posted on May 22, 2001 10:03:03 PM new
While many sellers on Ebay are reasonable, there are some who unfortunately are guilty of prejudice against Ebayers from Canada.
It is certainly their right to restrict their auctions from users around the world, but my country is more convenient to the US than many parts OF the US!
My opayments really don't take much longer to get to their US destination, and I have occasionally (hate to admit) bid on auctions that stated "US only", reason being it is not absurd to consider the US and Canada as being similar enough inlocation to warrant avoiding being lumped in with other countries--some across the world!!
Some sellers, as I said, understand this, but others are very rude about it.
I guess I just want to say we don't bite, so what's the big deal. My money is just as good as yours, so why on earth are these restrictions thrown at us??
Maplestar, I too live in Canada & would NEVER bid on an auction that stated "Will Ship To US Only".
There are numerous reasons why some sellers do not want to sell out of country, and you should respect that.
posted on May 22, 2001 10:17:34 PM new
I love canada! Canadian buyers and sellers have not given me a peep of hassle.
My inner blonde comes out when I have to ship there, but hey, that's my problem.
posted on May 22, 2001 10:20:40 PM new
i like canadians just fine. don't understand the animosity i sometimes read coming from those in the u.s. no clue what all that's about.
but as a u.s. seller, i'm lazy. i don't want to fill out forms and so forth, just label and put items in the priority boxes, take to post office and that's it. if i could do the same for canadian buyers, i'd do it in a heartbeat
posted on May 22, 2001 10:26:52 PM new
I sell to my friends in the north - shoot it is so close for me as I live in Minnesota. But I will say this the forms and shipping hassels sometimes makes me wonder why I do this?
I don't mind really - but if you are from Canada please note that shipping is expensive. Don't be sticker shocked when a US seller is giving you your shipping cost. UPS, USPS and even FedEx Ground charge a butt-load of money to get packages to Canada.
posted on May 22, 2001 10:42:45 PM new
Also, I do not ask sellers to lie on forms and say the item is a gift. I do mention that it would save me some money if they did and they can decide what to do at that point.
The only reason why I sometimes have bid when the seller said "US only" is because many sellers think it's a big deal to send to Canada when they've never even done it.
posted on May 22, 2001 10:51:41 PM new
Since I'm in the Seattle area, you'd think shipping to Canada would be no big deal, and I can't help but feel a little guilty that most of my auctions say "US Only", but it is a hassle shipping outside of the US. The Customs Form is just a start. I always feel like I don't know what I might be doing wrong that's going to cause me problems later.
I've got the process for inside the US down pat -- figuring out what I can and can't do internationally vis a vis insurance, delivery confirmation, registered mail or whatever the heck...for the mostly-below-$100 items I sell I simply cop out and do US only.
posted on May 23, 2001 04:40:14 AM new
This is one of those threads that a fellow Canadian just can't pass up!
maplestar - I agree with you that Canada and the USA should not be considered "international" to each other, but by definition, they are.
reddeer - spot on. I always ask before bidding on one of those US Only auctions, but as I stated in another thread, with eBay's email Gestapo on-guard, most of the time I don't get replies from sellers. I just don't bid, which is too bad for those US Only sellers who don't want to spend another 10 seconds to expand their market. Most of us Canadians are more than willing to pay any reasonable extra shipping costs.
Finally,
"My money is just as good as yours"
"That's a joke, right?"
after I double my Canadian buck, there's not a lot of difference. Besides, out money is prettier
posted on May 23, 2001 04:49:46 AM new
Come on it's not that hard to ship to Canada, just a small customs form, unless it's a big ticket item. I'm in Detroit, I could throw it to Canada, but it's still international!! Maybe I could deduct a trip to the casino in Windsor as a business expense to mail things there!! I'm not doing so great I can turn down any buyers!!
posted on May 23, 2001 04:58:22 AM new
>Also, I do not ask sellers to lie on forms and say the item is a gift. I do mention that it would save me some money if they did and they can decide what to do at that point.<
Alas many do ask for the 'gift' status. In fact, I cannot remember one that has not! We only recently have been placing US ONLY in our auctions. Here are a few reasons why....
#1 as stated, asked to lie on the custom form that has to be filed.
#2 shipping rates. Every box has to be taken to the PO for the rate. We don't charge any handling fees so it is a requirement to obtain the correct postage. I cannot estimate the charges to the North.
