New store plans with free listings - Be careful May is 31 day month

[pocomocomputing]

The new fees start May 1st. Everyone will be getting free listings, store and non-store. Great! Maybe you have a lot more free listings and are getting ready to list them all this May 1st.

Be careful! May is a 31 day month! A double listing month for 30 day durations that automatically relist using GTC or Automation rules to relist automatically Fixed price 30 days listings in eBay Selling Manager and Selling Manager Pro, eBay Blackthorne Pro or third party tools like Auctiva and inkFrog.

If you list May 1st fixed price with a 30 day duration using GTC (or automation tools for relisting Fixed Price 30 days), you will relist automatically on May 31st. So you will have a "double" listing month and you may have to pay if it relists May 31 if you have used up your free auctions.

For example, if you get a basic store with 150 free and list a lot on May 1st using GTC, remember they will relist and use up more of your 150 free in the month of May on the 31st. So you should stagger out your new GTC listings over the first 5 to 7 days at least so that they will not have a large number double relisting in the same months over the rest of this year.

Same applies to a Premium store with 500 free and an Anchor store with 2500 free. And to a non-store with 50 free. Be careful with using GTC with automatic renewal every 30 days or automation tools that will relist Fixed Price 30 days.

Here is a list of double listing months. First date is listing date you use this month, then when the double month will occur, then when it will happen again

May 1, May 31, then no double months for years (7 years ??)

May 2, Jul 1/31, then no double months for years

May 3, Aug 1/31, then no double months for years

May 4, Oct 1/31, then no double months for years

May 5, Dec 1/31, then no double months for years

May 6, Jan 1/31 2014, Mar 1/31 2014, then no double months for years

May 7, Jul 1/31 2014, then no double months for years

May 8, Aug 1/31 2014, then no double months for years

May 9, Oct 1/31 2014, then no double months for years

May 10, Dec 1/31 2014, then no double months for years

May 11, Jan 1/31 2015, Mar 1/31 2015, then no double months for years

May 12, Jul 1/31 2015, then no double months for years

May 13, Aug 1/31 2015, then no double months for years

May 14, Oct 1/31 2015, then no double months for years

May 15, Dec 1/31 2015, then no double months for years

If you already have GTC listings, then they should have a random distribution of the days in a month. So whenever a month has 31 days (Jan, Mar, May, Jul, Aug, Oct, Dec), on the 1st you will have listings that will renew on the 31st. Assuming random distribution of the day you listed with GTC, then you can have from 3% to 6% of your listing to double list each of those months with 31 days.

Now you cannot avoid double listing months using GTC but you can minimize their impact on your free listings by not listing a lot of GTC on one day of the month, especially in the first 5 days of the month. Stagger them out.

So be very careful not to list too many GTC on one day during the first 5 days because eventually you will have a double month within a year. May 6 is a bad date to start a GTC listing on because you will have 2 double listing months early next year.

[pocomocomputing]

If you list May 1st fixed price with a 30 day duration using GTC (or automation tools for relisting Fixed Price 30 days), you will relist automatically on May 31st. So you will have a "double" listing month and you may have to pay if it relists May 31 if you have used up your free listings.

Correction. I used auctions when it is listings (Fixed Price or auctions)

[rose-dee]

Thank you for all this computation!  I could never have worked this out longhand on my own.  I'll print this out and keep it for reference. 

I knew this would be one issue with the new fee structure, although obviously not as scary as at first glance.  It was discussed on this board a while ago, but no one had set it out quite so clearly.  Thanks!!

[pocomocomputing]

The above schedule is for May. It will change for each month. As a general rule of thumb, the day of the month + 1 day is how many months later that there is a double month. Around the 6 and 11 (day of month can change) there will be double months within a year or two.

The issue with 31 days is not a problem if you try to stagger out your start day of a month for a GTC listing. You will always have some listings on the 1st of a 31 day month relist on the 31st some time in the future.

I just wanted to warn sellers who get a lot of free listings today not to start them all today and to stagger them out over the next few days.  Then when a 31 day month happens in the next months, you will not have to pay for too many listings if you run out of free listings.

Having the free listings with a store is nice but if you are trying to minimize insertion listing fees, you can get caught paying for a few. This will be normal if you stagger them out on the day of the month. A little different thinking when you have a store and a large number of free listings.

So if you have 150 free with a basic store, you can expect 5 to 10 to double list in a 31 day month assuming you have all your GTC listings start day of month evenly distributed over each day of the month. So expect to pay for 5 to 10 a month when you try to use up all of your 150 free each month if you are using GTC listings a lot.

[Anonymous]

Sorry, I just don't get it what you mean "double".  You mean eBay will charge us for one same item twice on the 31st day of any month that has 31 days??

No matter how much I try to understand what you mean, I just don't get it at all!  Please explain it more clearly.

If I list an item on May 31, eBay will charge me for it?  It will end on June 30.  Please explain.  I couldn't get it through my mind at all.  Thanks.

