Shipping and Handling Charges?

Price the items to cover the 'handling' - bublewrap, etc. Those are all overhead.

From a customer standpoint I sorta expect the 'handling' part to be in the price of the item.

I as a consumer of items would rather have you build the extra expense of packing material into your price as part of your overhead. Some one with a storefront certainly wishes that there cost of business was as low as the internet people. Building the cost into your price allows you to say shipping at actual cost no handling fee and makes the buyer feel that they are buying at the best possible price.

I as a consumer of items would rather have you build the extra expense of packing material into your price as part of your overhead. Some one with a storefront certainly wishes that there cost of business was as low as the internet people. Building the cost into your price allows you to say shipping at actual cost no handling fee and makes the buyer feel that they are buying at the best possible price.

Hi Ruth

I would suggest that you include the handling cost into the price of your product, and you could give better prices for larger orders of the same products, it will encourage people ordering larger orders rather than more small or single orders.

and of course placing 20 doehickies in one box is a lot less work than filling 20 single orders.

Ruth I hope you will let all of us know when you will be able to start shipping those bottle stoppers and the pricing etc.

I have never made any bottle stoppers but I'm sure I would be able to make some people happy with them.

Have fun and take care Leo Van Der Loo

snipped-for-privacy@yahoo.com wrote:

I used to own a small business and did a lot of shipping. I, also, found it best to just build the handling cost and shipping materials into the item. But don't worry yourself sick about exact costs for each item. Take an honest look at your overall materials costs and time and then divide it by the number of items you can usually ship with that amount of materials and time. My off hand guess would be that $2-$3 is going to cover most small items and most people will not even notice that small of a price increase.

Check your box and supply source, too. We found we could order things like peanuts, bubble wrap and boxes from a wholesale paper distributor far cheaper than you can get them from stores.

Earl

Hi Ruth. Seems like all the responses so far are advising to just build it into the item cost and leave shipping as an exact line item. Well, I'm no different with the exception of putting some sort of blurb into your descriptions that there are no extra packaging or handling fees - something on the order of: "All items are carefully wrapped and cushioned against damage for the journey from my door to yours with no additional packaging or handling fees."

Well, you get the picture - let them know that a valuable service and expense is put into every order with no extra costs. Whenever you are going through additional steps beyond what is expected or customary let your customers know. Jeez, even when it is customary, let them know - the guys who don't promote these services are then perceived as more costly since it's implied they'll be charging - whether they do or not.

Mostly a me too. Add the buck to the item, quote actual shipping, then discount on five or more to compensate for the lower handling. I don't know as if I would go to advertising with misleading statements. You're not going to be selling a lot to people who believe in a free lunch.

======>Owen! For shame! Ruth's not that kind of gal*G* You're suggesting she stoop to false advertising?? Rather let the customer assume the cost of the packaging and handling is incorporated into the price and have her establish appropriate postage from the U.S. Postal Service, UPS, etc. If one must have a statement then let it be something to the effect that all shipments are carefully prepared and wrapped and leave it at that. Boy! I am going to have to really examine claims made by Oregon companies that ship their merchandise before ordering from them!!! 8^)

Leif

Leo,

Bottle stoppers are one of the easiest and fastest turnings that really impresses people. It took me years before I turned one only because I'd think "there isn't enough work in them to justify calling it woodturning"! Boy, was I wrong (again).

My new stainless steel bottle stoppers are available right now. I've been selling them for a few weeks and getting a lot of positive feedback from the turners. Go to my website (

) for the details, I'm a little hesitant to post them here without permission to do an "AD".

Thanks, Ruth

Well, it looks like everyone agrees. My thinking was going along this same track, just needed reassurance.

I have 2 very big pet peeves:

1. Why can't the USPS, who is so automated, have postage per ounce like the GOV'T requires of grocery stores? If you ship 1 lb. 1 oz., you pay for 2 lb.; that's 15 oz. you're paying for that you are NOT shipping. See how fast a grocery store would be shut down if they tried this with chicken!

1. An eBay seller who puts shipping and handling at, say .95, for an item you KNOW will be .75 (or something close) to ship and starts the bidding at .00. Even if I want this item, I refuse to bid or buy anything from that seller. (of course, it wouldn't be anything for turning anyway; all those sellers are sensible, right?!?)

Stepping down off my soap box and feeling a lot better for the little rant.

Ruth

snipped-for-privacy@yahoo.com wrote: snip

Ya don't spam the NG TOOOOOO much, I expect you can get a way with an occasional FS. %-)

Dave in Fairfax

Recall that eBay/PayPal don't want you to charge extra for PayPal (trust me, they complained to me about it when I did)

Build your costs into the price, people -hate- paying extra for shipping, I know I do

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A "shipping and handling" fee that reflects actual shipping and handling costs _can_ be OK. On the other hand, you can be less odious by building the "handling" cost into the individual item price, and then offering price breaks on volume which at least partly reflect the price break on packing materials for 12 items in one package rather than a single item in a package.

I personally cannot stand, and avoid doing business with, companies which very clearly have a "handling fee" with nothing to do with actual cost. Those are nothing more than "pure profit added to the deceptively low advertised price". If more profit is needed to keep the company afloat and pay the workers who handle the items, it should be built into the price in the first place.

IMHO, YMMV, etc

...so how does Chuck's "it's the government's fault" theory explain UPS and FedEx? It doesn't? Hmm. Could be a flaw in Chuck's theory...BTW Medicare has lower operating expenses than any other insurance company, last I recall things being pulled out for examination. But this is OT.

When using USPS, be aware of the "Flat Rate" Boxes and Envelopes. They put a little kink in the price curve when they fit your item and the weight/distance gets to about where a small box full of stainless steel stoppers might...

Hi Ruth,

FWIW, The long-standing concensus here has been that one blatant ad, every 2 weeks is an acceptable use of the newsgroup. It certainly couldn't be called "spamming."

And I agree, build it into the price.

I don't think there is a really GOOD way to handle (no pun intended) those expenses... The best that I've come up with, from being on the buying and selling end several times, is that Paypal is a way to get more sales, and I eat the cost of that... I try to figure out how much it costs to pack something, and take it to the post office if UPS isn't picking it up, because if I don't, I burn up profit unless I raise the item price or charge handling...

I hate the term "shipping and handling" and think most folks do... it doesn't say how much is handling and is usually a way to make a profit on handling, like a lot of the stuff on ebay..

I think for example, that on a small item, you state that the shipping will be whatever the actual charge to you is, add a $2 (or whatever it costs you) handling charge, state that it IS a handling charge, and mention that you care enough to make sure that your items are well wrapped, folks will go along with the charge... YMMV Mac

03 Tahoe Widelite 26GT Travel Trailer replaced 1958 Hilite tent trailer 99 Dodge Ram QQ 2wd - 5.9L, auto, 3:55 gears

Ah, that's an easy one. You answered your own question. "Why can't the USps...GOV'T..." I'll bet you can't name a single thing, under government auspices, that is done efficiently.

I hear you on this one. That irks me, too, and my response is the same as yours. I also make a point of stating on my own auctions that I don't have fake "handling" charges to jack up the price, and buyers pay only actual shipping costs. Sometimes I'll even go to the trouble of writing to the auctioner and asking them why it costs $12 to ship a baseball card or something like that, or why I can't pick my own shipping rate. Why on earth should I have to pay for Express Mail if I want a book shipped media rate or parcel post?

I guess that's why they call it "shopping!"

Probably because they contract their billing to civilian contractors. It would be outrageous if they had government workers (oxymoron) doing it....