It may have more to do with how the buyers found their way to your store to make the purchase. eBay does rebate some of the final value fees back if buyers find their way to your store listings from off site.
First off, I am as unhappy about fees increases as everyone. I have watched my bottomline continue to erode while eBay, PayPal and CanadaPost all declare record profits.
Having said that, I believe I may have finally been given a clear reason for the stores increase as well as the semmingly high prices for a number of features. At the recent "On the Road" I had an opportunity to chat with several staffers about a number of issues. Like everyone else, I am directly affected by fee increases. The recent Stores increases have impacted my seriously (I have two).
Prior to the increase in February, eBay was becoming a massive sea of stores. Everyone and his brother had an eBay store which was not the original intent. Stores were originally meant to showcase higher volume sellers and offer them a way to create branding for themselves. Unfortunately, if everyone has a store there is little to differentiate the larger sellers from the marginal sellers.
The only way to weed stores is with price. That is exactly what happened. The increase forced a lot of marginal stores to close while the larger volume sellers have stayed. It is not meant to be a feature for every seller on eBay. I have to admit that I always did consider it a little strange that there were so many stores with only three or four items in them.
The same holds true with many listing features. Border is a good example. When viewed on an items search page, one or two items will stand out from the rest because of Border. If the feature was only a nickel it may well happen that everyone buys the feature. Now imagine the same search page where that happens. Auctions no longer would stand out. The Border "Feature" would now look more like a page design element. The feature no longer stands out from the rest. That is what features are supposed to do - stand out from the rest.
In eBay's eyes the only practical way to keep a "feature" as something that stands out from the rest is by pricing it so that only a few will consider it. When some of the increases are looked at from this approach there may be some validity.
In some ways the increases might be viewed as dues that must be paid to join an exclusive golf club. You can pay the same low price as everyone else and play on a local public course or, for those who can afford or justify it, you can join an exclusive club and enjoy the added benefits that will come along with it.
I may be unhappy about the increases, but I do confess that, with this explanation, I now also have a better understanding of why some features are pricing the way they are.
Having said that, I believe I may have finally been given a clear reason for the stores increase as well as the semmingly high prices for a number of features. At the recent "On the Road" I had an opportunity to chat with several staffers about a number of issues. Like everyone else, I am directly affected by fee increases. The recent Stores increases have impacted my seriously (I have two).
Prior to the increase in February, eBay was becoming a massive sea of stores. Everyone and his brother had an eBay store which was not the original intent. Stores were originally meant to showcase higher volume sellers and offer them a way to create branding for themselves. Unfortunately, if everyone has a store there is little to differentiate the larger sellers from the marginal sellers.
The only way to weed stores is with price. That is exactly what happened. The increase forced a lot of marginal stores to close while the larger volume sellers have stayed. It is not meant to be a feature for every seller on eBay. I have to admit that I always did consider it a little strange that there were so many stores with only three or four items in them.
The same holds true with many listing features. Border is a good example. When viewed on an items search page, one or two items will stand out from the rest because of Border. If the feature was only a nickel it may well happen that everyone buys the feature. Now imagine the same search page where that happens. Auctions no longer would stand out. The Border "Feature" would now look more like a page design element. The feature no longer stands out from the rest. That is what features are supposed to do - stand out from the rest.
In eBay's eyes the only practical way to keep a "feature" as something that stands out from the rest is by pricing it so that only a few will consider it. When some of the increases are looked at from this approach there may be some validity.
In some ways the increases might be viewed as dues that must be paid to join an exclusive golf club. You can pay the same low price as everyone else and play on a local public course or, for those who can afford or justify it, you can join an exclusive club and enjoy the added benefits that will come along with it.
I may be unhappy about the increases, but I do confess that, with this explanation, I now also have a better understanding of why some features are pricing the way they are.
