Any one with ecommerce sites out there finding that the usps and ups shipping rates are causing a decrease in their sales?

I know with ups you can work out a rate discount based upon some factors, not sure about usps. I am trying to figure out a way to work around this without losing more sales.

an option I have thought of is to add an average shipping cost into the product and making it free shipping.

Any ideas out there?

I never had a problem with shipping costs, I used to sell stamps, which come effectively free in my line of work!


Here's a tip, buy 'unused' stamps on ebay, halves the shipping costs. I used to be a seller in the UK.

Same problem here. Shipping is costly and I can't find a good way to go around that.
USPS for me is the cheapest from the US.

Just had a quick check on US ebay, seems like you only get 20% off buying unused postage.

is it true most sellers offer free shipping but add the shipping into the cost? I hope I am not the only one that does this BUT USPS has raised the costs. I would not even know how to go about getting reduced shipping with ups, I do not do over 200 shipments a month to have the balls to ask.

yeh it is difficult these days, I would recommend buying your stock in bulk in order to receive more discount. That usually makes a slight difference with regards to shipping fees.

What types of products are you specifically shipping?

Yo, shipping is like the thing that you must negotiate. Do not accept the retail price.

Rockefeller made a killing partly because of his shady ass deals with the freight lines and owning his own rail cars. Without the insanely cheap shipping he was able to get, his profits would have been cut substantially.

If you want to succeed, ask about better rates. Make them money with repeat business and they'll help you out (though I don't know how much USPS can help you out).

This is something I hadn't thought of. I've been selling 300-500 items a month for about 2 months now, and its growing every day. I just accepted sihpping rates for what they are (Except for my soon to be top rated seller status cutting some shipping costs)

I wonder if I can negotiate with usps to get even better discounts? This intrigues me.

If you are not charging for shipping, you MUST factor that into the selling price. I have an excel spreadsheet setup that i enter costs into. It calculates paypal and ebay fees. when you do that, you see how much profit you are making on each sale. The first time I did the calculations I found i was surprised how little i was making on some items.

My problem is even bigger , I am trying to deal with Planet Fulfillment and Ship My Orders and their rates are just too much !!

Does anybody know where to get U.S. Liberty stamps for cheaper than face value? Ebay seems to only have them for minimum $0.40 each, which is only $0.45 cents off face value. Not that much.

Where do these sellers get these stamps to sell anyways??

Originally Posted by aff219

This is something I hadn't thought of. I've been selling 300-500 items a month for about 2 months now, and its growing every day. I just accepted sihpping rates for what they are (Except for my soon to be top rated seller status cutting some shipping costs)

I wonder if I can negotiate with usps to get even better discounts? This intrigues me.

Hahhahaha NO. USPS will treat you terribly regardless how much business you bring.

UPS/fedex on the other hand will negotiate rates, give you supplies including label printers and rolls of labels, etc.

Huge problems for me there too

Originally Posted by ardley216

I never had a problem with shipping costs, I used to sell stamps, which come effectively free in my line of work!


Here's a tip, buy 'unused' stamps on ebay, halves the shipping costs. I used to be a seller in the UK.

Any advice on special delivery for discounted rates, other than franking?

Thanks for the post!!!