If ebay just wanted to weed out the stores that weren't serious about making a real income (meaning realistic prices and quality inventory) they could have just increased the monthly store fee. If a store generates over 5k in sales per month, then a $20 or $30 increase would be negligible, but it would probably be enough to eliminate a lot of the "hey ma look at me" stores. Although I'm not familiar with their exact fee structure, I believe the beckett marketplace operates under this principle - they make the fixed costs high enough that only serious businesses will sign up.
Also, if you think you can pass on overhead increases to your customers without slowing down your sales, then you weren't pricing your items optimally to begin with.
<< <i>Envoy - Are you selling at shows a lot more now or have you just stopped selling?
Anyway, the FVF for regular auctions after the first $25 is only three percent.
The total ebay/paypal fees if you started an auction at .99 and it ended at $100 would be $6.96. Of course, most seller make a buck or two back on shipping, so you're looking at a 5-6% overhead fee. Where most sellers get screwed is with insertion fees and with lower end items. >>
I actually haven't done a show in four or five months. I posted a lot of things on the site I moderate (SCF) and I just make the post "For Sale: I'll beat ebay" and I usually sell the stuff delivered for what it sells for on ebay before shipping. ie. a card ends at $25+3 shipping, I'll sell it for $24 or 25 dlvd. I get the money that day, I ship it the next day and everyone is happy. I've had great success doing that. I've also been doing a lot more trading as well, I end up doing a trade with one guy to get a card another guy wants so I can trade him my card and the other card to get the one I want.... follow that? lol
Now I have to get caught up on this thread and check out the reactions, I gotta see that!
I'll make a few comments regarding some of the replies i have read in this thread......
1)Sure, ebay has increased the fees. Everything increases as time goes on. Either accept it and find a way to recoup the fees by either increasing your prices or tacking on a little to your normal shipping charge (ebay does allow a charge for handling), or stop using ebay to sell your products. Ebay isn't forcing buyers to use them!
2)Another option to your complainers is to open up a store in the town you live in and then you can make your own rules!
3)The powersellers on ebay seem to think that buyers will quit buying on ebay once some sellers close down their store. Well, I buy more than I sell, and I'm not going anywhere (I'm sure i'm not the only buyer that plans on sticking with ebay). Rich
From a buyer's perspective, eBay does a horrible job of marketing or assisting the eBay store owner. When I do a search for a particular item there are no results for in-store items. At the bottom of the page, neatly hidden, is the link to see "more items in the buy it now portion." So I click on that and it brings up a separate inventory of like items that sellers have up for buy it now. Then, if I see that a particular owner has a large assortment of what I'm looking for I have to then click on the seller's store and it takes me to a third inventory of items that I searched for that are listed in the seller's store. Now that I know about this, I use it because it gets so little sight that there are often items I can't find anywhere else just sitting there waiting to bought.
On the flip side, if I were a store owner I'd be pissed that I get no assistance from eBay as far as leading customers to my store.
Why is there a difference in search results between auction items and items in a store? Is there a point to that? I would think eBay would want as much turnover as possible.
Comments
Also, if you think you can pass on overhead increases to your customers without slowing down your sales, then you weren't pricing your items optimally to begin with.
<< <i>Envoy - Are you selling at shows a lot more now or have you just stopped selling?
Anyway, the FVF for regular auctions after the first $25 is only three percent.
The total ebay/paypal fees if you started an auction at .99 and it ended at $100 would be $6.96. Of course, most seller make a buck or two back on shipping, so you're looking at a 5-6% overhead fee. Where most sellers get screwed is with insertion fees and with lower end items. >>
I actually haven't done a show in four or five months. I posted a lot of things on the site I moderate (SCF) and I just make the post "For Sale: I'll beat ebay" and I usually sell the stuff delivered for what it sells for on ebay before shipping. ie. a card ends at $25+3 shipping, I'll sell it for $24 or 25 dlvd. I get the money that day, I ship it the next day and everyone is happy. I've had great success doing that. I've also been doing a lot more trading as well, I end up doing a trade with one guy to get a card another guy wants so I can trade him my card and the other card to get the one I want.... follow that? lol
Now I have to get caught up on this thread and check out the reactions, I gotta see that!
My eBay Store
BigCrumbs! I made over $250 last year!
1)Sure, ebay has increased the fees. Everything increases as time goes on. Either accept it and find a way to recoup the fees by either increasing your prices or tacking on a little to your normal shipping charge (ebay does allow a charge for handling), or stop using ebay to sell your products. Ebay isn't forcing buyers to use them!
2)Another option to your complainers is to open up a store in the town you live in and then you can make your own rules!
3)The powersellers on ebay seem to think that buyers will quit buying on ebay once some sellers close down their store. Well, I buy more than I sell, and I'm not going anywhere (I'm sure i'm not the only buyer that plans on sticking with ebay).
Rich
On the flip side, if I were a store owner I'd be pissed that I get no assistance from eBay as far as leading customers to my store.
Why is there a difference in search results between auction items and items in a store? Is there a point to that? I would think eBay would want as much turnover as possible.