Also if you don’t want to buy a label printer these work great! I use them with pirateship all the time.
MFLABEL Half Sheet Self Adhesive Shipping Labels for Laser & Inkjet Printers, 200 Count https://www.amazon.com/dp/B016CV811U/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_4QNENX51FQH1S8XP75QX?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1
You can print it on copy paper and tape it to the mailer with packing tape. Or if you want to be more professional you can print it on sticker paper. You can find these half sheet labels on amazon, which is what I use, and they can just run through normal printers.
Edit: I originally forgot to put the link to the labels in
If you look up "Dymo 4XL" on amazon there are a lot of different vendors who say the labels are Dymo compatible. I got these ones and they work just fine.
I've been using these from Best Print on Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0069RY9BY/
They feed nicely through my laser printer, and the stickiness of the labels is better than others I've used.
Retailers do not try to compete with Amazon as much as you think they would. Yesterday, I had to pick up a roll of labels for my label printer on short notice, so I couldn't order it online ($17 on Amazon), So I went to Office Depot (Staples and Best Buy didn't carry the size I needed). Office Depot prices them at $33.49 online (was ~$37 in store). I tried to price match, but their policy doesn't allow Amazon marketplace items to be matched. I'm pretty sure those labels aren't a marketplace item, and I pointed that out to them, but the employee seemed pretty set on their decision.
You're well vetted then. Dont spend so much on the avery labels. They're expensive af. Get these. They make full sheet address labels too. https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B016CV811U/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_GaOxFbGPH2XYQ
I've had a HP m477fnw for years man. ive replaced the toner twice, and the off brands are like $30-40 for full color and black. I was printing like 50+ labels a day at one point. I got it at an auction for $60… and another m477fn for $60. I resold the other one. And got some extra $$$ and a SMB printer for free.
I used a dymo4xl I got at a thrift for a month and just sold it. Convenient but problematic.
I had a zebra for awhile too. That was well worth it. Sold it for cash later on when I sized down my business.
Go zebra if anything. If you do FBA make sure it's the one that can print on address labels too.
> I’m thinking bubble mailers/envelopes?
Bubble mailers are a good choice. They're lightweight, come in a wide variety of sizes, and offer good protection. Envelopes are meant to hold documents.
>Does anyone print the shipping label and just tape it on or does it have to be a sticker
You can tape shipping labels right onto your packaging. Half sheet shipping labels like these work well too. You print labels on them using a normal printer, but you can peel the back off of them and attach the labels to your package as if it were a big sticker.
> what sort of shipping do you use? Are you shipping from the US? If so, USPS First Class Parcel is usually the best choice. Check out https://www.pirateship.com/rates and experiment with different shipping options.
> And do you ship internationally as well? Yes, but I didn't at first. I think it's better to get a handle on domestic shipping before dealing with the complexities of international shipping
I have a Brother laser printer and half-sheet adhesive labels and that works really well (and cheap.) I bought the printer years ago and I'm only getting to the end of my first toner cartridge.
Totally cool... Here is a link to the post of the template
Here is the label paper
Printable Vinyl Sticker Paper - Glossy White - Premium Waterproof Vinyl Sticker Paper for Inkjet Printer and Laser Printer - Decal Sheets Self-Adhesive Label Paper - 8.5"X11"(15 Sheets) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0936CGHYX/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_TQS0PYRQZV46EAT0CY57?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1
I debated purchasing a label printer for months. I kept adding one to my cart, then removing it, then adding it back. They're so expensive. I finally ordered one and I love it. It saves me so much time.
That said, you can also print shipping labels on a regular printer. All you need (besides the printer itself) is half sheet labels. I did this for a long time and it worked decently well.
I bought vinyl label stock from my inkjet printer. Works well and not supposed to leave any residue. I had to replace it once and it did come apart while trying to remove it, but wasn't difficult to get up and didn't seem to gum it up. Maybe there is better stuff out there.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0936CGHYX/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o07_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
I buy the half-sheet labels from Amazon. (Like this one https://smile.amazon.com/MFLABEL-Adhesive-Shipping-Labels-Printers/dp/B016CV811U/)
And then I have to buy bigger envelopes (6x9) than I used to use so it'll fit and I just stick the label on and mail them. I used to cut/fold the label to fit smaller envelopes but it's such a pain.
The tracking is only sort of nice--you can only check the status on Etsy, and for some reason every buyer likes to copy/paste the tracking number to the USPS website and then they get an error message (because the tracking ONLY works on Etsy) and they send me an angry email that I must be scamming them because their tracking # doesn't work... and then the post office only randomly uses those tracking features... I'd say maybe half of my envelope labels get scanned as delivered. The other half either never register, or say "in transit" status forever and ever. I have hundreds of delivered sticker orders in my order history that still say "in transit" even though they arrived and the buyers left me 5 star reviews.
So it's really flawed, but it's easier than buying stamps and hand writing addresses on envelopes like I used to do.
Deal link: Amazon
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Amazon?
