Packing Shipping Fun Facts

Probably one of the least favorite parts of my business is shipping. I don't mind sending packages to people at all. It is just the mundane actual act of putting things in boxes and having to do all the packing work that I don't like. There is a lot more to shipping packages than most people think about. If you don't know the basics of shipping, you cannot run an online business.You have to know a lot about how the US Postal Service and UPS work if you use both those services. I tend to use the postal service exclusively so I try to keep up with their rules and regulations. 

Here are some things that will help start anyone on their way in basic shipping etiquette and knowledge.

USPS has  a great website USPS.com that will give you all the information that you need about shipping or tracking packages. The site will also tell you about shipping both domestic and internationally. You can track all your packages that are shipped on the site itself. You can order supplies from the site, schedule a pick up of packages, figure costs of shipments as well as do lots of other cool things there. I use the site a lot!

I will admit that I was very hesitant about shipping internationally when I first started selling merchandise on Ebay. I started selling to US buyers only.  I belong to a great message board called Ebug which stands for Ebay Underground. The group there is great to help out sellers learn how to do new things. My friend Jessica did a tutorial on the We Sell On Ebay Blog about how to sell internationally.   Once I found out how easy it was to do, I opened my selling channels up to international buyers.  In the meantime, I found how valuable the USPS site was for individual country restrictions as to what is allowed and not allowed to be shipped into that country.  I use the site often as there is no way to remember all the restrictions for every country around the globe!

UPS has their own site at ups.com that will allow you to track packages from the site. You do have to set up an account with UPS in order to ship with them. UPS tends to be more cost effective for larger and heavier shipments so I don't use them very often. 

Shipping can be a chore but it has to be done. In addition to knowledge there are a few must haves for a seller in order to ship packages. I am including what I consider these below:

1. Postal Scales-I suggest a digital set that will go up to at least 35 pounds.  These can be purchased easily and inexpensively.
2. Packing Tape- I use this continuously!
3. Bubble Wrap-For fragile Items
4. Boxes- The Post Office will provide free boxes for Priority Shipments and for Regional Priority but you will need boxes for non-priority and for merchandise that does not fit
5. Paper- For filler
6.-Shipping Labels- I use the half sheet self adhesive ones. These are not absolutely necessary but do save a lot of time!
7 Scissors
8 Sharpie
9 Printer- I use a wireless Canon that allows me to print from any laptop in my business.
10 Poly Bags- I use these for clothing and other items that are not fragile. They are much lighter than boxes and save a lot on shipping.

With these supplies and the know how you are in business to ship just about anything for your online business. The rest is patience and a lot of hard work!  Until next time!

The Thrill Of the Hunt The Doldrums of The Mundane A Day in the Life

 A Day in the Life of a Treasure Hunter!

Any treasure hunter will tell you that their palms get itchy when they start thinking about getting out and finding new treasures. It gets the adrenaline flowing when you start looking at new sales every week or you are planning your route to your favorite thrift stores or yard sale to see what new goodies have been stocked on the shelf that very morning! Or you might be a storage auction hunter planning your route for the day.

You rush to get ready, grab a cup of Joe and run out the door. After what is hopefully a very fruitful day you arrive back home hot, tired, hungry, and with a vehicle full of merchandise to fill your inventory shelves with!  After driving, walking, searching and digging through countless amounts of new goodies, you hopefully have found some great new things to stock your store. You grab all those bags and boxes and pack up your truck and start the long drive home. Once you get back home and lug those bags or boxes into the door, that lovely adrenaline starts to fall through the floor!

Now it is time for the real fun to begin!  It is time now for the inspection, cleaning and photographing process to take place. You grab a quick bite to eat and stare at the mountain of boxes and ask yourself where do I start first? Do I start scrubbing the ten years of dirt off those pottery pieces or do I start an inventory of the set of dishes and wash them first?

The thrill of the hunt wears off quickly and the mundane starts to set in. It is time to roll up your sleeves, grab some gloves and get to work! A picker or treasure hunter's job is never an easy one!  OK, you decide to start soaking the pottery because you know underneath all that grime there is a gorgeous piece! It will be worth the wait and the work!  Tell that to my hands later please!

Once clean up is complete, time to get those lovely photos done so they can be put up for sale. We all know that photos are the best part of an Ebay listing. 30 minutes later photos are complete. The dishes are washed and now time to get some listings completed. Wow now you can sit down now finally!   Oh no, you forgot to measure all the merchandise. Time to go back and do that!  Oh my, the life of a picker is so much fun!

Two hours later the listings are done. Time for a nap!!!!  Then time to start it all over again  and get ready to pack up some things ready to ship that have sold. It is also time to answer those 10 questions that have come in about the items that you have up for sale. Ahhh, the life of a treasure hunter! I would not have it any other way.