Anybody Having Any Luck Out There?
I mostly have old items. I just don't have much motivation to go sourcing and also I get demoralized when I realize people are shoplifting their inventory to put on Ebay, while I pay for mine. Despite all that I kinda miss the extra hundred dollars or so my listings normally bring me -- but -- my views are seriously down, like; right now I had 13 views on my store. A couple days ago I put up a 40 percent sale; have automated ads on at a lower percentage; all that good stuff.
Is anybody doing okay out there still? Or is Ebay just dead? Should I start listing stuff on AMZ? Fall and Winter sales were *much" lower than previous; I made two sales I think last month; just nothing really happening at all. Time to break up for real?
20 comments
chapeau-noir
·3 years agoThe term "shoplifting" was in use in the 18th century...and it was common, and on quite a scale. Too many people got off then, too, due to legal loopholes.
The press thrives on crises - "if it bleeds it leads" - crime is actually down, but hey, that doesn't sell.
5594shelleys
·3 years agoJust dead.
zeonzaku0
·3 years agoI went to list on Amazon last year too and my sales are very bad now that I opted out of their seller program that costs $40/month. I still get a few sales occasionally but nothing compared to what I was getting here.
I think sales in general are just down for the obvious reasons (tax season, economy, inflation, etc, etc). If you go to Amazon get ready to wait for awhile. They have to send you a code through the mail and you need to set up an in person video call with someone before they will register your business info. I am not sure if they will let regular people sell on Amazon anymore without going through these steps. I routinely run into the situation where an item can't be listed there because the company won't let you sell on Amazon.
Each item I sell also has to be "approved" by the company that makes it. I had to wait a few days before I could even sell Gundam model kits. Most Japanese hobby stuff was immediately approved. It all depends what you are selling, but it was a real shock compared to ebay which just lets you list stuff. You also need to provide invoices from distributors for many items to show you buy them regularly.
Amazon is finally cracking down on counterfeits and stolen stuff I think. They really had a lot of hoops to jump through AND they take a larger % on top of all the hassle.
If you are selling stuff from returned pallets, maybe try a local swap meet now that the weather is finally warming up. You can also try Etsy, but check on their clothes policy. I am gonna move some model kits and toys over to Etsy as they are a lot like Ebay in that you can list whatever you want. Wal-Mart also has an okay system, but recently there was a website issue with ISBN numbers and now I can't add anything else because it always says the ISBN is wrong even when you don't enter one. You can set up a seller account there too. Both Amazon and Wal-Mart take a higher % than ebay though. I never heard back from Target when I applied to them as a seller. Just food for thought.
from_me_2_you
·3 years agoA BIT OF RAMBLING HERE.... I sell/auction a large variety of items from old coins to new sealed boxes of hot wheels (coming next week).
When some items do not sell, others do....gold and silver coins, nothing special have become a brisk seller.
Scrap and not scrap stained (actually colored) glass went very heavily the first few months of this year. Will redo the listings soon. Small industrial items and car parts sell well and a some of mine is pre 1959. I rarely or never sell anything with free shipping. Sometimes just a dollar or two but NOT free! I have no need to sell anything as I do not have to rely on ANY on-line market place for income. I view selling on line as a hobby that pays for itself and more. Being in my 8th decade, my peers, their parents an grand parents have bequeathed a lot of "stuff" to them and I am helping them (downsize) get rid of it.
My advice to most anyone selling, try not to do anything out of desperation!
Also with my sage advice and $4.00 you can usually buy a small coffee. See what you get without the $4.00 and with my advice! 'nuff for now H
ckimodog
·3 years ago@jet_joa
I sell on 3 different e-commerce sites. Last week I was knocking it out of the park. This week...I got a lot done in my house and my yard. What can I say? It's a hit and miss...that's business. Wishing you better sales. Hang in there. A hui ho.
inhawaii
·3 years agoSelling on ebay ... my luck is ok.
Other aspects if my life ... my luck sucks.
redmodelt
·3 years agoDon't think people are shoplifting "Old stuff or antiques"! 🙂
mam98031
·3 years agoWhy are you allowing what a SMALL percentage of sellers on Ebay are doing to affect you so deeply?? Are you looking for reasons to stop selling? I don't get it !!! Why are you taking stuff so personally. It likely has about ZERO real affect on you.
