Seeking Constructive Criticism for My Store
Hi everyone, I am very much a beginner on both eBay and selling jewellery. A friend of mine has asked me for help in selling her Heidi Daus jewellery collection, so I am trying here, but my posts haven't gotten many views. I am looking for guidance from more experienced sellers to see if there is anything I can improve. Here is the link: https://www.ebay.ca/usr/caileend
Any insights are appreciated! Thank you all, and I hope you have a lovely day ❤️
11 comments
mr_lincoln
·4 months agoHi @caileend
My comments are more from a straight business standpoint because that is what selling online is, Retail sales.
In Canada you have a 15% Fee on ALL sales you owe eBay for a non-store account (in Jewelry & Watch categories). If you have an eBay store that drops to 13%. Here in the states they charge those %s on the TOTAL order which includes paid shipping and any sales taxes levied on the transaction. There are some smaller transaction fees like 30 or 40 cent that I believe are non-refundable in the event of a return or cancelled transaction. In any event, you need to google selling fees in Canada so you understand the money end of a transaction.
Additionally, your name is on the account and your sales may be subject to be reported for income tax purposes (I'm in the US so not sure how that works in canada) . YOU will owe that tax.
Who has possession of the jewelry???? You are the one who needs to have it in your possession so when something sells you can ship it and don't have to ask your friend for it.
Agree up front with your friend on exactly how much on each sale you two will split the profit, NOT the sold amount but the profit on the sale. You will have shipping costs to pay, materials to pack things in, maybe ink for your printer plus paper, etc. Al that stuff can nickel and dime you in the end if you don't have it figured out from Day #1.
Now lets talk about your Return policy ... the Default setting on eBay listing tools is no returns accepted which you are using. To me and my experience it sends the WRONG message to both Sellers and Buyers. Buyers are protected by the eBay Money Back Guarantee and here is the link to that page we share here in the states: eBay Money Back Guarantee policy
eBay has numerous reasons that bypass the No return policy and forces the Seller to pay for a return shipping label plus refund upon receipt of the item back in your possession. That return label is out of your pocket. Some new Sellers actually think they are immune from anything being returned then find out the hard way how untrue that is. No returns does not show any confidence in what you are selling and you have no clue how many Buyers pass up your items because they "think" the item cannot be returned. With more experience in selling you might do well with the No returns policy but starting out I do not recommend it.
You are also offering Free delivery which means YOU have to pay for shipping but your Buyer does not ... I would recommend that you charge for shipping.
You are using Best Offer and to me that means your price is not your price and it will do nothing but drive your prices down. I suggest setting your price at the lowest amount you will sell for and make your desired profit (to be split of course with your friend).
While I wish you two nothing but success I also encourage you to have a solid understanding of how things will work on the financial end on the sales ... it would be a shame to ruin a friendship because of a misunderstanding about money.
soh.maryl
·4 months agoSo you're selling this jewelry for your friend, on your own user name?
Pretty sure you are going to be on the hook for income tax on your eBay earnings come January, 2027.
powell-collectibles
·4 months agoNo tax liability expected. Seller nets $1,000 from sales of jewelry for a friend. Seller gives $1,000 to that friend. $1,000 is the effective COGS. Net profit is zero. No tax liability.
eoma689485
·4 months agoThis line in your listings:
"Together, we are selling this large lot of jewellery and donating all of the proceeds to charity."
Google eBay for Charity Canada - Everyday eBay sellers can donate 10%–100% of their item's final sale price to registered nonprofits through eBay for Charity. The listing gets a charity ribbon, potentially increasing sales, and eBay credits back a percentage of final value fees. Donations are processed by the PayPal Giving Fund, allowing for tax-deductible receipts.
At the very least it gives legitimacy to that statement in your description - Buyer's trust is important and you do benefit with enhanced visibility with a charity ribbon, higher conversion rates, and a proportional discount on the final value fees. Good Luck with all of your eBay transactions.
idealgems1
·4 months agoYou are doing an awful lot right; and have received some good advice already.
I like to use every bit of the title characters allowed, and I always end my titles with "video". No idea if the video reference drives clicks or not, but I suspect it helps.
