FBM - Where to buy Shipping?
Hello,
I’ve recently took the dive to start selling on Amazon. I prefer to do the FBM method. My biggest pain point has to do with shipping!
- Spark Note version *
Who do you all prefer to use for shipping? USPS, FedEx, or UPS?
What company do you use if any to purchase your shipping? Or do you only buy shipping thru AMZN?
How do you go about obtaining boxes for Shipping? Ex: Flate rate boxes are free, however shipping with ups boxes are an extra charge.
- Full Thoughts / Thread *
What I’m running into is that I am finding profitable items until shipping is factored in. It either wipes the profit completely or brings it down to 5% wins when I want to average 25-35%. Depending on the item of course.
Most of what I ship now fits in a medium flat rate box via USPS. Approx pricing from Amazon is only about 1 dollar less than shipping with USPS.
So now I use a platform called Shippo… however shippo was better but now is only a matter of a few cents off of just buying the labels from Amazon.
Any help would be appreciated, it seems like all these courses, guides, or YouTube videos also seem to hold out on this information which leads me to believe they don’t even know or see the money they portray to have.
FBM - Where to buy Shipping?
Hello,
I’ve recently took the dive to start selling on Amazon. I prefer to do the FBM method. My biggest pain point has to do with shipping!
- Spark Note version *
Who do you all prefer to use for shipping? USPS, FedEx, or UPS?
What company do you use if any to purchase your shipping? Or do you only buy shipping thru AMZN?
How do you go about obtaining boxes for Shipping? Ex: Flate rate boxes are free, however shipping with ups boxes are an extra charge.
- Full Thoughts / Thread *
What I’m running into is that I am finding profitable items until shipping is factored in. It either wipes the profit completely or brings it down to 5% wins when I want to average 25-35%. Depending on the item of course.
Most of what I ship now fits in a medium flat rate box via USPS. Approx pricing from Amazon is only about 1 dollar less than shipping with USPS.
So now I use a platform called Shippo… however shippo was better but now is only a matter of a few cents off of just buying the labels from Amazon.
Any help would be appreciated, it seems like all these courses, guides, or YouTube videos also seem to hold out on this information which leads me to believe they don’t even know or see the money they portray to have.
Seller_G3tKlxqw9EUfb
As @Its_all_Nuts eluded, you should stop using Shippo immediately so that you can win INR complaints, especially during the holidays. You definitely want to start using Amazon shipping.
The carrier to use is then very simple: You figure out which is the cheapest, given your costs of packaging.
If USPS Priority: Be sure to order their free boxes from USPS. com. They have a much larger selection and can be much cheaper than the flat rate boxes available at the Post Office. Also pick up their bag-like envelopes and bubble-wrap envelopes, as these can save you a lot of money on shipping (depending upon what you sell).
If UPS: Realize that UPS regularly adds on extra charges because they found your package to weigh that extra half ounce more than a pound or whatever else they dream up.
Whatever you do, be very careful with how you source your boxes. For example, boxes sold at Walmart (under another brand name) have little tiny print that says Walmart on the bottom that can apparently get you suspended under the terms of Amazon’s Drop Shipping Policy.
Agreed, 5% is not enough. You have to expect a high rate of returns on this platform, many of which may be fraudulent or otherwise not able to be resold. Just one unreimbursed return would wipe out the profit in 19 similar sales, and that is before you pay for the shipping both ways!
One final note, If you are doing arbitrage then you are playing with fire. New Sellers get suspended for Counterfeit and IP complaints all the time because they did not realize that brand holders would come after them for re-selling their products.
Good Luck!
0 Antworten
Seller_fsNHBXJZNVJpE
If you do not buy shipping on Amazon, you have NO protections once buyers claim INR. The rest is something you have to figure out on your own, as you are the only one that has all the details needed to make choices.
Seller_fHjAa0UZgf8N8
Selling on Amazon - buying Shipping on Amazon
I choose whatever carrier is cheapest for fastest delivery - I set my own shipping templates being a professional seller.
I buy boxes and poly mailers from a seller like Uline.
Seller_G3tKlxqw9EUfb
As @Its_all_Nuts eluded, you should stop using Shippo immediately so that you can win INR complaints, especially during the holidays. You definitely want to start using Amazon shipping.
The carrier to use is then very simple: You figure out which is the cheapest, given your costs of packaging.
If USPS Priority: Be sure to order their free boxes from USPS. com. They have a much larger selection and can be much cheaper than the flat rate boxes available at the Post Office. Also pick up their bag-like envelopes and bubble-wrap envelopes, as these can save you a lot of money on shipping (depending upon what you sell).
If UPS: Realize that UPS regularly adds on extra charges because they found your package to weigh that extra half ounce more than a pound or whatever else they dream up.
Whatever you do, be very careful with how you source your boxes. For example, boxes sold at Walmart (under another brand name) have little tiny print that says Walmart on the bottom that can apparently get you suspended under the terms of Amazon’s Drop Shipping Policy.
Agreed, 5% is not enough. You have to expect a high rate of returns on this platform, many of which may be fraudulent or otherwise not able to be resold. Just one unreimbursed return would wipe out the profit in 19 similar sales, and that is before you pay for the shipping both ways!
One final note, If you are doing arbitrage then you are playing with fire. New Sellers get suspended for Counterfeit and IP complaints all the time because they did not realize that brand holders would come after them for re-selling their products.
Good Luck!
Seller_NxQTyL4zOqAYv
Ok…deep breath…
USPS 1st class package for domestic under 15.9 ounces and items that are not breakable (because you can’t have much packaging to stay under 15.9 ounces. I use this for leather and cloth items and other small, light unbreakable items that can ship in a poly bag. Poly bags are extremely light and very durable. In general it will deliver anywhere in the states in 2-4 business days.
