FIXED PRICE Good Until Cancelled - HOW I AM DEALING WITH IT

[cathydale]

Well first of all there is obviously nothing we can do about this change.

Ebay likes NEW LISTINGS.  They don't like it when you relist things that did not sell right out of the gate, or after 7 days.  So now those Good Until Cancelled listings will be GOOD AND HIDDEN if they are automatically relisted at 30 days.  You will only have visibility the first few days. 

SO here is what I am doing.  I listing just 3 or 4 things a day EVERYDAY.  That way I will always have something new being listed.  

ALSO, I am using the SORT feature to keep track of what is about to end.  Before the 30 days is up on any fixed price listing, I will then send it to an AUCTION LISTING for 10 days  The Auction listings WILL NOT automatically renew.  At least that is my understanding.

When items are not bid on and the auction item end, I will then be able to DECIDE MYSELF what items to relist out of the unsold items, and WHEN to do this. 

You need to have some control over what to relist so that you are not relisting a heavy sweater in July !  Instead you can wait until closer to the next season to relist it again.

Just makes more work, but what can you do ??

[woothy]

I sell new items & have a basic store so there are no auctions available unless I get some freebies from eBay. I understand their reasoning ( although I don't agree with it). The problem is not just the GTC but the lack of buyers lately which seems to be caused by multiple system problems. A few weeks ago I started listing my duplicates on another site. My sales here the past week have been down 65%. I've gotten almost as many sales on the other site with 50% less listings. And the other site probable has 40% less traffic (or it used to before eBay messed up the system). I don't mind listing my best sellers on GTC & letting them relist. Other items I will end at 29 days and either move them to the other site or pull them for a month or two. Will definitely have to list under my store allocation to prevent extra auto-relist fees. The one positive thing is I am no longer putting all my eggs in one basket. I hope we all survive with whatever plans we make. Good luck to all!!!!!!

[bennyscorner1]

Try selling on Poshmark or Mecari.. both are free to list and take less in fees

[downintheholler61]

I am definitely upset by this new policy~ I have never sold anything with a 30 day or GTC duration and cannot keep track pf every item's last days. If this doesn't change, I will drop Ebay and move to other sites. Clearly, the people who run the show have zero clue what the needs of smaller sellers (without multiple repeat items) are. Clearly an indication of not caring about anything but the bottom dollar. I would like to call Ebay to share my opinion but not sure which number to use. Who can enlighten me?

[pep]

That may be the answer. They did this to get rid of small sellers. ! Does anyone know if these new rules apply to power sellers and large scale sellers??

[gigabob32co]

The no option GTC is terrible, I prefer the 3, 5 or 7 day BIN's, I hope Ebay pays attention to their valued sellers, and return to their previous BIN options

[cs497kcpope]

For what I sell it sure was not Bonanza! I tried it there for a couple of months and I sold nothing! 

[whiskeyron]

I have always listed for 30 days. When the listing expires, I spend a couple minutes, review it, make changes, often dropping the price. I have found if I let a listing sit in the unsold listings for a couple months, then relist. Often, it sells quickly, and is suddenly viewed many times. I pay for the store fee, and I don't appreciate, losing control to ebay. That's not there decision to make. I did call them, and he said they have been getting a lot of calls regarding this. Don't want to go to Etsy, not all my products would be eligible. I am not a fan of Amazon, as that company has taken over our corner of Kentucky with massive warehouses. Tired of their trucks getting lost on old country roads. Looks like its ebay or nothing for us. We are stuck.

[hydro33tj]

Let me join the crowd who hate this change required by eBay. I don't have many listings but it's still a pain to have to watch when an item is near its end to avoid

the relisting AND FEE ! Couple that with the Webinterpret site that I mistakingly joined a month ago. They arbitrarily choose an item to list on 6 foreign sites, often choosing items of only local US interest.  Ten items become 60 and automatic relisting them means more fees. Plus, it has been impossible so far to opt out of the program !

[pcb1bb]

Your observation is correct, however you will need to keep track of the limitations on your "free" listings.  The whole point of them changing to GTC and lowering the quantity of free listings is to increase billings on the 30 day rollover so that you can be billed on the rollover that is in excess of your "free" allotment.

If you don't pay attention get ready for a Real Big Invoice that will continue to snowball.  The key is to stay within your limits considering the rollover.  That means list less if need be.  There are competitive sites you can defer to.

