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04/18/2017 at 1:01 pm in reply to: Scavenger Life Episode 306: We Love Flea Markets and Craigslist #16744
Simon: It is a lifestyle, that is for sure. You have the freedom to take time when you need it to do what you like. But you also have the responsibility to put in the hours and hard work to have that freedom. We do this full time and love it, but we know that we have to list at least 100 items per week (preferably more), otherwise the business starts to turn.
Take a long hard look at your numbers, what you can list each week, your average selling price, sell-thru rate, time to list, and forecast each month before you start. But it is worth it if you can do it!
04/18/2017 at 8:55 am in reply to: Scavenger Life Episode 306: We Love Flea Markets and Craigslist #16734Rydell: Sounds great, that is what we do as well. Every so often, there is a problem with a buyer’s address that we have to correct, and the only way to print the label with the correction is individually. Those packages we drop off at the same location that we take our FedEx deliveries. Works like a charm.
Heads up: There have been two cases where the bulk shipper kicks out one label at the last minute (when generating the labels). No known reason. They print fine individually, so no idea why the bulk shipper kicks it out. A little frustrating. Next time it happens, I’m going to call eBay to see if a techie can look at a fix.
04/17/2017 at 8:02 am in reply to: Scavenger Life Episode 306: We Love Flea Markets and Craigslist #16692Week of 4/9-4/15
Total Items in Store: 1,438
Items Sold: 64
Number of Items Listed This Week: 18
Total Sales: $1,901.37
Cost of Items Sold: $359.93
Highest Item Sold: $60 – Carhartt Heavy Canvas Field Jacket (Troy wins this week, Veronica leads 3-2)Sales slowed this week, but that was expected with our low number of new listings for the week. Had a great few days with our son at college, watched him pitch six innings in his baseball game, secured the win, and looked very happy. We were also helping my parents as they move to Montana, so a lot of time away from the business this week. But we had a chance to shop and restock the inventory, so ready for a big week next week!
Regarding the Scan Sheets, you mentioned that since you sell unique items, that the Bulk Shipping doesn’t work for you. I agree, that using it is a little slower, but we sell lots of unique items as well, and we still make it work. We look at the “Awaiting Shipment” list, pull each item, pack it, mark down the item/name/zip/weight, then use the Bulk Shipping to print the labels. Anything that goes out FedEx we ship individually first. Also, the Bulk Shipping brings in the amount and type of shipping the buyer chose (Parcel, Priority, First Class), so many times, we don’t have a change. But if we do, we can make the change from the grid. You can also ship your International as well as Domestic in the Bulk Shipping tool. I track our time on each task, and we only spend 5 minutes longer to use the Bulk Shipping tool vs Individual labels, for 10-15 items per day. For us, the Scan Sheet is too important, as we don’t want to have to pay return shipping for Guaranteed Delivery if we don’t get the acceptance scan. If your post office is getting your packages scanned the same day they pick up every day, then you don’t have much of a risk. Ours is not that reliable…
04/12/2017 at 6:54 pm in reply to: Scavenger Life Episode 305: The Biggest Transfer of Wealth in Human History #16528We may have to look into that. We bulk shipped 34 items today through eBay, and that process is clunky. As we grow, we will need a better process that will give us the Scan Sheet.
04/11/2017 at 8:46 am in reply to: Scavenger Life Episode 305: The Biggest Transfer of Wealth in Human History #16415That may be true, but with the internet and smartphones so readily available, knowledge is at our fingertips so easily. How amazing is it that we can create income while sitting in our pajamas? The access to data and the technology that makes it run is mind boggling.
I was jogging a few years ago and the GPS app that was on my phone was not working. So, I stopped, took out my phone, downloaded a new app, paid for it, and then continued on. I then pondered about what I just did. Something that I could not have imagined when I got out of college in the early 90’s.
I was jogging with my phone (a small phone, not the behemoth that they showed in “Wall Street”), and while I stopped, I purchased something (money actually changed hands) and added a program to that phone (without plugging it into another computer). In fact, this program could now track my exact location on the planet. Damn.
All I”m saying is, that for any challenges that we have today compared to the past, we also have many benefits and tools that the past did not. And the next generation will have new and difficult challenges that we did not, with new and wonderful tools we can’t imagine.
I feel that those before us did not have it better, or worse…just different. Those after us will be the same. I think my job is to strive and thrive in the environment I am in.
04/11/2017 at 8:15 am in reply to: Scavenger Life Episode 305: The Biggest Transfer of Wealth in Human History #16414We don’t even use post-it notes. Just write on the package itself, and then cover it with the label.
I’m not sure if the Scan Sheet could be done retroactive from individual shipping. Maybe if you could select your previous labels and ask to combine on one Scan Sheet.
04/10/2017 at 11:45 pm in reply to: Scavenger Life Episode 305: The Biggest Transfer of Wealth in Human History #16395Just remember, the older generations did all that…without the internet and smartphones.
04/10/2017 at 11:38 pm in reply to: Scavenger Life Episode 305: The Biggest Transfer of Wealth in Human History #16393Outstanding work! Knowledge!
04/09/2017 at 10:01 pm in reply to: Scavenger Life Episode 305: The Biggest Transfer of Wealth in Human History #16314Amen! It took us a little to adjust to using the bulk, and it sounds like you are lucky with a great carrier that will scan in your packages. Even as good as our main carrier is, she won’t spend the time on her route, especially when her incoming trucks are late, to scan 15-25+ items per day. We have a lot of clothes that sell each day, so we have a high volume, so the Bulk Shipping is our only option for now.
04/09/2017 at 9:47 pm in reply to: Scavenger Life Episode 305: The Biggest Transfer of Wealth in Human History #16313Rydell: Yeah, we run into a random item every once in a while on the bulk shipping that for some reason won’t print, so we have to print it individually as a one off item. No idea why. One thing for certain: if you have to edit the address (too long and you have to remove spaces), you will have to print that one on it’s own.
As for the speed, we were slow as well, but we refined the process and it went much faster. We pack up the item, write the item name, last name of the buyer, zip code, and weight on the package.
Then we go to the bulk shipping process, and make sure the weight and shipping option is correct on each one (we don’t use the “edit record”, we just use the grid screen as shown).
Jay, we have talked about items to interviewe eBay about, and a revamp of this process would be one of them. With the acceptance scan being more important with Guaranteed Delivery, this process needs to have some bugs worked out.
Thanks. As we relist, we are clearing them out, and now when I list new, I clear out the front and back set as well. If nothing else, it makes me feel better… 🙂
Agree. Once you know your cost, factor into your price, adjust for potential returns, you can make the right decision. For us, free or charged shipping is no issue for the majority of our items. For others, it may be different.
We wanted to test if charging for shipping changed our sell through rate. It didn’t. In fact, for heavier items (over 1 lb), we have seemed to increase.
So if EBay wants to have an incentive for Free Shipping, we would have no problem doing that for anything under 2 lbs, or even heavier if it can fit in a flat rate or Regional A box, as we can predict the cost. We would provide a lower acceptable price for international shipping.
Anything under 1lb. We do a lot of clothing, so the first class shipping is pretty small. Chances of it not being delivered, or getting a return, are pretty low. We did free shipping for many years, until recently.
Interesting. This is an area that I would love to dig into deeper. Between what Greg said on the EBay radio podcast, and what I’m seeing in the FAQ, it may seem like EBay is trying to drive sellers into free shipping. If EBay is picking up the tab, it won’t matter to me if I offer free shipping for some items.
Jay this would be an interesting area to drive into.
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