What is eBay's "sweet price" price?

[mountainmommie]

What do you attribute not selling an item to when others items have sold for more and you think you've accounted for the basics (IE: returns/feedback/shipping)? 

I can't seem to hone in on a sweet spot pricing strategy but eBay says they have one.  Is there any objectivity left in pricing? I'm becoming bipolar trying to run tests -- bottoming out and jacking up prices constantly. I need some logical input.

Thanks,

Jackie

[dbfolks166mt]

     You have sold 62  items in the last 90 days and currently only have 26 listed. I would say you are honing in pretty well. 

[mountainmommie]

Okay. Great input. I have an insanely high standard and I absolutely forget the details.

[chapeau-noir]

Just don't mess yourself up with the free shipping - that factors into the sweet spot for your own pocketbook.

[stainlessenginecovers]

"Sweet Price" is simple. 

Be the lowest or don't bother. Research your item by simply inputting the 'keywords' and see what OTHERS are selling for.

The SWEET Spot is...................be the lowest. 

Period. 

[gator08041971]

My thing is, the wider the net, the more fish you catch.

I tend to sell all kinds of stuff.  I do run a small computer repair shop, so there are a lot of related items to that, but I also sell all kinds of other items from time to time.  Some stuff goes fast and instantly, other items can take months to get a nibble.  That's just the way it goes.

Take Hard Drives for example.

I have like 5 or 6 listings up of different brands and stuff.  I have been selling some here and there, couple or so a week, nothing crazy.  I don't have the cheapest prices, but that's okay.  I do make sure they are quality drives with no flaws or issues.  And I do a lot to ship them in a manner where they should survive most situations without arriving dead to the customer.  Or at least so far, none have.  lol

But the point is, sometimes its nice to have a niche of items or related items, but those sales could come and go hard sometimes.

But if you have a wide array of things you are selling, your far more likely to sell more often, or at least more steadily.

I mean, one month I sold a bunch of chainsaw parts.  Another month it was some old welder parts.  Not too long ago I sold a collection of nearly 200 books for one series.  And that listing was bought out in less than 30 days!

Right now its not as active, but I'm completely unfazed.  I have a lot more things to list and different items that will keep my net cast pretty wide.

Good luck.

[chapeau-noir]

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@stainlessenginecovers wrote:

"Sweet Price" is simple. 

Be the lowest or don't bother. Research your item by simply inputting the 'keywords' and see what OTHERS are selling for.

The SWEET Spot is...................be the lowest. 

Period. 

---

I actually don't agree with necessarily being the lowest - that's why pricing is tough. I'm by far not the lowest in my market for what I sell, yet my stuff sells despite being really small in a completely over-saturated market. There are so many other factors involved, and they mount up to 'seller trust' and value added.

[mountainmommie]

Thus the question. How do you account for the $10 difference of the exact PBK curtain holdbacks (let alone the "similar" ones below it) that just sold for $10 higher?

Price cannot be an absolute factor. There are too many examples of it not being -- I'm asking for what is then? Random chaos?

[murph1727]

There is no one price strategy that "fits all". It depends on the item being sold or perhaps the item category will determine the best price. I would guess that most often, the difference in prices is the original cost to the seller. Each seller sources their items at different costs and that would lead to an array of different prices. I also see some sellers trying to get the maximum sale price and other sellers price low just to get rid of something and therefore, not concerned about how big a profit they make.

[stainlessenginecovers]

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@chapeau-noir wrote:

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@stainlessenginecovers wrote:

"Sweet Price" is simple. 

Be the lowest or don't bother. Research your item by simply inputting the 'keywords' and see what OTHERS are selling for.

The SWEET Spot is...................be the lowest. 

Period. 

---

I actually don't agree with necessarily being the lowest - that's why pricing is tough. I'm by far not the lowest in my market for what I sell, yet my stuff sells despite being really small in a completely over-saturated market. There are so many other factors involved, and they mount up to 'seller trust' and value added.

---

that's actually 100% false. You just have buyers that don't know any better. 

FEW will actually 'turn down' a cheaper price, if the people that walk this nation actually had half a brain. 

You simply get lucky with some- others, not so much (not hard to filter for 'lowest price'....

[davmor-60]

Huh what do you mean

[yuzuha]

A lot of times, location plays a major role. I get lots of sales to neighboring states because my prices (including calculated shipping) wind up being cheaper for those buyers than sellers who are further away.

[mountainmommie]

I don't get 'people' so when I see illogical decisions I try to understand motivation. When I see someone overpay, I wonder why. I ask questions.

Fact is, I'll never know why. Not even the sellers who replied can find one objective truth about pricing on eBay. eBay's recommended price is absolute random chaos. It's filled with invalid data -- like random buyers overpaying and sellers who take losses. Smoke.

I think sellers with questions are good for eBay buyers ... but not really appreciated ... by sellers. I'm trying to make the system more accountable, purposeful.  I want buyers who need/want items to get them in an always improving situation. But instead it seems like it's just a race to the bottom.

The best replies for me were the ones that reminded me not to lose my **bleep**, keep it diverse, and I don't have to be perfect. Thanks.

[gator08041971]

Not sure what part you are referring to on their post.

I turn down lower prices all the time.  I look at multiple factors.  I look at feedback, I look at history of the item, other items that seller may have listed, etc.

Even the positive feedback can say things to you sometimes.  Hate to say it, but many positives probably fall in the line of a neutral if you think about it.

How many items have some of you bought that were...  Ok?  The packaging was... Ok?  The communication was probably all done via the ebay system and overall the sale was..  Well, a sale?  I mean most of the stuff I buy on Amazon is meh for how the interaction is.  But sometimes you get sellers that go an extra mile in some ways on here.

I look for that in the feedback positives, just as I look at negatives too.  All of it paints a picture.  And that picture is what seals the deal for me in many cases.

But that's me.  I don't blindly pick the lowest priced version of the item I want and say "Done".

😄

[1786davycrockett]

@mountainmommie 

What works best for me is good photos, and a careful choice of keywords in my 80-character title line.

Too many eBay sellers don't seem to know how to take a proper photograph -- too much confusing background and/or foreground clutter; or too many shadows or light reflections; or too far away; or shooting a photo at an angle; or maybe no photo at all.

And choosing the right keywords is critical:  Too many eBay sellers clutter up those 80 characters with unimportant words like "vintage" or "old" or "antique" and so on -- and some throw in their own personal identification numbers, which obviously have no value to any buyer -- and some sellers simply don't know how to spell or use proper grammar, necessitating that the buyer be able to read minds, as well.

Check other listings of similar items, and compare the ones that have sold, with the ones that have not.  And many times you'll discover that the factor wasn't the price, after all.