When the CEO told shareholders in November he was going to "unlock the hidden value", this was the key element in the long range plan.  The fallout of sellers jumping ship and decline in revenue will eventually lead to a leveraged buyout by Alibaba, probably within 18-24 months.

Good Luck!

[jimsvinylvault]

I sell 45rpm records....about 2-3 each day...mostly in the $4 range.  I used the 10-day option for something that I really felt may not get a Buyer, therefore I listed it cheap....no Buyer....then unless I had 10 or more view....and the was listed as low as I wanted to go....I would place it within my 'donation' box.  Ten or more views, I MIGHT decide to try it one time at 10 days.

The elimination of the 10-day set-sale option will be an inconvenience for me...NO, not a 'game changer', but I list using their new very inflexible option....record the item (using the artist, "A" side title; and the expected end of my preferred date) on my on-line calendar.  When AOL sends me a reminder (two days prior to the 30 day date), I will once again inspect the item for viewers/watchers....insufficient quantities, I will remove the item on its 30-day endurance.....10 or more views, andwill change my calendar date to the next 30-day window. 

I won't waste my time asking eBay Seller Support what in the heck was going through their mind when they made this change....I will just 'kiss it off' as another STUPID change (such as their "http" SOFTWARE concern, their new formatted shipping label; etc.) to a greedy naïve bunch of system analysts and/or programmers.  AT IBM we reviewed all suggested changes for benefits versus any potential customer impacts, then we ran a "Beta Test" before we forced it on our customers....THE ONES THAT PAID OUR BILLS!

[wattagal2]

Thanks that is a good idea!  I am appalled at this one.  Usually we may not like something, but can live with it.  This is taking away our rights as a small business,  Ebay is the one controlling it - not us.

[wattagal2]

I am totally with you.  You have encouraged me to keep on working through this.  We can do it!!!

[cookfamilycompany]

EBAY IS JUST GETTING WORSE AND TAKING THE CONTROL OUT OF THE BUYERS HANDS ALL TOGETHER. 

FIRST IT WAS LETS MAKE THE RETURNS AUTOMATIC SO THAT THERE IS NO CONTROL ON APPROVING IT OR TRYING TO RESOLVE IT SO THAT MAYBE THE CUSTOMER WOULD KEEP THE ITEM AT A LOWER PRICE WHICH I HAVE HAD HAPPEN BEFORE ON MORE THAN ONE TIME UNTILL THEY DID THAT.

NOW HERE WE GO THEY WANNA MAKE IT ALL GOOD TILL CANCELLED SO THEY CAN KEEP IT RELISTING WITHER OR NOT U WANT IT TO OR NOT SO THAT WE CAN HAVE SEASONAL ITEMS ON AT THE WRONG TIME CAUSE DIDN'T CATCH IT. THAT HARD FOR SOMEONE WHO HAS 1,000 OF ITEMS LISTED THAT IS WHY I HAVE PULLED ALMOST ALL MY PRODUCTS OFF THE SITE FOR NOW FOR ALMOST THE LAST YEAR I HAVE BEEN DISPLEASED WITH E BAY AND THERE  SHENANIGANS ON NOT LETTING THE SELLER HAVE MORE CONTROL AS WE HAVE ALWAYS HAD MAYBE WE CAN KEEP A SALE AND OFFER A LOWER PRICE OR TALK TO THE CUSTOMER WITHOUT YOU PUTTING IT ALL ON AUTOMATIC WHO TO MUCH AUTOMATIC MAKE THE PERSONAL TOUCH BE TAKEN AWAY

[cookfamilycompany]

LOL I HEAR YA FOR SURE I HAVE BEEN ON EBAY SINCE 2001 AND IT HAS JUST STARTED TO GO DOWN HILL THE LAST COUPLE YEARS I REALLY THINK THAT KIDS ARE TRYING TO RUN THE PLACE INSTEAD OF THE PEOPLE WHO HAD SINCE WHEN IT ALL STARTED .

[cookfamilycompany]

BONANZA IS WHAT I HAVE HEARD I AM GOING TO CHECK IT OUT MYSELF HAVE BEEN HERE FOR 18 YEARS AT LEAST AND THEY ARE JUST MAKING IT HARDER FOR THE SELLER TO MAKE ANY MONEY AND LIST THERE ITEMS