[triber]

I am with you honeybed, my poor old brain just can't understand it.

[hoppy24]

my understanding is this.. good til canceled ads are auto renewing every 30 days.   IF you were to have posted an good til cancel ad on the 1st,  you would get charged the insertion fees now. as you normally would.

 Fast forward 30 days to May 31st. That original good til cancel ad has expired, but auto renewed with yet again another set of insertion fees.

So May's ebay fee invoice could and would be higher due to listing the same item twice in the same month.   This will cause issues with people who know what their base monthly fees should be/normally are. So really you could be just costing yourself double the fees for the same sales.

 It all works out in the wash down the road..(so long as you have like 20+ of the same item)   but by not staggering you end up giving ebay double fees now (or any other 31 day month) 

And well we all know people dont like pay extra fees, be it shipping ebay paypal or otherwise.

[tobyshitzu]

A fp listing is for 30 days.  the free listings reset by calender month.  so if you use good till cancel listings that relist whenever they end they won't always start in the next month.

So If you list 150 listings May 1 as GTC they'll all relist in May at the regular insertion fee.  Or if you list 150 Jan 31 they'll all miss using the Feb free listings altogether.  

If you spread your listings starting dates over the month and list a little under the 150 then it will spread out when the same item gets listed twice in a month and avoid extra insertion fees

If you don't have multi quantity listings there isnt much reason to use GTC and you can just wait to relist manually in months you go past the free ones

[Anonymous]

It is insane if we cannot use GTC and if we do use GTC, then we would be charged for insertion fees.  I thought regardless of what, if I am still under 500, it should be still free?  I think something is wrong.

I can understand if I have reached the max of 500 and then be charged for insertion fees but if still under 500 and GTC get charged for insertion fees, that is not right.  Is that true? 

If it is true, then I have to list all my listings for th 30 day duration not GTC, meaning more work for us having to check to make sure.  I prefer some certain items to be GTC and not worry about them.  Sheesh, eBay is still giving us grief and making our lives pure hell, nothing new.  It should be call eVil!

[pocomocomputing]

My warning was to not list a lot of items on one day just because you got a bunch of free listing with a store starting on the 1st. You need to spread them out over the days of the month if you plan to use Fixed Price GTC relisting automatically every 30 days.

I thought some sellers might think that the 150 free or 500 free was like an invitation promo and list a lot of listings on one day using FP GTC. If you did that on May 1st, the GTC would relist (if not sold) on May 31st using up more free listing or you end up paying for them because yo ran out of free listing.

There is nothing wrong with eBay and their free listings. I was just pointing out that a seller needs to manage their free listings carefully to minimize issues with FP GTC automatic renewal.

If you do not use GTC and use FP 30 days with manual renewal, you can see how many listings you have left.

The list of dates was showing you when the next 31 day month would occur and start on the 1st and relist on the 31st.  A seller might think that they will just list a bunch of listings on the 2nd of May instead of the 1st to avoid the May 31 day month. It does but you will have a double month in July. Same with the the other May days of the month.

So a smart seller who plans on using GTC and listing a bunch of items will stagger them out from the 1st of May to the 5th day of the month to spread out the GTC renewals so they do not have a lot of listings listing on the 1st and 31st in July, August, October, December in the rest of this year.

You cannot avoid months with 31 days and a listing starting on the 1st and renewing on the 31st. But if you spread out your FP GTC listings across the days of the month, only a few will list twice on the 31 day months.

If you use FP 30 days, no problem. You will manually relist so you ccan see how many free listing you have left.

[Anonymous]

Sheesh!!  I was planning to use 500 free listings for categories that would cost 10 cents each or higher and pay 5 cents for Books, Music, DVDs.  Since I listed over 1,000 items.  I would prefer to pay 5 cents for Books, Music, DVDs and free listings for other categories such as Entertainment, etc. but it seems to going to be a complication for us to do that.

I wish eBay would give us the option that I can click the button like paying 5 cents or free for Books, Music, DVDs when I listed.  I have to hold back all those Books, Music, DVDs, until I used up 500 free listings for other categories. 

Any advice how I can do that as mentioned above?   Of course I want to save a lot of $$$ in insertion fees by using that way but wonder if it is possible or not?

[cumos55]

Currently there are close to 3300 listings in a premium store on eBay.ca.....  all except 10 of those listings are books.

This means I have about 110 GTC listings rolling over each day of the year.

It does not matter which 110 books starts on the first of the month... the cost for listings is always  $5.50  per day.  for a yearly total of (365 days x $5.50 per day)   minus ($25 x 12)  .....  with the minus being 500 listings free each month....

For the first 5 days of a month  500 of the first 500 listings on days 1,2 3,and 4 and all except 50 listings  on day 5 are free.

All non-book inventory was ended before April 30....

Listing non-books was tested today ... 10 in total.

