Amazon Urges Sellers to Offer Free Shipping

by: Snapped

Myth: Free Shipping.

Fact: It isn’t free.

by: hopeforthebest

Etsy has forced free shipping on us, otherwise they won't surface our listings in search, but it's inflated the price of the product to the point where nobody really shows any interest in the listings with 'free shipping' because those listings are perceived as being too expensive. I've put up a token number of free shipping listings so that I get a reasonable amount of visibility.

I have a subset of complainers who will purchase a $.99 item and then complain because "the shipping costs more than the product", but won't even look at a 'free shipping' listing listing where the shipping price is added to the product because 'it's ridiculous to spend that much for the item" when the two total price + shipping totals are EXACTLY THE SAME.

Etsy now flags some of my listings when I'm writing them and says "You're charging too much for shipping!" In that particular case the shipping is UNDER  POSTAGE COST!

The whole 'free shipping' scam is a slippery slope that's bad for everyone.

Amazon may play up how 'free shipping' confers an advantage to sellers who offer it, which I haven't found to be true, but the real truth if they succeed and EVERYBODY offers free shipping, NOBODY has an advantage any more. The playing field is by definition level.

by: pace306

When Amazon "ships for free" - the loss for that service comes out of someone elses pocket and not theirs directly - so they dont feel it.

If you dont feel it, then its not real - if its not real, then get others to do it too.

Some poor shlub who is paying for data services or Prime movies etc is paying for it, not Amazon - thats whats NOT being said.

Shipping is VERY expensive - more so today then ever. Just try shipping a 10 pound box from NYC to CA and see for yourself.

We sellers dont own planes and trucks, we cant absorb the super high costs.

With Amazons very high take rates, the costs for FBA, for warehouse relocation of items and all the other costs - who can afford those kinds of margins? (or lack there of).

Its all a marketing trick - dont fall for it - if you cant make money on your items and go out of business or do poorly - who cares if the buyer got the item shipped "free" ???? Certainly Amazon wont be there to help YOU.

Amazon looks out for itself - and as a seller "you should too".

As an aside - I stopped doing "free shipping" on almost everything I sell. I may make less sales - but Cest La Vie - Im not anyones punching bag.

by: angryllama

"Free Shipping" is especially FRAUGHT for sellers now that there is at least the VISIBLE experience that More and More Parcel Carriers are making up NEW RULES as to when, where, and how packages get RATED.
Huh?   Yep, look no further than USPS altering the rules such that FCP is now DISTANCE PRICED when it was NOT just a few MONTHS ago.  Thinking one would KNOW the $$ to ship a 13 ounce Widget from NJ to CA is now merely a FOND MEMORY.
Can DISTANCE pricing for "flat rate Priority Mail packages" be far behind?

by: Rexford

Call it what it is.  "Free Shipping" is "Seller Paid Shipping".

Free for Amazon, costly for sellers.  Amazon's net sales in 2020 were $108.518 billion....yes, that's billion.  Yes, Amazon's business will grow with free shipping but sellers will pay more.

Amazon is getting a free ride on the backs of many.  This is what corporate welfare looks like.  And the C-suite officers are laughing all the way to the bank.

The slap in the face is when you get those alerts from Amazon informing you that "the bots" have determined that your price on an item is too high, even though you've priced it well below retail.  One has no choice but to price items higher when Amazon won't even give you enough shipping to cover the cost of shipping the item.

Get your own website.  Greed drives all of these venues.

by: RKTOYS

Sellers urge Amazon to update its shipping vouchers to 21th century pricing.  They're still only providing a flat $4 voucher.  The last time I could mail anything for that paltry sum, the NYC skyline had two extra skyscrapers...

by: COVID-19

Myth: Amazon Sucks.

Truth: It Does.

But what Big Bro does, Lil' Bro eBay must follow.

by: Carl

The term 'Free Shipping' should be illegal.
It should change to 'Postage Included'

by: Chicago48

I have never ever gotten complaints from buyers on Merc, Grailed, Posh about shipping cost.  On Posh we have options, Free Shipping, 5.95 or 7.95 Priority Mail.  I love those 3 sites, and am expanding to others like Kidizen.  No hassle about the shipping cost.
Etsy sellers (and AMZ sellers) need to open their own ecommerce sites, like Shopify.  Less hassle.

by: Gumball

Those five dollar and under products on Amazon are from Asia and under one dollar shipping costs. Right now you cannot ship anything with the Post Office for under $3.00 which leave $2.00 out of the $5 item. Then you have to pay Amazon $2.00 in fees or more depending on what you sell. You are now left with zero money to pay for the item you sold, let alone your time. Amazon has become the proverbial company store that Johnny Cash sang about. " You load sixteen tons, and what do you get. Another day older and deeper in debt. Saint Peter don't you call me 'cause I can't go. I owe my soul to the company store."

by: Jester

$0-$5, The only one that can make a profit with Free shipping at that price is the Chinese who get subsidized shipping costs from our government. They can ship from Hong Kong to my next door neighbor cheaper than I can mail it to my next door neighbor.

by: TDAKS

Free shipping on items priced from $0-$5.00 PREDOMINANTLY FROM CHINA.
Just watch the tide turn in tsunami proportions when western nations stop regarding China as a 'developing' nation.