Speaking of post office shops.... About two weeks ago, I applied for one that's very close to me. I didn't get it, but applied as a back-up. Went on to apply for another one, which I got. In all the years I've been doing P.O. shops, I've never ended up getting a shop on a back-up application. They fly off the board, never to return. So, now my schedule is filled for the week. Lo and behold -- this morning I get the assignment I originally wanted, and it's due this coming week. I'm assuming the first shopper either cancelled or had the shop rejected. The two are at opposite ends of my area, so it's not convenient to do them one right after another. I'm going to just have to squeeze it in somewhere, but I really don't need another shop for this week. Because of the way they're staggering these out, it's just about impossible to make a route of them, especially given how spread out the locations are in my county.

I should've cancelled my app for the first one, but I didn't want to do that until I'd found out if I got the second one. Of course, by the time I got the assignment on the second one, I forgot to cancel my back-up app on the other.

I have a lot of stuff up on eBay right now and could use the shops to offset my "free shipping" terms, but I'm not selling them at a very good clip, so may not have two sales to ship this week.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/25/2020 03:29PM by BirdyC.

Wow. I have never applied for back up shopper; now I never will.

I never have either. The last thing I want is to get myself fully scheduled and have some forgotten shop come back and bite me in the a@@.

Email your scheduler and explain. It's possible she might move it to the following week.

@BirdyC wrote:

Speaking of post office shops.... About two weeks ago, I applied for one that that's very close to me. I didn't get it, but applied as a back-up. Went on to apply for another one, which I got. In all the years I've been doing P.O. shops, I've never ended up getting a shop on a back-up application. They fly off the board, never to return. So, now my schedule is filled for the week. Lo and behold -- this morning I get the assignment I originally wanted, and it's due this coming week. I'm assuming the first shopper either cancelled or had the shop rejected. The two are at opposite ends of my area, so it's not convenient to do them one right after another. I'm going to just have to squeeze it in somewhere, but I really don't need another shop for this week. Because of the way they're staggering these out, it's just about impossible to make a route of them, especially given how spread out the locations are in my county.

I should've cancelled my app for the first one, but I didn't want to do that until I'd found out if I got the second one. Of course, by the time I got the assignment on the second one, I forgot to cancel my back-up app on the other.

I have a lot of stuff up on eBay right now and could use the shops to offset my "free shipping" terms, but I'm not selling them at a very good clip, so may not have two sales to ship this week.

Thanks for the reminder to check on my applications on the website. They're still there. I'm lucky to live in a suburban area that has a lot of locations, and only apply for those close to my house. That way if they surprise me at the last minute I can still handle the shop.

Check your notifications.... mine got turned off and not by me.

Maybe you could answer a question for me as an Ebay seller. I just started with 2 items. I have a buyer for one. Ebay has charged a $17.61 shipping and handling fee for this item. This is by USPS Priority. There is a drop down box for shipping options and I tried several to see if I could get the shipping lower. No matter what I selected the cost remained the same. Does the buyer always pay shipping? I know that Ebay charges a final value fee based on the amount the item sells for. Would this be included in their shipping & handling? Thank you. I have many more items to put on Ebay to sell as they don't seem to be selling on Poshmark. They are clothes and accessories from my Red Hat days. I left the Red Hat society a year ago and have all this stuff to sell. Thank you.

@Clamchatter wrote:

Maybe you could answer a question for me as an Ebay seller. I just started with 2 items. I have a buyer for one. Ebay has charged a $17.61 shipping and handling fee for this item. This is by USPS Priority. There is a drop down box for shipping options and I tried several to see if I could get the shipping lower. No matter what I selected the cost remained the same. Does the buyer always pay shipping? I know that Ebay charges a final value fee based on the amount the item sells for. Would this be included in their shipping & handling? Thank you. I have many more items to put on Ebay to sell as they don't seem to be selling on Poshmark. They are clothes and accessories from my Red Hat days. I left the Red Hat society a year ago and have all this stuff to sell. Thank you.

I'm not 100% sure I understand the question. Was priority the only shipping method you specified? Are you offering free shipping? If you're offering free shipping, you can ship any way you want (within postal guidelines). If the buyer is paying shipping, you can choose to offer different methods, and the buyer can choose which of these he/she wants. Did your buyer select Priority Mail? Sometimes Priority is about the same as "Package Services/Retail Ground (the old parcel post), so it often doesn't pay to ship that way. The shipping costs are based on your input of size and weight. eBay gives shipping discounts to sellers, so the price you see on eBay is typically less than what you'd get at the post office.

Ebay isn't charging the postage; they're calculating it and you're charging it to the buyer, or you're paying it yourself. And, sadly, yes; the 10% final value fee is on the shipping and handling. Which I think is unconscionable, but there you have it. If you charge a fair price to ship, you lose money on shipping. If you pad your shipping cost to cover the extra fee, either buyers gripe or eBay yells at you.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/25/2020 07:21PM by BirdyC.

Clam batter... Go find an eBay Fb help group.... tons of them More specific to Etsy exactly. They will help you step by step from the Etsy website.

Thank you for the reply. I didn't select a shipping option nor did I select the size of the box the item will be shipped in. Ebay did that. I saw the invoice that Ebay did and this is what was selected by them. When I posted the item I didn't mention who would pay shipping so I am waiting now for the buyer to get back to me to see if this person wants me to pay the shipping or this person will. I will check out Ebay Facebook groups so I can become more informed as I have lots and lots and lots of Red Hat stuff to get rid of and Ebay seems the only way to go. Thank you again.

@Clamchatter wrote:

Thank you for the reply. I didn't select a shipping option nor did I select the size of the box the item will be shipped in. Ebay did that. I saw the invoice that Ebay did and this is what was selected by them. When I posted the item I didn't mention who would pay shipping so I am waiting now for the buyer to get back to me to see if this person wants me to pay the shipping or this person will. I will check out Ebay Facebook groups so I can become more informed as I have lots and lots and lots of Red Hat stuff to get rid of and Ebay seems the only way to go. Thank you again.

For a new seller on ebay, join this facebook group:
"Learn to sell on ebay"
[www.facebook.com]

That’s funny, on Thursday I picked up 3 USPS shops as a backup shopper, which is also my first time (for getting post office backup). There was a $5 bonus for each, whee! Maybe there is more pressure to close those shops than usual?

I forgot who does the USPS shops but no matter I'm fairly sure I am no longer interested in them.

ok.............. so?????

@2stepps wrote:

I forgot who does the USPS shops but no matter I'm fairly sure I am no longer interested in them.