Shipping and Handling

Today's Silver Price: $31.80

I've been learning a bit about shipping lately. So far I have only shipped bracelets as those are the only items I have sold on my Etsy site!

I first wrap the bracelet carefully in tissue paper, then place that little package inside a small plastic bag with my business card inside, along with a hand-written note thanking the customer for shopping at Silver Current Designs. Everything goes inside the plastic bag so if the envelope gets wet everything should stay dry. Now I'm not talking about Ziploc sandwich bags here, I have purchased small 4" by 5.5" bags from a craft store. I've been using small padded mailing envelopes from the post office- I think they are 6" by 8" (not sure on that). The envelope costs $1.19, and I get shipping confirmation which costs 80 cents, and the whole thing costs between three and four dollars.

I shipped a package yesterday and it surprisingly arrived to my customer today. She only lived a few towns away but still that was pretty quick for the USPS. At the post office I was expecting lines, people trying to mail huge boxes, general chaos and screaming but there were only a few people in there yesterday. I guess the holiday mailing madness hasn't started yet!

Here's a little secret for you. On my website my items are listed with free shipping. The fact is, I have included the cost of shipping in the price of the item. If I were to sell a bracelet at a craft fair, I would charge the customer $15. When selling the same bracelet on my Etsy site, the price is $19.00 with "free shipping." I think there is something about the phrase "free shipping" that encourages customers to make a purchase. Most people of course will probably realize that the cost of shipping has been calculated into the price of the item... but still that word FREE has magical powers...

I am looking into opening an online account with USPS. This would allow me to print postage labels from home and just drop packages off at the post office rather than waiting on line to pay for postage. I would have to get a scale which could connect to my computer in order to get correct postage for my packages. I don't know that I'm ready for this phase yet. I think if I start shipping orders on a regular basis I will set up an account, but for now I'll just run to the post office on my lunch break.