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 Replies: 11 / Views: 1,453 |
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Valued Member
United States
60 Posts |
I see a lot of small one to three dollar coin sales on ebay with the seller giving free shipping? How do sellers make any money this way as shipping things first class costs 3 dollars to start with and maybe I am wrong but aren't quarters and other coins too heavy to mail in an envelop with the 2x2 around it and maybe a small piece of cardboard for protection? |
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Valued Member
United States
467 Posts |
In the past the majority of the time I bought a $1-$3 item on ebay (example, a particular year BU nickel or quarter, etc.) the seller usually thew it in regular envelope under 1 oz with a forever stamp. They took their chances on not tracking. I am honest so it paid off for them with me. Edit: they always made it through under the weight, but more often than not they were in a flip at best and sometimes just folded up in a piece of paper. Edited by crazyglue
09/23/2017 11:37 am
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New Member
35 Posts |
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
17884 Posts |
And in some cases they are taking the loss in order to build up a high feedback score (or to repair an injured one) in order to use it as a confidence crutch when they start selling higher value items. Would you buy a high value item from someone with very low or no feedback and a record of few sales? Make a bunch of low value sales, get a 100% or close feedback with a lot of sales, then move to higher values. People see your numbers and feel reassured.
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Valued Member
 United States
60 Posts |
That makes sense....just curious as it didnt seem to make any sense before, taking a loss on a sale. But the feedback thing would be a good reason. As for the shipped in envelope with Forever Stamp, that one sounds too dangerous. Unlike the poster above, there are too many dis-honest folks that will say they never received the item or the envelope was damaged and get their money back..
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Pillar of the Community
 United States
2843 Posts |
Way back when I first started selling on ebay, I put all the coins in envelopes with some cardboard and a $.70 (IIRC)stamp. The additional postage is for non-machinables. That worked for me and I never had any cheaters. Way I figure, most people are not going to cheat for a $1-$5 purchase. Especially if they realize that bringing that to an LCS to liquidate it, would probably net them more like $.50--$1.50. I would still do that, but in order to be top-rated, it is my understanding that you must upload tracking. As a result I sell fewer low price items, and everything has $2.60 shipping tacked on. |
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CCF Advertiser
United States
1533 Posts |
Quote:
As for the shipped in envelope with Forever Stamp, that one sounds too dangerous. Unlike the poster above, there are too many dis-honest folks that will say they never received the item or the envelope was damaged and get their money back.. No, there really aren't. I've been sending cards, currency, and small coins through the mail for a stamp for years. I've had only 2-3 cases where they claim it never arrived and one of them got it a week later, damaged by the Post Office and sent me a picture. I do not ship items less than $10 with tracking and am willing to self insure for the very small number of negative incidents. Edited by Andrew99
09/25/2017 11:35 am
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Moderator
 United States
188213 Posts |
I agree with Conder101.
Many of these low value sales are like loss leaders for the seller. Even when you do not buy them, they get you looking at their stuff.
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
17884 Posts |
Quote:
Unlike the poster above, there are too many dis-honest folks that will say they never received the item or the envelope was damaged and get their money back. While there are some dishonest people out there, MOST people are actually honest and people that just send out low value items in just an envelope with a stamp tend to have relatively few problems. Reading forums may make you think that getting ripped off happens all the time, but in general it is because only the bad transactions that get discussed online, not the thousands of transactions that have no problems. It's like planes crashes, let one crash and it is widely reported. You never see a news reporter come on with a breaking story that "47,000 flights arrived safely at their destinations today with no problems reported." |
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Moderator
United States
23522 Posts |
It also must be noted that there are, in fact, people who spend so little time thinking about the world around them that they're either unaware or uncaring that their business model is unsupportable....
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Rest in Peace
10197 Posts |
 w/ Andrew, Quote:
I do not ship items less than $10 with tracking and am willing to self insure for the very small number of negative incidents. Now I do take into consideration weight, say 35 cent coins in a paper roll (  ), I do use small padded mailer 1st class w/tracking when under $10, just for safety factor, I'm a former rural mail carrier, I know the "games" played with small parcels in the mailrooms... One to four cent sized coins (2-nickels) in a flip, taped to 1/2 sheet of folded paper in a standard envelope goes $.49 1st class with rarely any trouble. Only time I witnessed any problems was a part-time sub steaming open recognizable "Birthday or Christmas Cards), ya know, those colored with fancy writing...and was removing the cash Grandma was sending her munchkins. First time I ever saw the Postal Dicks take someone away in handcuffs! Just make sure addresses don't contain any references to coins, (Joe's Cheep Coins, etc.) ESPECIALLY if shipping /mailing anything INTERNATIONAL! Edited by Crazyb0
09/25/2017 3:10 pm
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Moderator
United States
188213 Posts |
Quote:
Reading forums may make you think that getting ripped off happens all the time, but in general it is because only the bad transactions that get discussed online, not the thousands of transactions that have no problems This. Worth repeating.  |
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Replies: 11 / Views: 1,453 |
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Posted 09/23/2017 2:55 pm
