Should You Up Your Prices?

Let’s talk about your used panty prices, shall we?

The year is 2022. It’s fair to say that E-V-E-R-Y-T-H-I-N-G on the entire planet is fucked – and not in a good way.

But today I want to talk about your pricing.

I’ve mentioned a few times in my group (Sellers Before Fellas) that we need to be mindful of inflation. Yes, I brought receipts:

So everyone knows that inflation is happening and we’re all aware that the price of fuel is also going up. 

The question is, how has this and how will this affect your business?

If you recall, I made a pricing guide for sellers back in 2019 and most are still going by this pricing guide (it was only ever a guide btw). In fact, a lot of sellers charge less than this. It’s interesting to me that the price for most items hasn’t changed at all. Most used panties are still selling for $20-25 a pair.

That’s all well and good.

But your shipping costs have certainly gone up. I remember having to stifle my shock at the post office counter at the last pair I sent (within the EU). And I’m pretty sure shipping will continue to go up even more over the coming year.  And unfortunately, when the cost of our products/shipping goes up, we end up either having to absorb that cost or pass it on to our customers.

In this instance, I think we need to consider both options.

My advice used to be that you should charge a flat rate for your product and include the cost of your shipping in to it. That way you advertise FREE SHIPPING and everyone thinks they’re getting a great deal but really you’ve just included the bulk of your shipping cost into your pricing. (Of course that relies on you doing research to get an average price for shipping domestic/international.)

So if someone was selling at $25 plus shipping and you were selling at $30 including shipping, then you factor that into your costs. (Costs being packaging and postage costs).

I don’t know if that model is feasible going forward. Unless you significantly up your standard price. Because you might go in to the post office next week and the shipping cost has gone up considerably. But the tricky part of that is, unless the other sellers on your panty selling platform are doing the same, all of a sudden you stick out like a sore thumb advertising $40+ panties. 

In the short term, you might want to revert back to a standard price for your product and then advertise ‘plus shipping’ or offer a standard domestic shipping price and increase it as of X date to cover rising prices. That means keeping an eye on your postal service pricing regularly so that you don’t get an unexpected shock. Pay attention to your shipping provider on a weekly basis to stay on top of your costs.

Will rising costs of used panties stop customers from buying them?

In all honesty, I don’t know. If things become out of control and shipping doubles or triples, then I guess that will make many a purchaser think twice.

Perhaps customers who otherwise purchased from international sellers will decide to stay local. Perhaps it will encourage more purchasing from inside countries or specific states.

I think conversations need to be had on platforms to determine the best way forward. One or two sellers raising their prices in line with shipping rates (and mentioning thus on their chosen panty selling platform) will initiate discussion and help platforms have more consistency.

Or if sellers can find creative solutions, they can stand outside the rest of the market and perhaps make more sales.

But the main takeaway from this post ought to be that you can’t keep absorbing the price of rising shipping and inflation and not have it reflected somehow in the used panty market.

It’s another reason why diversifying your offerings with digital content can help to counter any drop in sales!