Somewhere in the item specifics, I also like to add every possible word I can think of that might be searched. I saw a seller help video once that proved that buyer searches will grab listings that have the search term anywhere in the listing; it doesn't have to be in the title.
Keep up the good work!
caileend
OP4 months agoGood to know that the keywords can be in parts of the listing other than the title - I'll try and fit as many keywords as possible into the descriptions. Thanks for your help!
fabrics24
·4 months agoHowdy! I don't sell my jewelry on ebay, but I do sell jewelry, so I'll see if I can help!
Very good mentioning that they're stored in a smoke-free facility; that can be a big deal for pre-used things in fashion or home categories. I also really like that the pieces come with the original packaging but you've listed them as used; a lot of people fall into the trap where they use the item a little bit but still try to list it as New. You're far more likely to net a sale and avoid returns being transparent like that.
I notice your titles are a little short and lack some descriptive words that might help sell the item faster. For example; this style of bracelet is a bangle. A lot of people love those, but they wouldn't be able to find your listing because it doesn't contain that word. I'd write something like "Heidi Daus Pendant Necklace Bracelet Bangle Set "Newport Chic" Black/Aqua Rope Cord"; you want to hit as many key words as you can, so the piece will show up in more searches. If you can get all 80 characters used up, do it! Mention stones, style, bead shapes, features, anything!
The specific terminology is learned with some research and time, but if you need help, I bet the others here can also help you describe some of these items.
soh.maryl is absolutely right about the necklace length being important; since a lot of your photos are of the jewelry in the box, it's hard to get an idea of where it rests on the body. You can list it either as the style (Choker, Princess, Matinee, etc), or as inch length (ie: 16", 18", 24"), but I'd do both. More keywords is always good. I'd also do this for bracelet length/bangle diameter; it'd be a shame for someone to buy a bracelet only for it to not fit them.
I'd also highly recommend listing the kind of metal the jewelry is made of, even for fashion jewelry; a lot of people have metal allergies, and you want to make it abundantly clear what they're buying so you don't get any returns. The last thing you want is for a customer to get horrible welts or a rash on their skin!
For your photos, they're nice and clear! You've got a lot of really good shots! Keep getting shots of the claps and closures; people want to see how those work. There's only a few things I can see you adding to the gallery:
I see you mentioned that there's some tarnish on one of your pieces, and included a photo; that's good! Don't be afraid to take photos of or mention the flaws!
You want customers to see what's not perfect about your item. It seems a little counterintuitive, but there is far less chance of an INAD case if they can see that the item has imperfections in the photos. They can't really complain about things like scuffed beads, chipped stones, or dings in the metal if they know those exist before even buying the piece.
Best of luck to you; I hope your charity goes well!
caileend
OP4 months agoWow, thanks so much for this detailed answer! Lots of great advice here. Tomorrow I'll update the listings and put it into practice! I hadn't even thought of the types of metal, that's a great point. I'm not sure if I have that information but I'll do my best to find it!
Since you sell jewellery, could I ask you a question about photography? I have one really long necklace, the "Distinguished Elegance" one, that goes past the end of the display stand I have. Do you know any tips for photographing very long pieces like that? I tried putting a piece of paper underneath the stand for the necklace to lie against, but I don't think it turned out looking very good.
Thanks again for your help!
fabrics24
·4 months agoFor really long pieces that dangle off the display stand, I'd get a few pieces of posterboard or foamboard, and photograph using one of two setups. Either lay the necklace on the poster board with a ruler/measuring tape next to it, getting rid of the need for it to be displayed on the jewelry stand at all.
Alternatively (and what I'd recommend most), you can arrange one board behind the jewelry stand, and the other underneath it. That way, when the necklace drapes off of the stand and onto the board, it looks intentional and clean.
If you find you really love selling jewelry, it'd be worth it to invest in a larger mannequin that shows how low opera and rope-length necklaces rest on the body, but for clearing clutter and donating to charity, it's hard to go wrong with a cheap little setup with a few $1 pieces of paper and foam.
soh.maryl
·4 months agoWhen buying necklaces, don't buyers usually want/need to know the length?
As for other pieces, size might be helpful also.
Don't know much about jewelry, but wish you success in your selling.
caileend
OP4 months agoThat's a good point! I'll measure the necklaces tomorrow and update the listings. Thanks for your help!