Question thread: Change to Promoted Listings Standard ad fee calculation

[seller_update@ebay]

We’ll be aligning the Promoted Listings Standard ad fee calculation more closely with how we calculate final value fees. You can learn more about that here, feel free to ask any questions below! 

Please note that eBay experts will be present and engaging on the boards between 8 am and 4:00 pm PST on 2.9.

[stainlessenginecovers]

So if you do 5% Promotions on that $100, and now you are charged 5% on $165, that is costing you $3. 

Why wouldn't you just add $3 'handling' to that $65 (or $5 to cover the fees etc.)? 

It's not like your 'item' can be 'compared' to another

If you are selling a New Vacuum Cleaner Model 1234 for $200 with Free Shipping and so are 10 other people, then you are charged a fee on that same $200 anyway. 

I think you just have to work with the system. 

[snilloc_products]

P.S. I sell moderately priced items, but also high-value items too...so you are losing that revenue.  Consider me a "low-value" guy until you come to your senses. 

[ryanrobyn]

Just removed ALL promoted listings in my 4 Ebay sites. Ebay raises the % fees and also weedles more from us sellers via the new promoted fees.

[kabu00]

Agree, we are paying to promote our item, not the tax and shipping.  Are you going to be advertising shipping and taxes to earn that ad fee you are now charging us?

[kabu00]

nope

[kabu00]

Check your math.  As far as adding $5 additional handling, if customer would pay $5 more for the item I would be charging $5 more, plus eBay would be charging you on that $5 too.  You can't squeeze it out of the customer, you would be losing your sales.

[connectibles]

A much fairer way to handle this would be to set the FVF to what you really need to charge to make your profit goals. We all know that you have to show revenue and profit growth every quarter to satisfy your stockholders and Wall Street. Since you are our storefront, you should promote all sellers the same and not cause us to compete against each other by promoting our listings to steal a sale from another one of your sellers. The price we sell an item for and the income eBay makes from that sale should be easily calculated from the selling price. It should have nothing to do with the taxes in the state where it is being shipped, the shipping cost,  promotion, and a silly $.30 for each item.  All of these strange fees based on all of these variables even make it difficult to determine if you want to accept a best offer. We recently shipped an antique to GA from CT and it was very heavy. Shipping and professional packing at UPS cost $450 - why should you be making money off of that charge - it does not make sense on any level. Please set the FVF fee to where it needs to be for eBay's revenue goals so we can see when we list an item what we are paying for your service. As far as I am concerned you have zero transparency with your fee schemes.

[gabesden]

Does eBay Share Holders even hear themselves at this point? (please feel free to respond its a serious question)... what is with a CEO and board etc. thinking that's so determined to destroy what could have been a good thing...as it once actually was? Why the self destruction? 

1. Let's go ahead and "double Tax" by charging a % on sales taxes?  Sorry but pretty sure this falls under a double taxation law. Im not saying it does, but it sure smells of it. 

2. Let's charge a fee (%) the actual "costs" of handling (a service we don't even provide.)... seriously?   Pretty sure you can't charge for a service you are "not" providing.  And yes I do question the legalities.  How exactly is this "justified" legally by the eBay Legal team? 

3.  Pretty sure there is some legal questions needing asked when it comes to "charging" a % for the shipping costs that a seller is paying when THEY are doing the shipping, again your not providing the service. Really sure that your legal team is awake at the wheel? Or did you just assume everyone was going to roll over, and maybe most will. Seems to be a bad habit these days in many regards. 

3.    I did a random sample study just a couple yrs ago, pre covid, and frankly the outcome surprised me. And yes Im very qualified to run studies using qualitative and quantitative methods.  So I STRONGLY urge sellers to NOT use "Free Shipping".... your sales will go down....don't believe me, test it yourself. "Unless you're selling heavy items". Then I strongly urge to include shipping, just make sure you cover your costs, because apparently eBay has decided you have to pay them, for services they are NOT providing. Let's all wrap our minds around this for just a moment. Please. 

