Redisplay Messages: Compact | Brief | All | Full Show Messages: All | Without Replies| Author: | MidwestBrick  | | Posted: | Jan 26, 2023 17:52 | | Subject: | Re: Tell Me: What Do Sellers Want Most? | | Viewed: | 53 times | | Topic: | General | |
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| In General, rainbowmist writes:
| | | | I am all for either requiring Instant Checkout or highlighting sellers that do.
Even as a seller, I hate the guesswork when buying, and sometimes the sellers
come back with an out-of their... out of this world shipping price!
|
I prefer the manual invoice for my store. Sometimes I have to package orders
that have fragile parts and need the extra ounces for proper packaging or with
a shipping box. If the buyer does not agree with the shipping cost then they
can cancel the order or don't order in the first place. As long as what is
stated in your terms it seems pretty simple. Looking at other websites for their
shipping costs BL seems fair to me.
|
You can change what each item weighs or change the size or have Instant Checkout
use weight or size and modify all that yourself for each item.
If we all had to abide by the same rules, then buyers wouldn't have to cancel
their orders so all parties would be satisfied.
I know it is possible cause I am 100% Instant Checkout and have yet to come across
an order that floored me with how much it cost to ship. If an item would put
shipping parameters out of whack, as in cost too much to ship for how much I
could sell it for, I just don't add it to my shop, or if I do, put it at
a price that I'm satisfied at if it is purchased knowing it will cost more
to ship it.
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| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Jan 26, 2023 17:44 | | Subject: | Re: Tell Me: What Do Sellers Want Most? | | Viewed: | 49 times | | Topic: | General | |
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| In General, Nubs_Select writes:
| | In General, Yo_Yo_Flamingo writes:
| | In General, MidwestBrick writes:
| | In General, dcarmine writes:
| | Most of you know that I am on the BrickLink Marketplace Panel group of which
Admin Tanja. We will be meeting next Wed, Feb 1, and I need some seller feedback
to share with the group.
During the last meeting we were told that the plan for seller tools was scraped
because what was being developed did not fit in with the plan for the new site.
(Yes there is a plan to write a new site). Yes, I am MORE than disappointed that
we, once again, are not getting anything new to help us.
So I am wanting your seller input that can get us a few things now, to work with
this site, to hold us over until the new site is done. My recollection is the
next two years.
I have a few pet peeves that I will be sharing, but I want to hear your annoyances.
I know they are many, hit me. I'll do what I can.
Post here or PM me, either way is fine.
Thanks
Donna Carmine
Nebraska Brick Store
|
A lot. I want a lot of stuff. I do agree with items others have mentioned to
reduce confusion within the website, but am going to take a different angle here.
I'll try to keep the list short and focus mostly on increasing what Buyers
want cause it falls in line with what sellers want, which is increased sales,
increased traffic, and increased daily excitement putting together Lego orders
for other lovers of Lego. I can't tell you the joy I receive every time someone
visits my store and then the additional joy of seeing an order that I can go
pack up and fulfill.
1) I want buyers to know that BrickLink exists so more of them come here vs going
to Amazon. I don't have the answers on how you advertise but I can't
say I've ever seen any either. Put it this way, there is not 1 person in
my life that I have discussed Lego with that has ever heard of BL prior to me
introducing them to it. We are not talking about a few people, this is hundreds
of friends and family. They all have children, nearly all those children love
building Lego, nearly all those children receive at least 1 Lego set for Xmas/birthdays...
yet none know where to purchase Lego beyond Amazon, Walmart, or Target. What
really hurts though is many of them really dislike the invoice system, see #2
below as they want to shop, checkout and then see their purchase in their mailbox.
They don't want delays in-between.
2) For Domestic Orders as I think this should be possible for every country but
I am not sure entirely - I want every store to be required to have Instant Checkout
for every order cause I am growing tired of seeing the posts about X seller is
now charging this, or personally when I see X seller charging Retail shipping
vs Commercial... every store can keep their terms on costs but each store should
be fully capable of figuring out what works for them to provide instant checkout
with shipping costs built in too at various levels. It isn't difficult to
know our own inventory and know how much shipping would approximately cost for
domestic orders and if a seller gets burned a little, like many of us have, we
learn from it and move on.
3) along with #2 as I don't see that happening, then stores that are 100%
instant checkout from a buyers perspective, should be highlighted for them so
a buyer knows that they can fully checkout and bypass having to wait for invoices
etc... we should be adapting to what buyers want vs buyers having to adapt to
what each seller wants. I want to buy things from other sellers too, but as
an example, am SOOOO tired of being quoted Retail shipping when I know they are
paying commercial. I decline every single quote or request for shipping cost
when I know it is much higher than what I know they would actually be paying
especially when I ship orders every day and have the capacity to look up what
actual shipping would be from Point A to Point B. Some terms specifically say
"retail" which is fine, I just avoid them, but many are not clear enough.
Maybe this list is too strong and maybe too difficult and some sellers would
be turned off by these ideas. I have no doubt that many sellers would dislike
having to implement the above, however, for the betterment of the site, I think
it would do wonders to really help streamline Bricklink to be more what buyers
want to retain them and gain new customers for everyone, and add in a little
advertising and this could really become the 1st place customers go to get their
Lego.
Thanks
|
I am all for either requiring Instant Checkout or highlighting sellers that do.
Even as a seller, I hate the guesswork when buying, and sometimes the sellers
come back with an out-of their... out of this world shipping price!
|
except many cant in Canada yet 
|
I just went to one store and have a classic example of how frustrating using
Non-Instant Checkout would be if I were a buyer.
I have loaded up a cart with 470oz of sets, which is nearly 30 lbs. Yet the
"estimated shipping" charge shows up as $8!
How upset would you be as a buyer when the actual shipping charge of $50+ pops
up when the estimate was $8. You would be upset if it was off more than a $1
and the seller shouldn't even charge anything more than the estimated $8
either.
This is why every store, at least in USA, should be 100% instant check-out.
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| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Jan 26, 2023 16:43 | | Subject: | Re: Tell Me: What Do Sellers Want Most? | | Viewed: | 107 times | | Topic: | General | |
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| In General, dcarmine writes:
| | Most of you know that I am on the BrickLink Marketplace Panel group of which
Admin Tanja. We will be meeting next Wed, Feb 1, and I need some seller feedback
to share with the group.
During the last meeting we were told that the plan for seller tools was scraped
because what was being developed did not fit in with the plan for the new site.
(Yes there is a plan to write a new site). Yes, I am MORE than disappointed that
we, once again, are not getting anything new to help us.
So I am wanting your seller input that can get us a few things now, to work with
this site, to hold us over until the new site is done. My recollection is the
next two years.
I have a few pet peeves that I will be sharing, but I want to hear your annoyances.
