Foreign Buyers - Okay; Californians - Never Again

R

rrogers

Inspired
I am seriously considering banning bidders from California on my eBay and Reverb auctions. I don't know what it is, but when an item goes out on Monday on the east coast, folks on the west coast seem to think it should be to them by Wednesday. Fourth item in a row that I've sold to someone in California, and the person is freaking out because they didn't have it within ten minutes of paying. Hundreds of transactions on music gear and 100% positive feedback, and folks are accusing me of running a scam because they think coast-to-coast shipping should only take two days.

Standard USPS ground is not the same as next day air.

I know on various forums people talk about the issues with shipping to buyers in other countries, but I have never had a problem in those situations.

What's up with this? I thought everyone on the west coast was supposed to be incredibly laid back.

Perhaps the best solution is to never sell another piece of gear - just horde it all away.
 
Besides the time involved, and I have shipped to the west coast 4 times in the past two weeks, is the cost involved...UPS has raised its rates recently and coast to coast ground shipping is now upwards of $85 - $95...yet, when you charge $100 shipping, they fail to realize that there are coasts involved such as shipping boxes for guitars (used to be you could get them free from the local music store...now they routinely charge $10 - $15) which I buy in bulk, bubble wrap, I buy it in bulk as well, gas to the UPS customer counter...etc. when you add it up, unless you like losing money on a transaction, you have to raise your rates for cross country delivery...one more thing...I always provide the Tracking info to the buyers so they can see for themselves when the shipped item will arrive and where it is at the moment. Makes very good business sense.


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What shipping does you eBay ad show? I always select economy shipping. When people inquire about faster I offer it at 125% of whatever the website quotes me as I've come to find when I get to the counter it's always more.
 
luke said:
What shipping does you eBay ad show? I always select economy shipping. When people inquire about faster I offer it at 125% of whatever the website quotes me as I've come to find when I get to the counter it's always more.
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Same here. I know how long it takes and I also know it costs a bit to pack things properly and ship them. Sounds like you've come across a few idiots, but don't let that deter you, just be clear in the ad that if they want next day air of second day air it's on their dime.
 
Yea, I was quite surprised by UPS' rates this week when I shipped a MkII from CA to TN. I had expected to be a little more than $50, but with insurance and their new rates it was over $90 for the 7-day service. Ouch.
 
musicmishka said:
I always provide the Tracking info to the buyers so they can see for themselves when the shipped item will arrive and where it is at the moment. Makes very good business sense.
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This. Saves trouble and actually provides a nice convenience feature for the buyer (he can have a time estimation and free email/SMS status updates on when the package arrives)
 
I too was shocked last time I shipped something and that was a while back. I ate it on my first shipment when selling several items. People smacked me too on shipping prices when I shipped it at literal cost with free boxes, free time, free tape, free packing. Point being some people are clueless to reality. You can't ban that.
 
iaresee said:
Yea, I was quite surprised by UPS' rates this week when I shipped a MkII from CA to TN. I had expected to be a little more than $50, but with insurance and their new rates it was over $90 for the 7-day service. Ouch.
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Do you have your own account with UPS? Something I learned early on if you have your own account you save quite a bit on costs (compared to using The UPS store) as long as you have a scale and your measurements are correct.


rrogers said:
I am seriously considering banning bidders from California on my eBay and Reverb auctions. I don't know what it is, but when an item goes out on Monday on the east coast, folks on the west coast seem to think it should be to them by Wednesday. Fourth item in a row that I've sold to someone in California, and the person is freaking out because they didn't have it within ten minutes of paying. Hundreds of transactions on music gear and 100% positive feedback, and folks are accusing me of running a scam because they think coast-to-coast shipping should only take two days.

Standard USPS ground is not the same as next day air.

I know on various forums people talk about the issues with shipping to buyers in other countries, but I have never had a problem in those situations.

What's up with this? I thought everyone on the west coast was supposed to be incredibly laid back.

Perhaps the best solution is to never sell another piece of gear - just horde it all away.
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I used to live in Socal and I never had a problem with receiving items from back east when it came to shipping times. The guy you shipped to sounds like he has lost touch with reality and is stuck in the I paid you now so I want it now world.
How long did it take for this guy it receive his item? I mean I have had things delayed a few extra days because of bad weather but UPS usually keeps you up to date with situations like that in the tracking info.
 
It's not just the Californians-



Its what I call the "McDonalds Mentality", and it applies to every State (and most days seemingly everyone in them). People expect life to be a "5 minute drive thru window experience" with everything they do, from food to pharmaceuticals to shipping and beyond. They want what they want and they want it NOW ("Veruca Salt Syndrome" is another term I use frequently)!

Just another sad reality of modern society, unfortunately.

You could try this- list your shipping rates/delivery times at "next day" pricing, I'll bet you get people asking for cheaper shipping at which point you give it to them along with a completely realistic delivery date. They'll be happy to accept the delivery delay thinking they're saving money, you'll have less hassles and if you do have a hassle (some jackass leaving a negative feedback) you'll have a paper trail to prove your case with eBay and have it removed.
 
Sixstring said:
Do you have your own account with UPS? Something I learned early on if you have your own account you save quite a bit on costs (compared to using The UPS store) as long as you have a scale and your measurements are correct.
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I do but I shipped through a UPS Store this time because there's one next to my BART station. I did not realize there was a difference in price between the store and a pickup.
 
I do but I shipped through a UPS Store this time because there's one next to my BART station. I did not realize there was a difference in price between the store and a pickup.
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I learned about the difference a few years ago through a deal on eBay. I had a large amp listed on eBay as a local pickup only. When I checked on shipping, quotes were in the $200 range from the UPS store and associated knock-offs in my area. A buyer contacted me and said he would pay the shipping through his business account and send me the label once I had it packed with dimensions. We used the shipping weight on the manufacturer's website and added a generous 8 pounds for packing materials.

Total, insured, was $90. Buyer was a New Yorker.

The funny thing is I did send the buyer tracking information (on my most recent California deal). He replied he cannot and should not be bothered with tracking the item.
 
rrogers said:
I learned about the difference a few years ago through a deal on eBay. I had a large amp listed on eBay as a local pickup only. When I checked on shipping, quotes were in the $200 range from the UPS store and associated knock-offs in my area. A buyer contacted me and said he would pay the shipping through his business account and send me the label once I had it packed with dimensions. We used the shipping weight on the manufacturer's website and added a generous 8 pounds for packing materials.

Total, insured, was $90. Buyer was a New Yorker.

The funny thing is I did send the buyer tracking information (on my most recent California deal). He replied he cannot and should not be bothered with tracking the item.
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Really? What a tool.
 
iaresee said:
I do but I shipped through a UPS Store this time because there's one next to my BART station. I did not realize there was a difference in price between the store and a pickup.
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All of the "The UPS Store" are independently owned and allowed to tack on a percentage to the shipping all for the convenience of having one right there in your neighborhood. They also take you to the cleaners on packing material and boxes etc..
There is a pretty significant difference as rrogers pointed out when you have your own USP account and it's well worth it.
 
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