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Okieopie: Agree. We try to always show the cheapest option first (FedEx Smartpost if heavy but small, then Parcel) and Priority last. Seems that the default is the one you put in first. The cost that they see should show that way, and if we can ship Priority cheaper than what they paid, all the better.
For First Class items, we use a lot of flat rate pricing, since we know the scale we actually pay. No more than $4.50 for First class ($3.00 if less than 8oz), and usually $6.50 if it can fit into a Flat Rate Padded Envelope. Suits and Sport Coats are flat $9.99, as I know that is the most we will pay for a Regional A box. Keeps it simple when listing, buyer knows the cost, and generally cheaper than the calculated First Class.
BethGreen: They will be using zip codes (the buyer and seller zip codes) to determine if the items can be delivered. They will be filtering results if the buyer selects by date to just the items that can arrive by that date.
So for us in Colorado, we will show up for others that are buying in CO, TX, CA, etc and the algorithm says it can arrive in time. But for a buyer in Dark Swamp, FL…no, our items won’t show up to them because it can’t get there on time. A seller in Miami, FL may show up for them, but not us.
Remember, eBay is on the hook to pay the refunded shipping if it doesn’t arrive in time, as well as having a bad experience with a buyer (so bad PR), so I believe that they will do whatever it takes to make this successful. And it is only for buyers who select the Guaranteed Delivery date. There may be few buyers that even select this option. That part is still to be seen…how many buyers care to have a guaranteed delivery date.
I would recommend listening to the eBay Radio podcasts from last week. You can hear that there are still a few details to work out, but they are setting the framework up to work for both buyers and sellers. They have to execute, no doubt, but I have to be on the Pollyanna side of this, that it will work out well, until proven painful.
BethGreen: I was curious, so I re-read the official eBay page on Guaranteed Delivery to ascertain if it is “3-Day Delivery” or by a Guaranteed Date. I think it will be date. Under “Benefits to Sellers”, it states:
“eBay will prominently present your guaranteed listings for buyers, as they will be able to search and filter based on delivery date.” — <my emphasis>
It makes sense that the programing and experience to the buyer would be based on selecting a date to arrive (to avoid confusion), and that the easy marketing message is “3-Day Delivery”. We all know Amazon Prime is “2-day”, but I also know that there are times it is really 3 days, and when I buy, there is a date shown as to when it will arrive.
Again, we have to wait for proof, a written policy, and then execution, but I really believe that it will be by a date the buyer selects. Then we as sellers need to know how that algorithm is executed, so that we know whether we are showing in search (if the buyer selects the Guaranteed Shipping as an option).
They have said that they will, and I’ll bet they will. As I run through the risk model:
They state that 67% of all shipments arrive within 3 days. So at worst, they are on the hook for 33% of shipments. Then, reduce that universe for sales that meet ALL of the following:
1) Seller opted in to the Guaranteed Delivery program
2) Buyer chose Guaranteed Delivery at time of sale
3) Seller was in the Handling Program (not End-to-End)
4) Seller met their Handling Time
5) Item was delivered late
6) Buyer logs into eBay to ask for a refund on late deliveryI couldn’t guess what that comes out to, but you can bet that eBay did that calculation. eBay will be on the hook sometimes, but that will be offset by the increases are they getting in higher sales due to the advertisement and branding that buyers can shop on eBay and get Guaranteed 3-Day delivery. They are filtering the results on search by items they are pretty darned sure will make 3-Day delivery (can’t have a failed roll-out, or it will really damage their image). Amazon can do 2 day with their distributed warehouses nationwide to shorten the delivery to the customer. eBay is WAY more distributed than Amazon (millions of households in the US), but eBay can’t control the process (we aren’t employees).
The big item I heard on eBay Radio was that eBay sales fall off in December around the 15th-17th. That rings true from what we have seen in past years. They stated that eBay sales fall off well before other platforms do in December. This is all a plan now to get those sales back and bring shoppers to eBay to get that better experience (I can get it when I want it).
