Shipping Fees

[brunswickheights]

Hi
My new website is up................one thing that does occur to me is shipping fees.
Due to the diverse type of items that I sell..........cups,saucers,plates both big and small,sets of china,tureens,glass objects.................I am trying to find a price that won't frighten clients both here and abroad away.

On my EBay shop ,I re-use a lot of items (except for bubble wrap) ,that help to keep my shipping fees down.
I also make up my own packing boxes ,which is quite time consuming..I hate doing it too ,sooooooooo boring.

I have included ready made boxes (not very expensive)in the price for shipping for my website as I think it looks much more professional.Also I vacuum seal them.
As the items have to be wrapped extremely well to protect from breakage,I cannot afford to do free shipping or I would.

Just wanted some feedback on what you conside a fair price to pay for shipping.
I deliberately have not given prices as I would like to see what prices you think is fair.
Thanks
Patrica
formerly>>>>>>>>>

[Ray Stewart]

Hi Patricia

I think you have two choices here.

1. Be totally honest on your site. Have a whole page devoted to how carefully you pack items, why you use the toughest boxes, the bubble wrap or straw or whatever inside the box, and thus why the packaging costs what it does. This demonstrates to the shopper the understanding that you have about making sure their purchase arrives in a pristine condition and confirms their overall satisfaction is your top priority. I always think this adds to a site's posture when I see info like this and explains not only the cost involved with the packaging but also why stuff is wrapped better than an egyptian mummy when it arrives.

2. Try some Taguchi testing on your site offering different p&p prices to see which are more acceptable, and which cause people to abandon their cart once they find out the P&P price. Software is available to do this and customers are not aware they see a different price to another visitor.

I personally favour option 1. I would rather buy from a site that cares. If I am buying something fragile, I expect it to be suitably packaged and expect to pay for that packaging.

I would not like to think though that a site is actually profiting from pricing the packaging materials above their actual cost, or from the cost of the postage. If I found that I would not use the site again.

[brunswickheights]

Thanks Stuart,
Have added a page
Patricia