susanfromar
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posted on February 12, 2001 05:54:10 PM
Maybe I'm being ticky here, but if someone asks me how much shipping is (even though I post it with my auctions) I always email them back with the price.
I asked someone about shipping earlier today, and was told to go to UPS website and look it up myself. Now, being a seller, I would do whatever I could to help out the customer.
What do you guys think? Am I being to ticky? picky here? And what if I come up with a different figure than they do? This person couldn't even give me a precise weight on the product and said it was "around 12 pounds"
So, tell me now, is it me?
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Meya
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posted on February 12, 2001 05:57:31 PM
Was this for an auction you were thinking of bidding on? What kind of feedback does this seller have?
No, it's not you. I would run away from this seller if I were you.
[ edited by Meya on Feb 12, 2001 05:58 PM ]
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misscandle
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posted on February 12, 2001 06:05:33 PM
I am amazed on a daily basis by sellers who go out of their way to tick off good buyers. Do they want to sell their stuff or not?
They should know how much it weighs, especially at that amount (12 pounds, YIKES) and should know the various shipping options. Make it easy for you to say YES, I'll buy that widget.
If I were in your shoes, I'd have to seriously consider whether I wanted the item badly enough to continue dealing with this seller. If they are lazy in getting shipping quotes, will they be sloppy in packing? Did they forget a few things in their description? Or, will they ship it at all? Ugh, what a seller. NO, you are not being too picky....or ticky (what is ticky, anyway?)
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danilynn71
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posted on February 12, 2001 06:05:40 PM
I try to post weight, measurements and my zip code in any of my auctions where shipping will need to be calculated. I also provide a direct link that all they have to do is click to get to iship.com to calculate the shipping, BUT I still get about 4 or 5 people email me for each auction asking me to calculate the shipping. I do it, even though they could easily do it themselves. What thanks do I get? They rarely bid.
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sharkbaby
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posted on February 12, 2001 06:06:19 PM
I would NEVER tell the customer to figure it out him/herself! I think that is unbelievably inconsiderate of the seller.
just my opinion....
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susanfromar
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posted on February 12, 2001 06:09:36 PM
Meya, yes, this was for an auction I was going to bid on. My husband had a few choice words for the seller and it's a good thing he doesn't know how to type 
The feedback is around 44 with 2 negatives. I expect there to be negatives here and there because you can't please everyone.
Misscandle, I use ticky and picky interchangabley
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jmjones6061
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posted on February 12, 2001 06:51:07 PM
hmmm..if you get to figure shipping yourself, is that what you get to pay at the end?
or...you could by mistake type in eleven ounces instead of pounds on the site....then send an email back to the seller....saying that USPS stated shipping was $3.50 for priority mail - seems like a great deal - you can't wait to bid. Be sure to give them a foreign address (how are you to know that there are 2 rate calculators on the website?).
See how quick they would be to run to the USPS website and send you a *corrected* shipping amount!
Then don't bid......
Jane
Ok....so it's been a long day - and I'm kind of cranky....
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Meya
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posted on February 12, 2001 06:54:02 PM
Ok, Jane wins the prize for the bestest ever response to the posters "seller".
Please Susanfromar, take her advice, then post back here with the reply you get.
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misscandle
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posted on February 12, 2001 06:57:16 PM
I second Meya's motion. Jane rules!!
Please do it and report back the response. My life is so drab.......
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susanfromar
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posted on February 12, 2001 07:09:59 PM
Ok, I'll do it and see what happens!
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MrJim
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posted on February 12, 2001 07:20:32 PM
We list a flat rate for shipping in every auction to eliminate the inquiries. Usually it is a little lower than the actual cost to ship. We pay the difference. But I am with danilynn about most inquiries being a waste of time.
Here's a few from this week:
Do you ship to Canada and how much does it cost? Yes, we ship anywhere in the world. We charge the same rate to Canada as to the US. ($3.55 for a 2 pound item) Never Bid.
Does the vase have any cracks or chips? The vase is in perfect condition. There are no chips, cracks, or discoloration at all. Never Bid.
Does it include the owners manual? Yes it does. Never Bid.
Do you accept PayPal? Yes. Never Bid
etc, etc, etc.
I would have to say that less than 1 in 50 people that email us bid on the auction after we give them the answer they were hoping for. Out of them, over half are outbid and don't end up with the item anyway.
We still reply to every inquiry in a professional manner, but it sure is tempting to just hit delete.
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mzalez
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posted on February 12, 2001 08:10:02 PM
In that case I would figure it to be about $1...
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jmjones6061
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posted on February 12, 2001 08:53:02 PM
lmao....I'm glad to see someone besides myself is feeling a little ornery tonight!!
Jane
Starting to believe that Susan should email us the auction number and we can all ask the seller the shipping amount...and of course be way off when we verify with her....
ok...I'm going to go let Calgon take me away....before I think up more trouble.
