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Question For Canadian Warriors

by TorontoCarol
10 replies
I've been doing a bit of ebay these days and have a question about shipping. I recently purchased an item that weighed less than a pound from someone in Colorado. It came in a mid sized bubble envelope and the postal rate for it was $1.80 all the way to Toronto.

Then I sold something of similar size and weight to a person in Halifax Nova Scotia. So shipped to the same country, also in the same size bubble envelope. My charge: $8.90. I also checked out the price if I had printed off my own label on paypal - still $8.90.

So my question: do we charge more to post here in Canada and if so, is there any way around it? My son thinks it's because I took it to a postal outlet in the local store and if I had gone to the actual post office downtown and got stamps, it would have been cheaper.
#canadian #question #warriors
  • Profile picture of the author Darth Executor
    Your son might be right (and I wish I had known that). A little under 10 dollars is what I paid to ship something to a friend in the states (Indiana).
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  • Profile picture of the author Justin Michie
    Hi Carol,

    Postage in Canada is way more than what it costs in the US... and a lot slower too.

    I also just heard on the news last night that the cost for a small packet (200g - 500g) is more than doubling in January.

    You can get a small business discount card that saves 10% and has a few other perks - just ask them next time you're in.

    For larger packages, FedEx or USP is usually cheaper than Canada Post.
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  • Profile picture of the author TorontoCarol
    Thanks Darth and Justin, for taking the time to reply. I've been teaching an ebay workshop at a local community centre (I'm better at teaching it than doing it) and I always do a small buy and sell right there, so they can see how it's done. Some of my students have gone on to do well because they have in-demand collectables, but for any other products I feel like telling them to just sell locally so they don't have to ship. Am I right?
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    Carol
    Non-Techie Online Marketing Specialist

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    • Profile picture of the author Ricter
      If they are comfortable navigating their way through a postal outlet, or a courier's website, don't mind filling out an extra form or two, and are conscientious enough to alert customers, particularly international customers, to extra costs, such as brokerage and duty (if applicable), then encourage them to sell worldwide!
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  • Profile picture of the author Steve Taylor
    Justin is right...twice as much cost doing Canada Post.

    -Steve
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    Ask...Because you never stop learning.

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  • Profile picture of the author Traffic101
    Also selling local is a great market, but usually I find on ebay people mark up their shipping $20 anyway, which should more than cover the postage.

    I bought something from the state off ebay and the guy charged me $20 for shipping and I just got a little small package. I think half the profit on ebay is shipping!
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  • Profile picture of the author TorontoCarol
    Ricter: they are comfortable filling out forms to sell out of the country, but the shipping charges are so high it's not worth it for them unless they sold the item for a few hundred dollars - which some of my students do (told you I was a better teacher than doer).

    Most of my students are seniors, so they do have some valuable things. I just hate to see them have to spend so much of their profits on shipping.

    Steve and Traffic101: thanks for your comments. I haven't tried UPS yet, will have to experiment with that before my next workshop.

    I appreciate all of you Canadian warriors taking the time to write. I keep my students posted on a blog I set up for them, so they will be glad to hear your experiences.
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    Carol
    Non-Techie Online Marketing Specialist

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  • Profile picture of the author TorontoCarol
    A quick little antecdote: One of my students is an elderly lady with a house full of antiques. After taking my course, she managed to sell some things to someone a couple of hours away. Since she couldn't figure out how to log into her paypal account properly, she drove to the person's home, delivered her items and took payment and drove back home again.

    She also sold the items without using pictures, since she was away when I explained how to put her pics on her computer and then upload them on ebay. Later, she came to a second workshop so she could get a handle on the two things she was having trouble with.

    When older people are keen, they are really keen!
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    Carol
    Non-Techie Online Marketing Specialist

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  • Profile picture of the author TorontoCarol
    Thanks Joe, for telling me how you deal with it. Won't work for most of my little old ladies, but good for them to know the ins and outs of shipping.
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    Carol
    Non-Techie Online Marketing Specialist

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