Promoted listings: Fixed vs dynamic vs Promoted Listings Advanced

[the_knowledgeable_computer_nerd]

I've been mostly using fixed ad rate because it is otherwise impossible to ensure net proceeds on a sale. It would be nice to have the ability to base an item's buy it now price on whatever the dynamic ad rate is through a math/excel formula.

I'm finding I need to go in and update the fixed ad rate for my listings frequently to ensure good traffic. Roughly 88% of my sales come from promoted listings. I would explore the other ad rate options except that it's difficult to know how much it will ultimately cost when an item sells. Ultimately, with eBay fees, promotion, and shipping, roughly 40% of the sale price goes to just those things and then there is the cost of acquiring/preparing the items as well. The fixed promoted ad rates are often nearly 20% recommended. As more sellers enter a market to sell an item, the rate will increase and then the sale price must increase.

What is your experience with promoted listings? What strategy do you use?

[broto_64]

I have found that as the price of items increases to compensate for the promotion costs there comes a point where sales start to decline. Then, no matter how much I adjust, even getting rid of promotion and lowering the price doesn't do anything either.

Kind of like painting yourself into a corner, suddenly you're stuck and with no way out.

I believe this particular scenario is one of several end game outcomes I could've predicted when all this started. More than anything my prediction at the time was that all this great promoting would come to a screeching halt in some kind of an order, my only blind spot was I could not tell you how but it appears this is now revealing itself.

I also agree with you about mostly using fixed ad rate because it is otherwise impossible to ensure net proceeds on a sale.

Perhaps it is possible this was the last time ebay ate its own hand to survive, although the proliferation of online sellers certainly isn't helping, there's just more and more every passing year.

[the_knowledgeable_computer_nerd]

I've noticed similar behavior as well. The market seems cyclical where sales drop off when the promotion rate gets too high. When this happens, the rate begins to drop until the cycle repeats again.

I have a hard time thinking of a scenario where someone would use anything other than fixed rate promotion. How do you make money doing it any other way? Maybe you're just looking to get rid of something and don't care about the sale proceeds?