What is acceptable postage cost?

[sukuki-6]

I recently sold an item to user with ID  REMOVED . Feed this person left me was positive yet, comment was rather interesting. Comment was; "Good seller, accurate description, only have issue with the shipping prices..."

I replied "Postage was $7.95+ 87cents ebay fee, I charged you $7.95, should've been $8.82." which is totally true. He messaged me and said that posting Hotwheels used to be dirt cheap and paying more for postage than cost of actual item was slightly unfair.  Why didn't this idiot check things before bidding? and Item he got was 3 hotwheels Lamborghini which retail cost was $10 Australian dollars as 2 of them was short cards costing $3 each and third item was Batman Lamborghini which retailed at $4.  

Majority of buyers haven't had issues about postage cost as I only charge what Australia Post charges me and I don't add eBay fee on postage cost.  

I thought I'd share this with others as I am rather intrigued by people's ignorance.  Have nice day.

[porcelain_dolls_by_me]

That's where the blocked buyer facility comes in handy!

[springyzone]

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@sukuki-6 wrote:

I recently sold an item to user with ID  REMOVED . Feed this person left me was positive yet, comment was rather interesting. Comment was; "Good seller, accurate description, only have issue with the shipping prices..."

I replied "Postage was $7.95+ 87cents ebay fee, I charged you $7.95, should've been $8.82." which is totally true. He messaged me and said that posting Hotwheels used to be dirt cheap and paying more for postage than cost of actual item was slightly unfair.  Why didn't this idiot check things before bidding? and Item he got was 3 hotwheels Lamborghini which retail cost was $10 Australian dollars as 2 of them was short cards costing $3 each and third item was Batman Lamborghini which retailed at $4.  

Majority of buyers haven't had issues about postage cost as I only charge what Australia Post charges me and I don't add eBay fee on postage cost.  

I thought I'd share this with others as I am rather intrigued by people's ignorance.  Have nice day.

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Your postage cost was more than fair, especially since you had not even added the ebay fee onto them.

You're striking one of those buyers who probably doesn't post off many things himself & only has a vague (and outdated) knowledge of costs. I can remember striking a few of those sorts in the past. There's no guarantee that buyer opinion or feedback is always going to be logical and sometimes it isn't.

I think your answer to him was perfect.

But having said that, I think what you have struck is a common buyer perception and that is, the closer the cost of postage is to the actual item itself, the more it might give the buyer pause, as in, it is only worth x amount, is it worth spending that amount again just to get it to me? Of course if they decide yes, then they shouldn't really be complaining, but the reality is sometimes they do.

You'll never please everyone but you can overcome the problem to a certain extent by charging a bit more for your items, if only to cover those ebay fees you didn't add on to the postage. Plus I think paying more for the items will make some buyers value them more and it will make the item cost/postage cost ratio look more in balance. But mainly, I don't see why you should absorb the ebay postage fees yourself. As you've seen, you won't necessarily get any thanks for it anyway, so add a bit more profit into the item cost.

[djavusydney]

Someone said this before: generally buyer dislike there is postage cost in their purchase, but in the case of change of mind return don't mind the non refundable postage but dislike the restocking fee.

[lane-ends]

Ah the days when you could get 250gm parcel post for $2.45. Thats when i did well with small collectables. These days minimum parcel post cost simply monster small cheap item sales. Even if a buyer understands the cost they are starting from a position of feeling like they are paying too much. So starting from that attitude base doesn't take too much to turnn it into a gripe. Just not worth selling cheap items that require parcel post.

At that price bracket they are also more likely to just leave bad feedback and move on rather than go through the hassle of resolving disputes etc.

[davewil1964]

Depends what you are selling, I suppose.

Probably half my sales go as parcels, and in at least 80% of cases the item cost is less than the postage. I'm running 4.9 on postage, so some are obviously not particularly happy about it, but I've never had a neg and my neutrals didn't relate to postage cost.

[heihachi_73]

Mister Eye Dee Removed seems to have Australia Post mixed up with a reputable (overseas) postal service. When was posting small (2-5cm) items dirt cheap in Australia? Certainly not since I started selling on here. Never mind Hot Wheels cars, you would be lucky to fit a Micro Machine in the tiny letter gauge specified by Australia Post! According to them Micro Machines weigh exactly five hundred grams and are the size of a microwave therefore they have to carry a parcel surcharge for being so bulky.

[everard6920]

Your buyer sounds like a baka.

I direct anyone who has any complaints about postage to the AP site, where they can enter the relevant postcodes and see for themselves what it costs. Sometimes I enter the postcodes myself and send them a screenshot. I usually don't hear another word about it (and they usually go ahead and buy).