Overseas Business Has All But Stopped

[holdmygold2]

Please don't move this to the GSP board because it's meant for sellers here on this board.

Has anyone noticed that their overseas shipments have all but stopped?

I have, and although I'm not sure why I'm starting to wonder if the GSP is to blame.

In fact, when they first implemented that program I thought to myself that it was the beginning of the end of overseas sales, and now some time later I'm realizing that prediction.

Masses of buyers would simply stop using eBay because the GSP is too hard to manoeuvre around.

These buyers don't want to put the time into picking around items searching for those that don't use the GSP and so they just leave eBay.

Also, there will be those who believe that the only way to buy on eBay is via the GSP if they've been burned once.

English is, after all, their second language.

What I do know for sure is that my overseas sales have dwindled down to almost nothing while prior to the GSP those sales were a major source of income for me.

Not just that, selling prices have dropped dramatically and I believe this is a result of the loss of overseas buyers.

I have no way of knowing for sure of proving that  the GSP is to blame, but since it's turning out exactly as I predicted I have to think it is.

[dutchman48]

Canada does not use the GSP program.

In general, CP has raised postage rates so high, it has killed international sales.

Unless it is something needed, and not wanted, they will not buy.

Lots of things I would like to buy from England, Australia, etc, but their costs are huge as well so I don't buy either.

It is also basically free to have shipped from China

[treasure.hunter.d]

---

@dutchman48 wrote:

Canada does not use the GSP program.

In general, CP has raised postage rates so high, it has killed international sales.

Unless it is something needed, and not wanted, they will not buy.

Lots of things I would like to buy from England, Australia, etc, but their costs are huge as well so I don't buy either.

It is also basically free to have shipped from China

---

Postage prices are definitely an issue.

Buyer attitude toward postage costs is an huge problem as well.

Most buyers don't understand at all about the legitimate costs of shipping. I regularly have items shipped to me from auction houses in the USA. I will pay $40 for an item to be shipped up to me(postage plus supplies & labor cost), for example, and if I try and charge over $20 to ship that same item out to an Ebay buyer in the US they have a fit and claim I am trying to rob them.

Not only does it make it seriously difficult to purchase great items to sell but it makes it just as hard to make any money selling them. There are so many scabby Chinese sellers that offer free shipping on everything and North American sellers selling absolute garbage that they offer low shipping costs just to get rid of it on some poor unsuspecting buyer that buyers have lost any idea whatsoever of what it legitimately costs to ship something to them.

thd

[pierrelebel]

"I have no way of knowing for sure of proving that  the GSP is to blame, but since it's turning out exactly as I predicted I have to think it is."

????

Now I am confused.  What exactly did you predict?

Reality Check.

The overall growth experienced by eBay marketplace in the third quarter was less than management expected.

- Gross Merchandise Volume GMV (sales by sellers) grew at 7% only while PayPal grew at 28%.

The problems were identified as the reduction of listings visibility on Google and the requirement for users to reset their password last Spring, following a security breach within the system.

Also of note:

- Sold items grew at a rate of 9.1%

Marketplace trends are troubling

Looking at the growth rates of fixed-price vs. Auctions, maybe an extreme move would be to sunset the auction format?  The data is undeniable that the format is not popular with consumers, so maybe it's time to take a bigger move here.  Or maybe they restrict auctions to certain categories.

- Fixed-price grew 15% (in-line with e-commerce).

- Auctions were a pain point, down 7% 

- Fixed price is now 79% of GMV

- Top Rated Sellers (TRS) was 50% of GMV 

- 56% of transactions featured free shipping

And, finally, the number everyone has been waiting for:

Cross-Border-Trade (CBT) - CBT increased 27%, bringing it to 22% of overall GMV

For more information:

http://ebaystrategies.blogs.com/ebay_strategies/2014/10/ebay-q3-2014-results-a-seller-oriented-deep-...

[holdmygold2]

Of course I know that Canada does not use the GSP.   🙂

However, overseas eBay buyers buy mainly from the States and when they do a search they lump us all together, and this is especially true since most Canadians list on .com.

When overseas buyers stop buying from the States because they are turned off by the GSP, they stop buying from Canadians as well.

 If they stick around to search out sellers who ship without the GSP that's one thing, but if what I'm seeing is any indication, they don't.

[pierrelebel]

For those with a bit of time to spare, I suggest you view the entire presentation from eBay:

http://files.shareholder.com/downloads/ebay/3363425137x0x786727/23148f94-0e6c-4fa7-ba9e-d9a994ee311f...

[pjcdn2005]

My international sales have also decreased to almost nothing. According to the numbers that Pierre quoted, cross border shopping has increased but I'm certainly not benefiting from that increase.

Keep in mind that many people shop on their home sites so I thought that perhaps gsp listings were being given better placement on other sites and that may be the case in some instances but I think that the main difference now is the way that our items are seen in search on other sites. If I have a chance later on I'll do a few tests to see how things work out.

[pierrelebel]

" gsp listings were being given better placement on other sites"

Pretty close to reality.