#3 buyer estimated rates. I would bet that about half of the time, the buyer would estimate the shipping charge and send payment, always on the low side with a comparison auction quoted. (one person did that twice, using his first guesstimate to me!)
#4 packaging. Nearly 90% of our items are shipped Priority Mail, using the free boxes, tape & labels supplied by the PO. Those freebies cannot be used when shipping to Canada, so that adds another $1-$3 to the shipping charge. (and we all hate to explain that to buyers)
<The only reason why I sometimes have bid when the seller said "US only" is because many sellers think it's a big deal to send to Canada when they've never even done it.>
...and if you bid on one of ours and win we WILL ship to you, providing you follow our TOS. No problem.
As for it being a 'big deal', it's really a 'BIGGER DEAL'! We consider every package shipped as a big deal. All sales are important, regardless of the size or amount.
Each sale has the same feedback power.
(and we all know how important that can be....)
<VBG>
And of course, I could be wrong.
(oops I did it again)
posted on May 23, 2001 05:30:39 AM new
I LOVE the fact that many sellers don't want to sell to our friends to the north. More money in the till for me!
I always enjoy getting a payment with a Canadian shipping address because I know that overall my Canadian customers have been the most hassle free of all.
As long as the payment has a US president on it or it can be converted into the same, I'm happy.
posted on May 23, 2001 05:34:45 AM newIt is certainly their right to restrict their auctions from users around the world, but my country is more convenient to the US than many parts OF the US!
It's because our borders touch, isn't it? If our borders didn't touch, then you wouldn't have any problem with people not selling to Canada.
Let's see...my high school geography is coming back now..AH..we also touch Mexico. Wonder why we never get any threads from our neighbors to the south complaining?
posted on May 23, 2001 05:47:31 AM new
I gladly sell all over the world. No bias from me.
1. The customs form is not that difficult to fill out.
2. Anyone with a small postal scale for lightweight items and a bathroom scale (they are horribly accurate) for heavier items can determine the weight, visit the USPS website and get the postage rates for anywhere in the world.
3. Most of my items go Media Mail in the US anyway, so I have a ready supply of my own packaging material on hand (that do not cost a whopping $1 - $3 extra), making it easy to just write "Surface" or slap an Airmail sticker on it instead of the usual "Media Mail".
4. As more and more people around the world go online, that's a potential market I'm not willing to ignore.
5. I have yet to have anyone ask me to lie on a customs form or fail to send the correct amount for shipping. But if they did, how is that any different than the problems US bidders cause? I've had to void a couple of US sales because they only sent the bid price. How about the deadbeats? Etc. Just deal with the problems.
posted on May 23, 2001 07:04:21 AM new
I still sell to Canada but I can understand why people do not. HALF my customer from Canada ask for me to cheat on the customs declaration. I am just waiting for the first one to neg me for refusing to go along.
The taxes are so bad in Canada it seems to be the norm to cheat. I suppose they are in the same possition we are in the US where there are no choices between candidates who maintain the status quo and armed rebelion.
posted on May 23, 2001 08:17:18 AM new
Sure,I dont mind Canadians, IF they PAY!
Unfortuntly out of all the countries I had experience with, Canadaian bidders I encounters have been the most problem (most at yahoo, but recently at ebays). I had one who despite my shipping rate on my auction page to Canada, wanted to ship it for 1.00! Then I had several guys who won the auction, and wanted to pay in Canadian dollars, for they claim my page said $, and since you take canadian bidders, you MUST accept the closing dollar amount in Canadian!
Then I had a few who didnt know how to pay in US DOllars, and one of them right now is threatning me with a negative for he cant figure out how to get a money order in US Dollars, despite my help and advice, he is now blaming everything on me for (in his own words) "why did you put a auction in a Canadian listing when you dont take Canadian Dollars!! Whats up your a** man! Whats wrong with you? Is this a trap? You know how hard it is to get a bank money order! Why are you doing this to me!" Huh? The bidder does have a 0 and a shade though. I put the auction in the regular place just like anybody else, all I said was "ship internationally".
And if you look at a thread I had, right now I am being harrassed to death by a spamming buyer from Quebec who wants a waybill number THAT DOESNT EXIST!
Again, I am NOT bashing Canadian bidders, my girlfriend is Canadian, I have many friends up in Canada, I enjoy eating great food when I visit Canada, and I had many many great transaction from many good buyers, but unfortunalty, from my experience, out of all the non US bidders, Canada is the one I had the most problem with. ):
You're too fast for me!