I know they are many, hit me. I'll do what I can.
Post here or PM me, either way is fine.
Thanks
Donna Carmine
Nebraska Brick Store
|
A lot. I want a lot of stuff. I do agree with items others have mentioned to
reduce confusion within the website, but am going to take a different angle here.
I'll try to keep the list short and focus mostly on increasing what Buyers
want cause it falls in line with what sellers want, which is increased sales,
increased traffic, and increased daily excitement putting together Lego orders
for other lovers of Lego. I can't tell you the joy I receive every time someone
visits my store and then the additional joy of seeing an order that I can go
pack up and fulfill.
1) I want buyers to know that BrickLink exists so more of them come here vs going
to Amazon. I don't have the answers on how you advertise but I can't
say I've ever seen any either. Put it this way, there is not 1 person in
my life that I have discussed Lego with that has ever heard of BL prior to me
introducing them to it. We are not talking about a few people, this is hundreds
of friends and family. They all have children, nearly all those children love
building Lego, nearly all those children receive at least 1 Lego set for Xmas/birthdays...
yet none know where to purchase Lego beyond Amazon, Walmart, or Target. What
really hurts though is many of them really dislike the invoice system, see #2
below as they want to shop, checkout and then see their purchase in their mailbox.
They don't want delays in-between.
2) For Domestic Orders as I think this should be possible for every country but
I am not sure entirely - I want every store to be required to have Instant Checkout
for every order cause I am growing tired of seeing the posts about X seller is
now charging this, or personally when I see X seller charging Retail shipping
vs Commercial... every store can keep their terms on costs but each store should
be fully capable of figuring out what works for them to provide instant checkout
with shipping costs built in too at various levels. It isn't difficult to
know our own inventory and know how much shipping would approximately cost for
domestic orders and if a seller gets burned a little, like many of us have, we
learn from it and move on.
3) along with #2 as I don't see that happening, then stores that are 100%
instant checkout from a buyers perspective, should be highlighted for them so
a buyer knows that they can fully checkout and bypass having to wait for invoices
etc... we should be adapting to what buyers want vs buyers having to adapt to
what each seller wants. I want to buy things from other sellers too, but as
an example, am SOOOO tired of being quoted Retail shipping when I know they are
paying commercial. I decline every single quote or request for shipping cost
when I know it is much higher than what I know they would actually be paying
especially when I ship orders every day and have the capacity to look up what
actual shipping would be from Point A to Point B. Some terms specifically say
"retail" which is fine, I just avoid them, but many are not clear enough.
Maybe this list is too strong and maybe too difficult and some sellers would
be turned off by these ideas. I have no doubt that many sellers would dislike
having to implement the above, however, for the betterment of the site, I think
it would do wonders to really help streamline Bricklink to be more what buyers
want to retain them and gain new customers for everyone, and add in a little
advertising and this could really become the 1st place customers go to get their
Lego.
Thanks
|
|
| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Jan 23, 2023 19:45 | | Subject: | Re: Amazon who? (Part 4) | | Viewed: | 50 times | | Topic: | Shipping | |
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| In Shipping, popsicle writes:
34 mins per lot is definitely quite the record. Glad your bar is set high to
get that average down on the next one for "time per lot".
You can do it! 
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| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Jan 21, 2023 23:35 | | Subject: | Re: Is Blue-Violet really a thing? | | Viewed: | 34 times | | Topic: | Colors | |
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| In Colors, Yo_Yo_Flamingo writes:
| | I see Blue-Violet is listed as a color for one set:
Is it really a unique color?
|
Yes. I know I had some in my shop but may have sold them all. It is definitely
different than any other color and once you see it, you'll know.
|
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| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Jan 20, 2023 18:05 | | Subject: | Re: Is it ok to use wood base? | | Viewed: | 39 times | | Topic: | My Own Creation | |
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| In My Own Creation, Algold721 writes:
| | Hi. Kind of new to the world of designing unique Lego models. I am designing
a Lego model that includes a large change in elevation (a large hill, basically).
Although I could build the substructure of the hill out of Lego bricks, it would
take a massive number of them and am trying to keep costs reasonable. I am thinking
of building a sub structure out of bass wood that would go underneath that section
of the model, with the ground in Lego bricks above it. (so from the outside,
it would look like it was 100% Lego). Is that considered cheating? Or is it
commonplace to build foundation supports out of non-Lego material?
|
You are your own judge, so do whatever it is gets the job done and makes you
happy.
Remember too that competitions don't start from the floor, they use a table
to start their displays. Your table might have a bump in it, nothing wrong with
that
best of luck and feel free to share pictures with the community here with the
progress or final model
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| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Jan 19, 2023 15:25 | | Subject: | Re: Problem order with Brickiton (Dutch shop) | | Viewed: | 44 times | | Topic: | Problem Order | |
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| In Problem Order, Nubs_Select writes:
| | In Problem Order, Leftoverbricks writes:
| | In Problem Order, Leftoverbricks writes:
| | Here are the facts:
order placed January 8.
order paid via bank transfer January 8.
Order was marked 'Ready'
After 7 days of no action form the seller (status still 'ready' I asked
him if there was a problem with the order. No answer.
January 14 I started a OCR because the seller did not respond to my previous
message and I asked him to cancel.
January 18 still not a single line from the seller. I sent him a message that
he could either still ship the order, or cancel it. No response whatsoever.
So I'm left with an order that I have paid for and a seller that doesn't
respond.
Since I've contacted him a couple of times without response I feel it is
OK to name the name the seller and I warned him that I would do so if he didn't
respond to my complaint.
It's Brickiton and he has run into more problems, see his feedback https://store.bricklink.com/Royroy#/feedback
Store closed on January 15..........
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I wrote above post without checking his recent feedback.
Now I did and this says all:
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Could be a medical emergency that let the store auto lose after x amount days
and he can’t respond maybe?
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This happened to me a few years ago. It wasn't life-threatening, but I was
in the hospital for an unexpected visit for 5 days (dislocated and broken ankle
and broken foot from playing sports) which of course disallowed me to get around
to pull any type of Lego order no matter how small for weeks. But, around 4am
on the 1st night, I logged in, messaged all orders that I had open what occurred
and promptly closed up shop. Thankfully they all understood and it was no big
deal, but in this case we have a store that has been running almost flawlessly
for years and then suddenly they stop answering? Seems something else is up
and hopefully all is okay in the end.
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| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Dec 20, 2022 01:11 | | Subject: | Re: Acquiring boxes and packaging | | Viewed: | 41 times | | Topic: | Shipping | |
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| In Shipping, OKCBrickDepot writes:
| | Hi All,
I'm opening a USA based BL store. What's the best resource for acquiring
various packing material, boxes, and either packing peanuts or something to fill
a void inside a box?
