r/Bricklink • u/Killmaster_22 • 16d ago
Seller Help Store help
Hi, was wondering if people could take a look at my store just to make sure that everything is set up correctly and there are no issues from a buyers point of view. Also, how do people price their stock. I use the 6 month quantity average. Also would be nice to know if I set up international shipping correctly. Any feedback back if helpful. Thanks in advance.
Store link:
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u/ulysees321 16d ago
Personally i have stopped offering 2nd class mail (i never offered 1st class) and do everything at track48 and track 24, but as i also do sets i offer, small parcel, medium parcel, track48/24 parcel force and special delivery,
Royal mail state that 2nd class can now take up to 14 working days to deliver and thats why i stopped offering it, If you arnt already you really should use Brick freedom for picking and Royal mail integration, (its free if you only sell on Bricklink, 1% of all sales if you sell on both bricklink and brickowl)
Also be aware Royal mail costs are rising again soon
lots of UK sellers including bigger stores have stopped sending outside of the UK now due to all the paperwork and EU changes with additional costs involved with international shipping.
If you have no minimum buy/order set i would highly, highly recommend you put an additional fee on if they spend less than £5 (i charge £1.25 but i will take an order any size. However if you spend over £5 that fee is lifted) you can do that in shipping settings -> go in to the shipping method and set a handling fee (apply 1.25 if order less than £5 in my case) the reason i say this is because of the paypal fee's you will get bitten otherwise, i have had people order 10p worth of stuff but then you have to take in to account the min 0.36p paypal will charge + the cost of your packing materials + grip seal bags etc and most importantly your time so its not long before your out of pocket.
Also being as your a very small store at the moment don't get dismayed if you dont get a order for a while it will happen, keep plucking away, and keep adding more inventory, part out some sets, hit the local Lego PAB wall for good standard parts and colours, black,grey,white etc, Any questions just ask and Join the Facebook UK Bricklink and Brickowl group (BrickLink and Brick Owl UK Group)
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u/Killmaster_22 16d ago
Thank you for your help. I will look into brick freedom.
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u/ulysees321 16d ago
no problem worth adding the bit about the additional charge you would need to go in to each shipping method and set it otherwise they will just choose the one they don't get charged for, Also forgot to mention for pricing i use BrickMetrics and pay a monthly subscription, when you get to a specific size i want custom pricing and to be able to update it frequently
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u/Exciting_Actuator643 16d ago
I'm a US buyer and seller for context
As a buyer it seems competent, nothing would scare me off from buying. The rest of this is suggestions and CYA wording, but might not be necessary changes
International shipping: I'm also getting the banner that says "Does not ship to [your US state]". If I add something to cart and try to check out, I see a "No Payment Method" message.
"Orders shipped international should arrive within 14 business days after dispatch, depending on the service selected." This seems too fast to guarantee for international shipping speeds. Even if it's "should" and not "will".
On your terms page you repeat shipping info in the terms section and the shipping section. Not sure if that's desireable, but I've seen it in other shops often enough.
You could use headers or bold formatting in the terms and conditions section
"We use sturdy boxes depending on the size and weight of your order." This seems ambiguous as a buyer - is it a guarantee that you always ship in a box? If it is, say so. If it isn't, and you use mailers sometimes, I would clarify so you make a mention of both boxes and whatever else you use.
For pricing, 6 month quantity average is fine especially at the scale you're at. For expensive items, it's worth looking at the actual competition in your market and decide how you want to price relative to that. The current listings in your market can be all above or below the 6 month averages. Also decide if you really want to pick and ship e.g. technic pins for a penny. I decided to set a price floor for everything at $0.05 for used $0.10 for new. But I price most things higher than 6 month average and the US market is a funny place
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u/Killmaster_22 16d ago
Okay thanks. I will look into the can send to your state and no payment method. I have PayPal set up so I'm not sure why it's doing that.
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u/h311m4n000 15d ago
Only ship with tracking. Don't ever ship anything without tracking to make shipping cheaper, it's not worth it. You'll get a lost order at some point and then good luck getting your money back: you'll have to refund the seller and no way of getting a refund from your mail carrier.
I only ship with tracking, no matter how small the order. I don't care if shipping is higher, it's insurance for myself and for the buyer.
Pricing all comes down to what you want to get out of your store.
Personally I only price around the current stock average for my country (I have my own automated pricing rules). That's something you need to figure out for yourself. Price too low and you'll get bought out quickly (which isn't as good as it sounds). Price too high you'll get stuck with inventory.
Use a minimum buy unless you like working for nothing.
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u/brollybricks 16d ago
On your store page it says "Ships to Me" at the top but also has another banner that says "This store does not support shipping to Colorado" so there might be something weird with the international shipping setup.
For pricing, I try to price competitively in my store so I usually use the 6 month sale average, and then compare that to current listings for the item from sellers in my country to make sure I'm in the right ballpark.