Bricklink/BrickOwl - Discussion, questions, & answers

[newbie77]

3 minutes ago, betsy805 said:

Paypal doesn't offer first class package service yet, I usually order those off usps.com and then copy/paste the tracking number into paypal.  The large envelope is for non rigid, uniform thickness papers and such.

thank you

[Phil B]

Quick heads-up for those on BrickOwl: I notified them of the fact that you cannot set a minimum weight for a shipping method (it forces 0gr as the minimum) and they have now made a change to enable this. I have a boxed shipping method for items >1lbs so this is very useful for me.

[2x4]

Quick heads-up for those on BrickOwl: I notified them of the fact that you cannot set a minimum weight for a shipping method (it forces 0gr as the minimum) and they have now made a change to enable this. I have a boxed shipping method for items >1lbs so this is very useful for me.

Very cool! I noticed that they had just included that in the updates section!

Sorry I did not answer your question before, I am not getting phone notifications on this thread for some reason, so I thought it had just been quiet for a while.

I have a question regarding coupons on brickowl. Is there any way to generate a user specific coupon for more than one user at a time? The current system is quite cumbersome, and I could spend hours going through and creating the coupons I need to create... Would love a more expedient option, but need to keep them user specific.

Thanks!

[Stragus]

21 minutes ago, 2x4 said:

I have a question regarding coupons on brickowl. Is there any way to generate a user specific coupon for more than one user at a time? The current system is quite cumbersome, and I could spend hours going through and creating the coupons I need to create... Would love a more expedient option, but need to keep them user specific.

It has been asked before why coupon management wasn't exposed in the API (which would make it easy to send tons of coupons).

Basically, it's too prone to abuse. Every coupon that is given sends an email to the recipient. There's a real risk of sellers abusing the system, sending tons of emails, and seeing BrickOwl emails flagged as spam. I agree with Lawrence on this.

Don't abuse coupons, use them in special cases.

[2x4]

Ok, thanks for the info Stragus!

I only send coupons to customers who have spent a specific dollar amount in my store, it's just starting to take a bit of time to keep up with. Perhaps I just need to increase the dollar amount...

[Phil B]

Buyer wants to add more bricks to an order which he already placed with me (and I sent him an invoice). I said fine and gave him the shipping option maximum dimensions and weight. This is on Thursday early AM. It's now Sunday noon. Haven't heard from him since. What should I do - reminder email? Wait?

[Guest betsy805]

14 minutes ago, Phil B said:

Buyer wants to add more bricks to an order which he already placed with me (and I sent him an invoice). I said fine and gave him the shipping option maximum dimensions and weight. This is on Thursday early AM. It's now Sunday noon. Haven't heard from him since. What should I do - reminder email? Wait?

I'd wait a few more days.  I've had people keep orders open for 2 weeks before, but it's fine because they end up spending way more!

[Phil B]

7 minutes ago, betsy805 said:

I'd wait a few more days.  I've had people keep orders open for 2 weeks before, but it's fine because they end up spending way more!

Thanks - my store is awaiting a big inventory upload (not quite ready) and otherwise picked quite dry ... I hope he finds something of his liking though ....

[MinifigW]

How many orders per day do you guys consider healthy for a store with around 90 unique lots and 30,000 items? Over the past few months I seem to be getting around 1 per day.

Just interested in opinions

[Phil B]

7 minutes ago, MinifigW said:

How many orders per day do you guys consider healthy for a store with around 90 unique lots and 30,000 items? Over the past few months I seem to be getting around 1 per day.

Just interested in opinions

What are these ... bricks or sets? your average lot size is ~300, so that might be a factor in getting 1 order per day. My picked-over store has 15k over 300 lots and I get about 2 per week across BL and BO - but again, most interesting bricks have been picked already and my big replenishment is still pending (but it'll be a whopper - going to 90k pieces).

[MinifigW]

43 minutes ago, Phil B said:

What are these ... bricks or sets? your average lot size is ~300, so that might be a factor in getting 1 order per day. My picked-over store has 15k over 300 lots and I get about 2 per week across BL and BO - but again, most interesting bricks have been picked already and my big replenishment is still pending (but it'll be a whopper - going to 90k pieces).

About 800 sets and the rest are bulk lots, I hope your big upload goes well

[newbie77]

i believe jan-march is kind of high time and it slows down till august before it picks up and you guys are doing very very well. 

if i recall things based on some forum posts by people with large large (over 2million parts); average orders per day is about 5-6 even for big big stores. (not sure if that still holds true. but if you count saturdays, and other holiday seasons .. it might be true)

 

 

Edited April 10, 2016 by newbie77

[mtwnphlly]

 

What is everyone's experience buying from sellers overseas when based in the United States? It seems like there are some deals to be had if you're conscious about the shipping costs, but what about taxes/duties when your package comes through customs? Do you have to pay taxes/duty on every package that comes into the states or is it only if your package has a certain value? Thanks in advance!

[minicoopers11]

I'm not even sure of when we're supposed to be hit with duty when importing via shipment, but there is an exemption for when you bring stuff into the country yourself. That said, with numerous properly declared shipments of up to US$500 (via eBay, Bricklink, Amazon, et all), I have not been hit with duty at all yet.

Edited April 22, 2016 by minicoopers11

[mtwnphlly]

 

Awesome! Thanks for the quick reply, minicooper.

