/172008898976

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/172147325808

Thank you again, you just saved us a fortune!!!! 

[parts_lunacy]

I believe they are still doing Express Post, just not guaranteeing next day delivery.

Still classed as a priority service... something to do with less flights etc.

[parts_lunacy]

Thanks digital*ghost, just changed everything to 2 days handling and all is back to being as it should be.

Appreciate the help. LEGEND!!

[digital*ghost]

Glad I could help 🙂 

There is actually a way to opt out of Plus, but it has to be done manually by emailing the right department (I don't have the address on hand, but if anyone wants it, let me know), and once opted out, if you ever want to opt back in, it also has to be done by manual request.

The system is fine for things that are sent in small or medium satchels, as the price difference between regular / express is around the $3-$4 mark from memory, but if you're sending small items at letter rates (almost all my items go this way), the difference is over $8 in a lot of cases, so you could really take a hit if you get a lot of Plus buyers. 😞 

[gec2002]

I wish ebay would stop trying to be a Mini-Me Amazon. This is just a copy of Prime. That works for Amazon because they have their own Stock, Distribution and Courier setup.

Also part of the New eBayPlus is that you are have to upload Tracking for each Plus sale. Bit of a problem if you mostly send by Letter Post. Apparently if you don't upload Tracking a sufficient number of times you will be removed from the eBayPlus program. Suits me never wanted to be part of it in the first place.

[needsome12vbasics]

After a 1 hour typing chat with 3 eBay help people (they kept passing me on to 'experts in that area'), that provided no acceptable solutions, have just discovered a way to get around the eBay Plus tag on my sales sent in a 2 and 3 stamp letter box, without opting out of eBay Plus (which by the way they tried to tell me it is not possible to opt-out, that once a listing became eligible it would be included regardless).  Changing them to large and bulky, 50kg, 2mtrs long did NOT work, and eBay's only offered solution was to remove the express option, or charge postage separately, both of which would lose the 'eBay Premium Service' tag on listings.  I just discovered, if you change the express post charge to over $15 (I put $15.20/$15.25 on mine) it removes the eBay Plus badge (Sigh of relief).  As the express parcels are only $11.95, so only $10 and $9 more than the 2/3 stamps, will just give buyers extra product to compensate if they do pay for the express.  Now I just have to keep checking my listings every day what other listings they include in the Plus program, as they have only included select categories to date, but if they include all, there will be some parcel sales that I would make no profit on if I have to pay the difference for express. I just hope they change the seller hub to show which listings have the eBay Plus badge on them, as it is a pain having to manually search them every day.

[digital*ghost]

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@needsome12vbasics wrote:

I just hope they change the seller hub to show which listings have the eBay Plus badge on them, as it is a pain having to manually search them every day.

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If you're not sure which of your listings meet the criteria for plus, just view your own listings outside of your store home, and then use the menu refinement on the left to show only Plus listings.

eg click "View Listings" underneath your username in one of your posts, then click this (it's showing me 27 individual listings) :