Turbo Lister Seller Hub

[qualitypaper]

Re: Discontinuance of Turbo Lister

Dear Mr. Wenig,

As a longtime seller on eBay, I am writing to express some concerns I have involving eBay’s intention as of June 2017 to discontinue its use and support of Turbo Lister and to completely migrate all eBay selling to its Seller Hub feature. I sell vintage collectibles on EBay, almost exclusively vintage/antique postcards (User Name: Qualitypaper).

My successful business model requires that I have available a large inventory of listings which I can periodically upload in an effort to connect with very specialized buyers interested in these limited-in-number, if not unique collectibles.

Over my four years of operation with EBay:

1. I have listed and relisted over 79,001 items.
2. Of approximately 12,676 unique postcards listed, I have made approximately 4,100 sales. 
3. I currently maintain an inventory on Turbo Lister of the balance of approximately 8,946 listings, which I periodically relist in varying formats and prices.
4. I have grossed over $31,874.01 in sales, $37,776.09 if one adds shipping and handling charges.

These listings took a long time for me to create in Turbo Lister and their continued availability is important to me and my business model.

EBay’s planned migration to Seller Hub with its elimination of Turbo Lister’s functionality as of June 2017 undermines my work and continued operations:

1. The 8,946 listing inventory which I have amassed would be lost inasmuch my current inventory in Turbo Lister would have to be re-inputted into the listing format of the Seller Hub, utilizing a premium option of some sort in Seller Hub.
2. EBay’s currently stated intention of providing sellers who use Turbo Lister an Excel spreadsheet with the data contained in their Turbo Lister listings does not obviate this problem; uploading from the spreadsheet into EBay will not be afforded.
3. This will undermine my ability to take advantage and maximize the listings permitted me by my Basic EBay Store, which I recently bought into at EBay’s urging.
4. This will also undermine any ability for me to move up to the next level of EBay store, a Premium EBay store, inasmuch as I need ready access to my 8,946 listing inventory to meet my permitted enhanced listing opportunities as would be provided with an EBay Premium Store.
5. It is my understanding that to be able to maintain an inventory in Seller’s Hub, I will be required to purchase some sort of premium option for a charge of $15.99 a month, whereas I currently and for the last four years have paid nothing for the maintenance of a listing inventory in Turbo Lister. These added costs further erode the cost effectiveness of my current business model with which I am well pleased. 
6. Also, Turbo Lister currently provides me the opportunity to extract from its format data which I can migrate to a Microsoft ACCESS database which I have created for my business. I am unsure whether Seller’s Hub will make available in a usable format data with which I can similarly utilize in my ACCESS database.

My relationship with eBay has been very positive to date. I generally have found it responsive and considerate of my needs. As a consequence, I recently convinced a friend who was very hesitant to try on-line selling to use eBay based upon representations as to my success. She is now committed, and if she has not already, she will exceed my sale numbers since the items of Mexican folk art that she sells are more costly than the aggregate of the collectible postcards I sell.

EBay should take my needs into account here if I am to be able to continue to do the work at my current level and with the satisfaction I currently enjoy. EBay should also recognize that my intended ability to expand my levels of operation should not and need not be impeded by aspects of EBay’s unveiling of its new Seller Hug feature. For me to be able to continue, and prospectively expand my listings, I need EBay’s new Seller Hub system to accomplish the following:

1. Maintain my current inventory listings from Turbo Lister which permits a continued use of these listings on EBay without the need to recreate the listing.
2. An economic model for any new costs associated with Seller Hub which affords me an ability to create new listings in inventory so as not to obviate the benefits provided by the EBay store I now use and the expanded one I intend to use in future.

Let me close by saying that I write to you because I think that the issues raised in this letter are more than just operational issues; they involve questions of policy and EBay reputation. I appreciate your taking the time.

Very truly yours,

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[papermoneyforme]

Well put and many will agree with you.

I really don't think ebay cares about anything but their bottom line. Mr Wenig will never see this letter.

This way, the freebee TL goes away ( and I asked in April and was told TL will stay), TL support goes away, and they can figure out more ways to gouuge their sellers.

Good luck if you stay and Good Luck if you don't.

[vintage-car-magazines]

@qualitypaper

Hey Everett,

You don't need to lose all of that work. I also sell thousands of OOAK items I switched from Turbo Lister to SixBit several years ago. It works well for me and has every item and sale I've ever had, the database is on my PC and I've never had a problem with it. It's less than $20 and you can import everything you have from your Turbo Lister files.

The change is a ways away but wanted to let you know that you have other options. You can read more about it in this review http://ebaylistingtoolreview.weebly.com/

Bruce

[dawnthewonderdog2]

When you have multiple user IDs, $20 per month for each is pretty darned expensive

[vintage-car-magazines]

@dawnthewonderdog2

You can have multiple user IDs on one account! You get 2 user IDs at the base level that's less than $20 and up to 5 user IDs at the next higher level. Their highest plan has unlimied IDs on a single account.

The beautiful part is that you have ONE database with all your items and you decide which user ID to post them to. That makes switching items between accounts easy.

[the_fancy_fox]

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@dawnthewonderdog2 wrote:

When you have multiple user IDs, $20 per month for each is pretty darned expensive

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It supports multiples.

[bigfootelectronics]

I'd just like to point out that a great number of TL's users are just 'hobby sellers', and $20/month wipes out small profits quickly. I realise that TL's demise will not put me out of business, only ruin my hobby, but eBay are likely to lose quite a bit of business from the smaller sellers, who will be forced to migrate to other platforms. Maybe that's the idea??