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jmjones6061
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posted on February 12, 2001 08:56:37 PM
lol....I just reread the original post - when she told you that it was around eleven pounds - did she specifically say the weight was around eleven pounds, or could you misconstrue her statement and reply asking that she convert the British pounds to US $ for you.....
Jane
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quickdraw29
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posted on February 12, 2001 09:01:11 PM
I usually hit the delete button because believe me I've tried everything and they still don't bid. Though I can tell which people are serious. The one's who email asking, "how much is shipping," are not going to bid no matter. The ones saying, "I want to buy this for my daughters Birthday, she'll love it, how much is shipping" tend to bid everytime.
\"They say the grass is greener on the other side. But have you flipped it over and looked?
\"
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ubiedaman
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posted on February 12, 2001 09:07:03 PM
Just turing on email cuz i HAVE to see how this "seller" responds!!! LMAO!
Keith
I assume full responsibility for my actions, except
the ones that are someone else's fault.
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rampaged
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posted on February 12, 2001 09:22:48 PM
I always post sizes, weight and zip code on my auctions for most of the items I sell weigh over two pounds. In fact most weigh from 6 - 20 pounds. On items over 5 pounds I have a link to the postal calculator.
When a potential customer ask what shipping cost is I tell them and give them the link to the postal calculator and tell them to bookmark it for future use.
I've found that many customers don't know about the calculator.
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susanfromar
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posted on February 12, 2001 10:10:29 PM
I never ask for shipping prices if I don't intend to bid. I never mind anyone asking me even if I have posted it on the page. That's just me. Anyway, this item I was bidding on, or going to bid on, was for my husband who is an avid hunter. We look for reloading equipment every night and let me tell you, if he could have gotten a reply on the shipping, YES, we would have bid!
[ edited by susanfromar on Feb 12, 2001 10:21 PM ]
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jmjones6061
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posted on February 12, 2001 10:17:32 PM
Susan,
Just got out of the bubbles....you may want to edit out the item number, otherwise the moderator will lock the thread until you invite the seller here for a chance to respond.
But I wrote the number down.....BTW - my husband sounds like he'd get along with yours - he also reloads....(that sounded bad).
He just now decided to try bowhunting - we bought two bows this week...talk about high shipping...<sigh>
Jane
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misscandle
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posted on February 12, 2001 10:27:35 PM
Susan:
My husband also reloads. I showed him the auction without telling him any background. His first words were "it's a good price, but it depends upon the shipping charge". I innocently asked if he wanted me to e-mail the seller to get a quote, but he said no.
Then, he launched into a long-winded speech about the difference between his gun and the shotgun it would be used for......so thanks a lot!! He's still talking, but I stopped listening about 5 minutes ago. He asked me once if I wanted to go to the shooting range with him, but I told him I preferred to use poison.....he does the cooking now.
Yep...he's a keeper.
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susanfromar
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posted on February 12, 2001 10:30:56 PM
I can't beleive I told my husband to "come in here and let's see if they have any reloading equipment" one day... He has almost taken over when he gets home.
But that's OK, we get to do something together this way. Now he computes with me finally after I have hunted with him for 10 years!
But back to the shipping thing...I figure this fella must have more business than he can handle if he doesn't want anymore customers.
Here is the original email he sent to me:
You can check at the ups web page, www.ups.com. The package will weigh around 12 lbs. It will be customer counter, my packaging. My zip code is 28270.
Thanks for looking,
[ edited by susanfromar on Feb 12, 2001 10:32 PM ]
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susanfromar
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posted on February 13, 2001 09:37:31 AM
As you guys predicted, he did email me back and said I must have made a mistake and HE would check the shipping and get back to me!
Now why didn't he just do that in the first place?
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llama_lady
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posted on February 13, 2001 11:52:45 AM
I've had a couple of people email me asking what the shipping would be on such and such. Because each of my items will weigh differently, I do not list any shipping costs except they will be the exact rates. Anyway, I will put the item, shredding, etc. in the box and weigh it. If I do not have their zip code and 99% of the time I get questions within 2 hours of closing, I tell them the weight and explain that since I do not have their zip, go to the usps site and they can determine what the cost will be. (trying to give them an answer before the close)
good communication is the responsibility of both parties
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pcalton
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posted on February 13, 2001 11:56:48 AM
do not buy from any seller who has not given details on shipping in their listing description.
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quickdraw29
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posted on February 13, 2001 02:33:39 PM
You know what's weird? As a buyer I won't buy from someone that doesn't have the shipping fee in the listing, but as a seller I don't include it myself! Sorry, I took the hyprocritical Oath! LOL. 
\"They say the grass is greener on the other side. But have you flipped it over and looked?
\"
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