Introducing: Bonanza's Global Shipping Service
At Bonanza, instead of just sleeping like regular humans, we dream about all of the fancy tricks we can do to make the lives of our sellers (and buyers) easier. We also dream about Swedish Fish, red Starburst, cats with weird haircuts, pugs, and taking over the world.
Re: Taking Over the World
The obvious first step toward taking over the world is to make international shipping seamless and affordable. With this in mind, we’ve partnered with Pitney Bowes to develop a Global Shipping Service. Our goal here is to help our sellers reach more buyers (and make more sales) by expanding their selling opportunities to more than 100 countries around the world.
What’s a Global Shipping Service?
The Global Shipping Service (or GSS to those of us in the know) makes shipping and tracking items to global online shoppers as easy as pie. All costs are calculated upfront, including duties, taxes and shipping fees. These fees are guaranteed in real-time at the checkout by Pitney Bowes, thus eliminating all unforeseen shipping and importation costs: there will never be any surprises for sellers or buyers when items are delivered.
How Do I Sign up for this Cool Trick?
To sell items internationally, any domestic seller with items listed on Bonanza can opt into the Global Shipping Service here: http://www.bonanza.com/global_shipping_service.
You will also need to ensure your PayPal account is setup to accept international payments.
Like magic, all eligible listings will be available for shipping to over 60 countries worldwide. When an international buyer purchases an item, you ship the item to a convenient distribution center in the U.S. managed by our partner. The center handles everything required to send the item to the buyer, including country-specific export compliance and customs documentation, making international shipping as simple as domestic.
What Makes a Listing Eligible?
For this to work, we need to know what is in the box without opening your box. If we’re dealing with SKU’d products, we’re good here. Additionally, the products must be listed in approved categories to be eligible to be active in the program. Products in certain categories (vitamins and supplements, for example) have too many regulations when it comes to which countries will let them in, so we’ve opted to make these listings ineligible for the program. Our goal with this service is to have both sellers and buyers avoid any unexpected charges, so we’ve set a strict set of guidelines to make this a smooth process.
It sounds like a lot of fancy stuff, but the whole deal is really easy for you to manage. When you opt into the program, we will automatically list your eligible items as active. It takes just a moment for our system to determine which items are eligible, and no extra work has to happen on your end.
But What Does it Cost a Seller Like ME?
This service doesn’t cost you any additional fees. The buyer agrees to pay the cost of shipping at checkout, and you are only responsible for the domestic shipping (the buyer does still pay if you typically charge a shipping fee for domestic purchases). Additionally, since we are working with a partner who has already streamlined the international shipping experience, shipping charges are much lower than what marketplace buyers can normally access from traditional carriers. Reduced expenses = more buyers = happy sellers.
Let’s be Real:
Bonanza’s mission has always been to empower entrepreneurs to build their dream businesses, and the Global Shipping Service is just another step toward creating the ultimate seller focused marketplace. Every seller who opts in will, with little effort of their own, reach more buyers and expand their selling opportunities. *Mic drop*
*More questions? Check out our Global Shipping Service Help Page.
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75 responses to Introducing: Bonanza's Global Shipping Service
This sounds great. Just a few questions and clarifications. I can ship, like I normally do, with USPS Priority Boxes, to the Kentucky distribution center with tracking and that’s it on my part?
If the item is broken once it leaves the distribution center, what exactly protects me from a PayPal dispute?
Can the distribution center guarantee that the item wasn’t broken when they received it and when they sent it out?
If the item is disputed at ‘not as described’ does the item have to be returned before refund? This would discourage scamming. And who pays for returns?
If there is a hold up in the foreign countries customs system, and tracking suddenly disappears (it’s happened), am I still protected? And by who?
This really sounds terrific and I’m sure I’ll have more questions, but initially I Like It.
Hi NecktieGuy! You have some excellent questions here.
You do ship, as you would normally ship a domestic package, to the Kentucky distribution center. You are only responsible for insuring the package up to this point. After it hits the distribution center, Pitney Bowes is responsible. Your best bet to avoid issue is to insure your packages on the domestic side, but it is not your responsibility to insure it to the final destination. You are still covered by Seller Protection and you determine who is responsible for return shipping. Read about Seller Protection here:: http://www.bonanza.com/site_help/general/SellerProtection_GlobalShippingService
Exciting addition to Bonanza!
Global Shipping makes it hard to add insurance to packages if it’s he same set-up eBay uses.
Hi weebeasties!
Please let us know if you run into this issue using Bonanza’s Global Shipping Service. We want the whole thing to be as simple and seamless as possible.
Love it! I’m in.
What extra fees are incurred with PayPal for international payments?
Hi RadioRockStar54! Good question.
You can read about PayPals fees here:: https://www.paypal.com/us/cgi-bin/marketingweb?cmd=_display-xborder-fees-outside
AWESOME !!! Glad Bonanza finally got this off the ground !!