Thanks!
|
Just thought of one more thing... I'm sure there are comparable costs here
elsewhere or maybe better deals elsewhere, but whenever Costco puts their Heavy
Duty packing tape on sale, I buy plenty to last over a year (enough to last until
the next sale). It is either a 6 or 8 pack for about $20-$25.
Always use Heavy Duty Tape... do not skimp on this, tape top and bottom at least
3 times to ensure a secure delivery (sometimes around the sides to (make your
package a brick that won't fall apart unless heavily tampered with). Just
do not go cheap on tape or amount of tape being used. Last thing anyone wants
is a box delivered that is falling apart upon delivery because cheap tape was
used.
Best of luck!!
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| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Dec 19, 2022 13:45 | | Subject: | Re: Acquiring boxes and packaging | | Viewed: | 41 times | | Topic: | Shipping | |
|
| In Shipping, peregrinator writes:
| | In Shipping, MidwestBrick writes:
| | Priority Shipping - Pick up some flat rate USPS padded envelopes, they get used
rarely but do come in handy to have a few on hand at all times. Order other
priority mail boxes from USPS, they work great.
|
This is true but Priority Mail can be significantly cheaper if you use your own
boxes and get the commercial Cubic rate (which you can get through e.g. Pirate
Ship). The USPS's Flat Rate Priority boxes in particular are not ideal for
shipping Lego.
|
I didn't say to use USPS flat rate boxes, only the bubble mailer flat rate.
I would agree that USPS Flat Rate Boxes are terribly priced.
But USPS has free boxes for priority mail shipping that fit the smaller lego
sets really well.
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| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Dec 19, 2022 13:18 | | Subject: | Re: Acquiring boxes and packaging | | Viewed: | 42 times | | Topic: | Shipping | |
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| In Shipping, OKCBrickDepot writes:
| | Hi All,
I'm opening a USA based BL store. What's the best resource for acquiring
various packing material, boxes, and either packing peanuts or something to fill
a void inside a box?
Thanks!
|
It's quite simple really.
#1 - before you buy something, know how you will ship it. This is a lesson many
of us have learned when buying those largest of sets. Just be prepared or have
that idea so that when it comes to sell, you are already prepared. It's
great to get a large set sale but isn't that fun when you don't have
a box on hand to ship it in. It just causes more work and time, so prepare yourself.
Boxes - I buy enough from online retailers that I have a variety of box sizes
from them to re-use. Only keep the good ones though and toss the bad boxes.
You'll know the difference.
Packing supplies - I rip up instruction booklets to pack with nearly every parts
order to protect the order more, but also to bulk the package up so that no one
at USPS gets the idea to run the order through their letter machines. I also
reuse all the bubble mailers or air-bags from online retailers shipped to me,
of course only using the good ones and tossing the bad ones.
Priority Shipping - Pick up some flat rate USPS padded envelopes, they get used
rarely but do come in handy to have a few on hand at all times. Order other
priority mail boxes from USPS, they work great.
First Class Package - someone below mentioned less than 13 oz, but it is less
than 16 oz to mail first class commercial packages. I buy mine from a variety
of places, usually Amazon these days but have done Uline or other online bubble
mailer suppliers (some of dried up).
|
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| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Dec 19, 2022 09:32 | | Subject: | Re: Who has free shipping in the USA | | Viewed: | 57 times | | Topic: | Buying | |
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| In Buying, bluedragon1994 writes:
| | Who has free shipping in USA ? Thanks
|
Instant Checkout on everything and Free Shipping on orders of at least $25.
Also, the vast majority of orders ship by the next day (of course depends what
day of the week it is to make that possible).
(USA/domestic shipping only)
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| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Sep 27, 2022 22:51 | | Subject: | Re: Adding shipping after order is paid | | Viewed: | 34 times | | Topic: | Selling | |
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| In Selling, 1001bricks writes:
| | | | So, overall, my opinion is not to stress the pennies from the sellers perspective
because even though not every buyer may look up actual shipping costs, everyone
still has the ability to do so, and it is easier to retain a customer when they
can see things line up as expected.
|
Don't mix: Postal Rates and Shipping Fees.
Shipping is a Service to ship at (eventually) the Postal Rate price.
To Ship is a task in itself, a service, and implies material (envelope, carton,
zip bag, chips, printing...)
Example: you can buy a single 0.02$ part in my shop.
I don't have any minimum, fee, or whatsoever.
But to ship, you'll get a Shipping fee which contains the price of an envelope,
the 2 mandatory stickers plus the eventual Customs, one or a few zip bags...
which is a different price than the Postal Rate.
So, what's the best to "retain a customer"?
Require a minimum order of 10$ (for a single part) or simply let them do what
they want but ask at the minimum to pay the packaging cost and the cost of the
service of shipping?
|
I gotcha.
Overall, I am so thankful for Instant Checkout. Avoids all these scenario's.
Take care!
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| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Sep 27, 2022 21:12 | | Subject: | Re: Adding shipping after order is paid | | Viewed: | 35 times | | Topic: | Selling | |
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| In Selling, 1001bricks writes:
| | In Selling, MidwestBrick writes:
| | In Selling, 1001bricks writes:
| | In Selling, Nubs_Select writes:
| | you cant add shipping (or any other costs) after an order has been paid. You
can refund the payment then set the order payment status to none and then you
should be able to add shipping and reinvoice the buyer
|
Refunding will cost.
If there's no tax involved, simply ask the buyer to make a separate payment
directly to your PayPal account for the shipping.
Maybe add 0.50$ for the extra base fee?
|
Is 50 cents worth an argument or neutral/negative feedback if the buyer feels
like shipping charges are more than actual or that they are being ripped off
a little?
|
You're confused, Sir.
Any shop can invoice ANY shipping price, it's not related to "actual price".
The out-of-TOS error is when you publish a 10$ price and then invoice 15$.
The fact it cost 2$ in reality is NOT a problem.
|
I don't think I'm confused. I wouldn't worry about 50 cents and
during the time when I didn't offer free shipping (pre-Instant Checkout days),
never invoiced a penny more than actual shipping costs, and also didn't charge
extra for signature if I decided to go that route, as an example. The sale and
customer satisfaction was more important than a couple dollars or cents.
Anyway, I was just offering my opinion to the OP on another perspective on how
to get the shipping cost he would like. Remember, buyers can look up pricing
too (which is why it would be so annoying, as an example, seeing USA based sellers
invoice using Retail USPS shipping rates, when I know they are paying commercial
pricing). I would not return to those stores after being invoiced and then seeing
the postal slip which says right on it what kind of shipping is being used.
I also recall a seller charging around $20 for shipping once (which was reasonable
for what I bought) then shipping the items Media Mail which probably cost $5
tops and also takes days longer.
