HRoth - 1:19 pm on Jul 17, 2005 (gmt 0)

"people don't buy purely on lowest price"

I agree absolutely. And that goes for shipping as well.

My theory is that many people (not all) shop as a process rather than as a way of acquiring a particular item (even when they end up buying that particular item). Shopping means having money and being able to make a choice, and people like prolonging that feeling. So I do as much as I can to make their shopping process at my store aesthetically pleasing, generally informative, and reassuring that they have made the right choice of business because they can see I am knowledgeable about what they are buying. I want them to feel like they are actually in some tiny little shop like in the first Harry Potter movie. (At least one writer has theorized that the Harry Potter movies reflect our culture's keen interest in shopping).

In my experience, when people get what they want from the shopping experience they have at your store, they are okay about paying for shipping. The only ones I have had who have complained about shipping prices have been people who come to buy one thing specifically and have no interest in either shopping as a process or buying anything else from me. This has happened a handful of times. Many of these people have been convinced that shipping should cost the amount of a stamp. One actually told me he would buy one item if the shipping was $1.00. I don't want people like this as my customer base.

Now it's true that I am sure I am losing some customers who go around looking for free shipping. But I am not interested in customers who want cheap. My stuff is above average in price because most of it is hard to find or unique. You want a deal, you go elsewhere.

I do give people free samples when they buy more than a certain amount, but I don't promise that in advance. I just do it.