Kudos for all the hard work to get this program rolling !!!
Thanks, razorsnmore4u! We are glad you’re pleased!
This is good stuff. Great for sellers/buyers because it eliminates any guess work on what methods are best and cost effective for international as it varies, I just have to worry about domestic methods which have more certainty. Do one up on the competition though, allow combined shipping through the program. On competitor site, clients have to buy items individually and pay more in shipping than needed. Allow clients to combine items.
Thanks, Ridgelinegear. This is great advice!
CONGRATULATIONS, BONANZA GROW, VERY GOOD TOOL, BUT IS ONLY FOR USA SELLERS
my concern is that it’s way too costly for my buyers. I know Ebay’s is, 45 instead of the 15 I can ship it for, for instance. Yes, everyone’s got to make a buck, but some places go a bit overboard
Hi tootall1121a! It is totally up to you whether or not you want to opt in, but our goal with this is to make things easier AND cheaper for our buyers and sellers.
Thanks, Bonz! Been waiting to hear that it’s worked out. Looking forward to easy international shipping!
Sandi
EmbellishMart
“Embellishments for your crafting, your space & you!”
Yay! We’re glad you are excited to use this service, Sandi!
I’m totally psyched about this new Global ground breaker. Thanks Bonanza.
Excellent news!!!
Exciting…I have opted in! Can’t wait for all those international sales to start rolling in!
TERRIBLE idea! I live in Canada and because of the NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement) I RARELY have to pay any extra customs/duties/taxes when I purchase items from American sellers (any extra costs that I pay at the door are on items with a value of over $150 Cdn). This is just a money grab by Pitney Bowes that ends up squarely on the shoulders of buyers, and I resent having to pay these extra fees when I wouldn’t have paid them if American sellers just shipped via USPS. This will certainly make a huge impact on any items bought by us up here in Canada from sellers in The States on Bonanza who opt into the Global Shipping Program. I understand that it would help sellers and buyers who are not part of the NAFTA circle calculate fees that are collected at the door upon delivery, but for us up here in Canada this usually steers us away from purchasing from sellers who are part of this type of shipping program.
We’re sorry to hear this, Dawna! This is all valuable information. Hopefully we can work something out to make it consistently budget friendly for you to make purchases on Bonanza.
Love it! Thanks Bonanza!
I’m located in Canada, am I able to opt in?
Hi Serenitygardendecor!
So far only sellers in the United States are eligible. We still love you, though.
Amazing how it works is grateful truly is the best platform bonanza
It would be nice if, when things are only open to US sellers, we in other countries don’t get spammed with them. We don’t qualify to join; why can’t your system send the email only to the US-based sellers it applies to?
Great idea, another venue was doing that when i was selling there. You print your regular postage ship to U.S.shipping center, they send out packages in bulk to that countries post office they delivery. I never had a issue with using that service and it opens the doors to more buyers, hopefully it’s the same as the other site and not just a way to overcharge my customers.
Hi silkundershop!
We’re glad you are excited to give our Global Shipping Service a try.
Not going to suit me as an international seller – I am just sticking to doing it myself as usual. The buyers dont need to pay any extra than what it costs to post.
Sounds good. I have not listed with overseas shipping before and I would be willing to ship this way. To continue with Dawna’s post would you be able to use the global shipping for overseas, but choose to ship regular to Canada?
We don’t have it set up this way yet, but we’ll look into it! It seems like a good idea.
I love using global shipping although paypal takes an extra 1% but its worth it not having to worry about your package arriving overseas and waiting weeks!
awesomesauce!
Great work Bonanza , Your certainly on your way to being the world leader for online marketplaces for sellers
With Global shipping you will lose Canadian business. Pitney Bowes charges outrageous fees and collects taxes from the buyer that are never collected at the border. Big mistake for U.S.A. sellers – just look at what happened on eBay.
Thank you for your insight!
Great move! I opted in. Thank you! :)
Is this for sellers in US or products in the US that are shipped to Kentucky. There is a distinction, many sellers cross border to ship in US.
This is for domestic sellers (in the US) to be able to ship internationally more easily. As a domestic seller, you would only cover the domestic leg (to Kentucky), and our partner handles the international portion.
As dawna says this is a terrible idea. I have used this on ebay and it is real bad for sales. Buyers are given fees …huge custom fees they wouldn’t normally get.
You will see 0 sales with this
I think I will try it out and see how it goes. Thank you for offering this. Let me know about Canada as I already offer quite a few of my items to Canadian buyers.
never have a problem with e-bay global shipping, so I will start using yours…question if, by any chance not complete happy can I opt out later on?
We hope it works out for you, but you can opt out.
I was very happy to sign up for Global Shipping with your company. Best Wishes to the Bonanza Family and all the Selling Community and continuous success.
What about tax filing? You’ve mentioned all fees including taxes and duties, have you streamlined the tax filing obligation like the VAT taxes etc or since Pitney Bowes is collecting, will they be required to file?
