Sales coming to a halt this September !

[overstockplanet]

Anyone else currently experience a sudden sales drop off?? I was selling 5 to 7 items a day with only 50 to 60 listings and now I’m selling zero with 130 listings. Did eBay change their algorithm? What is going on? Why are sales coming to a halt?? Is anyone else experiencing the same problem?

[orangehound · Accepted solution]

Yes, eBay made changes to the search algorithm earlier this year, but a lack of sales could be any number of things ... just because something sold well a year ago at a particular price, does not mean that it will sell well today.

By the way, you might want to remove those colored icons from your titles .... they are against eBay's policies, and eBay may penalize search rankings of a listing that uses them.

Search and browse manipulation policy

"It's against our policies to do anything that manipulates the search or browse experience. This applies to all parts of a listing or product (see our JavaScript policy for more information). For example, the use of superscript, subscript or other special characters in the title, subtitle, item specifics, or other fields is not allowed. If a seller uses tactics that can inappropriately divert bidders and buyers to a listing or product, we'll take action."

[overstockplanet]

Thank you! I thought using emoji’s would help me get more attention not penalize me. That could be my problem

[gopetersen]

I'm almost certain that any significant changes you make will affect how you show up in search.

I had a product that was selling well, steady sales over a period of two years.

I added another product in the same category. They are not in competition with each other, they just happen to be in the same category.

Imagine if you had steady sales on forks and then you added another kitchen item like dish racks. The addition of a dish rack should not affect sales of forks... in fact, sometimes two related items in the same store can enhance sales of each one because it draws a crowd that's interested in kitchen items (at least it used to work that way, before Cassini).

But what happened was my sales of the first item dropped off the cliff and the second item started doing well. About a year later when I removed the second item, the first item started selling again.

This has happened with other items. When I noticed the pattern, I experimented. Now I'm actually afraid to add more listings because it means paying more listing fees but doesn't necessarily result in more sales.

[membersinceaug2001]

With a half dozen accounts, only 1 sale on Sept 1st and nothing since.

 I see some of the larger sellers I follow not doing so well either.

[plants_that_eat]

I also noticed a drop in sales over the past few days. I was wondering if it had to do with Labor Day weekend but I couldn’t find any info about it. 

[plmal]

I am on this board today because this is exactly my problem. For almost 6 months, my sales have dropped almost 90 %. I went from selling up to 60 auctions per month to selling 6. I have called eBay numerous times and I get the run around. I just had 105 auctions close two days ago with no bids. Also, the actual people looking is almost ZERO. I find it hard to believe that nobody in the entire world is interested in my items for sale. I have been a seller on eBay since March 1998, and this year is the first time this has happened. I really don't know what to do. HELP!

[plmal]

So, what are the exact changes they have made? They have denied that anything is wrong with my listings and apparently "reset" my account. Nothing is working. How do 105 auctions close with no bids and hardly any lookers or watchers or clickers?? After 20 years on eBay, I feel like it may be time to say goodbye.

[keziak]

---

@plmal wrote:

I am on this board today because this is exactly my problem. For almost 6 months, my sales have dropped almost 90 %. I went from selling up to 60 auctions per month to selling 6. I have called eBay numerous times and I get the run around. I just had 105 auctions close two days ago with no bids. Also, the actual people looking is almost ZERO. I find it hard to believe that nobody in the entire world is interested in my items for sale. I have been a seller on eBay since March 1998, and this year is the first time this has happened. I really don't know what to do. HELP!

---

You have pretty things. Maybe price is an issue? People on ebay seem to be strongly in the camp of wanting a deal. I just started putting Best Offer on auctions and have sold a number of things that way, even for the same or more than my asking price.  Maybe some people just want to win the auction, not wait around.

[catmond9sik]

I am having the same problem.

[catmond9sik]

Having the same problem

[orangehound]

---

@plmal wrote:

So, what are the exact changes they have made? They have denied that anything is wrong with my listings and apparently "reset" my account. Nothing is working. How do 105 auctions close with no bids and hardly any lookers or watchers or clickers?? After 20 years on eBay, I feel like it may be time to say goodbye.

---

@plmal

No one is quite sure "exactly" what eBay has done, only that things changed.  But there are two things that are known:

1. eBay is penalizing known drop shippers who are doing retail arbitrage (e.g., reselling things from Amazon, Home Depot, Wal-mart, etc.).   Perhaps they are using price models to do this, or they are using shipping tracking to identify the sourcing of products, or they are looking at the listing descriptions.  Whatever the method, when it happens to an account, then that seller's listings are all dumped way down in search (moved off the first page of search) and the only way to elevate listings again is to use promoted listings.
2. eBay is changing their marketing strategies.  One clear move that they have made is that they are now very selective about how they are marketing on Google shopping.  I used to see my items all the time on Google shopping, and this year it seems that it is rare that I see my stuff there.

[angelasellsitall]

This happened earlier in the summer and quite frankly, its annoying that items are not getting views, even. I don't know what the solution is but something needs to change. We are paying ebay for a service and if there are no views on our items, we are not getting what we are paying for. 

[abfabvintage]

@orangehound

" I used to see my items all the time on Google shopping, and this year it seems that it is rare that I see my stuff there."

Hi, Orange. Go look at my previous posts having to do with advice given re: GTIN and RSS Feeds about the Goog Shop. With a lot of back and forth and still no answers on what is actually happening. I think I am now considered just stupid and it is google's fault. 

[re_258]

Same here.  I don't see a point in keeping this up if I'm just giving stuff away & the Fast N Free does not seem to help my listing in the search results like it did prior to Sept 1.  Something is going on and ebay needs to let sellers know so we don't waste time changing listings trying to guess what their search needs for listings to be seen.  It makes no sense for buyers to pay more money for the same items yet the last week I keep seeing that when I check similar sold items.  I guess we all wait or play the guessing game.