Writing is the Wall but Will I Read It?

[keziak]

I have always said that if I just quit ebay I would miss the money. Well the payouts just keep dwindling and I am approaching a point where it's foolish to devote a lot of time, effort and space to ebay. Right now I am trying to boost my number of auctions, see if that helps. I have so much inventory too low price to list on Amazon (books and media) so I lot them up on Ebay. But if they don't sell - or they sell too cheap - the point is...?

I don't know the technical term but I know there is remorse when making a big decision, a turn in the road. I guess I am operating out of fear of that versus welcoming all the time and space quitting ebay would bring. Arghh. 

[iamonourside]

@keziak 

"When there is a sharp turn in the road of your life,

Take smaller steps."

[keziak]

I like that. Never heard that before.

[lonebuck-books]

You are exactly where I am.  I took a good hard eyes wide open look at my eBay business and have decided it just isn't worth it anymore.  Yeah I know, shift to a different 'niche' or category.  Well I've been at this since 2008 and have made multiple shifts over those years just to keep ahead.  One category goes dead, find a new one and ride it till it dies.  Simply put, I just don't have the desire to make another shift that will only last a year or two at most.  It isn't fun anymore.  It doesn't make much money anymore.  It isn't really a good business for small one person businesses unless you want to spend tons of hours 6+ days a week sourcing, listing and shipping.  It used to be fun, profitable and satisfying.  Not anymore.  

So I have stopped all scouting, have all of my inventory listed and up for sale.  I will continue to ship orders that come in and adjust prices to clear things out but once I hit a level of sales of that stuff that is a waste of time, I'm shutting it down and am out of the reselling business.  It was a great ride but everything comes to an end and for me, reselling has hit that time.

I have other ideas for things to do that will fulfill things in me that reselling doesn't.  For me, buying junk to sell for a profit is a very unfulfilling way to make a dollar.  It took me a long time to finally face the fact that as a reseller, I am nothing more than a middle-man.  There are better ways that feed the soul to make a buck.  I will find that.

[iamjosiv]

my guiding philosophy is that everything will sell eventually... 

[joliztoyco]

I'd argue that there already is a negative impact on sellers.

It's glaringly obvious by Ebay's declining GMV.

Less merchandise moving through eBay mean less sales. For all of us.

It really is that simple.

[chapeau-noir]

---

@iamjosiv wrote:

my guiding philosophy is that everything will sell eventually... 

---

It's just that storing it can be a real pain. 😞

[keziak]

You definitely understand where I'm coming from.

Hubby says it's past time to pull the plug on Ebay. I think he knows that if dispose of the mountain of stuff that has been sitting in my daughter's old room we'd get a guest bedroom. I also have the family room cluttered with stuff, half of it I just need to either list finally or purge. It's not good stuff.  Part of me thinks that would be good for my soul and moving in the right direction. Better than being stuck.

[ed8108]

---

---

@ed8108 wrote:

---

Some would argue ebay's job is to produce profit for itself, so far it has been able to accomplish that goal.

Would there likely be a negative impact on sellers, should ebay suffer more than a minor decline in corporate profit ?

---

Accept the past as history & forever gone.

Then ask yourself :

How well is your investment of time & effort rewarded & does the prospect of future success appear favorable?

[ed8108]

In my opinion ebay has made a significant error by failing to appropriately value it's sellers

---

[chapeau-noir]

---

@keziak wrote:

You definitely understand where I'm coming from.

Hubby says it's past time to pull the plug on Ebay. I think he knows that if dispose of the mountain of stuff that has been sitting in my daughter's old room we'd get a guest bedroom. I also have the family room cluttered with stuff, half of it I just need to either list finally or purge. It's not good stuff.  Part of me thinks that would be good for my soul and moving in the right direction. Better than being stuck.

---

Your sanity is worth more than any amount of "stuff" - get rid of it. The sunk cost fallacy is exactly that.

[frecklesfinery88]

We completely understand your feelings. It has been a hard Summer for many of us. I would take a vacation break from your shop, put it on hold a week or 10 days. Think about something else for a while.  We're trying to revamp & renew too. I am donating some items, and redoing listings. It is hard to give up completely when you've done it for so long.  

This whole new algorithm thing, the economy & the current days we are living are just really a whammy on resellers.  We wish you all the best with your decision. Keep us posted.

Blessings;

Mis70

[boston-blessings]

Certainly understand, whatever the minds at Ebay changed, it is not working, at least for the Sellers. Even

considering the events (storms, etc) going on around, the sales have plummeted where it is sadly about time to make the decision about time vs extremely low sales despite all the mark downs, is it worth it?   

[keziak]

Up until recently I was saying that books are still selling....on Amazon. Now, not so much. My inventory number is well in the range to generate orders, I am listing regularly, repricing, and listing good stuff. But lately it's mostly students buying books for class. Are book buyers now acting like easily startled gazelles?

On the up side a non-book item I've relisted a few times now has a bid. I am right now in an experiment to see if boosting my number of auctions will help. I still need to take things like magazines and specialty DVDs and sell them in much bigger lots (or chuck them) versus spending so much time on little lots. Given the cost of shipping I foresee myself doing considerable magazine chucking. 

[theteamsetguy]

@keziak 

You seem to be doing a lot better than most of sellers on eBay. You have 500 items listed but you sold 234 in the last 3 months. Your sell thru is fantastic. 

[keziak]

I normally sell a lot more auctions than lately so that is listings over the 400 or so that sit and sit like a kid at the back of the classroom. I'm either in a stubborn slump now due to my listing choices  or market forces are at work and may change, and I have no idea which.