Ciara316Style
Hi everyone
I have been working hard on my eBay store but I am struggling with sales and would really appreciate advice
I review my listings adjust prices run weekly deals and spend money on eBay promotions and Facebook marketing I also pay a lot in fees per product
I get views but they are not turning into sales
Right now I have over 400 listings but I am only making about 1 sale per week which is frustrating
I have 100 percent positive feedback so I do not think trust is the issue
I would also like help learning how to sell live because I feel this could work better for me
What can I do to improve sales
How can I get more traffic without spending too much on ads
Where should I share my store for more visibility
Any advice for starting live selling
Thank you
susanb1872
·4 months agoA couple of your listings show shipping as USPS First Class (disney purse for one). There is no such thing as First Class for packages. Most people pick Ground Advantage for packages since that is usually the least expensive.
kensgiftshop
·4 months agoYour stock photos make you look like a dropshipper.
If you own the items, take your own photos.
itsjustasprain
·4 months ago@ciara.316 : Totally agree with the above and those of previous replies. I have scrolled down through an entire page of your listings and did not see one photo that clearly shows that you actually own any of the items you are selling. When it is nothing but stock photos then your listings will be no better than your competitors (by which I mean anyone who is selling the same items from the same drop shipper) and therefore any buyer who is seeing the image from multiple sellers will of course home in on the cheapest one.
I would dump all the drop shipped items (hopefully you are not simply buying them off Amazon when you get a buyer) and focus on selling your own items with your own photos and your own descriptions. That way you can stand out from your competitors. Sell what you know and what you own. Good luck.
pickapaper
·4 months ago@ciara.316
@christworks has written one of the best posts I've read in a long time. It's long but you need to read it and pay close attention to it and then read it again. There is some very important and informative information in there.
I noticed one of your listings for an Invicta watch showed five watches; I thought you were offering it in a choice of colors so I first looked at the listing and could see nothing about a color choice so I then went back and looked at the photos and saw that it is actually one watch that comes with four extra bands. I don't know why you didn't show the box with the watch and extra bands in it (your second photo), as that is what a buyer would receive, instead of showing five watches which they won't receive. When you do something like that, you are leaving yourself wide open for "Item not as described" claims.
I looked at your other items and those stock photos you are using, those "deals" (two for one price) and "grab it before it's gone" tactics you are using remind me of the old snake oil salesmen.
inhawaii
·4 months agoYour listing for a Milwaukee shop vac does not even show a picture of a shop vac.
Just so you can compare...
I have about 300 items in my store.
I average 1-3 sales a day.
In my opinion it's all about WHAT you are selling.
You have to be selling stuff that people buy at the price they are willing to pay.
Good luck to you.
powell-collectibles
·4 months agoI checked three of your prices. You’re about double the competition on eBay. Sure, someone will have a price that’s close to yours, maybe even more. But if I can buy it for half as much, I don’t really care what your feedback is.
dhbookds
·4 months agoItems are here:
https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_trksid=p3692&_ssn=ciara.316
looks like to me you are drop shipping.....
You are not "shopping" your items to figure out prices.
Your price for this item is $70+
here is your competition:
https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_nkw=SOL+DE+JANEIRO+Sol+de+Janeiro+Glow+Ready+With+Me&_sacat=0&_from=R40&_trksid=p2332490.m570.l1313
Here are the solds:
https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_nkw=SOL+DE+JANEIRO+Sol+de+Janeiro+Glow+Ready+With+Me&_sacat=0&_from=R40&rt=nc&LH_Sold=1
If you hope to sell.......that type of research is necessary........
caldreamer
·4 months agoCannot view your listings, so I cannot offer any advice about this.
EBAY Live is only available in certain categories for approved Sellers only.
Livestream selling with eBay Live | eBay
eBay Live policy | eBay
christworks
·4 months agoWell, I had a solid message typed out for you, but I hit the wrong button and lost it, so I’m going to try to recreate it. I have to go cut my grass so I'm going to dictate into ChatGPT as that will be quicker. This tone will be different for those regulars reading this.
