Sellers need every advantage they can muster in today’s competitive ecommerce landscape.
This is equally true for larger items, those that don’t fit neatly into a parcel for delivery by FedEx, UPS or USPS.
Today, buyers have no qualms going onto eBay to purchase sectional sofas, antique furniture, kitchen appliances, armoires, pool tables, cars, ATVs, boats, motorcycles and auto parts. Often times, buyer and seller are several states apart, creating a logistical chasm.
Many large eBay items are listed as Local Pickup Only, often preventing sales with out-of-area buyers.
Given the perceived challenge involved with shipping large items, many sellers often list them as ‘Local Pickup Only.’ Translation: “It’s too much of a hassle. Figure it out for yourself, buyer.”
But savvy eBay buyers and sellers approach it differently.
They turn to uShip to magically transform a perceived logistical hurdle to their advantage. They empower the transaction with an affordable, easy, and fast shipping option.
One eBay seller that’s done this is Don LeMaster, owner of Red Rooster Antiques & Design Center in New Braunfels, Texas.
As much as Don is an offline and eBay seller, he’s also an online buyer, sourcing inventory nationwide that gets delivered to his showroom via uShip, where it then gets sold in-store or online.
Watch eBay seller Don LeMaster talk about the benefits of uShip.
“uShip tears down the boundaries of where you can buy something or where you can sell it,” says Don.
“If you’re going to ship something in a conventional manner, with a freight company, you have to hire somebody to come in, crate it, wrap it and secure it. You basically need a skilled carpenter to do that,” he says.
“With uShip, nine times out of 10, the shipping company picks it up just like it sits. It doesn’t have to be touched other than by the person who’s picking it up. That’s the beauty of uShip.”
‘Anywhere’ = the New ‘Local Pickup Only’
For buyers, when finding that great deal on eBay, the ability to connect with discounted empty truck space means a sweet deal just gets sweeter, or at least savings on the purchase aren’t wiped out by high shipping costs. Plus, the ability to read transporters’ past uShip service history (equivalent to an eBay feedback score) before selecting a provider instills trust that an item will arrive intact, on time and for a fair price.
Further, service providers on uShip often drive smaller transport vehicles — box trucks or pickup trucks with trailers, for example — allowing them to more easily enter residential areas for pickups and deliveries.
Meanwhile, semi-truck drivers for large freight companies prefer predictable commercial routes, doing anything they can to avoid unfamiliar neighborhoods with gated communities and dead-end cul-de-sacs, frequently resulting in downed power lines, mailboxes and street signs.
Three Secret eBay Weapons
For eBay sellers with items that require extra care beyond a parcel-sized box, here are three secret weapons that will give you an advantage — and help increase your conversion rates:
Competing Bids = Better Rates. On eBay, bidding drives prices up. On uShip, competing quotes drive prices down. This means happy buyers who didn’t have to pay top dollar, and better conversion rates for you as a seller.
Less Crating = More Selling.
Most uShip service providers will wrap or blanket your item on the spot, so you know it’s safe and sound en route to your buyer. This means you don’t have to do it so you can spend more timing selling. Easily track shipments through the uShip mobile app so you can keep buyers in the loop.
Shipping Estimates = Better Communication. Within your eBay listing, include a link to a uShip page where buyers can get a shipping price estimate based on historical prices on uShip before they buy. It also gives you a ballpark estimate for buyers who ask during the eBay bidding process.
While uShip has officially been a trusted eBay shipping partner since 2013, eBay buyers and sellers have been using the uShip transport marketplace since we started in 2004. In fact, eBay buyers have saved well over $20 million in shipping costs.