I have to believe that they have done the math on this to get it right, they just need us to do our part. Since you guys (as well as many of us here) treat this as a business, offer professional service and quick shipping, we will not be affected. And sellers who don’t opt-in or who don’t ship as fast will be naturally weeded out by their filter.
Very good points, and I agree. Personally, if I was programming, when I was displaying the filter for each day of delivery (1, 2, or 3), I would show the Expected Date that the package will arrive. That would avoid confusion. Want this on 3/31 (not 2 days or 3 days, but on 3/31). Filter by the DATE. I think they could and should (right now when you shop for items, it shows the expected delivery date – “Estimated on or before xx/xx/xx”).
BethGreen, I have had the same thought as well. The question will be on eBay’s calculation, and it will be on them to get this right, not you.
First, on the math, eBay will have to define “3-day” to buyers, as well as their programmers. My guess would be that the clock will have to include a “handling” day, plus 3 day’s for delivery, for a total of 4. But that is just my guess. I say that because even with Priority, there are parts of the country that take 3 days for delivery. So eBay either has to include the first day as Handling for a total of 4 to make sure that more items are shown to the buyer. Otherwise, eBay will truly mean 3 day’s total, so 1 day of Handling and 2 days for delivery, and they will filter the options to the buyer based on that information.
In the end, this is a filter that eBay is using to enhance the shopping experience of the buyer. There may be a vast majority of buyers that won’t care when it arrives, unless it is for a business need or a gift that has to arrive by a certain date. And there is no risk to you, as long as you meet your handling time. At worst, if your items are not shown to buyers because the delivery time is that important to them, and you can’t get your items to them in that time (with or without this guarantee), then that is a sale you really didn’t want to get involved with anyway.
Hey Jay. I agree on the lack of written info from eBay on this. We heard about this on the eBay Radio podcasts last week. They have had eBay personnel talking about this and providing more detail, but as it is still early, I think they are still getting the “Official” policies nailed down. The official page eBay Guaranteed Delivery will be where the details and the rollout will be distributed, and the opt-in is supposed to be in July.
I feel that just behind the Spring Seller Update, they wanted to get the buzz going on this, and then have the time to get the official policy in July (also around “eBay Open” in Vegas at the end of July).
There may be minor tweaks, but the basic framework is this:
The buyer will now have a way to filter their search results by a guaranteed delivery time (1, 2, or 3 day). There are two options for the program: Handling Time and End-to-End. End-to-End means that as the seller, you guarantee the delivery date and will pay for late shipments in all cases (eBay is not at risk in any way). This would be for the larger companies that can control the process.
Most of us would be in the Handling Time option. Each item’s delivery time will be calculated by eBay based on the seller’s handling time and each offered shipping solution (First Class, Priority, etc.), and the distance from the buyer to the seller. Regarding who pays if it is late, the Handling Time option would be that as long as the seller had the label printed within their stated handling time (and a follow up scan from the carrier), then eBay would pay the buyer the shipping cost if it is late (so eBay is taking on that financial risk of the USPS / FedEx not doing their side). The buyer would be reimbursed their shipping cost if it is late, or given a $5 coupon if there was “Free Shipping”. The seller’s only risk is to ship on time, and get a scan (which is why we started using the Bulk Shipping option and printing a Scan Sheet for our Postal Carrier during Package Pickup at our house). If the seller doesn’t make their handling time, they have to pay. If they make their handling time, eBay pays.
I think you are right, there are some “devil in the details” on this, but eBay is doing this to compete with Amazon, and mostly on the PR side. eBay reps have stated numerous times that 67% of all domestic packages shipped through eBay are delivered in 3 days anyway, but the public perception is that buying on eBay, people don’t ship on time.
My largest question will be on the First Class shipping, since we ship so many items that way, but First Class now shows on our shipping options as 2-3 days, and that matches what we have seen, so should be no issue on our items being shown and making their delivery times.
I would highly encourage everyone to listen to the eBay Radio podcasts from last week. They have done a really good job of laying out verbally what they plans are. Details will still be important, but the basic plan is one that will help everyone, buyers and sellers.