Yes, the buyer pays the international shipping fee directly to Pitney Bowes at check out. So you treat it as domestic (as if the buyer were Pitney Bowes), and Pitney Bowes deals with all extra fees/ complications.
I’m very excited to opt into Global Shipping!!!!!!
FYI it can be quite costly to buyer as one on ebay found out. He purchased 3 small booklets but combined shipping was not allowed by forwarding site. His postage would have been over $100.00 I priority mailed them for 32.00, so keep that in mind if something is light weight.
To those who say they can ship more cheaply themselves, I have been burned, badly, by offering affordable shipping options that were not tracked to foreign destination. I sell books and often ship at “reasonable rates” via Priority Flat Rate Envelope or 1st Class, both of which are not tracked in most countries. Always surprises me that the highest dollar books never reach the recipient. If the buyer wants and item, they will pay, and I am protected. Thanks for the option, Bonanza!
i was hoping you guys had this. so much easier
Thank you!! Love selling to the world (:
We like it! Not sure we are ready since many questions are not completely answer in this blog. Insurance? Shipping Cost?
Do we have to mark up item(s)
You treat it as a domestic package (likely just the same as you treat most of your orders). The buyer pays the extra shipping cost that takes the package internationally, and the package is insured by Pitney Bowes from their shipping center to its final destination.
I’ve used this type of service on Ebay with mixed results. International shipping has a way of taking a really long time, no matter which method is selected. Sometimes buyers are surprised by a fee at the other end that is not listed on the transaction page due to the international shipping cost. I do like the idea though and may consider using it here on Bonanza.
Hi there! Can you point me in the direction of where it shows what items in my booth are signed up for the program? I’ve searched everywhere in my settings and can’t see any type of list of elgilble/inelgible items. Thanks in advance!
Good question. You can go to www.bonanza.com/global_shipping_service and you’ll be able to see all of your eligible items.
Ok am in ready to get started and learn
Thank you Bonanza.
This is the best Bonz news to come down the pike in quite while. I would like to be able to choose Canada as an opt-out though. I’ve shipped to Canada before and don’t mind shipping there on my own. So if we can have the chance to opt in for the GSS and keep shipments to Canada out of it, that would be nice.
This is a good idea, Indizona. We’ll look into it.
How does it work with USPS Priority flat rate boxes? How will Pitney Bowes know what the package weighs. so that they know what they’ll charge? How can the buyer know what the total charges will be until Pitney Bowes get their hands on the flat rate box?
Before shipping is calculated, Pitney Bowes will need to know the weight of what you’re shipping. But your items will only be approved for the service if you are supplying enough information, so you don’t have to worry about surprise charges.
Overall Global Shipping works pretty well for me, but I don’t think that NecktieGuy’s question in the first comment on the top was answered clearly. I have the same concern. Does anyone at distribution center opens the package to see if the item arrived intact? If the buyer claims the item arrived damaged, how do we go about the responsibility? It will be difficult to prove when the item got damaged: on its way to Kentucky or after it already left the distribution center? Ebay is pretty good about it and usually they take responsibility, refund the buyer and remove any negative feedback left in this matter.
Hey! You can read this bit about Seller Protection here:: http://www.bonanza.com/site_help/general/SellerProtection_GlobalShippingService
Pitney Bowes doesn’t open the package to make sure it isn’t damaged, but they assume responsibility if the buyer receives a damaged product.
It is best to insure your packages on the domestic leg, so it is covered for the full duration of shipment.
“You will also need to ensure your PayPal account is setup to accept international payments.”
I’m out. The cost to have international currencies converted to USD along with all the other fees, will make most items sold not profitable. I am not using this program until the buyer forced to pay in USD like how it is on eBay.
Sad for me, as i am seller in Canada….i agree with Dawna. being in Canada this is not good for me. g
one question..
How would pitney bows calculate the cost of international shipping of an item if the item is set up with flat rate shipping for US.
There is nothing, ie weight, size, etc for them to use to determine the shipping cost to charge the customers…
Your items will only be approved to be active in the service if you have supplied enough information in the item detail section of your product listing for Pitney Bowes to be able to predict shipping costs. (MPNs, UPCs, height and weight, etc.)
I like the looks of this I do some shipping countries now but cost of shipping on my own has cost me a lot of sales.
thanks for the information, but i have few order from bonanza, i do not know what i should do to increase selling, thanks
This Global Shipping Service is an excellent idea and it will be an opportunity for people all over the World to access the amazing products Bonanza offers. Excellent idea.
Thanks, I have use this service on ebay and it works great!
Very Great Addition to the site. I do have a question on this. Is this for the Booth only or both booth and Web stores? We are considering possibly starting a web store with Bonanza in the very near future and would like to know if the web store is separate from this or will also be included. This certainly will also help our decision and thank you for the info in advanced.
Webstores are included!
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