Ebay is slowly dying.

[acidtactical]

Ebay management isn't doing a good job at promoting ebay and advertising on other platforms.  We've been selling on Ebay for over 20 years.  Slowly it's dying and will soon be replaced by something else or taken over completely by Amazon.  Management has allowed it to die and are doing a crappy job of promotion.  

[heckofagame]

It won't die. It may change significantly, but it won't die.

[the-hook-and-the-loop]

It has become a very expensive place to sell if you want it to be your business. They love their promoted fees on top of their final value fees and everything else that the uninformed may click by accident. One thing eBay has done perfectly well is get people to interact about all of the complaints they have with the platform. If glitches and complaints have any value, then eBay is #1 for sure.

[bajasierra]

I started on eBay about four months ago, and it is going well by outward appearance.  I am closing in on 200 items with a 100 percent approval rating and have been given the "top-rated seller" designation.    That being said, I am not at all impressed with eBay - in fact, my opinion is worse now than when I started.  Other than this board, there doesn't seem to be much help for new sellers and I have yet to interact with an actual human at eBay, or even gotten a group message from an actual human at eBay.   I will also be looking for alternatives. 

[456mainstreetshopping]

The first of anything dosent die. Trends are forever changing.

[lawnmowerpartsstore2]

You are correct. Trends are changing in many ways these days

[uncseniorsportsfan]

Actually I think ebay has changed far more in the past two years than either the economy or online marketplace trends in general.   Of course trends change and what sold last year, last month, or last week may not sell in the future.  But that has always been the case in my 22 years on ebay, and I sell a wide variety of items.    My personal decline in sales is only two years in duration, and corresponds with ebay site changes. 

[bajasierra]

I'm new here.  May I ask what site changes were most damaging?

[uncseniorsportsfan]

Promoted listings for one - category changes for another - plus whatever changes ebay has made to the search algorithms which users are kept in the dark about. 

[coolections]

Only those who are competing against tons of other sellers have a problem with Ebay changes. The rest of the slowdown is just buyer's habits. When a buyer searches an item with 25 pages, they only look through the first two or so. You have to pay to promote those listings if you want to be closer to the top on "best match". The good news is not many users search best match. They typically switch to lowest price first. If you are lower in price you're seen every time. No other changes Ebay has done actually effects sellers. Sellers who ask more than their competition almost always lose on Ebay. Their prices are normally just higher than other sellers and they blame Ebay for that.

[acidtactical]

It's not even about how people find things ON ebay searches.  It's about how Ebay is reacting to things that are changing around them.   When's the last time you saw or heard an Ebay advertisement through social media, television media, or radio media?  

When Apple changed the way they advertise through their apple products, Ebay got left in the dust and did nothing to react to the changes.  Their are less eyes seeing products on ebay and that's really about how ebay has failed at attracting customers to the site.  

We once had equal sales on Ebay vs other platforms where we offer our products.  Now we are at about 1/3 of what we sell on other platforms.  

Product promotion is garbage because everyone now has to promote their products and pay more in fees to do so.  

Ebay is dying and has been for the past 2 years or so due to incompetent management who have very little vision in a changing ecommerce environment.  

[stainlessenginecovers]

What would you suggest they do differently? 

Ebay is a name that has been out there for 30 years. Everyone knows what it is. Like 7/11- they really don't need to advertise because like Cheers, everyone knows their name. 

But..they do advertise; they choose a particular angle. Right now, they advertise Auto Parts on Automotive Shows, for 1. 

[12345jamesstamps]

Those on eBay who sell the same stuff like Amazon are slowly dying because the prices are cheaper on Amazon...cheaper shipping...and so on. 

[aeparts1]

eBay has been constantly promoting eBay Motors for well over a year. Constant TV & radio advertising. I see or hear eBay Motors advertisements almost daily, sometimes I see many TV commercials in one day.

eBay feels Motors is where there will be growth, & that is where they are spending their $$$$. I guess they don't feel there will be much growth in wristwatches.

[ms.rodriguez*]

There are so many other sites now to buy stuff. Food and fuel prices are high. Today's younger folks do not collect stuff.  Postal rates are sky high.  I also feel that having ads never end (unless the seller ends them) allows buyers to NOT buy quickly because they know that the item will relist.  I shut ALL of my ads on day 28 or 29 and I relist them when I want.  You guys just have to hang in there.   Others have tried other sites but they are having the same issues over there too.