postage and label options

[Neilb78]

Hi

We are sending more and more items each day, we sell on ebay, facebook and will be setting a website up in the new year,

at the minute we write all the labels, bag them up then put money on a card at the post office, topping up each time we go. Seem to be spending a fortune all item are quite small, water bottles, bags, mugs etc

So we are looking at reducing our costs but also speeding up the labels part which is very time consuming, any suggestions on what options we have

thanks

[Justin]

I think you can automate through PayPal & eBay to a certain amount. I looked at this, the only problem I really found was that the post office don't make anything on prepaid parcels so weren't particularly impressed at receiving them. I send a lot of small items, my trade customers fill in a job sheet which we share on Dropbox. I then cut the addresses and create a mail merge which works really well. We take to the Post Office and use the Drop and Go service which is probably what you use?

We don't have the alternative courier services available here but if I lived on the mainland I'd be looking at the likes of MyHermes etc. to see if a better deal could be struck?

[k21john]

Hi

We are sending more and more items each day, we sell on ebay, facebook and will be setting a website up in the new year,

at the minute we write all the labels, bag them up then put money on a card at the post office, topping up each time we go. Seem to be spending a fortune all item are quite small, water bottles, bags, mugs etc

So we are looking at reducing our costs but also speeding up the labels part which is very time consuming, any suggestions on what options we have

thanks

Hi
For label printing I use a Brother QL-500. It's a little thermal printer giving great quality labels that can be integrated with many standard address programs, i.e. Office etc! Search the internet and you'll get one with a roll of labels for under 35 quid, works with Mac and or PC. Great little investment.

John

[GoonerGary]

You can set up a Royal Mail OBA, online business account. If you meet the required volumes and you can make huge savings. You receive a PPI license number which you print onto PPI labels.

They are trying to move everyone onto Despatch Manager Online. It is a little labour intensive, but you get parcel tracking for free. You have to buy a thermal printer for £120?? plus a lifetime of address labels for free.

[mrs maggot]

yep i use the QL printer as well, labels from ebay, which i use for everything, i discussed with our local post office doing business account, they say a lot of people take them on, then when they work out the costs involved tend to move back to the post office, ??

[GoonerGary]

The post office counters don't like loosing business to Royal mail online accounts, they are in competition bizarrely! So I don't think that the local post office will give you a non biased answer. There isn't much difference if you post first class letters. The real savings start with RM48 parcels. I still buy my stamps from the counter because I feel bad that she's lost my good trade.

[KathG]

Is there a minimum limit of parcels you have to send say weekly to open a OBA with the Post Office. I looked at their website but could not see that information. Probably not looking in the correct place. ��

[GoonerGary]

1000 parcels or large letters per year, easily achieved at 3 per day. You are given a code depending on your volumes of mail. There is a learning curve, but once you figure it out it is easy. You are billed every 30 days which is great since you don't have to pay up front.

http://tamebay.com/2013/03/royal-mail-p ... -2013.html

[mrs maggot]

i use 99\% large letter stamps for my ebay items, so i may well look into it

[mrs maggot]

typical royal mail site, i am having trouble even working out how to register and get an OBA account up and running