'Flexibility and choice' are supposed to be the latest industry watch words - I think they may have to be changed to 'conformity and profit!'

[dawnthewonderdog2]

Without the hobby sellers that find and list the unusual/HTF items, ebay becomes just another poor version of an e-commerce site with nothing to distinguish itself.

Does anyone know if Garage Sale software can handle multiple user IDs?

[d-k_treasures]

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@brucel64 wrote:

@dawnthewonderdog2

You can have multiple user IDs on one account! You get 2 user IDs at the base level that's less than $20 and up to 5 user IDs at the next higher level. Their highest plan has unlimied IDs on a single account.

The beautiful part is that you have ONE database with all your items and you decide which user ID to post them to. That makes switching items between accounts easy.

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And use TLOFFER in the coupon code and you get 30% off per monh until next March.

[dawnthewonderdog2]

A Monthly subscription is really too expensive for ongoing use, even without multiple user IDs

Anyone familiar with how many IDs Garage Sale can handle?

[slippinjimmy]

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@dawnthewonderdog2 wrote:

A Monthly subscription is really too expensive for ongoing use, even without multiple user IDs

Anyone familiar with how many IDs Garage Sale can handle?

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Not when it means you can laugh at all the posts by other sellers who encounter contact glitches and the inability to do the many types of things that can be done using SixBit in seconds while those who use TL, SYI, Seller Hub, or Selling Manager are pulling their hair out.

Paying $20/month in exchange for hours of saved time is a no-brainer.

Paying $20/month to have the COMPLETE details of every Item, every listing and every sale from the past 15 years right at your fingertips is a no-brainer.

"Penny wise, pound foolish" describes a lot of eBay sellers so does "can't see the forest for the trees" or "failing to see the big picture".

FYI - Garage Sale isn't free either.

[drumhig]

Want to take a minute to voice my frustration as well.  As you can see by the large number behind my ebay ID, I have done this for a while.  I have between 40,000-50,000 total transactions over 16 years, most of those selling (Yes my number is far below but as you know only about 60% of buyers leave fb, etc)  
I have sold full time on ebay for 11 years as the sole means of support for my family of 5.  I list approximately 100 items a week and having a constant inventory to draw from, savng in Turbo Lister saves me an immeasurable amount of time as far as having model numbers, measurements, etc stored in those listings.  Also, the abily to use that offline helps when Im stuck somewhere without internet available.  Being able to work on 40-50 listings over a couple of hours where I dont have internet really makes use of that time.  With the only 2 options of Selling Manager Pro and the Se, ller HUB not having an offline feature I understand thats a feature I'll just have to learn to live without, no matter how convienient is.
I have spoken with 2 reps in Advanced Apps (the dept that contains support staff for TL) and they tell me there are ways to upload all my thousand plus TL items and "back door" save them to Selling Manager Pro.  I hope that will be true.  I also dont look forward to having to learn a new system especially when I have used TL for 11 years and am super familiar with it.  
I understand TL hasnt been the most perfectly functioning program in the world but if you need generally simple functions and want to keep a large datbase/inventory then its served its purpose well.  I also understand that eBay is a large corporation and its about its own bottom line.  When someone makes a call to discontinue something like this I do hope its been well thought out.  
As one of the negatives of this company, we as sellers have to be frustrated at the monopoly like stance they have in that we are left saying "oh well, there's nothing I can do about it".  I started selling when selling fees where 3%-now its 9%.  I was here when they killed the option for leaving buyers negative or neutral feedback. So I have replied to a few buyers over the years that seemed pushy about the fact I havent left them theirs yet, that "no worries, it will be left" but that "positive or negative" its a moot point becuase Positive it the only rating I can leave a buyer.  So if a buyer is rude or tries to extort money out of you by threatening negative fb you have no real recourse and "reporting" a buyer is of no effect.  The TL death is another thing I just have to sit through and say "thank you sir, may I have another" when getting served the notice that something else I count on is being changed and I have no recourse.
At any rate, I guess I have to wait an see what the future holds as far as this is concerned.  I may not have shed any light on the topic but it feels good to vent. Feel free to reply with an "I feel ya, Bruh" if you wish.
AH

[ymeagainlord]

Even if you CAN "backdoor" your listings from Turbo to SMP (and btw SM & SMP are going away as well) and they DO upgrade the Seller Hub to be able to "store" all your unlisted listings, you'll have to ask yourself if you REALLY trust this platform to store them for you without any problems.

[littlegardeninthecountry]

I agree with the ability to work OFFLINE ! Not everyone has UNLIMITED DATA !! HELLO ! I see NO reason why Ebay cannot make version to be used offline. Ebay does any darn thing it wants too.

[tunicaslot]

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@ymeagainlord wrote:
Even if you CAN "backdoor" your listings from Turbo to SMP (and btw SM & SMP are going away as well) and they DO upgrade the Seller Hub to be able to "store" all your unlisted listings, you'll have to ask yourself if you REALLY trust this platform to store them for you without any problems.

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That's the problem with this whole thing I don't like. I've had the ghost listing on and off for 3 yrs now. I sometimes have problems relisting an item as Ebay tells me there are no pics - even tho they are front and center - so I have to go out - save the pics again - go back to relist - delete the current pics and insert the pics I jusr copied. Just a pain and wasted time.