Who KNOWS ??? yep its concerning slow sales

[gonetoycrazy]

Something i asked a anchor store CSR today ebay says there nothing wrong no site issues etc but we sellers all know there is something wrong the drastic sales decline experianced by many sellers is just not normal. its has never been this bad for me in 13+ years

how about this thought  and lol when its so slow you have time to think about things .

anyways ebay rents server space from amazon so whats to stop amazon from  doing something thats basically undectable to the servers used by ebay to cause slow sales on ebay . really there is a lot of smart computer techs out there . who says they have not developed something  to interfer with those ebay servers, a small intentional glitch bug they can get away with.   just to cause such a drastic drop in sales.  there has been many business's over the years that have done shady things. so who really knows who you can trust

personally if i owned ebay i would never rent server space from another online competitor as who really knows what that company would/could do to my company

lets face it there is something very wrong with ebay.  the drastic decline of sales for many sellers like me who used to make a decent enough living on the site proves that.  who knows what the real truth is but i do the drastic sales decline is not the fault of  most ebay sellers . this month may be my last.  this week is the worst week i have had in 13+ years. i have  several thousand items listed and like $950,000.00 + total price of all items listed  and only sold 7 items for little over $200 in sales since last sat.  i am one of the largest sellers on ebay with  the biggest and best selection of vintage items in my categorys but still a 1 man show .  but each month it just gets worse and i simply cannot continue to sell on ebay with sales as bad as they have become for me

something is so very wrong somewhere somehow.  i surely wish it would get solved or otherwise i will be forced to quit really soon like end the of the month.  really it is a shame that sellers have to quit over the lack of sales. but you cannot keep robbing peter to pay paul

ebay has forgot thier way and it may be jmho yes sellers are like at least 10% more important then buyers, you know why, if there is no sellers on ebay then there is no buyers either. to get buyers to the site you got to have sellers on the site too.

they can squeeze money from sellers, because even without buyers buying from the sellers they can like still string them along for a few months milking them dry before the seller quits. so really the seller is more important to them and thier wallet then buyers are.  really jmho its so bogus that anyone actually believes buyers are more important then the sellers who still have to pay ebay even if the seller does not make any sales. LOL  how i look at it, is people that give me money are more important to me then people who dont give me money

[luckythewinner]

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@gonetoycrazy wrote:

we sellers all know there is something wrong the drastic sales decline experianced by many sellers is just not normal. 

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Sellers have been coming to this board consistently over the past five years complaining about a drastic sales decline. I would suggest it is absolutely normal. 

[junkonhill786]

I agree 110% with this posters assessment. I don't know about Amazon doing things to interfere but I do know my sales are down, way down and have been down for some time.

I have cut prices again and again and add that along with the higher shipping cost and it's a losing proposition.

How much of this decline is due to ebay's selective showing of listings no one knows but it's simple, if it isn't being shown to buyers it ain't gonna sell. Of course eBay has a cure for that if you will agree to pay them a larger % of your sales.

Hmmmm, maybe I should try that. Pay eBay a larger %  to show my items even though I've already paid for them doing that  just to see if my sales do go up.  If they do go up at least I'll know my sales are at least partially down now for lack of exposure.

It's hard to understand the thinking or lack of thinking concerning this problem. If my items aren't shown then I don't sell and if I don't sell then eBay's not making money off of me. So in order to sell I am forced to pay them more for doing what they ageed to do in the first place.

One way they are making money is my monthly store fees which will not be renewed.  It appears as long as the next CEO has a chance at his millions and millions when he resigns or is fired then to hell with trying to make this business work.

Ebays reputation has fallen so far and so fast that I don't think it will ever recover. I took a lot of flack when I voted eBay as among the worse operated companies in the world and I haven't chanced my mind in the least. 

A good indicator of people now gone is to simply look at the number of people who are no longer involved in these forums. Used to be 20, 30, 40 pages of comments and dozens of subjects being discussed but no more.

I have questions I asked 3 months ago with ZERO replies and ZERO looks.

No doubt thousands and thousands have given up and who can blame them.

Ebay has earned a solid A+++ for doing what they seem to have been determined to do which is run off the ones that made it work.

Yep, I agree with this poster.

