I may have lost a prong!
August 18, 2009 by MindanaoBob
Filed under Feature, My New Journey
Remember, a while back, I wrote about how I planned a “two pronged approach” in selling on eBay? I was planning to source items from the Philippines, where I live, to sell on eBay.com, and I was going to source items from the USA to the Philippines. Being an American and living in the Philippines for a decade, I have a bit of an advantage, in that I know what things are available in each country, and also what things cost in each country. I can use my unique knowledge in this regard to find items where I can have a real cost advantage on each side of the fence.
I didn’t really disclose everything, though. I have been able to work a deal in which I would be able to ship the stuff each way for free. I am not going to give details on how I am going to do it, because that is part of my competitive advantage. I will only say that there is a way to do it. Absolutely zero out of pocket cost to me to ship between the USA and the Philippines. This was going to give me a real leg up on any competition.
For about 2 months now, I have been testing my shipping technique, which I thought was foolproof. Unfortunately, almost every step of the way, there have been hitches in the system, though. I am expecting my first shipment from the USA any day now, and I am able to track it online. It appears to be coming, but because of the other problems I have experienced with it so far, I am a bit worried. If the package arrives as it should, I expect to see it sometime this week. If I do see it, I will update you and let you know.
However, these little problems that I’ve had to chase down and fix every step of the way have me a bit worried, though. With the problems occurring so readily on this first trial, if I can’t get this straightened out, I will certainly end up losing shipments, and if I do that, it will be difficult to make money. I am happy though, that if there were to be problems, they happened in the first trial run, because it gives me things to think over. Can I still make money if I must pay for the International Shipping? Probably I can, but it cuts into my share!
Well, I still have more testing to do. I am not actually selling on eBay yet, because my testing is not complete on this. So, this will slow me down a bit. Hopefully, though, I’ll have everything worked out soon!
About the Author: Bob Martin is an Internet Entrepreneur living in Davao City, Philippines. Bob is an American, but has lived in the Philippines for about a decade now. Bob got started in the Online Auction business in the early days of the Internet, selling on eBay while it was still in it's infancy.
MindanaoBob
Hi Bob – That’s a huge [business] advantage to be able to ship for free! I am envious of your accomplishment. Really, that’s awesome you can do that. I hope your shipment arrives quickly. I haven’t had much time to revisit my plans to get back into selling on eBay. Goodness, I have to kick myself into gear!
Hi Henry – Well, my friend… there is news to report. I wrote this article on Sunday for publication today, and was still waiting for my delivery. Late this afternoon, my delivery showed up! There were some hitches along the way, but the delivery came! So, there are some bumps in the road to work out, but my method works. Everything is back on track!
Hmm, let’s see…free delivery…humpback whales? Just tie it to the whales, send them in the right direction, and wait six weeks. Sounds feasible.
Hi Tom – Ha ha… no, it’s really true. Technically, you could not say that the shipping is free, but that I have found a way to get shipping without paying any money out of pocket. I have worked a deal where I am trading advertising on one of my websites in exchange for shipping and delivery services. So, I do have to “pay” by putting an ad on my site, and the “payment” for the advertising is delivery services.
Hi Bob,
Ah! I understand your strategy. You’ve engaged in bartering. I probably would not have thought of doing that. Well, this gives me something to ponder in the days ahead.
Exactly, Henry. Here in the Philippines, they call that an “X Deal” or Exchange deal. Nice thing is that what I exchanged really doesn’t cost me anything too.
Yet, even if it doesn’t cost me anything out of pocket, it still has value!
How smart is that! What a good deal for you. And you don’t even need to feed those humpback whales. Win-win.
Hi Tom – It’s amazing what you can accomplish when you set your mind to it!!
Don’t you think?
Hi Bob,
Good old bartering,music to my ears.
You know, someone once said,”Its not how much money you have that matters,its what you do with the money you have that really matters”.
regards Chas.
Very true, chas! I can’t argue a bit with that one!