So, overall, my opinion is not to stress the pennies from the sellers perspective
because even though not every buyer may look up actual shipping costs, everyone
still has the ability to do so, and it is easier to retain a customer when they
can see things line up as expected.
|
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| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Sep 27, 2022 18:18 | | Subject: | Re: Adding shipping after order is paid | | Viewed: | 32 times | | Topic: | Selling | |
|
| In Selling, 1001bricks writes:
| | In Selling, Nubs_Select writes:
| | you cant add shipping (or any other costs) after an order has been paid. You
can refund the payment then set the order payment status to none and then you
should be able to add shipping and reinvoice the buyer
|
Refunding will cost.
If there's no tax involved, simply ask the buyer to make a separate payment
directly to your PayPal account for the shipping.
Maybe add 0.50$ for the extra base fee?
|
Is 50 cents worth an argument or neutral/negative feedback if the buyer feels
like shipping charges are more than actual or that they are being ripped off
a little?
No, no it is not.
Be grateful that they are working with you on coming to a conclusion together.
Best of luck!.
|
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| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Sep 15, 2022 00:11 | | Subject: | Re: Minifigure Condition - New | | Viewed: | 42 times | | Topic: | General | |
|
| In General, maxx3001 writes:
| | In General, MidwestBrick writes:
| | In General, alex10552 writes:
|
| | thus every mini-fig that is "new" in my shop is 100% always unassembled so the
buyer can have that joy passed on to them with their purchase.
|
What about the assembled ones directly from LEGO or the heads on the torsos?
|
Nothing I usually have to worry about as I buy all my Lego from Retail stores.
but of course it would be an outliner if they came from Lego already pre-assembled.
|
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| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Sep 14, 2022 18:24 | | Subject: | Re: Minifigure Condition - New | | Viewed: | 42 times | | Topic: | General | |
|
| In General, alex10552 writes:
| | BrickLink offers two options for the condition of a minifigure. Used or New.
Pretty simple! :]
My thinking: it's only "new" if the minifig is still disassembled. That's
a sure sign of a new figure, when you piece it together and get that tight squeeze
for the first time, right?
However, I've come across quite a few minifigure listings that mention that
the figure has been assembled but it's still listed as New. TIL that BrickLink
still considers a minifigure's condition as New even when assembled. (New
Minifigures - Minifigures are brand new, taken directly from new sets or were
purchased "as new" in another form such as accessory packs or Pick A Brick and
have been handled only for sorting. Minifigures may be listed as new either assembled
or unassembled.)
I strongly disagree with that notion. What are others' thoughts on the matter?
|
Simple as this... when you buy something at a store that needs assembling and
part of that joy in purchasing an item from a store is the assembly phase...
then you would be disappointed if the assembling stage was completed for you.
So, the act of putting a minifig together and listing it as "new" removes that
assembling stage for a Buyer that wants to complete the process themselves, as
part of the purchase.
In conclusion, never assemble something that someone else wants to complete,
thus every mini-fig that is "new" in my shop is 100% always unassembled so the
buyer can have that joy passed on to them with their purchase.
|
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| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Sep 6, 2022 10:09 | | Subject: | Re: A few newbie questions | | Viewed: | 37 times | | Topic: | Selling | |
|
| In Selling, kbuckreus writes:
| | Hi, newbie here! It's time to clear out my kid's Lego sets, c. 1990.
I have a few really basic questions. First, what is considered a 100% complete
set? Do the original "extra parts" need to be included?
Second, do any of you make an effort to clean the pieces (for sanitation purposes)?
Most of mine look very good, but since they were children's toys there are
a few that could do with a cleaning. Can I put them in a zipped net laundry
bag and throw them into the dishwasher or washing machine (obviously not tiny
ones or ones with stickers on them)? Are these methods safe or can they cause
discoloring? Do you have a better suggestion?
Third, most sets are only missing a few pieces and I'm in the process of
purchasing replacements. Is there any reason I need to inform the buyer these
are replacements?
Any and all suggestions are welcome. Thanks!
|
I have no idea if we are talking 500 sets here or 5, but I'll just mention
that all the time and effort putting into ordering or figuring out missing pieces
may be off-set by simply selling everything as-is locally. Of course you can
maximize value by completing the sets, having detailed descriptions, etc... however,
that is also off-set by how much time it may take to sell each individual set
and of course, all the effort going into it, plus hanging onto items that are
not selling and playing the waiting game.
Just some advice to really think about how much time/effort to put into this
adventure to satisfy the expected outcome so frustration doesn't occur as
much.
Best of luck and some final advice... if there is any chance of grandkids or
other kids in the family that may come along, hang onto the Lego for them to
play with. You may be surprised who starts playing with them again. I took
a hiatus from age 15 or so until mid-30's when my parents bought me a Lego
set again, and I put it together with my young son... and 100's of sets later,
I wish I had my Lego from when I was young again to put them back together.
|
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| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Aug 30, 2022 20:00 | | Subject: | Re: BUYER WARNING | | Viewed: | 120 times | | Topic: | Problem Order | |
|
| In Problem Order, BrickAThon writes:
| | I'm posting this publicly due to this buyer being a potential issue for other
sellers:
Buyer: aircargo
Ordered $135 of product shipping to a U.S. address, with a Canadian address in
his profile. He supplied us with the U.S. address, and we have clear messages
about it. He filed a PP chargeback in JULY, after posting positive feedback shortly
after the item was delivered in May. Paypal sided with us, and now, after a month+
evidently he filed with his credit card, and they sided with him, so now we are
being charged back the entire amount plus $15.00 fee because he states he didn't
get the item, but left us feedback stating he did.
You might want to stoplist this guy, as since he's done it to us, I'm
sure he'll do it to others, and it won't matter if it goes to his address
in Canada or the U.S. as most credit card companies aren't this lenient,
in my experience, with no proof.
We reached out to him, and no response at all, which tells me he's doing
this fraudulently.
Best,
Tracy
BrickAThon
|
Unfortunate how unfair things can be. Even though the comments are lacking in
response to this thread, there is no doubt that many of us appreciate bringing
this to our attention.
I would be curious if BL has any response to you about this, but am guessing
even if that did occur, it would be best to keep those discussions between you,
BL and the buyer.
|
|
| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Aug 30, 2022 11:38 | | Subject: | Re: Any advice for international shipping? | | Viewed: | 29 times | | Topic: | Shipping | |
|
| In Shipping, BricksOfFaith writes:
| | I know, I am a smaller store, HOWEVER, I do wonder if I should open world wide
shipping. I currently only ship to North America. But shipping outside of North
America is REALLY expensive. Going over-seas is between 30 and 50 dollars on
a small 12 ounce bubble mailer. I honestly don’t even see why I should open it
up if shipping is so expensive… what do y’all think? Thanks!
