Promos

[73rhc]

Is it just me or have there been fewer promos since the Spring update?

[recped]

If there is another one in the next 10 day that will make it two for May, there were two in April and two in March (just as there have been two every month since March 2012).

So the answer at the moment is no, there have not been fewer promos.

I expect there will be an Auction promo starting either later this week or early next week (but that's just a guess).

[mr.elmwood]

Fewer? No.

I "think" they are refocusing, trying different approaches.

It isn't working on me.

[rose-dee]

I don't think there have been fewer, but then again I wouldn't count on them continuing indefinitely, i.e. I don't rely on them.  EBay could decide at any time to discontinue them. 

At least they're not offering 100,000 free listings at a time.  That was ridiculous. All it did was swamp the place with listings that didn't sell anyway.  These massive listing freebies certainly weren't always as helpful as they seemed, especially for smaller sellers.

Actually, as useful as they can be when a seller needs extra listing room, over the last few months I think these promos have had the effect of encouraging tsunamis of listings and depressing prices in one category in which I sell.  It's the old law of supply and demand at work.  

It seems to me the eBay store is pretty well stocked as it is.  What eBay needs to do is entice more buyers to come through the door.  

[treasure.hunter.d]

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@rose-dee wrote:

What eBay needs to do is entice more buyers to come through the door.  

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Exactly.

However I guess we first need them to admit that there's a serious "lack of traffic"  problem currently and that they are 100% to blame! Pretty hard to get them to address a problem that they won't even admit exists!

SAD SAD SAD Ebay!

[73rhc]

"What eBay needs to do is entice more buyers to come through the door."

There can never be enough buyers. But that being said, is there a statistic that you are using to back up this statement?

[topcornertoys]

I too have noticed the lack of hits and traffic.

More and more questions sent to me from South American countries on my items where shipping costs are not even worth discussing as it prices the item out of range. (although I do have a regular customer in Mexico now who has made 3 large purchases and doesn't seem to mind the extra shipping costs and delivery time) everyone else though has no more interest once shipping is laid out.

it is spring time and I usually shut things down for the summer until end of September. Summer is a good time to be a buyer on ebay 🙂

also noticing that the achieved final sale prices are getting lower and lower at auction in some categories that I was doing extremely well in just a few months ago. Going to hold off on listing stock that I have left for Diecast.

Normally during NHL playoffs trading cards and items from teams in the playoffs sell well during the spring...not this year. Re listing items for peanuts isn't making anyone rich except canada post 🙂

in the 12 years that I have been selling on ebay one thing that is a constant...there are always ups and downs hopefully you have great stock when things are going well and not sitting on too much when things are down 🙂

[rose-dee]

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@73rhc wrote:
"What eBay needs to do is entice more buyers to come through the door."

There can never be enough buyers. But that being said, is there a statistic that you are using to back up this statement?

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Omniture statistics, for one -- relatively speaking, my traffic in all the tracked areas is down significantly from 2013/early 2014.  Those statistics are only available with store subscriptions, and as inaccurate as they may be from day to day (as some claim), over a longer time period the trend has been painfully clear. 

Reports by many sellers on a drop in hits, for another.  Flagging sales, for a third.  Lower sales-to-current-listings percentages in the categories in which I've been selling, for a fourth (i.e. too many listings and not enough buyers).  Lower hits and watchers on items that 2 years ago used to attract much more of both, for a fifth. Related to this, I'm experiencing far longer turnaround times on items that used to get sold reliably within 3 to 4 months which are now taking 8 to 10 months or longer to sell, for a sixth.  

I'm sure other sellers can add to this list.  My view is that EBay is bloated in many categories, without the necessary level of interested buyers to keep that inventory moving.  I suspect this may be at least part of the reason eBay has begun to restrict promos to new listings only, rather than relists.  What's the point in continually rolling over the same unsold stuff?   Buyers that are here will get bored and leave. 

[rose-dee]

I wanted to add that it's conceivable eBay's "Money Back Guarantee" programme was designed in response to a recognition that they needed to attract -- and keep -- more buyers. 

[73rhc]

I will respectfully disagree. Some categories do get saturated with too many sellers with the same items. Some categories are niche markets, where unless there is an influx of new collectors/buyers, then the activity will surely drop. But that doesn't mean that the buyers aren't out there.

I've always been a low volume, recreational seller. And my sales have stayed the same in recent years. Those who remember eBay's early years, will agree that those were the good years. And we won't see that again (for most of us smaller sellers)

I used to sell sports cards in the early 90s. I was selling stuff for 3 to 5 times the book value. Today, I could not give those same cards away. Supply has way surpassed the demand. I believe the same general scenario is and has been happening to the evolution of eBay.


My two cents!

[zee-chan]

I think I'm doing relatively well this year with the promos (I just reached bronze power seller last month). My sales are better than last year but I also tried selling other stuff (prices lower than my competitions but enough for me to profit reasonably) than what I used to sell. The thing is with books, you only sell them when the right buyer happens to be looking... so the listings tend to stay for quite a while (months to years) before they get sold anyway. I could be throwing in 25 new books with a promo (and "sell similar" for the rest of them) and then all the sales I get that month are the older listings lol. I hope they keep the promo coming as they certainly are working for me 

[Anonymous]

Yes it is getting fewer and far and between lately.  The last 2 years we see lots of promos, like 2-3 times each month, sometimes back to back.  Now it is lesser since the new fee structures.  I think eBay wants us to PAY the insertion fees now!  eBay just want more and more $$$$ than ever.

