Does shipping cost influence your vendor preferences?

[Roosterjack]

In looking over the various coral sales I looked at a LOT of sponsor vendors and I quickly discovered that there is a vast range of shipping costs for what amounts to the exact same thing. How can one vendor charge $29 and another charge $60? How can one vendor do free shipping at $125 while others want $300+ or don’t offer it at all?

i understand some vendors are quite a bit larger than others, thus the volume and economy of scale, etc. What I don’t get are the high end outliers, some of which are well known names. Just because I am able to buy expensive frags doesn’t mean I want to overpay for shipping.

What are your thoughts?

 

[moz71]

I do believe they make a profit off shipping alone which I do not like, so I only purchase when I order enough to get free shipping. But still keeping an eye on overcharging for product. I refuse to buy these ridiculous prices for corals some vendors ask.

 

[Indytraveler83]

It's often a way to make up for underpriced goods.

A lot of places (not just coral vendors) will display a very low product cost, then build their profit back in via shipping. The thought is that so many people sort web results by price, so it puts them at the top of the list.

It can be very misleading, and yes, it affects my decisions. I totally understand how the little guys can't offer shipping at the same discount as mass retailers, but there's also a line to be drawn when they use high shipping to display misleading prices.

 

[JasonK84]

I absolutely hate paying shipping charges. I’ve been spoiled by all the free shipping (eBay, Amazon, Wal-Mart, etc). When ordering livestock I buy enough to get free shipping or I won’t order. I’ll save up and get several at once.

 

[AlgaeBarn]

Shipping is a huge expense for vendors that sell anything live.

Go quote a 10lb package that is 12x12x12 from Denver to Florida (oh it doesn't weigh 10lbs? Welcome to the world of dimensional weight). You are looking at $190.88 for overnight. Let's say you negotiate hard with UPS or Fedex and they give you a 70% discount, you are coming close to $57 (before styrofoam). Now add fuel surcharges, residential delivery fees, etc, and then $6 for the styrofoam, you are looking at close to $68. It's a business decision on where to do free shipping. Some companies in this hobby (many more outside of the hobby, like Uline, USplastics) make money from shipping, the vast majority lose money.

 

[gotmesalty77]

Exactly why I have never gotten coral or fish shipped. That being said I live in orlando..

 

[Devaji]

yes it dose no LFS so every darn thing gets shipped in...sucks really tho shipping cost do ad up.

I try to place larger orders to get the free shipping. but when you only need a small CUC for your new nano the 3 day shipping is more the the CUC it does suck.

so yes shipping is a big issue on where i spend my $$

 

[TheOne]

If they don't offer free shipping I'm not buying. I'm ok with setting a limit before free shipping because I know they have to make a profit somehow.

 

[mattzang]

i certainly do

some places have really cheap shipping, some have absurd shipping. idk how much is profit and how much is they just don't have a good deal with a shipping company, but it aint on me to make up the difference.

for example, say you want to buy some fish online. aqua locker is free shipping at $99, liveaquaria $149, then you go check out nyaquatic and shipping is like $60+ (granted i'm in CA and they're in NY). sure the fish on nyaquatic are sort of cheaper, but not that much cheaper. it might be a smaller company vs larger company thing, but when the difference is that massive.. sorry smaller company

 

[Biokabe]

Shipping is just another part of the price. I don't mind paying a shipping charge on something if the overall price ends up being what I consider acceptable. For example, if there was a vendor that was selling a bunch of quality frags for $5 each, I wouldn't mind if the shipping was $50. Grab 20 frags, pay $50 in freight, I'm still only up to $7.50 each. Granted, I've never come across that situation. Usually the prices on frags are enough that, while they are lower than what my LFS can do, it's still not low enough for me to justify unless there's a free shipping level for me to reach.

But shipping charges don't offend me. It's just another component of the final price, and ultimately the final price is what I care about. How much does it cost me to get those corals into my tank? If the lowest final price ends up including a shipping charge, so be it!

 

[Biokabe]

Shipping is a huge expense for vendors that sell anything live.

Go quote a 10lb package that is 12x12x12 from Denver to Florida (oh it doesn't weigh 10lbs? Welcome to the world of dimensional weight). You are looking at $190.88 for overnight. Let's say you negotiate hard with UPS or Fedex and they give you a 70% discount, you are coming close to $57 (before styrofoam). Now add fuel surcharges, residential delivery fees, etc, and then $6 for the styrofoam, you are looking at close to $68. It's a business decision on where to do free shipping. Some companies in this hobby (many more outside of the hobby, like Uline, USplastics) make money from shipping, the vast majority lose money.