ROLLO Thermal Direct Shipping Label (Pack of 500 4x6 Fan-Fold Labels) - Commercial Grade https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01M9AR01Q/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_b1bGDb32D2Z9T
BETCKEY - 2.25" x 1.25" UPC Barcode & Multipurpose Labels Compatible with Zebra & Rollo Label Printer,Premium Adhesive & Perforated[6 Rolls, 6000 Labels] https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071YN85Y9/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_p2bGDb42PGC7Y
They’re 8.5x11 and fit 2 labels per page. I haven’t had issues with just printing 1, you just have to know how your printer pulls in paper and what orientation it’s going to print the label at. These are the ones I use: sticky labels
A generic version from Amazon - MFLABEL half sheet from Amazon
If you buy 1000 labels ($35.99), cost comes to ~3.6 cents each. Saves time, looks more professional.
I found that up to 8 oz, First Class makes sense. Over 8 oz, an SFRB (small flat rate box - priority mail) offers better stability, and spacing.
An SFRB is also a great way to send something heavy, or with irregular shape. Just make sure you use tons of tape and padding, so things won't rattle inside the box, and tape the edges.
Not sure how this rule of thumb will hold with the new rates, and it always depends on distance. This days, I usually say "shipping at cost", calculate based on the buyer's zip code, and offer the 2 options to my buyer.
Get shipping stickers from Amazon (for example https://www.amazon.com/MFLABEL-Adhesive-Shipping-Labels-Printers/dp/B016CV811U ), and use PayPal or PirateShip to buy postage and print the labels.
I try to cover the label with tape, so ink won't get washed off. I also try to include a note inside the package with the destination address, so USPS won't have an excuse not to deliver, if the label gets torn, or the address washed off etc.
How... what? How would you think covering something with stamps and making them deal with that headache is a polite way of doing anything? And why are you getting upset it went through rollers? You failed to insulate the package you were mailing with crush able items inside against the 'hardship' of being mailed in the first place? The roller sorting things aren't going to change to adapt to your unusual methods. They can't plan out how to change how they deal with your ways. You need to be the one who thinks and adapts and makes sure you're accounting for the rollers, and gravity, and impacts, and physics and such.
As an online retailer I send around 18 4x7 or 8x10 bubble mailers out daily. I also have a USPS stamps account because I am a retailer and do ship large volumes, but there's other ways to get the same rates if you don't want to go that route. I pay $2.66 to ship up to 4oz and my larger mailers weigh half an ounce,.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B017NFKFYA
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000RM1BWM
$2.66 cost of postage, 4.3 cents for the label, 7.6 cents for the mailer, 1-3 cents for 1/3 to 1 full 12" sheet of additional bubble wrap as needed, 2 cents for around 2 square feet of 40# Kraft paper to make sure nothing is sliding around and match the thickness of the item with 2 paper contact points in support of the bubble wrap. Total cost, around $2.84. First class package rates start at $3.50 retail, so that's the shipping charge my customers pay.
No customer has ever been unhappy with it or received an item in one of those packages that was damaged. They're all very happy with what they get for the money they pay to have their purchase delivered to them. I'd pay it myself if needed, but there is no need, because I'm not the one ordering something to be sent to me. You may be charging your customers a bit less for delivery, but you're not spending their money wisely.
Thanks for the Info!
Could I ask what you do with the label? Do you do adhesive backed labels similar to this: https://www.amazon.com/MFLABEL-Adhesive-Shipping-Labels-Printers/dp/B016CV811U/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1529961273&sr=8-5&keywords=self+adhesive+shipping+label
These are the labels I use, work amazingly. For a printer, I use Epson which works great with the ink on the labels https://www.amazon.com/MFLABEL-Adhesive-Shipping-Labels-Printers/dp/B016CV811U/ref=sr_1_3?s=office-products&ie=UTF8&qid=1519822279&sr=1-3&keywords=Shipping+labels
What about these: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B016CV811U/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Those are the ones I ordered, 8.99 for 200 sheets and I think 400 labels. not too bad. these seem to be the ones everyone is recommending. Ill probably never use them all anyways, or maybe over the course of a few years
For XL, I figured it cost too much to save a few dollars on off brand ones and I don't ship an insane amount
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001U729QK/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
For Turbo, never had an issue with these
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01H1M10EY/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
For XL, I figured it cost too much to save a few dollars on off brand ones and I don't ship an insane amount
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001U729QK/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
For Turbo, never had an issue with these
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01H1M10EY/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Either he's posting his own eBay listings, or he's the world worst flipper because you get them new for $149 http://www.ebay.com/itm/DYMO-LabelWriter-4XL-Thermal-Label-Printer-NEW-FREE-SHIPPING-/252940810131 and used for $129.
The label rolls don't add value as you can get them for free from FedEx & UPS. That listing is an absolute HORRIBLE deal; $185 used because 4 label rolls are included? LOL. Even if you couldn't get them for free, that's not worth a $56 premium over the other used ones.
edit: Wait, the deal gets worse. Didn't notice the shipping charge. Got to add $15 as the competing listings have free shipping. So he wants a $71 premium for 4 rolls that can be bought for $27.99 if you didn't know the shipping companies give them away. https://www.amazon.com/Dymo-1744907-Compatible-Shipping-Labels/dp/B01MAZEN5X/