Right out of the gate—you said you don’t believe there’s a trust issue. I completely disagree. I think there’s a major trust issue between you and your buyers.
The biggest reason is your photos. Looking through your store, I’d estimate 80–90% of your listings use stock images that you don’t own the rights to, most likely pulled from Amazon. That’s already a violation of eBay policy. But beyond that, it immediately raises red flags for buyers. It makes it look like you don’t actually have the items in hand and might be drop shipping—meaning you’re sourcing the product after the sale. Whether you’re doing that or not, that’s how it comes across.
If you truly own the items, you need to be taking your own photos. That’s what builds trust. Yes, eBay allows catalog images in some cases, but just because you can use them doesn’t mean you should. Your photos are the very first thing buyers see. If they see a stock photo, many won’t even click into your listing.
And it gets worse once they do click in. Your descriptions are also stock—lifted straight from Amazon in many cases. So from a buyer’s perspective, you’re offering nothing different. At that point, why wouldn’t they just go to Amazon instead?
There’s nothing wrong with selling items that are also on Amazon—I do it myself—but you have to do it the right way. Right now, you’re not.
Let me give you a specific example. One of your listings is titled: B.Tan Sun Tanning Lotion Spray Bronze in a Bottle SPF 7.
The main photo shows two bottles, but you’re only selling one. That’s confusing. A buyer could easily assume they’re getting both for $14.95, purchase it, and then you’ve got a problem on your hands. And there’s nothing in the image clarifying that it’s just showing front and back. Again, this goes back to why your own photos matter.
Now let’s talk about handling time. You have it set to three business days. That’s not terrible on its own, but when you combine that with stock photos and copied descriptions, it reinforces the perception that you don’t actually have the item and are ordering it after the sale.
Another issue: your shipping setup is wrong on multiple listings. In this case, you have it set to First Class. That’s a problem. This is a liquid and also a hazmat item because it contains alcohol. It cannot be shipped by air. First Class often goes by air, so that’s not allowed. This needs to go via ground—USPS Ground Advantage, UPS Ground, or FedEx Ground. No exceptions here.
Also, you don’t accept returns. For your current setup, that’s hurting you. When buyers already feel uncertain—stock photos, generic descriptions, longer handling time—and then they see no returns, they’re gone. There are too many other sellers offering the same items with better listings and return policies.
I’m also seeing identical items at your price point with free shipping.
So you’ve got multiple disadvantages stacked against you.
Now let’s get into a bigger issue: your inventory: To be blunt, you don’t have items people are actively looking for.
There are a lot of ways to succeed in reselling, but two things are always true:
You either have a strong supply of high-demand items, or
You mix high-demand items with lower-demand items - volume the is what drives sales.
Most of us fall into that second category. But the key is balance.
Let’s use your Activa SpaceX Invicta watch as an example. Across that brand (not even model-specific), there are about 700 listed and only around 100 sold in the last 90 days. That’s a very slow sell-through rate. You’re looking at inventory that could realistically sit for a year or more.
And on top of that, you didn’t include the model number in the title, which makes it even harder for buyers to find your exact item. I ddi the find the model buried in the listing. The sell-through rate is also poor for the model. (about 15 listed, and 3 have sold in the past 90 days.)
(A side note: eBay's search is not designed for sellers trying to determine if an item is worth buying and listing. It is set up for buyers. You can get an idea of how well an item sells, but the info. won't be precise.)
So now you’ve got:
Low-demand item
High competition
Weak listing quality
Trust issues
Incorrect shipping setup
No returns
That’s a tough combination to overcome.
When you’re selling lower-demand items—and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that—you have to have realistic expectations. You need to understand that something may not sell in three weeks, three months, or even eight months. It may have to cycle through Q4 once or even twice before it sells. Again, nothing wrong with that, but when you purchase and list an item, you need to understand what to expect so when it doesn’t sell within a certain timeframe, you know why.