Jay & Ryanne: I just heard the podcast and your questions on Guaranteed Delivery. I have listened to the eBay Radio podcast, and they have gone in depth on how it will work. Sellers can opt in (at the item level) and sign-ups to opt in will begin in July.
Basically, it will be another way that buyers can filter their search. Right now, sellers can filter their search results by highest price, lowest price, best match, etc. There will now be another drop-down filter by “Guaranteed Delivery Date”. It will allow buyers to filter by 1, 2, and 3 day delivery. The delivery date will be based on the seller’s handling time, and the calculated delivery time for each shipping option you put on the listing (First Class, Priority, Parcel, etc).
So, for us in Colorado, if a buyer in Maine is looking for one of our shirts, and they filter by “Guaranteed 3 Day”, we will show up in their search, since we have a Priority option (and at our Priority Price). The First Class option won’t get it there, but since we put the Priority option on the listing, and we have 1-day handling, it will still be in their search.
Regarding the Guaranteed Delivery: From what I have heard on the eBay Radio podcast in the last week, if you are in the “Handling” program”, meaning you guarantee to meet your handling deadlines that you set (ship and have a USPS scan in your stated deadlines), eBay will pay the buyer if delivery deadlines are not met. For us, this is a no brainer, as we ship 6 (and now 7) days a week, so all we need is the scan by USPS (which we get via the Scan Sheet now).
End of the day, the Guaranteed Delivery is a good thing. It is promoting to the world that we, as professional eBay businesses, can ship as good as Amazon (which is what is driving this). If you have a 1-day handling, meet that and get a USPS scan, there is no risk to us (eBay is absorbing the risk on the USPS side, so how great is that), and eBay is paying for the advertising to state to the world that eBay is reliable (like Amazon).
There is still some fear out there (like all change), but if we meet our stated handling deadlines and get a Scan from USPS, eBay covers the rest of the risk. We like it!
Haven’t listened to this week’s episode yet, I do that on Monday’s while doing photos. Here are our numbers for the week:
Week of 3/19-3/25
Total Items in Store: 1,491
Items Sold: 78
Number of Items Listed This Week: 102
Total Sales: $2,065.55
Cost of Items Sold: $562.37
Highest Item Sold: $200 – Pair of Prada Shoes from a Phoenix sourcing trip (Troy wins this week!)Sales are still solid and continue to hold. We continue to see that making sure we are listing new items each day seems to help drive consistent sales.
We just did make our goal of listing at least 100 items per week. I will be out another two days this upcoming week doing some consulting, so my focus will be on getting a few listings done early each day, spend two full days of nothing but prep and photos, then two days of sourcing.
Veronica is getting bummed, as we keep having crappy weather on the weekends, and she has yet to do some serious garage picking! She did pretty well this weekend at the thrift stores, so she will just focus on her items, while I refill the clothing pipeline.
Got an update from eBay on our “Puerto Rico is International” problem. Looks like 5 other people have contacted eBay with the same issue. They called me on Saturday morning (15 minutes before the thrift store was opening!) to tell me they see the problem, others are complaining too, and they are planning to give me a solution or a work around in the next day or so. We hope…
Last, Veronica found this shirt while shopping this weekend. I wonder what it sold for…?
In regards to the Samsung Smart Watch — If you sold it as New and Sealed, and he opens it and works on it, and then wants a return, wouldn’t eBay side with you that he has altered the item and can’t return it? I have had this with clothes, where a buyer claimed that there was an mark on a shirt that I didn’t mention, said he washed it and it didn’t come out, and then wanted to return it. (I checked my photos and I couldn’t see the mark he was claiming). I contacted eBay and they said that since he washed it, it was now altered and they denied his return. Would that also apply in this case? It might be worth a call to eBay for their take on this.
Customer satisfaction should always be our goal, but he should also realize that if he takes your item that is new and sealed in box, and now returns something you have to sell as used, you are taking a hit as well.