[bigoljim47]

Yes selling on ebay has become a sad sitiuation. Many sellers try to find the reason why. I do not think the sunshine has something to do with it, or because its Monday. I recently looked at some of my old FB to find buyers that purchased large amount from me in the past. What I noted was several buyers were "no longer a registered user", many buyers have not purchased anything in over 1 year. Ebay is not promoting for people to buy, but to sell. I hate to use the new poly bags with the ebay logo, it promotes to sell on ebay. I don't want more sellers I need buyers. 

[liw48]

Interesting replies.  It's a combination of things happening in the webosphere, but I didn't know that Ebay rented space from AMZ.  Could be a conspiracy theory - if you're renting space from the competitor, how do you know if the competitor is working in your best interests?  If you search these boards you'll see many theories as to why sales have just stopped.  I tend to think it's a combination of things:  consumers holding tight to their money; glitches on the site; waiting on Washington pols; nobody comes to Ebay as their go-to site like they did years ago.  AMZ has found the answer, and Ebay should find a way like Prime to bring people to the site.  I dunno what that thing is.  Maybe they should co-produce an "echo" or co-produce a Kindle type device.

[llllady]

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@luckythewinner wrote:

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@gonetoycrazy wrote:

we sellers all know there is something wrong the drastic sales decline experianced by many sellers is just not normal. 

---

Sellers have been coming to this board consistently over the past five years complaining about a drastic sales decline. I would suggest it is absolutely normal. 

---

Not like this, lucky.  Not like this.  Too many sellers complaining about sales that are 50, 60, 70%+ down from the previous year at the same time.  Likewise, they're down an additional 50, 60, 70%+ down from the previous month.

This is very different, and it's not a good or "normal." 

[thingsoldandnew10]

Even some of past supporters are now complaining of poor sales. Correct Z?

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@llllady wrote:

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@luckythewinner wrote:

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@gonetoycrazy wrote:

we sellers all know there is something wrong the drastic sales decline experianced by many sellers is just not normal. 

---

Sellers have been coming to this board consistently over the past five years complaining about a drastic sales decline. I would suggest it is absolutely normal. 

---

Not like this, lucky.  Not like this.  Too many sellers complaining about sales that are 50, 60, 70%+ down from the previous year at the same time.  Likewise, they're down an additional 50, 60, 70%+ down from the previous month.

This is very different, and it's not a good or "normal." 

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[newview]

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@luckythewinner wrote:

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@gonetoycrazy wrote:

we sellers all know there is something wrong the drastic sales decline experianced by many sellers is just not normal. 

---

Sellers have been coming to this board consistently over the past five years complaining about a drastic sales decline. I would suggest it is absolutely normal. 

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Sorry, I disagree ... there is nothing normal about sales declines that look like THIS ...

Horrible Sales No Views No Traffic No Buyers

[lloydsteventaylor]

i agree with this. i have noticed a decline in sales. but more signifcant i have notice a huge decline in forum postings. we know that big box stores and chinese sellers dont post here because they are not a part of the ebay community. what i think it means is that the number of small sellers have declined significantly on ebay.

[tunicaslot]

I don't think it's collusion with Amazon. Ebay has changed throughout the years - adding the Bog Box and Chinese sellers - yet despite that - people are still buying.

A couple of posters were on here the other day complaining of low sales - you should have seen their listings - horrible pictures, no descriptions - no measurements - no manufacturers listed and yet - they both had sales. Made me mad that I throw all my time making my listings the best possible and sales go to someone who puts no effert into their listings - but life's not fair folks.

Each and every year - buyers have more opportunities when it comes to shopping. With many B&Ms now having an online presense  - it's easier if I order online from them to just return it to the store than bother shipping it back even if the Ebay seller provides me with a return label. It's easier to actual view the item instore or try it on - and then come home and order online as many are offering discounts - to their online store only.

If sales are too slow for you - you have to find a venue that serves your needs. The free lists and social media groups are the in thing with buyers now. C list - offer up and others are where many of my younger friends are buying and selling. There are problems here with search and sellers who seem to take preference over the small seller - but if you can't deal with it - search for someplace you are more comfortable with.

I wish there was more advertising and more gimmicks to draw people back - but opportunites for buyers now are endless. Just as Ebay use to be the in thing - now it's social media - in another couple of years there'll probably be a dedicated channel on the TV for small sellers - things change - time moves on and we just have to move with it.

[heppsusedtools]

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@minehillmint wrote:
what i think it means is that the number of small sellers have declined significantly on ebay.

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BINGO!

