Unless I miss something the new shipping calculator in AW2K does not seem fully integrated. It si more like a one way street instead of 2 way, so we can't use it.

The reason I say thsi is because I do not see any way that the new calculator will link the chose shippng option andrate to the invoice I'm sending off to a buyer and enter the applicable shipping rate so I can emai and invoice frm AW2k. So now I have become totally dependent of sending an invoice through the Ebay system and dropping AW2Ks otherwise great integration.

What is needed is that AW2K sends an invoice with the selectable shipping options. Of course taht woudl mean upgrading to html emails insteda of flat text.



Peter

I have just completed the 1st auctions with calculated shipping. It is necessary to use calculated shipping now since even USPS uses zoned rates. BTW, If you offer more tan 1 shipping method, the 1st one becomes the default price entered by ebay, therefore I have put Priority shipping 1st and Express mail 2nd.
You are absolutely correct. When the auction ends, there is no way to notify the winner correctly. We need to know the shipping method and cost based on delivery address to do so. This is what I am doing now... I update auction lots, generate invoices, but DO NOT notify buyers. When I receive the "Ebay Item Sold" notification from Ebay, I attach it to the invoice by highlighting the auction #, then clicking on the invoice icon (another extra step), and click on the link to invoice the buyer (through ebay). When payment is received through Paypal, the shipping method and cost can be extracted and placed in the proper fields via a right click menu (the dollar sign must be highlighted for the shipping cost). A bit cumbersome, but it is the only way I see to invoice the customer. WHen thgere are multiple items from the same buyer, even more steps are necessary.
Each invoice must manually be updated when payment is received. It renders the invoicing module to a bookkeeping function only. Thom, there must be a way to integrate this into invoicing. Please, can we have an answer on this ASAP?

Thanks!!!

Dennis Kaye

Edited by dennisk on 04/26/06 11:10 AM (server time).

Dennis, I just sent an email to Thom on this issue. Peter

Peter

I have received this response from Thom today.

We will address the issue with calculated shipping costs when we convert Auction Wizard 2000 to use the eBay API.

This is due out in August.

Dennis

Same reply I got and I'm not happy with it at all. My business cannot go on like this till August or further, not can I turn back the introduced calculator with 1000s of items. Invocing is indeed a terrible struggle now, taking twice as long. It is an incentive to migrate. We'll probably seek a store software that integrates with Ebay, not being their own product. I'll be sorry to give up on this product, but I can't afford the extra cost now added to it with over new 250 listings a week and a 3000 item store.

Peter

Good Day, Thank you for posting about the difficulty you are having with the shipping calculator. I experienced some of the same issues when I first used the Shipping Option feature. Before you decide to move on to an inferior software program, let me share how I addressed the problems we ran into.

Although I stopped using eBay's invoicing system after I started using AW2000 in 2002, I do click through the process to keep up with what Ebay is doing. I discovered after the first week using the Shipping options, I was approaching the invoicing from AW2000 backwards. All the work is done on the front end of the Auctions as opposed to the backend. Shipping options are selected prior to listing by the seller. So invoicing rarely needs to be done unless there are special circumstances. When the buyer checkouts through eBay, all the shipping options applicable to that Auction is displayed so the buyer can choose which shipping method they prefer. And that is just good business and customer service to allow the buyer the choice. So instead of invoicing, allow the buyer to decide what they want and tell you.

Here's how I solved the problem. At Auction end, the updating process did not change nor generating invoices. But instead of sending out winning bidder notifications, I wait. The Paypal payments or "I will be sending xxx shortly" arrive via email while the Auction lots are updating. Associating payments has to be done anyway. My staff associates the Paypal payment, extracts the name and address. Records the payment which generates “Payment received and ship date” email. (So far there are no extra steps and I have actually reduced email correspondences by at least 1 email). The first email the buyer receives from me states “Payment received and your goody will be shipped on xxx.” The product is packed for shipping. The next email correspondence the buyer receives is the Shipping notice. Buyers love the quick communication.

I altered the “Winning Bidder Notification” email just a tad to reflect the need to go through eBay’s checkout to obtain the shipping charge. That email is only sent to the very few buyers that do not use the shipping calculator for submitting payment. Works like a charm. The staff now rarely sends out winning bidder notifications. Quoting and invoicing is a rarity instead of a routine.

Changing my staff’s method & workflow increased our customer service level, decreased the amount of time spent on each invoice, increased the speed in which packages are shipped, decreased email correspondences significantly all translating out to a significant time savings.

You already indicated you offer exceptional customer service. So instead of changing to another software program that would require you to decrease your customer service level and auction management ability, maybe take the time to look at your workflow and methods. That is what I have done and it has worked out very well.


Judy
bluepennylady

Thank you, Judy, for a clear and thorough explanation of your process. The nice thing about a board like this is that even people who didn't ask the question are helped by the answer.

You are most welcome. I am glad it helped.

Judy
bluepennylady