Sunday, March 18, 2018

It's All In The Price

 
So you researched the value of your bag and are about to list it. Most Facebook selling pages demand that you include all charges in your listing price. To make sure your expenses are all covered, consider:

Postage
Make sure you chose an adequate service. Royal Mail's standard insurance only covers a parcel value up to £50. Anything above that value needs to be sent by "Next Day Special Delivery". This not only guarantees delivery by 1pm for the next working day but also insures your parcel up to £500. Check Royal Mail pricefinder for details

Packaging
I have stacks of boxes sat in a cupboard (actually, usually they're stacked up next to the front door, much to Mr G's annoyance) and keep various packing materials. I buy some bubble wrap and nice tissue papers every now and then and don't tend to relay that cost to my buyer but you could calculate a contribution into your total selling price.

Paypal Fees
Most selling pages and eBay stipulate payment via Paypal Goods & Services and the fees are automatically deducted from the amount the seller receives. The fees equate to 3.4% of the total amount plus £0.20. E.g. if your buyer sends you £500, you will receive £482.80. If you'd want to receive the full £500, you'd have to ask the buyer to pay £517.81 (though you may well round to a sum nearby). TIP: use this Paypal calculator!

Calculating your "all in" selling price
So, let's assume you have a bag, for which you research a maximum value of around £350 and for which you want to receive no less than £320. It's quite heavy, so you think you'll have to spend £11 on postage. You don't have a box to hand, so you buy a nice box and bubble wrap for £5.
£320 + £11 + £5 = £336
To receive £336, your buyer has to send £348.03. Bit of an odd number, so you'd probably list at the nice round figure of £350. Or maybe £349, if you want the price to look that tad more competitive.

Tips
  • Bear in mind though that the seller will only pay what they believe the bag is worth, so whilst you want to calculate in your postage costs and fees, don't over-inflate your selling price - your bag simply won't sell.
  • Don't be tempted to offer payment via Paypal Friends & Family - you're likely to get chucked and blocked from the relevant selling site, as it's against the rules.
  • If your prospective buyer lives nearby, you could agree to meet and cut out postage and fees. In that case: insist on cash on delivery, as a G&S Paypal payment demands a postage receipt, which you obviously wouldn't have if you handed over the bag in person. 
Hopefully you found these tips useful. More about selling your bag on a Facebook group here!

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