-Bricks of Faith
|
I've dabbled with this for years as well and even did ship internationally
too at one point. In the end though, I wanted to be 100% Instant Checkout, of
which I feel very comfortable having enabled for domestic only due to size/weight
being much more of a wide spectrum in shipping rates internationally compared
to domestic.
I'm sure I will revisit this approach in the future, but my goal is to also
continue to expand and part out to reach 200-250k pieces which is for me, the
current focus instead of trying to configure multiple instant checkout shipping
rates to international countries. However, even thinking about it a little now,
maybe when that time comes, I just need to focus on what is simple for shipping
rates (define the weight/size very well) vs worrying about large heavy orders
being shipped and not allowing them at all.
Good luck to you in figuring it out.
|
|
| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Aug 27, 2022 18:23 | | Subject: | Re: instant checkout | | Viewed: | 20 times | | Topic: | Help | |
|
| In Help, JerryMonroe writes:
| | How do I remove instant checkout and How do I stop brinklink from suggesting
shipping costs.
|
Instant checkout, in my opinion, is amazing.
I cant remember the last time I have sent an invoice, years ago.
Every order is paid for immediately and then shipped immediately. A good thing
for customers and myself.
I would suggest figuring out how to maintain instant checkout. It might be a
lot of work, but it is worth it.
|
|
| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Aug 26, 2022 13:01 | | Subject: | Re: Buyer Won't "complete order" | | Viewed: | 56 times | | Topic: | Help | |
|
| In Help, krystensprouse writes:
| | IT'S DRIVING ME INSANE!
The buyer has had the items for over a month now and won't "complete" the
sale, which constantly shows up as 1 order in my store when there's not.
Is there a way on our end as seller to force complete after a certain amount
of time or what? My ADHD and OCD are going nuts over here!!!
|
Your job as a seller is to invoice, pack and ship the orders as they come in,
then leave positive feedback for payment of the items and reconcile any issues
which hopefully are near zero. Everything else is at the will of the buyer to
mark packages as received, completed, and if they want to leave feedback, that
also is their choice.
That's about it. Take the time you are wasting by worrying to part out more
items, improve how your items are stored (inventory management), or watch a tv
show.
Good luck!
|
|
| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Aug 26, 2022 11:55 | | Subject: | Re: Error rate in orders | | Viewed: | 55 times | | Topic: | Buying | |
|
| In Buying, Lhugo writes:
| | Hi everyone,
I'm building a small MOC and ordered pieces from 7 sellers. On 7 orders,
3 of them had errors (43%). That is almost one order out of 2. Is that what other
buyers are experiencing?
- Missing part
- Wrong part
- One part in a lot in wrong colour
- Modified part in a non-modified lot (plate with a clip)
From my past orders, I noticed that the bigger the store is, the higher the possibility
of errors.
Errors happen, I know. I run a small BL store, and despite my double-checking,
errors do happen. On ~400 orders so far, I had errors on 4 orders. That's
like 1% of my orders.
Anyhow. I was just curious to see what other buyers were experiencing.
|
That is exhausting having to do all that extra work to get your orders correct.
I'll be honest, I have missed 1 lot this year in an order and it was promptly
shipped out upon being notified. It's rare, but it's part of being human
as well. However, from a cost perspective, only having to ship one extra time
this year so far is to me, not perfect, but very very good.
I have also had 1 time this year when a Used part I entered was incorrect when
pulling it, but instead of "refunding or informing the customer" I just crack
another set to go get it, even for a piece that was for a penny. Shipping the
order out as complete is much more valuable than shorting/refunding a customer
(with the assumption the piece is obtainable and not from old sets only that
I can't get in a reasonable time frame or do not have on hand either).
Hope your future orders go more smoothly. Favorite the stores that got it right,
take note of the others for yourself.
|
|
| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Aug 25, 2022 18:58 | | Subject: | Re: Contest Winner! | | Viewed: | 45 times | | Topic: | Contests | |
|
| In Contests, popsicle writes:
Fun contest, it always amazes me how many of any Lego will fit in smaller spaces.
I'm sure many of us have been there when an order has 200+ of something and
even know we all know that every piece was added correctly, when you first look
at a what you have and how many were ordered, you have the feeling of... "how
am I short?" and then it works out just fine just like every other time we have
counted large quantities.
Congrats to the winner and Pops for putting on the fun!
|
|
| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Aug 25, 2022 17:00 | | Subject: | Re: Let's give away $100 to a fellow BL member! | | Viewed: | 22 times | | Topic: | Contests | |
|
| In Contests, popsicle writes:
| | Guess the number of
contained within the vase pictured below.
Contest rules are few:
~ The first to enter the exact amount, wins
~ One guess per member per 24 hour period
~ Identical entries are adjudicated by timestamp
~ All members worldwide are welcome to participate
The winner will receive a $100 store coupon, or $50 cash. Your choice.
-Christman Family
|
383
|
|
| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Aug 25, 2022 13:27 | | Subject: | Re: buyers see ship to nowhere in my store. help | | Viewed: | 35 times | | Topic: | Help | |
|
| In Help, redsman writes:
| | In Help, redsman writes:
| | In Help, MidwestBrick writes:
| | In Help, redsman writes:
| | In Help, jennnifer writes:
| | In Help, redsman writes:
| | I have not received orders for the last three days and buyers are now contacting
me to say my store says I ship to nowhere. I only ship to the U.S. but I have
changed nothing. What do I do ????? HELP
|
I just checked and confirmed this.
Can you show us your shipping settings for the US?
Has anything changed with your payment settings?
Jen
|
I have changed nothing in my settings since I opened my store 3 years ago. In
'my store settings" it shows I ship to no countries and does not let me change
it. This started 3 days ago but I just thought it was a slow time until buyers
started contacting me.
|
|
Yes
| |
Do you have shipping methods set up to ship domestically? I know you've
probably checked this but doesn't hurt to recheck.
|
|
I corrected it myself. Thanks
|
Confirmed, appears to be working. What was the issue?
|
|
| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Aug 25, 2022 12:53 | | Subject: | Re: buyers see ship to nowhere in my store. help | | Viewed: | 30 times | | Topic: | Help | |
|
| In Help, redsman writes:
| | In Help, jennnifer writes:
| | In Help, redsman writes:
| | I have not received orders for the last three days and buyers are now contacting
me to say my store says I ship to nowhere. I only ship to the U.S. but I have
changed nothing. What do I do ????? HELP
|
I just checked and confirmed this.
Can you show us your shipping settings for the US?
Has anything changed with your payment settings?