[pjcdn2005]

Well I can't blame ebay for wanting to make more money...I do too!

[recped]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Yes it is getting fewer and far and between lately.  The last 2 years we see lots of promos, like 2-3 times each month, sometimes back to back.  Now it is lesser since the new fee structures.  I think eBay wants us to PAY the insertion fees now!  eBay just want more and more $$$$ than ever.

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There have been two promos every month including April, March, February & January. There has been one this month but the month isn't over.

While the number of freebies in each promo has gone done the number of promos hasn't (unless there isn't another one in the next 10 days).

Shame on eBay for wanting to make more money, they should be more like all the sellers who are here strictly for the entertainment factor and have no interest in money!

[treasure.hunter.d]

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@recped wrote:

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Shame on eBay for wanting to make more money, they should be more like all the sellers who are here strictly for the entertainment factor and have no interest in money!

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When things are working the way they are supposed to ie Promos running and lots of traffic coming through the doors, the insertion fees are a drop in the bucket compared to the fees collected on sales.

The only reason Ebay would have to cut out promos to collect more insertion fees is if they know bloody well that the traffic is way down and the promos won't generate sales $$$, and they have no intention of shelling out the bucks required to fix the traffic issue.

That sort of slimy underhanded behavior wouldn't surprise me at all, but sadly, it is very short sighted on Ebay's part!

[pierrelebel]

"they know bloody well that the traffic is way down "

Many posters have made similar comments. I have no doubt this represents your experience, your situation and that of many other sellers.

However, that is not the reality for everyone and certainly not for the totality of eBay as we know it in North America.  A few weeks ago eBay reported its first quarter financial results.  As usual, Gross Merchandise Volume (sales by sellers on eBay) in North America were up a bit from last year (2%).

So while you and many others are experiencing a sales decline many others see steady sales or increases.

eBay makes marketing and policy decisions based on the "big picture" they see: the totality of all sales by all sellers.

The marketplace is constantly changing.  Categories or items that were doing great on eBay two, five, ten or fifteen years ago no longer command the same market penetration (I know I sell postage stamps and, let's face it, we have fewer collectors today than a generation ago). 

Successful sellers adapt.

Yes eBay could use more buyers, every business is in the same boat.  Offering more "free listing" promotions to sellers will not bring more buyers, will not increase the totality of sales for all sellers.

[rose-dee]

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@pierrelebel wrote:

 "A few weeks ago eBay reported its first quarter financial results.  As usual, Gross Merchandise Volume (sales by sellers on eBay) in North America were up a bit from last year (2%)."

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When many sellers say that traffic (and sales) overall are down, they are thinking in terms of comparisons to previous quarters or years.  That's really the only way GMV percentages make sense for an individual seller.  

Although 2% is certainly a small increase, it would be interesting to compare it to the GMV for the same period in 2014, 2013, and 2012.  This would give a much clearer picture of the trend that many are experiencing at the grass roots level. 

[pierrelebel]

That information is available to you and everyone else through eBay's financial results (available from eBay.com or many financial sites).

Since 2009 GMV have consistently shown increases year over year (same quarter). That is the reality: overall North American sellers sales in their totality increase year after year.  While many sellers experience decreases, others more than make up those losses.

[bonafide_bidder]

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@rose-dee wrote:

I don't think there have been fewer, but then again I wouldn't count on them continuing indefinitely, i.e. I don't rely on them.  EBay could decide at any time to discontinue them. 

At least they're not offering 100,000 free listings at a time.  That was ridiculous. All it did was swamp the place with listings that didn't sell anyway.  These massive listing freebies certainly weren't always as helpful as they seemed, especially for smaller sellers.

Actually, as useful as they can be when a seller needs extra listing room, over the last few months I think these promos have had the effect of encouraging tsunamis of listings and depressing prices in one category in which I sell.  It's the old law of supply and demand at work.  

It seems to me the eBay store is pretty well stocked as it is.  What eBay needs to do is entice more buyers to come through the door.  

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"What eBay needs to do is entice more buyers to come through the door."

Don't use the Global Shipping Program when Canadians or Mexicans buy. The GSP is a ripoff, it charges customs duties on items which customs duties are not charged on under NAFTA and GATT. I won't buy from any seller that uses the GSP.

[pierrelebel]

"I won't buy from any seller that uses the GSP."

I totally agree with you that most Canadians should avoid purchasing items from the USA going through GSP.  That program is not "buyer friendly" to Canadian buyers in most instances.

"it charges customs duties on items which customs duties are not charged on under NAFTA and GATT. "

Although it has nothing to do with bringing more buyers for Canadian sellers, we do see that comment posted from time to time.

Could you please provide a specific example where duty is charged to a Canadian buyer on an item that should be
"duty free" under NAFTA.  Thank you.