You think a 10lb package overnight is expensive... try an 800 lb package, 2nd day air, from Washington to Florida. That was a mistake I only made once. =)

 

[ZoWhat]

online coral purchasing......$40 FedEx Overnight is the industry standard..... this is a cost that's not within my control

 

[The Aquatic Arsenal]

Shipping can be very frustrating. There are quite a few things that go into getting a bigger discount as well. For your smaller vendors, it will take a little bit longer to be able to offer better shipping rates. I think that it is important to remember what the customer will think, but at the same time you can't shoot yourself in the foot. I do still laugh at some of the shipping rates on ebay lol. I try to live by the "Golden Rule" of treat everyone like you want to be treated.

 

[malders]

I would imagine larger vendors can get cheaper deals though I don't know what that amount would be considered. I do not agree that shops should make a profit off the cost of shipping and packing. Reminds me of the shady ebay days where sellers would have the lowest price and the most expensive shipping.

 

[Roosterjack]

I certainly do put some blame on the shipping companies...is it really that much more difficult to deliver something overnight versus 2-day? It still has to be picked up, still has to be sorted, still has to be loaded on a plane and down, etc. Sure, charging extra for urgency is understandable but triple or more?

@AlgaeBarn You guys do a great job, and I am a loyal customer. Don’t think we don’t understand that there are costs.

 

[Roosterjack]

Shipping can be very frustrating. There are quite a few things that go into getting a bigger discount as well. For your smaller vendors, it will take a little bit longer to be able to offer better shipping rates. I think that it is important to remember what the customer will think, but at the same time you can't shoot yourself in the foot. I do still laugh at some of the shipping rates on ebay lol. I try to live by the "Golden Rule" of treat everyone like you want to be treated.

I appreciate vendors (like you) who are willing to work with the customer to get the most out of that shipping module. There are some who are pretty draconian on the shipping rules they put in place.

 

[Quietman]

Shipping is all part of comparitve shopping. I include that with all vendors. I use free shipping when I can but don't mind a reasonable charge, even if they add in other fees. A great deal on something isn't a great deal if shipping doubles the price. I'm not blaming them for setting low prices in the first place. If it's a bad faith strategy, the market will take care of that when customers find other vendors who respond appropriately to demand

Edit; by blame I mean get angry. I don't get angry at car dealers who add in excess fees...I just don't buy there.

 

[Dr. Dendrostein]

In looking over the various coral sales I looked at a LOT of sponsor vendors and I quickly discovered that there is a vast range of shipping costs for what amounts to the exact same thing. How can one vendor charge $29 and another charge $60? How can one vendor do free shipping at $125 while others want $300+ or don’t offer it at all?

i understand some vendors are quite a bit larger than others, thus the volume and economy of scale, etc. What I don’t get are the high end outliers, some of which are well known names. Just because I am able to buy expensive frags doesn’t mean I want to overpay for shipping.

What are your thoughts?

I purchase on net 90% what we need for home/business, free shipping gets my dollar, and now with prime, item may cost little more I still go with oh, because I get it quicker and to me time is a luxury and time is money , as to corals, shipping is not a concern for me if I'm looking at a rare Coral or hard to find Coral or corals. With the bans at this time, free shipping is no longer an issue because we all know certain corals that are hard to get now or rare are not on the market for long. I no longer look for free shipping.

 

[Gareth elliott]

I do the vast amount of my online coral purchases from 3 vendors. Mainly because they are all within my state or 1 or 2 over.

The nearest aquarium center is free, i pick up in person. Pieces of ocean is $20 to me, and pacific east aquaculture is about the same.
If i am buying enough to have free shipping, i add a few others but usually its just a coral or 2.

 

[Reefnoobz90]

Shipping is a huge expense for vendors that sell anything live.

Go quote a 10lb package that is 12x12x12 from Denver to Florida (oh it doesn't weigh 10lbs? Welcome to the world of dimensional weight). You are looking at $190.88 for overnight. Let's say you negotiate hard with UPS or Fedex and they give you a 70% discount, you are coming close to $57 (before styrofoam). Now add fuel surcharges, residential delivery fees, etc, and then $6 for the styrofoam, you are looking at close to $68. It's a business decision on where to do free shipping. Some companies in this hobby (many more outside of the hobby, like Uline, USplastics) make money from shipping, the vast majority lose money.

Being in logistics this is an accurate answer. I doubt anyone is profiting from shipping these days, it's all just built into the price (or not if they charge shipping). the 12x12x12 package would be billed at 12.5lbs even if it's a box of peanuts.