Now, let's not forget....many ppl use "eBay" Logo boxes, etc. which is by the way a service called "Advertising" Ebay should be giving those away as Sellers ARE PROVIDING you a service. 

I thought when 2021 came around you all had really hit the bottom of the barrel, I stand corrected, you have indeed proven me wrong. Its being done in 2022.  

You truly have destroyed the sellers that built you, you know what goes around comes around. 

 

[jackassretro]

So much for ebay answering questions and addressing concerns.  38 posts..;....crickets

[iprefervintage]

Is there a way that we can permanently opt out of promoted listings?  They are really not necessary and I'm tired of Ebay blowing up my message box pushing promoted listings.  PL ads are like the car warranty offers of Ebay. 

[kristinalambert]

Wow, charging me a fee on taxes!! On my shipping!!! This is ridiculous, every year I sell more and more in my retail stores, I used to be only online and now I am 80% my retail and only 20% eBay. If you would do the actual math you would see every time you up fees you lose so much more in what we all pull from eBay. So shortsighted 

[jasmen@ebay]

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@coffeebean832 wrote:

For domestic sales- can eBay charge sellers the ad fee based on the least expensive available shipping method?

For international sales- can eBay charge sellers the ad fee based on the least expensive available domestic shipping method like they do for FVF?

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Hey @coffeebean832 for now the .com and Canadian sites,  the lowest domestic shipping option offered by the Seller is used to determine the rate we charge. This change will use the same model currently used to calculate final value fees and apply it to the Promoted Listings Standard fee.

[ezbayourway]

We're already being nickel and dimed to extinction, and now this.  I see this starts June 1.  I have put on my calander to stop all promoted listings starting June 1.  No reason for me to sell more and make less money.  I'm not in it for the fun.  I sell a lot on ebay and have been selling for years, but with all of the hoops to jump through just to get your product out there, it seems like we are not allowed to make a profit.  First our shipping costs increase every year, and now we are expected to pay an additional fee to ebay on those increased shipping costs which we have no control over.  I will certainly be exploring other platforms for selling and expect many others will be as well.  Ebay has been the most convenient and best avenue for me in the past but is becoming increasingly expensive and raises fees covertly, like "maybe we can do this and nobody will notice."  My selling costs last month was 38.4% of my total sales.  That includes fees, taxes, shipping costs.  I really can't keep selling with numbers like that expecially if now my promoted fee will include the shipping and taxes.  If my shipping and taxes is $3000 and my promoted listings is at 10%, I will now be paying an additional $300 per month.  I hope others will join me in saying NO THANK YOU! ! !

[d-k_treasures]

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seller_update@ebay wrote:

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@coffeebean832 wrote:

Will there be an option added to make PL exclusive to domestic sales? If not- can you make that an option effective soon- and by soon I mean build out that function by May 2022?

If the answer is no, then will there be any reprieve on the fee for international sales? If not- can you create one and code in that reprieve effective the same date the fee increase goes into effect?

With international shipping and VAT/GST- that will mean adding a higher handling fee specific to international sales because it's too cost-prohibitive to absorb a PL fee on the entire international payment. My international buyers pay more than double domestic buyers because of shipping costs.

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Hi @coffeebean832 - Not at this time. Your promoted listings may appear anywhere your listing is eligible for sale. At this time, in order for your promoted listings to exclusively show domestically you would need to update your listing settings to only ship domestically.

Please note that any changes to where your listing is eligible for sale would impact both the promoted and non-promoted version of your listing.

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Can you explain this? Different VERSIONS of the same listing? Why would there be different versions of the same listing? It's just a flag and rate in the listing data, and last click date and user stored elsewhere for the item #. Or, in actuality, all it needs to be anyway.

If someone clicks on a PL as a guest user, and then the next day purchase it as another guest user, does the seller get charged the promotional rate for that?

[d-k_treasures]

"for now"?