Is now a good time to join eBay International Shipping?

[trainup027]

When they first rolled it out, there seemed to be bugs.  I didn't want to be a guinea pig, and had to scramble to get my store out of that program.  It's been running for a while now, and I'd like to opt in IF it's working well for other sellers.  What is your experience, if you are willing to share?

[1786davycrockett]

@trainup027 

My experiences have been overall good, with only a few potential buyers complaining about the high cost of shipping from the eBay Shipping points -- remember, the seller ships to  eBay International Shipping, and EIS ships to the buyer -- so the seller's responsibility ENDS when the item is received by EIS.

A couple of my items were lost in shipment; and eBay sent me a notification, indicating that there was NO responsibility on my part, and NO money taken from my funds.

Some buyers have contacted me directly about shipping or funds; but I steer them back to EIS to have their questions answered.

So, overall, no headaches.

Good luck.

[kandf_vintage_finds]

Enrolled since day #1.  No issues but I have very few international sales.  Good Luck!

[trainup027]

Thank you @1786davycrockett ! That sounds very positive, especially that eBay actually dealt with the issues that arose!

Thank you @kandf_vintage_finds ! I'm glad you didn't have issues.  I suspect my items won't sell a ton overseas either but it's nice to have the option.  🙂

[lonebuck-books]

I've had no problems with it.  Actually I have found it to be a bit better than the old global shipping program.  Once your item arrives at their forwarding center, your responsibility is over.  eBay for the most part takes full responsibility and covers any problems that may happen between them and the buyer.  I've been pleasantly surprised.  

The only issue I have had (which also happened with global shipping) is once and a while a buyer isn't happy with the cost.  To me, that isn't a big enough problem to stop.  If the buyer want's the item enough, they will pay the extra cost.   If not, that's okay with me.

[dbfolks166mt]

     Initially I opted out of the program as well while eBay got the program up and running, got any kinks out and to see if they were going to stand behind their seller protections. One of the first problems was combined shipping and they seem to have that issue addressed. Every indication has been, based on several posting on this forum, that they are indeed standing behind their seller protection which is extensive and even covers chargebacks. 

     There are some tradeoff's when using EIS most notably the combined shipping the buyer pays is, in most cases, higher than if the seller had shipped directly. The buyer is paying for two shipping legs, the first for the sellers shipping cost to the hub, then for the EIS shipping cost from the hub to the buyer.  This also tends to make the delivery timeline a bit longer. I don't have a lot of international sales but those that have gone through EIS have been hassle free. 

[vintage-camerastuff]

I sell a lot of international.  Never had a single issue.  Ebay has taken care of all buyer delivery problems.

[tobaccocardyahoo]

It works really well for me, and I am quick to shuck anything that is a hassle.

I get fewer buyers poor-mouthing than I did with Global. Most of the poor-mouthers are Canadian and I suspect they are most affected by the cost of the US leg of shipping being added to the cost of International shipping.

The estimated delivery time seems long to me, but my buyers leave feedback that they are happy with the delivery time.

IMO it has been great from day 1 and only the sellers have been troubled by it. It is good enough for buyers.