IMnotsoHO, that has been eBay's plan for quite some time.  eBay wants to become amazon.com, or any of the other large eCommerce sites, that sell things that can be purchased anywhere and everywhere.  They are courting mega-sellers, who have deep enough pockets to be able to consider free shipping, or no questions asked returns, as simply a cost of doing business.  Gone are the days of eBay being an online auction house, or a world-wide yard sale.  If every dollar counts to a seller, as it does for me, eBay is no longer concerned with keeping you around as a seller.  

What eBay was originally, was a unique buying experience; what eBay has become is no different than many other online and local retail outlets.  There are only so many consumers to go around and eBay is becoming lost in the online eCommerce sea.  

[kathieskorner]

Well, at least you have presented a conspiracy theory I haven't heard before.

Personally, I think the problem is selling "vintage collectibles".    I just don't think there is much of a market for them right now.    I've talked to many vendors at the very large local weekend flea market - the vast majority of them have seen a dramatic decline in collectibles buyers. People that used to come to the flea market every weekend have disappeared.  A lot of the merchandise is collecting real dust.

At the same time I have seen very few items worth buying whether at the flea markets, thrift stores, estate sales, or even yard sales.  Most dollectibles I have come across are overpriced for today's market.  I've tried to tell the lady at the animal rescue thrift store that she is overpricing her collectibles items.   Furniture and household items usually sell within two weeks - clothing, books,  and collectibles just sit on the shelf or rack.    Her t-shirts are $4-$6 while another thrift store sells all t-shirts for $2.      She isn't listening to the market - nor are a lot of ebay sellers. 

[toooldtorock]

Personally, I think the problem is selling "vintage collectibles".  

The market has changed. Baby Boomers are retiring and down sizing,

Gen X likes different kinds of stuff than the Boomers and the

Millennials are not into collecting, they put their money into

experiences and clothing they like.

Games that were hot when the Gen X types were growing up sell well.

Same with other collectibles from the Reagan era. If you're selling Greatest

Generation/Boomer era stuff, it's over for you.

Overall retail sales are down. While Amazon may be cleaning up, the over all

retail market has been in decline. Personal debt is higher than ever. The credit

cards have been maxed out.

I find when I have stuff people want, ebay search is not a problem, they find it

and buy it. Amazon is not a problem. If they want it they will buy it.

[hawkwind5454]

Ten years ago....I was surprised when I received an ebay notice, that I had a no-sale listing. Now I'm surprised, when I receive a notice, that something has sold-  Whether it's Cassini, the ebay-Google divorce, or what-ever... The evidence is just too rampant....[U.S.] SELLER'S LISTINGS ARE NOT BEING SEEN....

[livadia]

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@gonetoycrazy wrote:

Something i asked a anchor store CSR today ebay says there nothing wrong no site issues etc but we sellers all know there is something wrong the drastic sales decline experianced by many sellers is just not normal. its has never been this bad for me in 13+ years

how about this thought  and lol when its so slow you have time to think about things .

anyways ebay rents server space from amazon so whats to stop amazon from  doing something thats basically undectable to the servers used by ebay to cause slow sales on ebay . really there is a lot of smart computer techs out there . who says they have not developed something  to interfer with those ebay servers, a small intentional glitch bug they can get away with.   just to cause such a drastic drop in sales.  there has been many business's over the years that have done shady things. so who really knows who you can trust

personally if i owned ebay i would never rent server space from another online competitor as who really knows what that company would/could do to my company

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@gonetoycrazy

Though I understand and share your frustration with what's going on with eBay sales, I don't agree with your Amazon/eBay conspiracy theory at all.   Amazon's EC2 cloud-storage servers are used by more companies than you might ever imagine for one simple reason:  They have developed a highly-reliable and scalable product at a price-point that makes the development of proprietary  systems not only unnecessary but an unwise use of corporate time, money, talent, and resources.

Back during the "industrial age,"  the roles of business competitors and partners were much more defined.   In the digital world, it is all about simultaneous competition and cooperation.

Netflix is also an Amazon EC2 customer.    Amazon Video is a Netflix competitor.  Why would Netflix use a competitor's services?   Because the advantages AMZ EC2 services provide outweigh the risk of working with a competitor.  It's in Amazon's best interest to deliver the best service to its customers especially its biggest and best ones, and they do. 

eBay's problems are not Amazon's fault or the result of some sort of nefarious plot to sabotage. eBay's issues are of their own making and it's up to them to fix them or the marketplace will make the need for them to do so, obsolete.