Aussie/NZ Postage tips...

[gettodamoofies]

After recently doing some trades/sales on site I've noticed that some people seem to be getting done over by postage charges. Not because Australia Post or we are doing anything wrong, just because Australia Post has some unusual rules about postage charges. So I thought it might be a good idea to start a thread where we can share tips/tricks for minimising postage costs and/or ensuring safe arrival of packages here in Australia and NZ. Hopefully some Kiwi members can chime in with some handy hints on their postage carrier too.

One thing that most people seem to get caught out on is Australia Post's 20mm rule. Basically any package thicker than 20mm automatically ceases being classed as a letter and becomes a parcel. That immediately increases the price regardless of the weight. So for those sending a single Amaray case the trick is to keep it under 20mm thick and under 500g and it will be classified as a large letter.

One recent example is a title I bought from another member. It was well packaged with plenty of bubble-wrap and wrapped in paper. It weighed a total of 90 grams. Unfortunately it was over the 20mm thickness so it cost $6.60! I hope this thread might help members so that they don't find themselves in a similar situation...

So, how do you not pay an arm and a leg for sending something that weighs less than two chocolate bars? Three options:

• Plain paper envelope
• Bubble mailer - size 1 (151 x 229mm) or size 2 (215 x 280mm)
• Cardboard mailer (142 x 199 x 19mm)

Option 1 won't cost you much ($1.20) but it's likely to arrive in poor shape leaving you with a miffed buyer and potential negative feedback. Option 2 isn't bad, will provide some protection and will set you back $1.80. I run with option 3 as fortunately I have a family member able to get me a stash of these every so often (see pics below). They protect well, hold up in the post, don't weigh too much and still only cost $1.80 to send:



As they're DVD-sized I usually put a small piece of bubble wrap inside the mailer (top right image) to stop the case moving around.

$1.80 will ship up to a triple-play set with a slipcover and/or small booklet and keep it under 250 grams. Any more discs (5/6 disc sets in standard thickness Amaray cases) will still fit under the 20mm rule but will likely push the weight into the next category which is large letter 250-500g. They cost $3.00.

So, hopefully that helps for anyone doing some trading on the site. There are plenty of us around but I think many are put off by excessive postage costs and hopefully some tips will help get some local trading happening more effectively.

If you've got a tip for using Australia Post or New Zealand Post post it here and share it with everyone else!

[Supernaut]

Nice work Tex, anything to save a few quid.

[melmac]

Thanks really helpful was thinking of selling a few discs so timely too
I knew I should keep it below 2cm but was worried about protecting the disc wouldn't want any unhappy buyers.

[Black13teen]

thanks for the tips

[NickMate]

Any tips on mailing to the US trying to keep costs down but it's seems the price vary all the time.

[Cevolution]

It's a good idea for a thread. However saving a few dollars won't change my postage habits. At my own expense I always wrap movies in bubble wrap and send them in a box, out of respect for the buyer, to reduce the possibility of the items being damaged, and to save myself any hassles.