Does shipping kill deals for you?
For example, there's a hat for $3, but $5.95 shipping. Maybe (possibly) $9 is a deal for the hat, but with the shipping 2x the cost of the item, it kills it for me. I can probably find the same hat for that price at a local store.
Do you have times where these flat-rate/range shipping charges kill a deal for you?
by
kmeltzer
asked 6 months ago
I look at as one price. The hat is $9. If that's a good deal, I'll get it.
@rprebel: I try to do that as well. But, my brain also goes "you're paying twice the price of the item just to get it". It's a mental struggle, sometimes!
There are so many free shipping offers from so many websites, that I am definitely skeptical when I do not see "Free Shipping." I am also very spoiled being an Amazon Prime member.
yeah I am always for the idea of saying free shipping and up-ing the price, or at least make shipping combined, so it isn't effing $5 for every one...
Routinely. I know it's probably irrational, but I'll often talk myself into buying something that is $39.99 (or more) only to decide against pulling the trigger because of an additional $7.99 shipping charge. I guess it's just the psychology of breaking the $40 or $50 barrier.
I think I learned to look at the total long ago when I was bidding for items on ebay. In my mind, the max amount I bid always included shipping charges in the total. Some deals here are $0.00 w/$4.95 shipping - I look at it & decide if the item is worth $4.95.
I hate that stuff, Ebay and Tiger Direct are the worst.
TV on newegg 350 TV on Tiger Direct 299 then go to checkout and findout shipping is $99.
I think it would be nice to have a rule that all online prices much include some kind of shipping. I do not care if it's 3 weeks shipping but have the price advertised have shipping included so you no longer have suprises.
Haha, yes! "Insert-store-name-here free shipping code" is one of my most frequent google searches!
That's the reason why I always buy three monkeys.
Always a deal breaker or a deal maker. Goes both ways. Sometimes I buy because the shipping is free, even if I don't really need it. Go figure.
It's annoying, but actually the reverse of the rebate case: if the product is cheap but the shipping expensive, the sales tax is lower than the other way 'round.
Aside from the economics of it, I'd like to know upfront "how much is this going to cost me in real money?" I'd also like to know what carrier is being used -- the postman can leave things in a secure place while the express services like to play tag.
usually i factor in the shipping and any taxes also charged. it also depends on my need for the item. if shipping is high or makes a great deal go down to just good, it may affect my purchase.
What I hate is on Amazon (or ebay, etc.) when 30 sellers have the same item within pennies of the same price, but have various combinations of cost + shipping. That's why I always click the Prime button when searching for something.
Shipping, like in your example, will kill it for me.
Not being right up front about shipping costs and forcing me to register/add personal info before giving me shipping costs will kill it for me and cause me to never shop with that company.
Also agreed with stating up front who your shipping company is.. DHL is a deal breaker. They claim they come to my door (funny, I was home all day!) but they don't. I have to chase boxes at the DHL hub.
dealPrice = cost + shipping + tax
Pretending that shipping (and tax) don't matter is stupid
As for the $3 hats that actually cost almost $9, one has to compare the hat at a price of $9, not $3.
When I see a deal where the shipping and/or handling fees are are fairly significant portion of the deal price, I generally assume that the item is one of poor quality and that the vendor's profit is actually from the shipping and handling fees. If I return it, they still make some profit, plus, given that I'll get back less than what it will cost to return, they know that I am unlikely to return it (and they get to keep all the profit on selling what amounts to crap).
Before anyone mentions it, the value in buying a BoC is not in the items but rather in the bragging rights. Even if you somehow return a BoC, you keep the bragging rights, so technically the BoC (at least its value) cannot be returned.
Yeah, I've actually talked about this quite a bit lately with different people (Yeah, I'm a super interesting guy). Between Prime and all of the "+ free shipping" deals on woot, I'm tainted.
I hate shipping. With a passion. But if the deal is still a good deal + shipping, then that's fine, I'll pay it. (Just paid $5 shipping for some cheap stuff on Woot!)
I shop gun stuff online and shipping/transfer fees are the bane of online firearm stuff. Weight+laws = $
The shipping price is definately a deal breaker.
@drchops: more like
Online transfer fees: Weight+laws = $$$
Back on topic: I look at the price as a whole. Shipping is the "tax" of online purchases.