USPS 1st class international can go up to 4lbs. All other info is pretty much the same.
For items in between 1-3lbs it gets tricky. depending on size, weight, and distance sometimes you are better off with USPS, sometimes UPS. I know some people use FedEx also. I’d rather drink draino and set myself on fire than use FedEX because of past experiences with them. Flat rates will save you money on really heavy stuff going long distance.
Boxes are expensive. We use Uline for our boxes. They are not always the most inexpensive but they are extremely reliable which is often better than cheap. I also keep an eye on local classifieds for boxes and fairly often run across freebies in a size I can use.
Lessons I’ve learned, and I’ve been around awhile. My business has been doing mail order since before there was internet. If selling on these venues, or anyplace else that takes a slice of your pie. 25-35% is not enough margin (at least for me) to bring a product to market. When I consider any new product…1)manufacturing cost if I’m manufacturing it. Cost to purchase if I’m not. 2) Cost to package. (retail and shipping) Many times this will kill a potential product for selling online. 3)Cost of returns and refunds. Some products will inherently have higher return and fraud rates. This must be considered and added into your cost or it will eat alive. especially here on Amazon. Ex: This is not a made up number…I sell 5 venues and 2 websites currently. If I take my returns from all other venues and combine them, my returns on Amazon alone are over 20,000 % more. This is because Amazon IMO, not only allows buyers to defraud sellers, their policy encourages it.
Insurance and where to buy it and or your postage. This is one you will have to sort out by crunching the numbers for your experience. We buy all our Amazon shipping through Amazon because everything we list here ships USPS 1st class with rare exception and Amazon’s coverage for INR’s is much better than USPS insurance. It is easier and faster to deal with and since Amazon encourages buyers to abuse the return system it is only fair that they should have to pay all the INR claims IMO.
For off Amazon and larger items I use Shipstation. Since my claims of INR and any other return or refund reason on all other venues are virtually non existent, some I insure through the carrier and many I don’t insure at all and just cover myself.
Seller_olet7eVOHxQZd
Give up Shippo. You can either use Amazon’s Buy Shipping or Amazon’s Veeqo. If Buy Shipping does not offer a discount to get a lower UPS, then we use Veeqo. Veeqo offers better Priority Mail pricing than AZ Buy Shipping. We have attached our UPS account that matches Amazon’s shared UPS rates.
Seller_nRFmxiQg4EGrw
At least you’ve figured this part out!
Running an Amazon business takes time and work. Making YouTube videos takes time and work. If they were succeeding on Amazon, they wouldn’t have time to make YouTube videos (at least not ones that look good).
I suspect that many of these “gurus” make more money off of YouTube ad revenue than they ever did selling on Amazon. Doesn’t matter to them if their info is even correct, as long as they get the views.
Seller_R2dP7Hunjcdj0
First of all, ALWAYS purchase postage using “Amazon Buy Shipping” to protect you from INR claims, real or false.
ALWAYS!
Then, it is your choice as to which method to ship with. Under 1 pound makes it an easy decision for USPS First Class. Over 1 pound and it is between Priority and Parcel Select. Know that IF you use Parcel Select AND the package is refused or is unable to be delivered, YOU will be responsible for Return Postage on the package.
You will see that often the UPS GROUND option appears to be the cheapest (Amazon Discount), HOWEVER, using USPS allows for “Delivery Confirmation” which is cheaper than “Signature Requirement” Confirmation, and UPS does not offer “Delivery Confirmation”. It is POSSIBLE that Amazon would still honor an INR Claim for a package shipped via UPS without a Signature Requirement for Delivery… But it is possible that Amazon will deny your A-Z Appeal if you did NOT pay for a Delivery Confirmation of some sort. It is a difficult decision on what product you want to gamble on giving away for free if you guess wrong…
You will find that larger, heavier packages are not affordable to ship via USPS, and UPS / FedEx will than be your cheapest option.
There are a few occasions where the difference between USPS Priority and UPS Ground is only a couple of dollars, but the Delivery Date is MUCH later for UPS. In most of these circumstances I pay the extra couple of bucks to get the product to the Buyer FASTER, in hopes of making them a Happy Buyer. But that is just me.
Finally, a few things to remember:
Always use the correct box dimensions and package weight when purchasing Postage to avoid “Adjustments” to your account later.
Always INSURE your package by listing the dollar amount of the package (including shipping) into the appropriate box on the Buy Shipping page. This not only covers you for Loss & Damage In-Transit, but is also something Amazon considers when deciding an A-Z Claim for INR.
Follow these guidelines for the minimal amount of stress that shipping on Amazon can deliver…
When the package arrives and the condition it arrives in is a BIG part of how the Buyer is going to judge the transaction. Take the effort to do it right and be rewarded in the long-term.
Good Luck!
Seller_6XSiPqg4VTwhh
Absolutely buy shipping through Amazon. It will choose the cheapest way of shipping (fed ex, usps, ups) and the labels are easy to print. We also have a stamps.com account to use when Amazon shipping doesn’t ship to an area. We use valuemailers.com for pretty much everything box or bagwise. Be careful in reusing old boxes to get rid of ebay tape or other things that don’t identify as your store mailing them. We use cubic when items are small, but heavy enough to be priority.
Seller_ro9xkiwwY4zne
True. So the fact that you’re watching them and may be getting your leads or ideas from them, makes me a little nervous.
Finding where, if I may ask? Not specifically, but in general, where are you sourcing?