Jen
|
I have changed nothing in my settings since I opened my store 3 years ago. In
'my store settings" it shows I ship to no countries and does not let me change
it. This started 3 days ago but I just thought it was a slow time until buyers
started contacting me.
|
Do you have shipping methods set up to ship domestically? I know you've
probably checked this but doesn't hurt to recheck.
|
|
| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Aug 24, 2022 16:19 | | Subject: | Re: Let's give away $100 to a fellow BL member! | | Viewed: | 24 times | | Topic: | Contests | |
|
| In Contests, popsicle writes:
| | Guess the number of
contained within the vase pictured below.
Contest rules are few:
~ The first to enter the exact amount, wins
~ One guess per member per 24 hour period
~ Identical entries are adjudicated by timestamp
~ All members worldwide are welcome to participate
The winner will receive a $100 store coupon, or $50 cash. Your choice.
-Christman Family
|
419
|
| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Aug 23, 2022 13:18 | | Subject: | Re: Let's give away $100 to a fellow BL member! | | Viewed: | 21 times | | Topic: | Contests | |
|
| | 409 |
| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Aug 18, 2022 21:24 | | Subject: | Re: UPDATE on the LEGO Sports haul | | Viewed: | 59 times | | Topic: | Announce | |
|
| In Announce, ImperialFleet writes:
| | Once everythings done and listed made $300 profit. All for sale now, so if you're
interested let me know!
|
Unrealized Profit.
Nice haul and best of luck making it a realized profit.
|
|
| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Aug 16, 2022 14:08 | | Subject: | Re: Getting close! Final update | | Viewed: | 37 times | | Topic: | Announce | |
|
| In Announce, popsicle writes:
What is so fascinating with the logistics of mail is how quickly packages can
go across the country.
If no one has ever visited a distribution center (of any capacity), I would strongly
encourage checking one out as it is just amazing on how fast everything moves
to get from point a to point b and back on a truck or plane to move to the next
location.
|
|
| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Aug 9, 2022 15:52 | | Subject: | Free shipping on orders $25 or more 24/7/365 | | Viewed: | 49 times | | Topic: | Announce | |
|
| Each and every day, any order $25 or more is free shipping. Any order less than
$25 is $4.99.
That's it. Nice and simple and instant checkout available on every purchase.
On top of all that, I get any orders to USPS or UPS quickly.
If today isn't a shopping day, simply adding my shop as a favorite to check
out later on may save some clicks another day.
Hope all is well and take care!
- Midwest Brick
|
|
| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Apr 28, 2022 11:24 | | Subject: | Re: Selling for a couple of months! Need Tips! | | Viewed: | 55 times | | Topic: | New Stores | |
|
| | | And finally, April is generally when sales start to slow for the year in my experience.
Very typically to see a decrease in sales from April through September.
|
I was going to mention this more than anything else.
I would bet that anyone that sells consistently day after day, week after week,
saw a big decline about two weekends ago when the USA warmed up to 70+ nearly
everywhere so customers went outside to enjoy the outdoors rather than think
about their Lego builds. This period of the year is just dedicated to other
activities, vacations, get togethers with friends/family as the temps warm up
across the nation more consistently. Of which, I 100% understand. I'm the
same way and want to enjoy the outside too when it is warmer. It's been
a long winter and cold snap this year. In upper Wisconsin, hitting the 50's
these days is a huge win!
|
|
| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Apr 26, 2022 02:05 | | Subject: | Re: Looking to buy extensive parts list | | Viewed: | 41 times | | Topic: | Wanted | |
|
| In Wanted, RaptureNation writes:
| | If any sellers would be willing/able to put together a list of parts I need and
sell them(over 5000 pieces) I would be highly interested and greatly thankful.
This is my first post on this site so I apologize if I posted this in the wrong
section of formatted something wrong. I am not even sure if it is possible to
put together a list like this or if pieces are meant to be bought individually.
However if it is possible please contact me to discuss payment and other details.
|
Create a wanted list and see where you can get the items you need from, then
shop around.
I may have quite a bit that you need but no idea to what extent.
I'll just say this... At my Store it is Free Shipping on any order once you
spend at least $25 (USA only)
Best of luck in your journey in getting everything you need!
|
|
| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Apr 25, 2022 14:25 | | Subject: | Re: Got my Orange Brick! | | Viewed: | 28 times | | Topic: | General | |
|
| In General, par016 writes:
| | I finally got my orange brick over the weekend; no negative or neutral feedback
yet (knock on wood). Maybe I should update my profile picture to be holding
an orange brick.
Next goal is pink; hopefully it doesn't take another 10 years.
-Pete
|
Congrats!
Update picture to hold red and orange. capture both
Best of luck on your next goal
|
|
| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Apr 21, 2022 09:56 | | Subject: | Re: New IRS $700 selling threshold | | Viewed: | 47 times | | Topic: | Taxes | |
|
| In General, aboyer writes:
| | In General, SylvainLS writes:
| | In General, aboyer writes:
| | […]
In H&R Block, on the Deductions page, there’s a single field for hobby expenses.
If you sold a $15 set for $20, you’d put $15 in that field and be done with it.
Presumably TurboTax is similar.
|
Isn’t there a code for each field in your forms?
That’s useful to communicate. We have them in France (things like “2CA” “3VC”).
When we get papers from banks (yearly reports of interests, capital gain, deductible
fees, what we already paid…) or corporations (shareholder dividends…) or anything
that has to be reported, we know where to report/check them on the standard form.
|
That is true if you are filling out the forms yourself, but no sane American
does so directly. We pay $35-$100/year for tax software that does it for us or
even more for a pro to take care of it.
The US filing system is ridiculous, at least partly on account of lobbying by
an alliance of anti-tax conservatives (who want people to hate the IRS) and the
tax prep companies (who depend on it for their livelihood). The IRS already has
almost all of this information; all they do with your filed return is double-check
that it matches what's already on file.
|
Sorry but I do not agree with this take. For a large percentage of Americans
that just have a W2 and take the standard deduction, yes they know "enough" about
you cause it is easier to track, but for everyone else, no, they do not know
everything about you. They have no idea which purchases are business expenses,
they can not track cash transactions as in they do not know what a payment is
for, so if we would like the American government to tax us based on all cash
flows into our bank accounts, we would all have much higher tax liabilities as
each transaction that increases our balances would get scrutinized to the highest
degree and be assumed to be revenue and taxable, and it would be on every person
to break out what is revenue vs what is not and we would have to trust each other
that friends/family would report the same gifts/trading of cash the same ; which
IMO, would be far worse than it is now.
As an example, imagine going out to dinner with a group of friends, you split
the bill with one person paying the tab and 7 others Venmo you their share to
you. The government would see all those Venmo's as revenue to you and then
2 of the 7 friends want to deduct the payments as expenses cause they want to
cheat the system. It could be an absolute nightmare and it would be.
