JZ1276

Many DVD's are only selling for as little as $1. I just listed one that some sellers were selling used for 1 cent. I listed the disc for $1 and after completing the listing I saw this...

Amazon commission (if sold): $1.94 for Standard Shipping
Shipping credit (if sold): $2.98 for Standard Shipping
Total you will receive (if sold): $2.04 for Standard Shipping

How can Amazon receive a commission of 1.94 when I am actually selling the DVD for a dollar??!! Am i seeing something wrong here? Total I receive is 2.04. So basically, I am giving this DVD away for free because it basically costs $2 just to ship it!

tonyc3742

Yep.
One of my relatively few complaints on Amazon marketplace.
Between the three fees for most items, you really have to figure your price right.
On the flip side, it doesn't let people scalp for shipping, charging 9 bucks to ship a one cent DVD to avoid paying Ebay fees.

Those sellers are likely the pro merchants, I think they save the 99 cent per-item fee.
Usually I break even between the shipping credit and the fees, so basically shipping is on me.

JZ1276

Well the automatic shipping charge has has a negative effect when you sell boxed sets which cost more than 2.98 to ship. Any $1 DVDs I have listed I might as well either raise the price or delete.

abintra

If you are selling that many, best to pay their Pro Merchant fees.

You'll still pay the 15% per sale fee and Amazon will take their 80 cents cut from the $2.98 shipping charge but you won't get charged the 99 cent listing fee each time (presuming you are selling enough to cover the monthly Pro Merchant amount to actually start saving money).

Whatever you list something at, for a DVD anyway, calculate the sale price minus 15%, plus either the 99 cent listing fee (or the Pro Merchant amount pro-rated for the amount of sales per month) and knowing you will receive a $2.18 shipping credit. If it costs more than that for you to pay for shipping and materials, deduct that from the sale price.

As an example, sell a DVD for $10 minus 15% for $8.50 and then the 99 cent listing fee for $7.51 total. If you can pack and ship it for $2.18 or less then add whatever is left to the $7.51 total sale. If it costs more than $2.18 to do so (including any gas money to go to a P.O. if applicable), then deduct the additional amount from the $7.51 total.

Obi-Wanma

If I sell a box set and the buyer doesn't pay for upgraded shipping, it is going out media mail, because of the small shipping credit. Otherwise I never ship below first class.

JZ1276

wait a sec...they reimburse you 2.98 to ship and then take 80 cents out of that??!!I didnt know this! Whats the point? Why not just reimburse 2.18??

abintra

It's their closing fee. They used to, years ago, explicitly state it came off of the shipping reimbursement but then they changed the wording for the exact reason that it elicited the response it did. Easier to call it a closing fee than explain why they charge customers one shipping charge but reimburse another.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/custom...nodeId=1161240

JZ1276

This is all new info to me and I've already sold about 60 DVDs on Amazon. I unloaded my entire CD collection years ago on half.com. Maybe I should use that instead.

Al_Tahoe

Fee structure for all DVDs sold for $50 or less:

HALF... 15% + 60 cents ( - ship reimb. of 2.99)

AMZ.... 15% + 80 cents + 99 cents ( - ship reimb. of 2.98)

The Amazon 99 cent fee is waived if you become a "Pro Merchant", which costs $39.99 per month.

Also, Half.com gives shipping discounts on purchases of multiple DVDs from the same seller, so your shipping reimbursement is only 1.89 for all DVDs after the 1st (on the same order).

All the shipping info assumes that the buyer uses "Standard" domestic shipping.

BuckNaked2k

I use half.com whenever I can. It's much easier to list stuff, and to navigate around on your merchant page. We do get hosed on the commissions they take on shipping. (And the USPS is raising rates again soon, but these online companies never seem to increase the shipping fees for us.)

Keep in mind, with Amazon, unlike half, they are allowing you to compete directly with them, on their own web-pages and servers they created & own for the specific items. Probably the first time in history such a business model has existed, so that's the penalty you pay, I guess.

Trevor

Any process that doesn't net me $20+ per hour; including all my time listing, checking, packaging, and mailing; just gets given away.

I understand professional sellers making some sort of a profit by selling online; but in my years here reading about we casual sellers, I'm convinced that it really isn't worth our time.

BuckNaked2k

With me, it's become kind of a hobby.

I look at it as a way to try and be cost neutral on my DVD/Blu-ray purchases. Having dropped a ton on DVDs over the years, then bought into HD DVD, it was a tough pill to swallow buying movies for the third and fourth time....so I came up with this as kind of a game.

BigSue

As of last week, I am now shopping for Blu-rays to go with my new HDTV and Blu-ray player. Looking at my massive DVD collection, I'm contemplating going the same route, though I'm still nervous about dumping my DVDs. Blu just feels so temporary for some reason. Many of my DVDs are still wrapped so I'm thinking that I can give those as gifts

In other news, Buck, if you're heading to the Avon B&N looking for the Criterion Blu of The Last Emperor, I grabbed that today

JZ1276

No way a casual seller is making 20 an hour selling DVDs on amazon. The only money I am really making is with OOP titles. I'm just looking to get rid of them all and get back whatever I could.

BuckNaked2k

Ah ha, so it was you!

Haven't seen you around the big CC sale thread...must have been lurking.

BigSue

Me? Lurk? Well, yea. I was there today and I grabbed Chungking Express on Blu. There was another guy there going through the Criterions and I said, there's more over there and back there, there is a whole display. He said, these are 50% off, right? I replied, yes, then he said something along the lines of: I'm going to be poor. I hear that!

BuckNaked2k

They actually have Blus in three locations: in the Blu-ray section, on the end-cap in the back, and in the display near the registers mixed in with the DVDs.

The cashiers have been pretty good with the $5 coupons, as long as you don't try and use more than one with the same code. Two per visit has worked for me.