My Ebay Store is Officially closed......

[Mio]

Selling inexpensive goods via eBay doesn't make sense unless you do a very high volume and have very strong margins. For merchants who only sell a few things here and there, eBay wants a big % of the sale because they can get it. I think their end goal is to get to 20% of the sale price for small-time sellers in the next few years (incl. the PayPal fee).

 

I generally only sell high dollar items there now, unless I want to get rid of something and just don't want to throw it away.

[c-mack]

sorry about having to shut it down

[byosti]

i contemplated for a bit getting one of these ebay stores but least i know now not to. and don't really think I have the inventory for a site of my own. ashame they boosted prices up that much

[RockMyAmadeus]

Even the buy it now format, which worked well for me the last year or so, has been ruined. 50 cents per item? That's a nearly 50% price increase. It's insane.

 

"Just add it in to the cost of the item"...unfortunately, that "logic" doesn't work when you list 50 items, and only 3 of them sell.

 

By the way....have any Cronze followers noticed the slowing amount of 9.8s available recently...?

 

I guess people are tired of giving their stuff away for less than it costs to slab...

[dopy02]

I shut it all down. After 12 years buying and selling on ebay I closed down the old store. The new fee structure has put me out of business for good. I used to think they (ebay) were great, now I know for certain they really do suck! Store listing fees rose from 6 cents to 20 cents, too much of a price increase for me to handle. I could keep my little store open for $20.00 a month. The new prices: $55.00.

 

Has anyone else pulled their listings because of the fee hikes?

 

I may be wrong but you may be a tad high on the new cost estimate

assuming 30 day fixed price listings

 

old rate > basic store $16 + 100 items at .06 = $22 total cost not counting FVF

new rate> basic store $16 + 100 items at .20 = $36 total cost not counting FVF

[nochips]

I shut it all down. After 12 years buying and selling on ebay I closed down the old store. The new fee structure has put me out of business for good. I used to think they (ebay) were great, now I know for certain they really do suck! Store listing fees rose from 6 cents to 20 cents, too much of a price increase for me to handle. I could keep my little store open for $20.00 a month. The new prices: $55.00.

 

Has anyone else pulled their listings because of the fee hikes?

 

I may be wrong but you may be a tad high on the new cost estimate

assuming 30 day fixed price listings

 

old rate > basic store $16 + 100 items at .06 = $22 total cost not counting FVF

new rate> basic store $16 + 100 items at .20 = $36 total cost not counting FVF

 

For clarification, I was running 200 or so listings a month. Try the new price numbers on those calculations. They should be closer to my estimates. Now that I think about it store fees were originally 3 cents for me...I guess the main point is they raised their prices and I cannot afford to list books "for fun" at over $50.00 a month in fees. I think you need to have the $300.00 a month store to get the 3 cent price now.

 

There is a price point where the numbers make more sense financially: I need to list more items to get the best discount. I have a full time job and family, I do not have the time to run and maintain the store at those price points. I am sure one of the board members has calculated the best break even figures.

 

I will run a few 7 day auctions now and then but the store is now priced out of my league.

 

[joe_collector]

I may be wrong

 

You are, under the *old* Store format, the listing fee was 3-cents a month. That has jumped to 20-cents a month under the new Listing Fee Discount Plan, but you do get a bit more exposure since there are no more Stores.

 

Still not a good trade-off, as EBay is not what it used to be and lots of stuff just sits.

[dopy02]

I may be wrong

 

You are, under the *old* Store format, the listing fee was 3-cents a month. That has jumped to 20-cents a month under the new Listing Fee Discount Plan, but you do get a bit more exposure since there are no more Stores.

 

Still not a good trade-off, as EBay is not what it used to be and lots of stuff just sits.

why do you keep saying there are no more stores

I still have my store and nothing has changed except the insertion fee

and previously, not all listings were 3 cents

it was dependant on the buy it now price

some listings were .03 or .05 or .10 for me

[joe_collector]

why do you keep saying there are no more stores

 

Because there are effectively no more stores, and you're just paying the $15+ for a Listing Fee Discount Plan - even EBay has admitted this on their forums. All that remains is your former "Store Name" that lists your general eBay auctions - other than the store name, it's effectively no different than your current EBay seller account.

 

Once EBay got rid of Store Listings, in favor of generic one-size-fits-all Auction Listings for everyone, then all you really get is a discount. I don't even see the Store Name option remaining around for long.

 

and previously, not all listings were 3 cents

 

Of course, but we're talking about the average scenario for about 99% of EBay sellers, and I guess if you were selling $10K cars in your store previously, the impact might not be as big as those selling $5-$20 items.

[the blob]

My plan is to bulk up my listings to 500-1000 qualityish items (not $1 books) and see how it works out for a few months. I am getting the $50 store option for cheaper listings, which I think only evens out at like 250 items according to someone's calculations here.

[nochips]

My plan is to bulk up my listings to 500-1000 qualityish items (not $1 books) and see how it works out for a few months. I am getting the $50 store option for cheaper listings, which I think only evens out at like 250 items according to someone's calculations here.

 

The problem involves traffic. Ebay claims that making all listings available to view will increase traffic to your listings. That is why they are charging 20 cents, you will have more people looking at your wares and sell more....This is a fallacy. Now every listing is able to viewed and they are all there at the same time. The road is majorly cluttered and jammed pack with every freaking item for sale. Do a search now, for anything, and watch all the that comes up for sale. If you paid 35 cents for an auction before you got more exposure. Now the 35 cents auctions listings are in with every 20 cent store option, far too many items for the average buyer to sift through.

 

Previously, your listings we not seen by many people unless they happen to come into your ebay store. You also paid 3, 5 or 10 cents an item, based on the listing price. 300 auctions at 3 cents an item was only $9.00 a month. 300 items today at 20 cents an item is $60.00. How is $60.00 better than $9.00? I am paying them 20 cents an item to be lumped in with every auction they have. I was a 3 cent needle in the haystack last month, now I am paying them 20 cents for the same haystack spot I had last month.

 

Tell me I am wrong. I can take it.

[joe_collector]

Nope, that's exactly what I said to Dale Roberts when he started in with the "you'll get more exposure" stuff - but that only works with rare or uncommon items, so if you're one of a 100+ sellers with X generic item, good luck. All those millions of store items from Chinese vendors have clogged up the works like you wouldn't believe.

[nochips]

When I went to their new format I sold nothing. My prior selling goal was to move a few books and pay for my miscellaneous expenses. I was not doing it for a living, like some sellers, so I had lower expectations. This new pricing scheme is designed for the higher volume seller, not little old me.

 

The worst part is I paid 20 cents an item to sell nothing and 3 cents to previously sell something? Those results are the opposite of their claims. Maybe Mile High is selling more? Not really sure. Time will tell.

 

When the dust settles, and I have no clue when that will be, ebay will likely revamp this turd of a seller program.