A bulk relist was tested... but I was going to get billed for 10 cents for each listing.

Each listing was relisted individually... right column under unsold listings....

eBay would tell me how much was saved in listing fees

Just checked my Seller Account

Page 1 no fees...

Page 2 FVF for items sold since May 1

Page 3... end with the last listing where a listing fee was charged.

Listing non-book inventory....must occur within the first 5 days of a month.....

10 non-book listings were relisted on May 3.

They will rollover on June 2... 31 days in May

 then on July 2... 30 days in June

then on August 1... 31 days in July

The next rollover will occur on August 31....  all 10 listings relisted May 3  will be ended befroe August 31.  and then restarted sometime after ASeptemvber 1 if desired....

Now February has 28 days....

List on February 2  and then rollover on March 4, April 3. May 3, June 2, July 2  and on

Leap year  Listing on February 3  rolls over on March 4

So far in May... the first 3 days... a total of 366 free listings have been used...  45 new listings were added    and 10 non-book items were relisted

Under listings actiity it shows that I will have 124 listings ending.....on May 4...

I can still list non-book inventory on May 4,,,  and only before the 124 rollover on May 4...

Because of the number of listings ending each day it means that all non book inventory has to be listed free and continue to rollover  during the first 4 days of a month... listings are ended before the end of a month  if the rollover is to occur on the 31st of a month.....

[cumos55]

Everything is a lot easier with 1000 listings in a store... with about 33 listings ending each day.

over the first 15 days of each month  a total of 33 x 15 = 495 listings will be free....

If you start a listing in February

the following will occur in a non leap year...with 28 days in February

February to March add 2 days

March to April  ... delete 1

April to May... zero change

May to June ... delete 1

June to July ... no change

July to August ... delete 1

August to September ... delete 1

September to October ... zero change

October to November ....  delete 1

November to December ... zero change

December to January ... delete 1

January to February ... delete 1...

If a listing starts on February 10,   2013... it will follow a sequence such that it will rollover on February 5, 2014...  and rollover subsequently on March 7, 2014, and March 2, 2015

2012 and 2016 are leap years..... add 1 for February to March....

Delete 1 if you go from a 31 day month to a 30 day or 31 day month.....

No change when going from a 30 day month to a 31 day month....

Only with February to March... add 2  in a regular year and add 1 in a leap year

For this 1000 listing situation... List non-book inventory no later than February 12 and that listing can go GTC for over 2 years   and not have a listing fee..... charged....

One can now determine  when to end a listing and relist a few days later  in order not to incur  that higher listing fee with non book inventory..

[cumos55]

March 2, 2015 appears to be an error as the listing would have ended on January  1 and 31... incurring a listing fee on December 31

Solution... Work it one month at a time... then one year... and count the days....

and ask...

When does the listing roll over?.... 

and ... What to do next to keep that listing within the free part of the month?....

Predicting March 2, 2015 made me lose... 

[Anonymous]

eBay doesn't give free insertion fees for bulk listing, you have to relist each by individually. 

If I have to pay for any insertion fees, I can do bulk relisting but not if you want for free.

[pierrelebel]

"eBay doesn't give free insertion fees for bulk listing"

Yes it does.

[pjcdn2005]

eBay doesn't give free insertion fees for bulk listing, you have to relist each by individually. 

If I have to pay for any insertion fees, I can do bulk relisting but not if you want for free.

As Pierre said, you can relist for free in bulk listing. There is more information in the following thread

http://community.ebay.ca/topic/Canadian-Powersellers-Discussion/Relisting-Items-One/3000009415

[cumos55]

I was going to do a bulk relist on four listings.

As the relist progressed and just before  the relist ended, eBay said there would be fees charged,

Relisted each listing individually and as the relist progressed, eBay said it would be zero listing fees.

It was four listings at 10 cents each...  four listings for artwork among thousands of listings of books.

[pierrelebel]

The bulk "relist" or "sell a similar item" functions work the same way.

First you select the ended listings (sold or unsold) you want to relist or sell a similar item

Then eBay opens a new page giving you a list of those items and the option to make changes (edit)

Once you confirm the changes and submit the items for listing, eBay opens a new page asking you to "confirm and submit", advising you of the number of items and the fees to list.  Those would be the regular fees and does not yet take into account the "free listings" you may be eligible to.

After you have clicked on "confirm and submit", a new page opens up asking you to click on "Finish".  That page will confirm the fee as $0.00 if the items were eligible to "free" listings. Keep in mind that listings listed in two categories attract a listing fee for the second category.

If you are having difficulties understand the procedure above, and you know you are eligible to some free listings,  I suggest you select two items to bulk relist to personally experience the function. It works exactly the same way on eBay.com, eBay.ca and eBay.cafr

[squidboytoys]

I never fully grasped the free listings but now it seems crucial for a store subscription.

I almost always list with GTC listings. Are these eligible for free listings as well?

Thanks