Or you buy something at a store for $200, use it for a year, end up not liking
it so you sell it for $50 cash, then deposit that cash into your bank and boom,
another item to report as revenue, that you took a loss on (not counting depreciation
here) but the government sees it as revenue to report. An example of how keeping
money out of banks would be a valid tactic to avoid taxation.
For purposes on this topic, when I knew I was going to start selling Lego, I
immediately kept track of every purchase I ever made, every set from a store,
every expense incurred, every cash transaction through craigslist, every mile
driven, etc... to keep records of it all. This is what is expected of any citizen
that is selling anything cause it is the law. Now, there are differences between
a Hobby and Business; of which, I made sure to meet the business criteria to
be able to gain all those deductions. Thousands and thousands of records; thank
god most stores allow us to buy more than 2-3 sets at a time to reduce the paperwork.
For anyone out there that is worried about paying taxes on their revenue here,
report it to the best of your ability and expect the government to know about
it from paypal transactions. In reality, just about every State requires selling
permits, tax to be paid to your home state, and every person should be reporting
every craigslist item sold or facebook marketplace sale, etc... It all falls
under revenue/sales for taxation.
|
|
| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Apr 20, 2022 11:01 | | Subject: | 24/7/365 - Spend $25 and get Free Shipping | | Viewed: | 120 times | | Topic: | Sales | |
|
| Free Shipping with orders of $25 or more.
Instant Checkout is available for any order as well.
Any orders are shipped quickly as well. I had one yesterday for nearly 3,000
pieces and it is already in the mail.
I only ship within the USA.
Take care and have a wonderful rest of the week!!
|
|
| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Apr 13, 2022 12:50 | | Subject: | Re: Feedback score (praise) calculation | | Viewed: | 54 times | | Topic: | Feedback | |
|
| In Feedback, brickshomeUK writes:
| | The total feedback score / praise percentage calculation at the top right corner
of the stores embarrasses me.
I have a store with almost 3000 orders. My feedback score is 97.62% what looks
really bad. In covid times it was really challenging to go post office regularly,
so I received couple of negative feedbacks. But it was 2 years ago now... I haven't
received a bad feedback since then.
My suggestion would be to show the recent 1 year or 6 months feedback percentage
of the top right corner, because it's more reflects the actual quality of
a store.
Dear Bricklink team please consider my suggestion. Thank you!
|
It literally says on your store that your next shipping date is 14 days from
today.
The item that your customers are talking about most doesn't seem to be getting
adjusted or fixed.
As a comparison, I just recently opened back up, and every order is being scanned
by the Post Office within 1 day so far with many of them the same day. Now,
my post office and my availability may be very very different than yours, but
that is the expectation that most online shoppers have across all online vendors,
regardless of website they are visiting... to order something and have it shipped
very very quickly. The only thing that none of us can fix is what happens to
a package once it gets dropped off at a post office. This is where we hope
customers are watching the tracking and hopefully realizing that there is nothing
any of us can do to make USPS, UPS, FedEx, etc... operate better or faster.
|
|
| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Apr 12, 2022 00:27 | | Subject: | Fast search Heads | | Viewed: | 80 times | | Topic: | Help | |
|
| It appears whatever site I used to use to help identify mini-fig heads is not
existent anymore or the URL changed.
Can someone point me to what the go-to site is for helping ID mini-fig heads
or remind me the tricks?
Thanks
|
| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Apr 6, 2022 23:34 | | Subject: | Re: Store is back Open | | Viewed: | 37 times | | Topic: | Announce | |
|
| In Announce, Sadler_Bricks writes:
| | Congrats and welcome back. We are in the process of buying a new house so plan
to have more space for our store. So big congrats on your new house and future
lego journey
Sadler_bricks
|
Best of luck in your search...
|
|
| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Feb 6, 2022 23:17 | | Subject: | Re: Feedback Advice for Noob | | Viewed: | 38 times | | Topic: | Problem | |
|
| In Problem, Upstate_Brickz writes:
| | Greetings Bricklink,
I am a new store with only 6 orders so far. the last 4 orders I sent out have
all received their parts, but haven't left any feedback. It's been a
few days for most of them and I don't think they are going to leave any.
I have posted in my terms that I will leave feedback if they do. The 4 buyers
were all new, most of them with zero feedback. Should I leave the buyers positive
feedback anyway since they were all perfectly fine and maybe it looks better
for my biz if I do, or should I stick to my terms and not leave any because
I really need their feedback too? You would think if they were trying to get
the feedback to become sellers they would be aware of all this. I also don't
want to look like I forgot to leave feedback. Let me know what you think!
Thanks,
Upstate_Brickz
|
Here's my order of processes..
1. Receive order
2. Pick, pack and mail order
3. I Leave Feedback
Rinse and repeat. The buyer's did what they are asked to do. Order and Pay.
So it is my turn to complete the rest and if they wish to leave feedback, that's
great, but it doesn't bother me if they don't either. Life is busy enough
as it is. Regardless though, I always leave them feedback for stopping by.
|
|
| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Jan 31, 2022 15:33 | | Subject: | Re: Hill Country Bricks is now open | | Viewed: | 45 times | | Topic: | Announce | |
|
| In Announce, ccroxton writes:
My advice would be the following:
Used is expected to be in playwear (fair to good+) condition by its definition.
If you have to make a remark that there are cracks/heavy scratches etc.. then
it probably shouldn't' be listed at all unless it is still useable or
described as rough shape
So with that, you are going to save yourself a lot of time and energy if you
don't describe every single piece that you have as the condition of "USED"
speaks for itself.
Buyers will return more frequently though if your Used condition is in fact in
good or better condition though.
Best of luck on the store!
|
|
| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Jan 28, 2022 10:39 | | Subject: | Re: Just got a fun one... | | Viewed: | 63 times | | Topic: | General | |
|
| In General, par016 writes:
| | 1/19 - Received order in my store
1/19 - Packed and shipped
1/22 - Package delivered
1/27 - Buyer asks for tracking number
1/27 - I message them back with the tracking and point out that it has already
been delivered
1/28 - 8:51 - Buyer sends a message saying there were 10 pieces missing from
4 lots in a 98 piece order including 2 full lots. Says he wants the pieces over
a refund and is letting me know before he "files a complaint with BrickLink."
1/28 - 9:22 - I respond saying that I specifically remember packing some of the
peices they say they are missing and ask them to check to see if they got stuck
in the packaging. Then I go on to say that if they didn't get the pieces
that's my fault and I apologize.
I tell them I am sending a refund for the parts and will also ship out the replacements
today. So I sent refund for the part, pack replacements, adjust my inventory
because it was still acurrate, print shipping label.