What is happening is that tens of millions of listings previously offered by American sellers on the domestic market exclusively are now available overseas through GSP.

These listings were not there before as many American sellers were reluctant to ship overseas.  Some American sellers have been convinced by eBay that GSP will increase their sales without taking any additional risks since they only need to ship domestically to the Distribution Centre in Kentucky. eBay takes over from there and assumes all further risks while buyers pay all extra fees and charges.

We all know that GSP is not suitable for most transactions by most Canadian buyers.  However, the rest of the world now has access to millions of items offered by American sellers through GSP.  Obviously, some are buying.

Another factor to keep in mind is that eBay now has 800,000,000 listings from sellers worldwide.  That is a lot of competition.  The number of listings has increased at a much faster pace than actual sales by sellers.  So the "sell through" rate is lower on auction listings or slower turnover on fixed price listings.

[pjcdn2005]

Another factor to keep in mind is that eBay now has 800,000,000 listings from sellers worldwide.  That is a lot of competition.  The number of listings has increased at a much faster pace than actual sales by sellers.  So the "sell through" rate is lower on auction listings or slower turnover on fixed price listings.

I agree that there are more items on the site and the amount of buyers may not have kept up. My sales have dropped overall but the largest decrease is with international sales so I do think that there are some challenges with international sales that were not there before.

[holdmygold2]

All of my sales have decreased dramatically, but my overseas sales have all but died and they used to very strong for me.  

In my case, the usual explanations which involve search manipulations by eBay don't explain much except that I do believe they must have (as pointed out by another poster) changed the way overseas shoppers see items on .com.

All of the data and numbers anyone can dredge up that show how well eBay is doing because they're selling iPhones  etc. by the "bleep" load won't change a thing for me and mean absolutely nothing for sellers such as I.

For example: if someone wants to buy an Antique Japanese Robe, then when they search for this item collectors will see each every piece listed.

Because my item is rare I manipulate the search by the words in my title.

Therefore, the usual explanations which make sense for those who sell common items which compete with each other do no apply to me or to other sellers who sell rare items.

I do believe that the GSP has had a very negative effect on sellers like me.

Reading the buyers board here and on other sites tells a story, and the buyers buying my type of item have no use for the GSP.

Over and over they state that they are done with eBay and I believe what they are telling us.

iPhone buyers, on the other hand, may love the GSP.  I don't know and I don't care.

[recped]

My overseas sales are holding up ok, they are down somewhat from the historical averages. What I have noticed more than anything is where these sales are coming from. After the financial crisis and especially what happened in Europe my sales to the "weak three" (Greece, Italy & Spain) which had been very strong for me almost completely dried up (they have started to come back a little bit).

While the GSP has no doubt turned off some overseas buyers who have left eBay altogether because of it the other major factor is pricing. Postage costs from the USA have gone up dramatically in the past 3 - 4 years and the value of the US Dollar has risen even more dramatically against many currencies, especially the Euro. These two factors have increased the prices of North American goods for most overseas buyers and the increase has been more than just a few percentage points, taken together these two factors alone have increased prices to Euro buyers by 30 - 40% over the past 4 years.

I suspect the increase in cross-border trade that eBay reports is made up mostly of goods coming into the USA and cross border trade between eBay users in countries other than the USA/Canada.

[holdmygold2]

That does make sense.

Those two forces together:  The GSP and the Strong American dollar combined could be at the root of it.

[recped]

Another thing that affects Euro buyers especially in the UK. VAT rates have increased and in the case of the UK free limits have been reduced somewhat. More important maybe, there is much stricter enforcement and collection of VAT on small shipments that in the past would slip through untaxed. Add to that most postal authorities have raised the service fee they charge when they have to collect taxes on behalf of their customs departments.

As as example a $40 package sent to the UK would in past years get delivered without taxes. That same shipment today will get hit for 20% VAT and a ridiculous (makes Canada Post seem cheap) service fee. That's a big disincentive for most buyers.

[pjcdn2005]

I'm sure that there are a few different reasons why international sales have dropped for some of us but I really do think that the way they display search results now has a lot to do with it.

At one time if I did a search on the UK site and there were only a few results from UK sellers, I would usually see a couple of my items in the same area as the UK sellers items. Or, if they weren't showing in that first part of search, I could often scroll down a bit and immediately after the domestic seller listings, they would have many of the international sellers listings.

But that seems to have changed. For example, if I search on .com for Matt Nat wallet the search result shows 53 wallets....4 of those are mine. If I search on  the UK site only 2 results come up. Both of those are mine and I had paid the 50 cent UK visibility fee for those 2 listings so those were treated as UK listings.

Immediately below the 'domestic results' are 30+ results for "more items related to Matt Nat wallets".  None of those items have all 3 search words so none of them are what I was searching more.

Below that are sponsored off site links and then finally I see 27 listings from international sellers that have all 3 search words in the title. But because you have to scroll down so far in order to see those listings, I suspect that few buyers on the UK site, especially mobile users, ever see those international listings.

