Subcultureoftwo_small
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Why don't online companies offer cheaper shipping options?

I just had to place yet another order for a tiny item in which the shipping cost far outstrips the cost of the actual item. I'm sick of this.

I usually ship things by the cheapest route...first class, media mail if it applies. I'm not in a hurry.

HOWEVER, I just placed an order at a kitchen company (for some tupperware-like replacement lids), and the ONLY options for USPS were Priority and Express. The FedEx option was worse: just 2-day or Overnight.

WHAT GIVES? I don't need my stupid tupperware lids overnighted to my house. Why do these places never offer normal shipping options? Actually, this particular order DID offer a FedEx ground option, but it was for $12, and there's no way FedEx would actually charge that much for a tiny weightless thing.

My suspicion is that they just offering expensive options, estimating the maximum charge, and pocketing the difference?

Any suggestions for things I can do?

Sacrelicious asked in Whatever 5 months ago | Report

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  • Wa_usa_small
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    soundslikepuget

    This question reminds me of the question that was posed to Ford Motor CEO Alexander Trotman back in the 90's when asked why Ford was making a particular new car to sell in Europe. "We're doing it to make money," he said. The press, dumbfounded by the point blank response, struggled to come with a follow up question to that.

    I think you hit the nail on the head. They're doing it to make money. Charge $12 for shipping, pay FedEx $6 and pocket the difference. I'll tell you this much though, I once worked in the corporate HQ of a Seattle-area based company, and I learned something about shipping. Using the Post Office can cost a fortune for large organizations because it requires a tremendous amount of staff time to prepare, weigh, package, address and label mail and deliver it to the post office.

    For companies doing high volume, UPS and FedEx cut huge discounts, and provide pre-prepared (is that a word?) labels and shipping boxes or envelopes, plus they pick up at the office. When time is money, it makes way more sense for large organizations to pay higher postage and spend less staff time preparing shipments.

    So, there's that. But in short, yeah they're probably just screwing you. Your best option is to try and find a local retailer that has your product, or find a website that offers free shipping. http://www.freeshipping.org/ offers a searchable list of several thousand websites that ship for free.

    soundslikepuget answered in Whatever 5 months ago | Report
    5 comments by Tracy M, soundslikepuget, and Sacrelicious…
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  • Dinolock_small
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    If you're dealing with a smaller place, realize it is pretty expensive to ship stuff when not doing it in large volume.

    If I had to buy a box for everything I sent out this month, I'd be averaging $3-4 on boxes, $1-2 in packing material, and $5-10 in shipping per thing -- not to mention the employee time. It adds up.

    Lots of places overestimate and pocket the difference, but anyone who has, say, unloaded their old DVD collection via some internet marketplace knows that shipping is by far the biggest hassle.

    Amazon Prime spoiled me but local retailers benefit. If I can't prime it, I'll happily pay a little more to buy it locally. The only other place I order stuff online from with frequency is Newegg, and they do such bulk that their shipping is very reasonable (not to mention they started their own "prime" thing and a lot of things ship free in the first place).

    It all comes down to volume... but I don't think you're getting as screwed as you think you are.

    protosaurus answered in Whatever 5 months ago | Report
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  • Cats_small
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    I worked at a UPS store 5 or 6 years ago now, the cheapest ground UPS shipping could get was around $7.50. Even if it was just one sheet of paper, the bare minimum cost was about $7.50. I'm sure the fuel surcharge portion of the charge has increased since then.

    I could see order fulfillment labor, supplies plus shipping costing $10 or $12 dollars.

    But yeah, I don't know why a greater variety of slow boat options are sometimes not available.

    But FedEx or UPS don't have any options at the USPS first class rates.

    internet_jen answered in Whatever 5 months ago | Report
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