From a friend:

"I took a 4’x4’x2’ deep plastic tub we use for storing soil mix. Filled it with moist wood chips like the horse people use for bedding material. Upen slats on the bottom for drainage. I put the cuttings in the terminal bud down with the cut end up dipped in rooting hormone. Cover the last 3” to 4” of the cut end with slightly wetter wood chips. Cover with plastic and store in a shaded area . In about 10 days to 2 weeks the callus material will start to form . Plant in moist potting soil and keep moist. That is as far as I am. Friday is 2 weeks . So I will know more next week. A friend  did the same procedure last month and his callused just fine . He planted his in a nursery row in the ground."

I had previously had evidence that storing the cuttings upside down helped induce rooting. Never got around to a controlled study. 

I read (somewhere) that people do that with grape cuttings.
By the way Jon I haven't killed any of the cuttings I got from you on eBay. Some of them are already potted up.

not exactly what i do. but i don't really store my cuttings in baggies more than 4 weeks, roots or not. at 4 weeks point, they all move into cups. some have good callus, some don't. but they all root more or less. important thing at all point is how fresh the cuttings are. and how they were shipped. some moisture is great, but too much moisture will either rot the cuttings, or freeze them while in transit.. especially during the winter. 

Worked once for me

Last year when I acquired my first ever fig cuttings I accidentally had many of them upside down.  They rooted about the same as the rightside ups.

It's hard to kill a fig cutting!  Or a grape cutting!  My new job is roses.  Figs and grapes want to live.  Hard to kill!

Suzi