1/28 - 9:44 - "im so sorry, i actually found the tan pieces behind a crevice
in my closet, and when i looked through the trash to see if i threw out the pieces
on accident i found the dark green piece, then i found the light bluish gray
piece on the floor, so the order is 100% perfect, all my fault, i apologize for
the inconvenience."
-Pete
|
Everyone loves a happy ending!
|
|
| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Jan 26, 2022 22:07 | | Subject: | Re: Filing Taxes | | Viewed: | 55 times | | Topic: | Help | |
|
| In Help, sweettiara27 writes:
| | Hello,
I was wondering if anyone can help with how to go about filing taxes? This is
the only income I have and I have two dependents. I believe I file it all together.
What do I need to file? Something from Bricklink, Paypal and Stripe, or just
from Bricklink plus my expense receipts, I am guessing.
Any info would be great
Thank you
|
https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p17.pdf
Some night time reading. Good luck
|
|
| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Jan 25, 2022 16:57 | | Subject: | Re: Been away a full year, what's new? | | Viewed: | 54 times | | Topic: | General | |
|
| In General, axaday writes:
| | In General, MidwestBrick writes:
| | Been away a full year, what's new?
|
Did you hear about coronavirus?
|
Thankfully all the Lego Mini's have survived thus far... Lots of unopened
boxes though so we won't know for sure for a long time!
|
|
| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Jan 25, 2022 13:14 | | Subject: | Re: BL collecting sales tax on resale purchases | | Viewed: | 65 times | | Topic: | Selling | |
|
| In Selling, kzinti writes:
| | Any time a purchase was made on BrickLink by a legitimate reseller, the taxes
paid on the sale should be excluded, or paid back upon request and presentation
of a reseller license. That's all.
|
I see. I don't file for tax exemptions and just tack it on to the cost of
the item. I should do this, maybe tomorrow.
|
|
| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Jan 25, 2022 12:54 | | Subject: | Re: BL collecting sales tax on resale purchases | | Viewed: | 90 times | | Topic: | Selling | |
|
| In Selling, oasis writes:
| | I just got off the phone with my state's department of revenue, and here's
what they said.
BL collects state sales tax from purchases made by all of the US sellers, instead
of collecting our resale certificates. BL owes us all, every penny of that, and
the total keeps climbing with every purchase-for-resale that each of us makes.
I was told that BL has to initiate the refunds, not us. BL has two choices, as
to how to process all of that money back to us.
A) request a total refund from each state, and refund us each individually, or
B) formally, legally assign the refunds to each of us, for us to process with
our state, individually
Either way, it's complicated; B is way more complicated for the sellers.
Either way, BL has to take our resale certificates and stop charging us. I'm
in SC. The options might be different in other states, but the person I spoke
to thinks it's most likely all the same. This is stupid. They owe me about
$400, how much do they owe you?
|
So you are saying that every Tax collected by BL should be paid back to you,
regardless of which state it was collected for and not just sales within your
own State?
|
|
| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Jan 25, 2022 12:19 | | Subject: | Re: Been away a full year, what's new? | | Viewed: | 27 times | | Topic: | General | |
|
| In General, Nubs_Select writes:
| | Don’t forget to celebrate the new house with a pizza party!
|
Great advice, thank you. We celebrate each Friday as Pizza Friday!
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| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Jan 25, 2022 12:17 | | Subject: | Re: Been away a full year, what's new? | | Viewed: | 24 times | | Topic: | General | |
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| In General, zorbanj writes:
| | I already got burned on this:
Shipstation sorts postage options by price, which means Media Mail is always
the first postage option. Pitney Bowes (the prior vendor), ebay, USPS, etc. always
have Media Mail at the bottom. I mistakenly selected Media Mail a couple of times
before I realized it.
In General, MidwestBrick writes:
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OMG, this probably scares me the most
* Most, if not all, PayPal users have been transitioned from Pitney Bowes to
Shipstation for shipping labels. The consensus here is that Shipstation sucks.
I think I just saw an advertisement for this on Hulu and heard the "it saves
me money" line and was just like Ohhh you mean commercial vs retail. Ya, everyone
gets commercial if you know how to print your own label. If it wasn't this
company, it was something quite similar in name.
Thanks for the heads up. I look forward to navigating this and seeing how much
pricing has gone up for shipping too!
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Very helpful information to know how it sorts. Thank you!
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| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Jan 25, 2022 10:58 | | Subject: | Re: Been away a full year, what's new? | | Viewed: | 37 times | | Topic: | General | |
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| In General, SylvainLS writes:
Perfect timing. I have a meeting coming up that I'm not a part of but have
to sit on so this will help pass the time!
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| Author: | MidwestBrick | | Posted: | Jan 25, 2022 10:57 | | Subject: | Re: Been away a full year, what's new? | | Viewed: | 35 times | | Topic: | General | |
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| In General, jennnifer writes:
| | In General, MidwestBrick writes:
| | Happy 2022 everyone. 2021 was very busy for my family and I as we built a new
house and moved to a new area as well do i had to shut down the store in Feb
2021 to start packing everything up. There were plenty of delays in the home
building and overall a great experience but also an exhausting one too.
Just checking in to ask if someone is able to summarize what is new on BL from
early 2021 until now. Any big new develops or changes on how things are done
or is it pretty much the same as before? The last big thing I recall is implementing
the tax per sale based on the state making the purchase. Also, anything that
deals with international processes can be left of any summary. I only sell domestically.
Hope all is well with everyone. I built my new Lego room all by myself and am
very pleased with how it has turned out. Everyday I'm putting in the work
to get organized more and more and although I could probably open later this
week, I want to put in some more improvements so picking orders csn be sped up
even more than I had it organized prior which takes further planning and organizers.
Thank you in advance to anyone that responds to this too.
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Not sure all of this is exactly 2021 but here's what seems new to me.
BL has a new boss from LEGO.
They still don't want to have an active presence here on the Forum, but they
communicate occasionally and when there are major outages so that's nice.
They are meeting with panels of members on various topics to involve the community
in BL stuff.
We have some new admin (ah, I mean experts) and some admin in new roles. They
are doing amazing work for our catalog. There is a Catalog newsletter you may
have to subscribe to.
There is lots of hubbub with VAT and US sales tax. You have to have an Onsite
method for any to work. Still no method of tax-exempt purchases. Some countries
require a VAT receipt on the outside of the package which BL has been providing.
The AFOL Designer Program was very popular. Especially if you are very patient.
Although I can't find a link to it anywhere at the moment.
Jen
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Oh thanks for the reply as this reminds me to check all the "adjustments" of
items being moved from one category to another. I store all my pieces by category
so it really saves me time if I make sure I move my store around to correlate
with BL catalog categories.
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USA, Wisconsin
