First class mail international

[ivancaicedo237]

I have been beating Ebay and paypal over the First Class Mail not being offered for international shipments.

I asked USPS and got the following honest answer(for once in my life).

Geoffrey :  These services may be added on in the future, however shipping methods such as First Class, Media Mail and Parcel Post are based solely on weight and destination. As most consumers do not have scales to enter in weight accurately, packages with insufficient postage would be returned. Once a resolution has been reached for this the services should be available

[surplusdealdude]

Well, that's a nice non-answer.

The same cn be said for all of the other USPS services, yet Paypal offers those.

The truth is that there's no commission for paypal available because USPS has cut those pries to the bone.  I wouldn't hold your breath waiting for paypal to add them.

You can get better prices on a subscribed service like Endicia and possibly the new ebay app, Auctane.

http://www.auctane.net/RateCalculator.aspx

[nordstrom5]

Hi,  I'm new to International shipping, let me see if I have this straight.  When sending the ebay invoice, there is an option for International First Class.  The buyer selects this service.  Then when I go to ship via Paypal, I can only choose International Priority Mail or International Express mail.  Is this the problem?  I guess I will have to ship via my USPS account?  Thanks. Chuck

[surplusdealdude]

Yes, use the USPS account - that's what I do.

[G_Howl]

IF THERE ARE ANY eBAY OR PAYPAL PEOPLE LISTENING..HEAR THIS: I have used Endicia for years and your shipping labels/postage is klutzy compared to theirs, but there is some built-in convenience in using PayPal for eBay shipping. I would convert to using PayPal if you provided 2 simple services - 1st Class International package poatage  AND 3rd party insurance.

It is said you don't provide 1st Class International postage because you don't make any money on selling it. Well I can tell you first hand you are losing a lot on the other classes of postage you would sell if you you were a FULL SERVICE PROVIDER, but I don't convert because I sell a significant amount internationally and I cannot be competitive if I can't offer 1st Class International shipping on shipments under 4 pounds.

Second, part of being a FULL SERVICE PROVIDER is offering 3rd party insurance. I don't buy enough shipping insurance  to get my own account with a 3rd party shipping insurance company because of their minimum monthly requirements and because I chose to self-insure most of my low priced items. But, I always insure all my international shipment over valued more than $25. USPS doesn't offer any international shipping insurance except on Express Mail and Endicia offers international insurance on any class mail for $2.15 per $100  on any international class mail. I insure domestic shipments over $25 if they are fragile and everything over $75, but USPS rates are extremely non-competitive compared to 3rd party insurance. Endicia offers domestic insurance for $0.75 per $100. 

As klutzy as the PayPal shipping application is, I use it occasionally for convenience, but you are missing a lot of revenue because YOU ARE NOT A FULL SERVICE PROVIDER. It doesn't make a lot of business sense to me that you would choose to ignore a lot of profitable business because you don't offer a couple of basic services even if they are no-profit or low-profit.

Thank you and I'll step down from my soap box now.

G_Howl

[surplusdealdude]

First of all, ebay and paypal people generally don't read the threads.

However, i agree with you and I've made complaints to ebay on your behalf, when I an sure they will be ignored.

[sam_n]

Ebay heard you and they now provide third party insurance : http://pages.ebay.com/sellerinformation/news/shippinginsurancelabels.html

What else is on your wishlist ? LOL

[surplusdealdude]

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@sam_n wrote:

Ebay heard you and they now provide third party insurance : http://pages.ebay.com/sellerinformation/news/shippinginsurancelabels.html

What else is on your wishlist ? LOL

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I'm pretty sure ebay didn't do this as a result of that thread - it takes them months to decide what to order for lunch!

[G_Howl]

That is the most BS answer I have heard in a long time. It's as honest as trying to pass a $3 bill. I could invent double-speak better than saying some people might not have scales and packages would be returned for not enough postage. I ship a lot and 80% of it has to have scales - 1st Class Parcel, Parcel Post, Media Mail, Non-Flat Rate Priority Mail. PayPal sells postage for all of them. Any serious seller has to have scales. It not a major investment. I've been doing this for 10 years and the first 3 or 4 years I got by with a $20 scale that had a max of 10 pounds. If I couldn't weight it I took it to the Post Office and paid for the postage there. Geezee, give me a break - what a crock!

[surplusdealdude]

Meanwhile, in the 2 ENTIRE posts you've made on these forums, you have offered no siolutions, just criticism and rants.

So STFU.