SImple Delivery Mandate Pushed To Q2

[valueaddedresource]

I'll add exact wording once the Q4 earnings call is over and a transcript is available but just FYI - CEO Jamie Iannone just said Simple Delivery mandate has been pushed to Q2 and they are working on adding a seller-paid free shipping option to the Simple Delivery program.

[papso22]

I was referring to the changes to the version that is still to come:

We've been listening to our sellers feedback during the ramp phase and are launching multiple enhancement to make this program's value proposition even stronger in the coming months.

For instance, we recently gave sellers the ability to select which carriers they're comfortable shipping with. We will soon add a free shipping option with the cost of pre-paid labels automatically deducted from sellers' earnings.

We are in the process of adding new carriers that support bulky and heavier items and we plan to introduce out of home pick up and drop off capabilities which many UK customers value due to their convenience, lower cost, privacy, security and environmental benefits.

[suelel1968]

Hi, from a tax perspective, does the buyer purchasing the postage get included in sellers turnover? If it doesn't that is a big positive to alot of sellers. 

[kath3735_wxmjn]

but even then they put in the proviso that they can change sellers choice of posting if e bay deem it so!

[vinylscot]

At the moment, that should make no difference, as the plan (so far, unless it's changed)) is to make it mandatory for private sellers only, and they would not be paying tax, if they are genuine private sellers.

[barry.110]

If they really are listening to the sellers then they shouldn't make Simple Delivery mandatory. I am quite capable of selecting the service and courier I want to use and purchase the label. I am willing to take the chance that a parcel might not arrive and I will have to refund, touch wood that has only happened to me a couple of times in the 10 years I have been using EBay. 

[lucy_farmer]

'If they really are listening to the sellers then they shouldn't make Simple Delivery mandatory. I am quite capable of selecting the service and courier I want to use and purchase the label'

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Damn right.

 Many private sellers on here are perfectly happy with systems they've developed over about 20 years of selling....with very few problems!

We do not want to be treated as feckless, untrustworthy children who can't be left to run their own lives 😡

[department28]

At the end of the day, I reckon it will be the sheer fatigue with this sort of thing that will cause many small sellers to give up. I can't get my head round any more of this stuff - and time spent reading updates and T&Cs and new 'tweaks' etc, is time that would previously have been spent shopping and/or listing items...

eBay have just made everything too complicated... and yet still they call it 'simplifying'...! 

[vinylscot]

Like you, I wish they would reconsider, but from their point of view, why should they?

They have obviously done the calculations, and gamed the reasonable scenarios with sellers and buyers leaving, etc., and come to the conclusion that it will be profitable to them to press ahead. (SD will make eBay an enormous amount of profit, probably well in excess of £1.00 for every single package sent; they would need to lose a huge proportion of their sellers for it not to be insanely profitable, and they know that's not going to happen.)

There may be more tweaks before it is finally made mandatory, so hopefully it won't turn out to be quite as bad as it seems right now. However, once it is mandatory, it will be like the imposition of fees on postal charges - few will like it, but, in time, it will be accepted as a cost of selling on eBay, which will continue to be, by a country mile, the best platform for most sellers. Many of those who left will return, when that truth hits home.

[theelench]

I decided to stop selling here before Christmas, but if I hadn't the new restrictions would have led to the same decision.

More and more work for less sales, less money as the reward for doing it and longer to get paid.  Plus the possibility that I'll be forced to send my vintage glass by some useless courier at MY risk, get it smashed and losing the piece and the money.

But at the end of the day ebay doesn't care about sellers, buyers or their ebay experience.  Ebay will make another fortune on the postage and THAT'S all that counts.

[*maetrix*]

The backing down & going away to re-think this absolute nonsense is in full effect.

They really do have some prize turnips working for them.

[suelel1968]

Goes without saying, but business sellers can sellect SD too. Som3times you have to look for the positives in changes and i wondeted if that might be one of them. Or we could just continue to Ebay bash...... 

[ruby*ryan]

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@suelel1968 wrote:

Goes without saying, but business sellers can sellect SD too. Som3times you have to look for the positives in changes and i wondeted if that might be one of them. Or we could just continue to Ebay bash...... 

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Special Delivery's not currently available for business sellers - and according to one of the community staff, there are no plans for it to be rolled out for them.

[andha-21]

Urgh. Just came back to reread the transcript to see if I remembered correctly.

I did.

He says "Royal Mail and Evri are the initial carriers".

What odds are we getting that Pack Link are third?

[vintique*violet]

Or Yodal, maybe? Perhaps they are working on it still and haven't decided? 

Either way, I cannot use SD for personal reasons and the fact that my choices are being taken away only adds to the distaste of it all. 

[andha-21]

The obvious angle of attack against Simple Delivery was always using disability. 

I'm fairly certain they have to make provisions within a system so that it doesn't negatively affect.

& by allowing the override clause on seller choice, they still haven't done that. 

If we get really lucky, the first mandatory SD sales will all be disabled sellers. See if they decide to take it legal, because if they do, it's gone.

No it's or buts, just bye bye.

[papso22]

Packlink are not a carrier, they are a broker.

Also, the transcript says they plan to introduce home pick up and drop off.

[andha-21]

Did they give a specific timeframe for that plan?

If not then my point above probably still stands.

If they start SD in April and Home Collection starts in July then it's worthless.

& based on the rollout so far, even if they do find some functioning brain cells in their ranks, they'll still probably *bleep* it up, just like they've done with pretty much everything else.

[technthread]

They need people on this who understand differences between couriers and their allowed parcel dimensions.

As an example if seller sells a tennis racket under 1kg I would hope eBay realise they can’t sell a buyer a Royal Mail small parcel label. If they get this wrong there will be a lot of sale cancellations. The only way Vinted seem to keep simple delivery simple is that their couriers allow a free for all. Somehow I can’t see eBay/Packlink being so forgiving. 

[wyntersemporium]

Already do but thinking I’m going to charge for it as sometimes the item is heavier and I lose out on post 

[andha-21]

It's not even as simple as dimensions for some things. Warhammer models can be tiny, but simply due to base size most of them need Small Parcel sizing for post.

But that means those tiny, fragile models are going into sorting/transit with other boxes that can weigh upto 2kg. 

So you have to pack them to survive the above.

I don't see an eBay A.I system figuring that out anytime soon.

If it was a Google A.I system it would have probably already given me the answer.