I hate shipping because on a lot of deals it is a hidden cost that you can not see until you are almost done checking out
As a business owner who ships on an almost daily basis, I can tell you that the cost of shipping and all related packaging materials has gone way up in the last few years. Most sellers offering free shipping are either building the cost of S&H into the sale price, or are absorbing it through volume averaging or negotiated lower rates based on high volume as I imagine is the case @ Woot and their $5 shipping policy. Please remember the small business has to work harder for your patronage.
As a consumer, excessive shipping will kill some deals for me, but I don't mind reasonable shipping costs if the total price is competitive with comparable sellers, given that the item is not available locally for roughly the same price. I would rather support a local business at a slightly higher price than save a slightly lower amount on a shipped item.
@zippy the pinhead: I think most folks understand "free shipping" just means its built into the price of the item. Even WOOT let that out of the bag a couple of years ago when they sold the 65" LCD TV with $5.00 shipping but was willing to drop $200 or so off the price if you picked it up locally.
I always consider several things.
Is part of the cost being deferred to "Shipping and Handling".Is the total price (including shipping) a good deal? For example, are they charging a really low price for the product but charging $10 to ship something that could be shipped for a postage stamp.
With return shipping is it worth the hassle if I have to send the item back?
Is the total price less expensive than me getting in the car and driving somewhere to pick it up (basically MY cost for providing shipping).
depends
Sometimes...but quite often I will get so excited over a deal that I just ignore the shipping once I start clicking, hehe
yes. The $5 shipping here kills deals for me all the time. (on lower priced items)
I almost put up a deal from thinkgeek (yoda lights) that were $5 off, but 6.95 shipping. Someone else did later, but when the discount doesn't even cover shipping, especially on such a small box, I just didn't think it was worth it.
I always comparison shop with every item, seeing where I can get the deals with cost and shipping. It sucks when something is a great deal and shipping kills it. I'll try and hunt another sale down or find one with shipping cheaper somewhere else. I still think it works out better to shop online most of the time. Much better deals, often cash back with Ebates, and no fighting crazy people or traffic.
@robertmcclure: Not diapers, shipping on the deals posted here.
Yep, it does. If the shipping is more than the item cost, I take double & triple takes before buying...or, as in the of woot stuff, buy 3 to justify the cost.
All the time, but maybe not like you describe. I just add the shipping, handling, tax, etc costs to the total and look at the deal based on what is coming out of my bank account since that's what matters in the end. The one exception is eBay, since I get 2% back as eBay credit I will try to find an auction where it costs more and has free shipping rather than a lower price w/ shipping. Although the total price can't be much different 'cause I'm not an idiot and won't pay more just to get some store credit.
Yes, especially when they have a 99 cent LED flashlight with $2 shipping that multiplies with each flashlight purchased! what is up with that! (I'm looking at you, 1saleaday
The worst thing for me is when Amazon adds individual shipping costs to each item from a third-party seller, and you buy multiple items. For example, I just bought 6 bottles of a cat vitamin. The price was $5 each with $5 shipping, which as you can see, adds up to WAY TOO MUCH MONEY. Fortunately, I had dealt with the seller before and knew she would refund my extra shipping costs promptly, which she did.
I have to agree there: FFL fees suck big time. Plus I have to get ammo shipped elsewhere (usually to friends in Nassau County) because ammo cannot be shipped to NY City.
@susanrm: That seller was smart to give you a multi-item discount. Many times I have wanted to purchase a second or third unit of something, but didn't because there was no discount.
There is nothing worse than having to sign up for a store account, enter shipping information, and credit card number, only to discover some crazy shipping amount. (The same applies to tax charges.)
It also drives me nuts when the shipping charges are blatantly over inflated. I think it's deceptive when a site offers low prices to lure customers (e.g., on Google Product search) and then pound you with shipping.
It's also deceptive when they say FREE SHIPPING, but when you see the fine print there is some minimum ($100) that is very hard to reach given the store.
I also hate when stores prove a "great" deal that is blatantly below (e.g., $48.99) the minimum amount required for free shipping (e.g., $49.99).
For all the above reasons, and many more, I love Amazon Prime.
Simply put, yes.
Yep. I'll buy more to get the free shipping. Ha, ha, I always get the best of the stores!
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