Still no promos, eh?

[momcqueen]

The longer we go without a 'free' listing promotion and the closer we come to the Spring Update, the more suspicious I am that ebay is cooking up a fresh pot of trouble for sellers. 

What do you think is the reasoning behind the lack of free listings?

I suspect something around Store levels and fees, and that's not an original thought on my part; others have already voiced it. 

Or is it that they expect us still to be struggling with Product Identifiers right now and don't want more listings to distract us?

Or are they trying to separate the wheat from the chaff of the promo extravaganza before Christmas?

Or was there a party that I wasn't invited to? I heard about a promo on ebay.com recently but those don't hold much interest to me since I am ebay.ca-loyal to CAD. I do, however, wonder if they're considering dumping the double ebay.ca+ebay.com allotment. Understanding, of course, there would be a hue and cry about that. 

[aubreyclay56]

Im getting quite leary myself lately i opened a store seems no make no difference in sales,still charge for listings in certain categories think if things dont improve i will cancel the store idea,not sure what the plan is from ebay but not doing much for me other than charging huge fees for nothing more than i was getting before HMMM things better im prove soon or will cancellthe store idea

[Anonymous]

Yeah, me too!!  I dread to see the Spring and Fall updates each time.  Why not for a change that they have something positive in Spring and Fall updates for sellers????? 

I honestly cannot understand why eBay wants to continue to find ways to "penalize" us in many ways?  eBay is JUST A VENUE for us to sell our items but NO eBay needs to take Full power over us!!  eBay is losing sights that we as sellers are the ONES that bring huge revenues to eBay every day but no they find ways to "penalize" us!!  Duh to eBay.

Why not let us list our items for free at any time.

No free listings, no sales

No sales, no final values for eBay, it is not that hard to figure it out!!

[2nd-time-around-jewelry]

I asked about promotions on the weekly sessions & the answer I got was vague.

Raphael replied: There should be promos coming, but I can't speak to what the frequency is or will be going forward.

My sales have dropped as I am not listing the large amounts that I usually do each month with promotions. A store only works for those who sell high volume.

[hlmacdon]

---

@aubreyclay56 wrote:

Im getting quite leary myself lately i opened a store seems no make no difference in sales,still charge for listings in certain categories think if things dont improve i will cancel the store idea,not sure what the plan is from ebay but not doing much for me other than charging huge fees for nothing more than i was getting before HMMM things better im prove soon or will cancellthe store idea

---

Stores are more useful from a purely financial basis. If you do the math on how much your monthly listings would cost versus what they would cost with reduced listing fees/free listing amounts via a store subscription, that yields an easy decision as to the value. The markdown manager is also a handy feature. Other than that it doesn't really help much unless you sell a variety of similar items and need a more organized presentation to buyers.

[mcrlmn]

Ditto...

I've stopped buying, and am selling off with that consideration in mind.

[recped]

There is a promo on right now, a few variations but mostly 1000 free listings AND discounted FVF's.

Seems like not too many invites were sent out....I didn't get it on any of my id's!

[recped]

---

@aubreyclay56 wrote:

Im getting quite leary myself lately i opened a store seems no make no difference in sales,still charge for listings in certain categories think if things dont improve i will cancel the store idea,not sure what the plan is from ebay but not doing much for me other than charging huge fees for nothing more than i was getting before HMMM things better im prove soon or will cancellthe store idea

---

Stores are strictly a money proposition (cost of listings, lower fvf's) plus the use of certain features only available to Store owners (Markdown Manager, Vacation settings, a "storefront").

The primary reason for a basic store is the reduced final value fees, for most categories if you do $2000/month you will save money with a basic store, in some categories it takes a lot less (stamps, coins, some consumer electronics) because the fvf's are 4 or 6% instead of 10%.

Unless you make use of those features to help boost your sales having a store doesn't and never has been a path to better exposure on it's own.

[ypdc_dennis]

---

@Anonymous wrote:
...I honestly cannot understand why eBay wants to continue to find ways to "penalize" us in many ways?  eBay is JUST A VENUE for us to sell our items but NO eBay needs to take Full power over us!!  eBay is losing sights that we as sellers are the ONES that bring huge revenues to eBay every day but no they find ways to "penalize" us!!  Duh to eBay.

 ...

---

I suggest that you avoid the alternative A-river venue where seller restrictions are even tighter than on eBay.  The A-river does have "free" listings but you pay for that ability with higher fees when the item sells. And that assumes that the A-river even allows you to list the item since many categories are restricted to those that pass the A-river gating test.

-.-

That said, more free listings would be nice.

-.-

Paid monthly, BIN only, stores compared to individual:

Individual: 50 "free"

Basic store: 200 "free", additional value of 13.3 cents each ($20/150).

Premium store: 500 "free", additional value of 13.3 cents each ($60/450)

Anchor store: 2500 "free", additional value of 8.2 cents each ($200/2450)

-.-

[mmmcross]

I hope it doesn't have to come to that for me. I never expected to be reliant on the promos but when the store listing fees became unaffordable for my type of selling a few years ago and the promos were coming more frequently, they were a saving grace allowing me to continue. Like many sellers I maintain a larger inventory of lower value items that sell slowly but do sell. It's depressing to think our type of selling may no longer be worth having on eBay. I have a niche and marketplace here that I love and value and will not be able to find elsewhere anytime soon. It's painful to be nickel and dimed over the listing fees that, depending on our luck and their priorities, are either free or unaffordable. I could survive with less frequent promotions if they offered higher numbers of free listings, but even that is not ideal for many reasons. I'd be happy just to have the status quo of the past couple of years.

[momcqueen]

Some people got a real doozy, according to this:

http://www.ecommercebytes.com

[momcqueen]

eBay Invites Some Sellers to List 600,000 Listings
By Ina Steiner
EcommerceBytes.com
March 14, 2016

Some sellers were in disbelief recently when they saw an eBay promotion show up in their selling account advertising they could list up to 600,000 listings and pay no insertion fees. One seller started a thread on the eBay boards wondering if eBay had been hacked due to the large number of free listings offered in the promotion.

The promotion explains: "Invited sellers who list in the auction-style, or auction-style with Buy It Now feature added, or fixed price formats, pursuant to the terms and conditions set forth herein, will pay no insertion fee per item listed for up to 600,000 listings per month during the Promotion Period as defined below. 3, 5, 7, 10, 30-day, and Good 'Til Cancelled listing durations are included as part of this Promotion."...