I recently ordered a book off of Half.com and, being both frugal and patient, I opted for the Media Mail shipping method.  I was delighted when the book arrived just a few days later in a flat-rate Priority Mail box.

Value is defined as the difference between what a customer paid and the perceived worth of what a customer receives.  I paid for Media Mail shipping and received Priority Mail service, so, for me, the value of the book increased substantially.  Now, the book I ordered was a 1500 page text, and pretty hefty, so it might not have been a significant difference between the cost to mail it Media or Flat-rate priority.  But that’s not what I focused on…

…My focus was diverted to the value I received by a clever note written by the seller on the packing slip:

half.com packing slip
Click to Enlarge Image

The seller reminded me that I paid for Media Mail by circling that point on the packing slip and let me know that I had received a free upgrade.  In return, the seller asked me to leave feedback.  Since the seller over-delivered in the transaction and exceeded my expectations, I almost tripped over myself in eagerness to leave a positive feedback for them.  I actually spent sometime thinking about the feedback wording as well - something I haven’t done in quite a while. 

The seller was also fairly new - with a low feedback rating (about 250) relative to the large number of books they were selling on Half.com.  This could be a short-term tactic designed to rapidly build up their feedback ratings.  If so, I would vouch for the effectiveness of it.  Since economists have shown that higher eBay feedback results in higher revenue, it could be worth the investment. 

Related Posts:

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  • Study Shows Bidders Like Shipping & Handling Charges!
  • eBay Points Out Your Higher Than Average Shipping Fees
  • Partial Refunds - Another Method of Increasing Your S&H DSR
  • Improve Your Shipping and Handling DSR by Selling the Right Things


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