The results aren't always set up exactly like that but often enough to make me think that is one of the causes for a drop in international sales.

[atvds1210]

That's a kick to have the international results with all 3 key words below non-3 word results.  Seems out of whack a bit.

[holdmygold2]

I think it used to be that our items showed up on these other sites by default.

Now the default for the UK is set to UK items only and one has to specify Worldwide to see our items.

In my case my items all show nicely when the search is done for worldwide.

That's likely one reason for the fall in overseas sales but it doesn't explain the dead stop I'm seeing.

Regular buyers know enough to search world-wide.

On the other hand, I understand why regular buyers leave when confronted with the GSP time and time again.

The GSP in conjunction with all these other factors:  The end result is a drastic drop in eBay income.

[rose-dee]

---

@holdmygold2 wrote:

On the other hand, I understand why regular buyers leave when confronted with the GSP time and time again.

The GSP in conjunction with all these other factors:  The end result is a drastic drop in eBay income.

 ______________________________________________________________________________________

I believe it's too simplistic to see the GSP as a big reason for decreasing international sales, even in conjunction with other factors.  Personally I think it's been a very minor player where European sales are concerned.  

I think regular buyers now know how to avoid the GSP if they want to, and how easy it is to do.  Although I haven't seen any statistics from eBay, I also doubt the majority of listings on eBay are GSP listings, so buyers are still free to pick and choose among sellers, and there is still a good selection from non-GSP sellers.  

In two categories in which I sell, out of the first 100 listings, there were 18 and 42 GSP listings, respectively. The second category was a much more specific search, so it turned up quite a number of GSP listings by one particular seller.  

My view is that there are many more important factors at work, both on eBay itself and in the economic situation in general, that taken together, clearly explain flagging international sales.  These factors have been mentioned by other posters above, and I think they far outweigh any effect of the GSP itself.  

Were it not for these other factors, I think the GSP might actually be a boon to European buyers of goods of any value.  Not only would the processing fee for collecting the VAT, HST, etc. be lower than that charged by their own country (the taxes themselves would be the same), but I expect the GSP has encouraged many more American sellers to try selling abroad, thus opening up the U.S. market more to overseas buyers.  

In a nutshell, if Europeans still had the money, and if eBay hadn't shot itself in the foot so many times recently, things might have been just fine even with the GSP.  Keep in mind that the GSP as Canadians experience it, and the GSP as Europeans experience it, are quite different.  We've become used to items of a value above the allowable $20 limit, and even up to around $100 (or more), getting through CBSA from the U.S. "scot-free" for a long time, which is not the case in Europe.  

Lastly, we have to remember that many European countries in particular are, if not in complete economic crisis, on the verge of crisis, and discretionary or indulgence spending (especially from sellers abroad) would understandably be one of the first things to be cut out of people's personal budgets.  

[holdmygold2]

Have you been reading the buyer's board?

The posts there tell a different story and if it's this bad from the US to Canada, then the problems encountered by overseas buyers will be ten times worse.

I think we should believe what they are saying.

I'm not saying that I believe the GSP is the only reason for the decline in sales, but neither should it be so easily dismissed.

Buyers can be very sensitive:  Get stung once and for many that's the end of it.

[rose-dee]

---

@holdmygold2 wrote:

The posts there tell a different story and if it's this bad from the US to Canada, then the problems encountered by overseas buyers will be ten times worse.

Actually, I do a fair amount of buying on eBay, and I've come to understand how to spot the GSP sellers and avoid them (or ask them to opt out if I'm interested in an item, which many do).  I've read the buyer complaints about the GSP on these boards -- the complaints are primarily from Canadian buyers who, as I said, have been "spoiled" by getting away for many years with a rather lax collection system on the part of CBSA, or who don't understand that buying a $30 item from a GSP seller may not be a good idea.  

Overseas buyers' problems with the GSP won't be "ten times worse", because they -- especially Europeans -- have been used to a pretty tight VAT and duty collection system for a very long time.  The main difference the GSP will make for them is that the collection fee by Pitney-Bowes may be lower that that of their own country.  Really nothing much at all will have changed for them, whether it's the GSP processing/collecting or their own customs authorities (with perhaps the exception of items under about $20 in value). 

Buyers can be very sensitive:  Get stung once and for many that's the end of it. 

I doubt that very much.  Canadian buyers who have read the boards have been told over and over again that they can simply bypass any listing that says "Customs and tracking provided...etc."   There are still plenty of U.S. sellers using normal shipping.  European buyers won't feel any "sting".  Other overseas buyers may or may not, depending on the normal practices of their customs collections.  

Canadian buyers who purchase anything worth more than about $150 from a GSP U.S. seller won't get stung at all.  I've proven this myself on a purchase from a U.S. seller -- there was no significant difference in the total I paid than had I purchased the goods from a non-GSP seller. 

No, I think the GSP is too easy and convenient a scapegoat to blame for sluggish international sales.  There are far more critical elements at play.  

---

[holdmygold2]

Well, I didn't come here to argue.  🙂