mam98031 • Volunteer Community Member • Buyer/Seller since 1999
Yesterday, eBay sent me a message encouraging me to use new the dynamic rate option when setting up my promoted listings. This dynamic rate option links my promoted listing rate to the eBay suggested rate. As the suggested rate goes up and down so would my promoted rate.
Was this sent by mistake?
I wouldn't think of linking my ad rate to an eBay suggestion. But I thought we've long had this option for quite some time.
In the message, eBay says it values seller comments on promoted listings and provides a link to the community forum as the place to leave such comments.
But the link is to the UK forum business seller's page.
Was this message intended for UK eBay?
Either there is a typo in the message or I've been transported through space and time.
@siamjane8 wrote:"I think sellers are finally catching on. Promoted listings simply move your money into ebays pockets with little or no effect on improving the sellers profits!" How so? Are you suggesting that sellers that use PLS are not smart enough to know they need to increase the price of their product to cover the additional PLS FVF? I personally have more faith than that in sellers.
It is the buyer's that pay this additional FVF, not the seller.
mam- i know that you know that the PL is charged to the seller NOT the buyer....... why would you make the above statement? Unless you are saying that a seller should raise their prices to account for the extra fees?....... of course that would work unless your margins are tight.... and also all you are doing is making the product more expensive and less desirable and you are not making any more profit- thereby its not any better for the seller- so you cannot reinvest in your business and grow. How is this good for anyone? except ebay in the short term. PL hurt everyone involved in the long term as they drive sellers to other platforms to compete and drive buyers to other platforms as the products get overpriced here to pay ebay the extra %
OMG, Are you saying that Sellers to not consider ALL their costs in an effort to set pricing on the item they are trying to sell? If that is true, we will most certainly see far more sellers leave the site because they can't make a profit !!! That just sounds silly.
"Unless you are saying that a seller should raise their prices to account for the extra fees?" I'm sorry I apparently I wasn't clear in my previous post. That is EXACTLY what I'm saying.
" so you cannot reinvest in your business and grow." I never said or implied any such thing.
I'm NOT defending the program. I don't use it either. That is my choice to make and for now I do not use the tool. I am simply trying to explain something that is the mere BASICs of selling on any site like this.
YES buyer's pay the FVFs a seller pays to Ebay. While the seller literally pays Ebay, the buyer pays the seller and the amount the buyer pays should cover all the seller's costs.
@luckythewinner wrote:mam98031 wrote:
It is the buyer's that pay this additional FVF, not the seller.
If a buyer is willing to pay $100 for an item that costs $10 to ship and the seller only sees $60, then eBay has taken $30 from the sale.
Playing semantic games does not change that.
(sorry siamjane8 I replied to the wrong comment)
The seller SHOULD be increasing the price of the product to cover the additional fees from PLS, period. Those that don't are making a choice, either they feel they have enough profit built into the price of the product or they don't know how to properly price their items.
It doesn't matter if you agree with me. That is just the facts.
While in action, sellers literally pay Ebay FVFs to Ebay, in the end the buyer is paying the fees because the seller priced their item to cover ALL their fees and costs to sell and ship the item.
If seller's did not do that, then many would be going out of business because they aren't making money.
Are you telling me that Sellers are NOT suppose to consider all their costs when pricing their products???? If so, how do they stay in business??
@mam98031 wrote:
Explain please
Hey @mam98031! This email is intended to go out to a set group of sellers. As far as the link I to the UK I cannot see it from OP's post. @iamonourside Can you share the link that is sending you to the UK community by chance?
Devon,
@pls-consignments wrote:Not quite sure why this gets so complicated for you, but I understood exactly what the OP was saying. It really wasn't a business lesson opportunity. Glad your niche is doing fine. But, a cookie-cutter approach will not work for all eBay sellers.
I didn't make it complicated. But sorry I didn't explain it well enough for you.
BTW I NEVER said my "niche is doing fine" nor did I say anything about a "cookie cutter approach" Those are things you are pulling out of my post that I didn't say.
I follow your math, but that doesn't tell me much.
I used $100 in my example just to keep things simple.
A buyer only sees an increase if they have looked at it before. PLS doesn't only serve those members that have already viewed the item.
Raising the price on an item will sometimes result in a sale. Lowering prices isn't always the answer. While logical true, but often doesn't work that way.
You need to do what is best for you. If you prefer the additional fees to come out of your pocket, then so be it, you have the right to do that. But others won't see it that way. We are a diverse bunch of people with different needs and points of view.
Good luck with whatever your decision might be.
No I'm not. I have a point of view that differs from yours. It isn't any more complicated than that.
You are not comparing apples to apples. It is likely the butcher has more than one steak to apply all their costs to.
With or without using PLS right now there are a lot of sellers reporting low sales.
IMHO it is a few factors. I know it is popular to blame it all on Ebay, but I just don't think that does anyone any justice at all. There are still significant supply chain issues for many Americans, sky high food prices, expensive gas prices, housing prices is just going nuts and a general economy that is just not doing as well as most of us would like it to be.
There are some issues on Ebay too as they aren't recording views and impressions correctly as well.
I'm not really sure all of what is going on with this issue, but many sellers are feeling the pinch.
I don't agree that anytime Ebay makes changes or updates that sales suffer. Ebay makes changes and updates all the time. So many that are unannounced. They run a maintenance program with updates and fixes every Thursday night. If we were to use the logic that every time Ebay makes changes or updates our sales go down, then not many sellers would be getting any sales for years.
The search engine may be part of it as well. IMHO it is a multifaceted problem. A bit more complex that many think it is.
Wholeheartedly agree. We do buy from eBay as both a business purchasing supplies and for personal items. Absolutely NEVER use the search on the platform. Always go to Google and add "eBay" at the end of the search results. When I have tried using the platform search, I feel like I am not seeing everything or not seeing the best price. It is what it is, and we have learned to adapt by using Google search.
Our international sales are harboring at zeros. Where we were selling between 1-3 international orders per day, we are down to 1-3 international orders per week. We are a high volume seller, and we are down 22-25% across the board (gross, net, etc.) That is based on Feb 1 - March 31, 2023 VS. April 1 - May 31, 2023. Add in the fact that we are heavily listing new old stock locksmith, general B & I, Mopar car parts and small engine parts (lawn care season). Something definitely changed on April 1, 2023, and it was an OVERNIGHT occurrence. We have been struggling and working almost around-the-clock - just to keep us where we are now.