There is a lot of your stuff you sell that you can NOT sell on Amazon. With that said, there is nothing wrong with selling on more than one site. I sell on three and have for years.
jet_joa
OP3 years agohey there;
You're right, I shouldn't let it affect me but I also can't ignore that it's going on. I've been watching marauding groups on the internet go into Louis Vitton, Gucci, Apple stores, but also CVS and Walgreens, breaking plate glass windows and just taking stuff to ultimately make outrageous profits on things I can't even afford. The retail trade kind of depends on the conditions of commerce and back say five years ago and beyond, the way a person got inventory was by making smart calculations on the buy/sell proposition. Now it's different. Now there are inner city boosting operations, Chinese direct-from-factory fakes, Goodwill direct, the RealReal and ThredUp, not to mention Walmart Direct, where you used to be able to go into a Walmart and find Clearance items which are now not even on sale, just moved to another part of the store; add to that Target Direct, plus Amazon plus *Facebook* and *Next Door* and Craigslist. There are now so many items on the internet to purchase that it gets harder and harder to simply get a customer's attention much less buy anything from little old me. I don't think it's as small a percentage of people out there in direction competition as you say.
Just pointing that out though, not trying to start an argument. Thanks for your comment.
Don’t believe everything you see on the internet. Most of it is bogus.
maxine*j
·3 years agoThere is no doubt that there is organized retail theft and that the stolen goods are sold on-line. A couple of such rings that were selling on eBay (and other on-line marketplaces) have been busted and made the news. (And, by the way, those thugs you see doing the actual boosting get a few pennies on the dollar from the people who then warehouse and sell the stolen merchandise.)
BUT that is a tiny percentage of of the 1.5B listings on eBay on any given day and, to be frank, I doubt that you are in much competition with them. If your sales in clothing and accessories are low it's because that is a terribly over-saturated category on eBay.
And you're right that you're in competition with some of your sources, such as thrift stores that also sell on-line, not to mention the major retailers who also have on-line divisions. We hear a lot of complaints about that here, especially from people who sell clothing and accessories, but it is the reality and not going to change any time soon.
It's always a good idea to spread out your sales over several venues, but don't expect anything substantially different on those other venues. You'll still have plenty of stiff competition in the clothing and accessories category, you'll still have fees to pay and expenses to meet.
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mam98031
·3 years agoI wish you nothing but the best, but I still think you are taking this stuff way too personally. There is a difference between staying informed and reacting the way you are.
Ebay is a big site. Most sellers are honest sellers. There has always been some that aren't from the beginning. Ebay has some great rules in place to prevent much of what you describe in happening here on the site or they aren't here for long.
I don't think anyone is arguing with you, just trying to give you a different point of view. To take on the problems of the world is just not healthy for you.
mtgraves7984
·3 years ago@jet_joa
I love mostly old items. I am very intrigued by your listings... I just 'bookmarked' one because I want to check through them all. 😃
Sales of my old items are slow, too... and I'm so not into sourcing, either. Lucky for me, I'm okay with it.
It seems like just the right buyer always eventually sits down to it. 🤗
jet_joa
OP3 years ago🙂 So nice.
Thanks so much. Please hit me up for a discount if there's anything I've got you like.
Cheers.
johnson_junk_company
·3 years agoHow do you know people are shop lifting their items to sell? Just curious. I have suspected this on a few items I saw, but not many. What signs are you seeing?
jet_joa
OP3 years agoIt's just what I see on the news; like seeing that in San Francisco anyone can shoplift 1000 dollars' worth of new merchandise without a legal penalty. So...clearly; a CVS with vitamins and slippers and hair care products and mascara and whatever else: if it's free to those people, they are going to sell it on Ebay or some other platform. We see news items about a bunch of kids breaking into a Gucci store at a mall: where else are all those shoes and purses going to go?
It's not a maybe, it's very clear that's happening.
fern*wood
·3 years agoSome "news" outlets like to get a clip of something like that and play it over and over (even if happened months/years ago) to make some think it happens daily. Criminals need to be held accountable, but not everyone is a criminal.
bryo_3145
·3 years agoYou would think they would pan for gold instead, but that's too much work.
magicjohnsonsvariety
·3 years agoStealing for resale has been occurring since the beginning of time.
I remember in 1992 busting a young couple in the K mart parking lot for selling hot VCR's right out of their car. The young woman was employed by K mart and stole a dozen VCR's from that very store the night before.
Pre ebay but still the motive is the same...
Cities like SF are going to lose stores and have trouble attracting new stores if they don't start prosecuting shoplifters. There's nothing more frustrating than making an arrest, file reports, putting real time into it only to see charges were later dropped.
Can't compete with a free wholesale cost. I have found that listing on several sites at once works best. Ebay isn't dead but it does suffer from lack of advertising.
iamalwaysright
·3 years agoList on there AND here. Cast a bigger net.