Agree. Dave Ramsey and Robert Kiyosaki (Rich Dad, Poor Dad) are the best place to start. Keep the expenses low, work hard in the short term, have patience in the long game. Keep a measure of how much you profit per item sold, and how much time it takes per listing (shopping, prep, photo, photo edit, listing, and shipping). That gives your profit per hour. Then how many hours are you willing to work per week. That gives your average weekly income. Forecast your projected listings per week, your sell through rate per month, and you have a good idea of what you will make in the future.
Remember, if you don’t measure it, you can’t improve upon it.
In the end don’t just speculate about it…do it. Match your life (that you want) to what you do. At first, don’t be “fancy”. Work hard, and “live like no one else, so later, you can live like no one else.”
I get it about having 4 kids. We have 2 boys, and they were a Junior and a Freshman in high school when we made the plunge. Check your numbers, look at the lifestyle, and see if you have the discipline and work ethic to make the switch, as well as backup cash for slow months and numbers coming in slower than expected.
It isn’t easy, but the freedom is worth it if you can do it.
Completely agree Jo. When I did the numbers to see what it would take for us to do this full time, one thing I took into account was our “burn rate”, as in how much cash we spend each month. Then we looked to trim that down to match what we can bring in. Land line phone? Gone – Cell phones, which are also a business expense. Cable? Gone – Apple TV and Netflix. Dining out? Once in a while, as a treat, or during a business meeting with my wife and partner, so a 50% tax deduction.
Treat your life as you do your scavenging. We try to get all the trips needed for the day in one trip. FedEx package to drop off? Then hit the grocery store that is right next door. You are charging your miles on taxes for the dropoff, so get that personal trip in as well. Traveling to visit the parents? Hit that thrift store next door, get a 2-for-1.
We make our own wine. $3-$5 a bottle for good wine. So you can have luxuries too, just look to trim the fat. And when we need bottles for the wine? Ask friends and neighbors to bring you their empties. Get boxes and bubble wrap from office buildings. Use your cashback card on as many purchases as possible. Refinance from a 30 year to a 15 year mortgage (may be higher monthly, but you get your house faster and WAAAY cheaper).
Don’t take it so far that you feel like you are constantly depriving yourself. If you do, or if your partner does, then it isn’t sustainable. But trim the fat. It is very doable, just takes finding that spot to do it.
Also, when you are taking the plunge, save at least 6-12 months of burn rate before you do. We did that, and it makes life much less scary when you do it.
As we now officially started posting on the Scavenger Life blog (Troy & Veronica in Colorado), we will also plan to start showing our numbers. We have been doing this full time for about two years now.
Week of 3/12-3/18
Total Items in Store: 1,444
Items Sold: 71 (includes 1 Bonanza)
Total Sales: $1,761.82
Cost of Items Sold: $352.87
Highest Item Sold: $60 – Tom Ford Black Orchid Perfume (Veronica wins this week!)
Number of Items Listed This Week: 116Sales have been solid for us again this week. We always seem to do well this time of year. In fact, for some reason, February has always been our biggest month. Last year, our February was our strongest month ever, at $9,075 in Sales.
We will continue to work hard at our goal of listing at least 100 items per week. I will be out for two days working on an accounting consulting job, but I still have mornings and nights to try and keep the listing pipeline filled. I like to keep a pipeline of Men’s Clothing that have photos and the listing info ready to go, so that either one of us can list at any time (or anywhere – we listed from Panama for a month last summer).
Veronica loves the estate sale / yard sale items, and that season really hasn’t hit full swing yet, so I continue to fill the pipeline with clothes to keep us with a base of sales and cash coming in and if she gets low on her listings, she can list clothes to fill the gap. All about teamwork!
To Erik: I know, right! That is why it was so crazy that for my shipments to Puerto Rico, suddenly it is International. We have done this for so long, when we first got the message from the buyer that “we don’t ship to Puerto Rico”, I was really confused. It wasn’t until I was resending the invoice that I noticed that the shipping was saying International.
I’m sure that it is a bug related to the automatic note for International Shipping. That, or something on our account only.
I would love to ask Trash Elf Nation: How many of you use the automatic note for International Shipping? And if you do, have you had any trouble shipping to Puerto Rico (or any other Territory). I would love to help the eBay tech side know what is causing the issue.