That said, there are still multiple factors working against you. The stock photos are a big issue. Your shipping setup is also a problem. And then there’s the fact that many of your items are lower demand. Those are three major things that stand out.
Another issue I noticed is with your listing titled “Charlotte Russe Refuge Crystal Fragrance Spray.” You have that listing set up for buyer personalization, but there is nothing in the description indicating the item can be personalized. Because of that, your delivery time shows as “varies,” which is likely confusing buyers. On top of that, your shipping is set to freight, which makes absolutely no sense unless someone is buying a pallet of fragrance spray. That listing needs to be reviewed and corrected.
Honestly, based on what I’m seeing, you need to go through every single listing. Check your handling time. Verify your shipping method. Reevaluate your return policy. Look at your descriptions and ask yourself whether they actually help convert a buyer.
For example, you’re including retail prices in some listings. Buyers don’t care about retail price. They’re on eBay—they already know they’re not paying retail. In most cases, that information doesn’t help conversion at all.
Even with 100% feedback, you’re still dealing with trust issues. At the end of the day, what converts buyers is your presentation. Feedback plays a much smaller role than most sellers think because many buyers don’t even look at it. It’s good to have, but it’s not what’s making the sale. Your presentation is—and right now, your presentation is hurting you. The stock photos, in particular, cheapen your overall appearance.
I also noticed you’re offering Priority Mail on some items. There’s nothing inherently wrong with Priority Mail, but you should seriously reevaluate whether it’s helping you. In most cases, it’s not. You’re just paying more to ship without getting any added value in return.
For example, I saw a listing—I believe it was the watch—where you’re charging $5.99 for Priority Mail. You cannot ship anything Priority Mail for $5.99 without taking a loss. If you’re doing that as a strategy to attract buyers, you’re essentially just giving extra money to the post office without gaining meaningful conversion.
Priority Mail makes sense for items people actually need quickly—like a car part someone needs to finish a repair. A watch doesn’t fall into that category. Something like that should just go Ground Advantage. It already includes $100 of insurance, and you avoid unnecessary extra cost.
Also, since USPS adjusted their network, Ground Advantage is often prioritized for Zones 1–4. In those cases, even Priority Mail doesn’t go by air—it travels on the same trucks as Ground Advantage. Only Zones 5–8 (or 9) are more likely to go by air, and even then, it’s not guaranteed.
Anyway, I’m going to wrap this up. I just had a sale come through, so I’m going to check what sold. Feel free to ask any questions, and I’ll get back to you later.
pls-consignments
·4 months agoYou lost me at "I'm going to dictate into ChatGPT"
ifyouloveit
·4 months agoI can't view any of your listings under your username.
tobaccocardyahoo
·4 months agoLook at your listings, one at a time.
Look at the number of other sellers who have paid for sponsored ads on the identical items.
Look at the range of prices they are charging.
You are in a crowded area of the site for almost everything you offer. Organic views are uncommon. You offer no value added, so if you are not the lowest price your sales will suffer, just as they suffer if you are not promoting heavily enough.
My recommendation is to reconsider what you inventory and offer for resale unless you have lots and lots of margin to spend on promotion and low prices.
Also remember that counterfeit products are common in categories like fragrances, and many buyers will not buy products they know have counterfeits available from any unfamiliar online seller.
adamcartwright
·4 months ago@ciara.316
Try adjusting your prices.
ciara.316
OP4 months agoI do every single week sometimes every 3 days checking ... I do to more thank you so much!!!
catjewels9876
·4 months agoI am unable to your view your listings using your username of Ciara.316.
ciara.316
OP4 months agothis is my username : Ciara316Style
luckythewinner
·4 months agoI also pay a lot in fees per product
How much are you paying in fees for the 1 sale per week that you are getting? If you are spending a lot on promoting listings, more sales will not improve that situation.
ciara.316
OP4 months agoI just want to get more traffic another strategy without spend to much money ???