I occasionally sell my used books on Amazon. But I'm not a member of their pro merchant program. Well, it seems that lately they have jacked up their fees.
I just sold a book for $2.50 that ended up costing me seven cents!
I emailed them to check if there is some mistake... I thought there had to be some mistake. I wasn't looking to make a huge profit on a $2.50 book, but I didn't expect them to charge what amounts to more than a 100% commission.
Here's the email they sent back.
"After researching your account, I have found that the fees that have
been taken for your order 058-3140161-1541321 are correct. Amazon.com
collects a commission of 6-15% of the item cost, a variable closing
fee (which is determined by what shipping option a buyer has selected)
and a fixed closing fee for non-Pro Merchant sellers (this is
currently $0.99). We then credit the remainder to your Amazon.com
Payments account. Note, sellers are also credited the same shipping
amount that the buyer has paid.
Sale Price of the item
Shipping Credit
- Variable Closing Fee
- $0.99 Fixed Closing Fee (waived for Pro Merchants)
- Commission of 6-15% of sale price
= Total deposited to seller's account
For order #058-3140161-1541321, the fees taken were calculated as follows:
$ 2.50 (Sale Price)
- $ 0.38 (Commission of Sale Price)
- $ 2.19 (Closing Fees)
$ 3.49 (Shipping Credit)
= $ 3.42 (Total deposited to seller's account)"
Keep in mind that the 3.42 in my account is not profit. I have to spend that money to mail the book. Since the usual shipping credit is $3.50, I have to pay seven cents out of my pocket to put this book in the mail.
Their double-dipping fee structure is interesting. They charge both a fixed and a variable fee AND a fee for not being a Pro Merchant.Pro Merchants have to pay for the privilege of being a pro merchant, so they're making money from everyone - whether average schlub or pro merchant.
What a rip-off. I'm never selling anything through Amazon again.
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