If you are new to eBay, getting your head around the shipping side of things can be very hard to do. If you are successful at selling your merchandise on eBay, you will likely be making more trips to your local post office than you ever have done before. If you understand the finer details on how to actually ship your listings to your customers, you will be able to avoid one of the biggest hiccups that new sellers have. So, here are the most important things that you need to know when selling and shipping on eBay.
So, Here’s What You Must Know
Envelopes and Boxes
You should take advantage of any free envelopes or boxes that you can get your hands on. If you have items that are heavy to ship, utilising free packaging can really help you to save money, allowing you to ship more products. Another great way to reduce costs is to hold onto any unmarked and unbranded boxes that you receive in the post, as they can come in extremely handy when it comes to shipping the items that you sell on eBay.
The Weight Of The Parcel
Before you put any item for sale on eBay, you should know how much it weighs. The weight of the item in question determines what shipping options are available to you, and how much you have to charge for the product to make up for this cost. There are plenty of shipping scales out there that will tell you how heavy your package is, and you can buy them from any major online retailer such as Amazon. The reason that you should know the weight is because heavier cargo needs different types of freight methods.
Box Dimensions
If you are selling items that are shaped a little more strangely, you will need a larger box to ensure it fits properly. If this is the case, you must know the exact dimensions of the box that you will be shipping it in. eBay has a brilliant shipping calculator tool, which lets you see how the dimensions of the box will affect the cost of your shipping. If you are unsure about this, your shipping courier’s website should hold the information that you need. Remember that oversized boxes are usually quite expensive to ship, regardless of item weight. This is because your box will take up more storage space.
Know The Destination
When shipping your product, especially if you are using sea freight services to ship overseas, you should know where your product is going. Having a little bit of knowledge of the area to which you are shipping can be very helpful when trying to understand the delivery times. A simple Google search of the local area to which you are shipping your item will tell you how far away the nearest warehouse is, and a good indicator of how long the item will take to deliver once it has arrived. This will also help you to avoid disputes from customers who think that their parcel is taking too long to get there.