[Deadfraggle]

Anyone have any experience selling to buyers in Moscow, Russia? It's only a mid-priced set, and  he's willing to pay my $480 asking + $75 shipping charge without hesitation, so it seems a bit odd for me. If done through PayPal, Bricklink and the USPS, are there any real downsides here for me as a seller?

[Alpinemaps]

37 minutes ago, mtwnphlly said:

 

What is everyone's experience buying from sellers overseas when based in the United States? It seems like there are some deals to be had if you're conscious about the shipping costs, but what about taxes/duties when your package comes through customs? Do you have to pay taxes/duty on every package that comes into the states or is it only if your package has a certain value? Thanks in advance!

I was leary until late last year, when there were some parts that I needed that only seemed to be available (in the quantities I needed) from oversees sellers.

Every single one of my orders (upwards of 10), came through without a single problem.  No missing parts.  Great communication from everyone.  I was amazed at how quickly some of the packages arrived - faster than some of my US based packages.

Shipping cost is slightly higher, but I offset that with buying a little more than the bare minimum that i need (e.g., some polybags and sets that I don't *need* but are great to pick up).

[BearCrash]

1 minute ago, Deadfraggle said:

Anyone have any experience selling to buyers in Moscow, Russia? It's only a mid-priced set, and  he's willing to pay my $480 asking + $75 shipping charge without hesitation, so it seems a bit odd for me. If done through PayPal, Bricklink and the USPS, are there any real downsides here for me as a seller?

I've sent to different buyers in Moscow for about the same value (but shipping was slightly lower) without problems.

[Phil B]

40 minutes ago, mtwnphlly said:

 

What is everyone's experience buying from sellers overseas when based in the United States? It seems like there are some deals to be had if you're conscious about the shipping costs, but what about taxes/duties when your package comes through customs? Do you have to pay taxes/duty on every package that comes into the states or is it only if your package has a certain value? Thanks in advance!

I bought 2x 42043 from Amazon.de a few months back, which got delivered without issue, no hold-ups, no customs fees. Total cost was ~$350 so under $500. I've also ordered from European BL sellers in the past and while some packages took a while to arrive (2-3 weeks) and had no useable tracking, they all eventually arrived, without issues, without customs duties. I'd buy internationally again anytime.

[Deadfraggle]

2 minutes ago, BearCrash said:

I've sent to different buyers in Moscow for about the same value (but shipping was slightly lower) without problems.

I don't know why, and I'm sure it's an unfair stereotype, but I automatically assume any LEGO transaction involving a Russian buyer/seller is going to end up as some time of scam. Similarly, I assume every LEGO transaction associated with China is going to involve counterfeit goods. Sadly, I have no real personal experience to justify either of these beliefs.

[Phil B]

Just now, Deadfraggle said:

I don't know why, and I'm sure it's an unfair stereotype, but I automatically assume any LEGO transaction involving a Russian buyer/seller is going to end up as some time of scam. Similarly, I assume every LEGO transaction associated with China is going to involve counterfeit goods. Sadly, I have no real personal experience to justify either of these beliefs.

A little caution never hurt anyone, but I wouldn't stop the sale .... I would just make sure you've got your bases covered - insurance, tracking, verified paypal address etc.

[Alpinemaps]

I don't know why, and I'm sure it's an unfair stereotype, but I automatically assume any LEGO transaction involving a Russian buyer/seller is going to end up as some time of scam. Similarly, I assume every LEGO transaction associated with China is going to involve counterfeit goods. Sadly, I have no real personal experience to justify either of these beliefs.

I refuse to sell to Russia or South Korea for my eBay auctions. No direct experience either just hearing second hand from other BPers.

[minicoopers11]

17 minutes ago, Deadfraggle said:

Anyone have any experience selling to buyers in Moscow, Russia? It's only a mid-priced set, and  he's willing to pay my $480 asking + $75 shipping charge without hesitation, so it seems a bit odd for me. If done through PayPal, Bricklink and the USPS, are there any real downsides here for me as a seller?

Be cautious if Bricklink and Paypal addresses don't match. Otherwise, I would proceed no problem. Would avoid sending via Priority Express and would just send Priority (Express requires actual recipient to be present or to pickup at post office, which sometimes doesn't happen).

I've only had one problem out of 30 or so transactions to Russia, which was resolved in my favor (someone hijacked a Swede's paypal account, but I sent to the address I was supposed to). When I say "in my favor," I mean Paypal ate it.

Edited April 22, 2016 by minicoopers11

[Guest betsy805]

12 minutes ago, minicoopers11 said:

Be cautious if Bricklink and Paypal addresses don't match. Otherwise, I would proceed no problem. Would avoid sending via Priority Express and would just send Priority (Express requires actual recipient to be present or to pickup at post office, which sometimes doesn't happen).

I've only had one problem out of 30 or so transactions to Russia, which was resolved in my favor (someone hijacked a Swede's paypal account, but I sent to the address I was supposed to). When I say "in my favor," I mean Paypal ate it.

yes this.  I've unfortunately had two bad experiences with Russia but paypal ate both of them.

[sunkenbrick]

Question for the US sellers that have experience sending polybags overseas. A customer placed an order for 2 polybags and now I need to send the invoice. This is my first international order so I want to do things right. Is the price to send these $13.50? I'm selecting USPS first class and the package weights only 3 oz. there is no cheaper option available?