Can we all agree the economy is effecting sales and move on?

[natoman777]

Day after day... same old story, same old song and dance.  All we can do is list, lower prices and pray and hope for better days ahead.  eBay is NOT at fault.  We are in a very tough economy right now

[714ricki]

Bingo! I see lots of resellers lowering & lowering their prices. Let's not make it a race to the bottom!!! For saavy sellers, this could be the ultimate buying opportunities. Decisions decisions!!!

Hang on everybody!!!

[my-cottage-books-and-antiques]

@natoman777

Is the economy impacting sales? Sure. Is it possible that ebay glitches, etc, is having an impact as well? Sure. Is it likely that increased competition, both on and off ebay, is impacting sales? Sure.

The only question we need to ask, however, is:

If I'm not satisfied with my sales, what steps can I take to increase my sales (or revenue, or net profit)?

The answer to that question will vary from seller to seller. 

[Anonymous]

Lower prices??? I thought eBay DIDN'T want to be a "yard sale" site.

[natoman777]

Lowering prices depends on the items you have for sale.  Yard sale prices?  $1, $2?  not what I am talking about.

[natoman777]

When you have to sell in order to make it financially you have to figure out what works best for you.  I have been there before, but thankfully don't depend on eBay in order to make it.  My main thought here involves those who keep blaming eBay over and over... day after day.  Sales slow down and pick up depending on what you are selling, the season, etc. 

When the economy is very very tough, slowed sales is almost unavoidable.  I don't think eBay is to blame

[my-cottage-books-and-antiques]

@Anonymous  Target is not a yard sale site, but it has said it will be lowering prices on a lot of stuff because it has too many items that haven't been in demand....those items are going to see lowered prices. Lowering prices is a pretty conventional way to try to increase sales. 

It is not for everyone.

For some sellers, it would be a smart decision, for others, it would be foolish. 

One can lower prices without participating in the so-called "race to the bottom"  It depends on being selective and knowing which items to lower and which to keep the same (or even increase).

[my-cottage-books-and-antiques]

@natoman777   My view is basically this: There are all sorts of factors that can slow down sales (including just the regular ebb and flow of retail). Trying to identify the "culprit" (the economy, ebay, or anything else) is generally a waste of time...best to just go straight to the heart of the matter: I don't have any control over the economy, I don't have any control over ebay, I don't control what my competitors do...the one thing I have some control over is what I do.  And that's where my focus should be. 

Different sellers will find different solutions. Lower prices, increase prices, add inventory, reduce inventory, change the type of inventory, add platforms, reduce the number of platforms, use advertising tools, cut out advertising tools, etc.

In the end, it's not up to ebay to make my business work, it's not up to Joe Biden, it's not up the Invisible Hand of the Free Market...it's up to me.

My advise to sellers: Find what works for you. Do it. If that no longer works, find something else that works for you, and do it. Rinse and repeat as needed. LOL

[gwens*4saleitems*]

I've had better sales in the past 3 weeks than I had in the 3 months prior. 

so .......................

[natoman777]

@gwens*4saleitems*

I am with you on this as my sales have actually been ok and even very good over the last 3 months.   

[duffy4444]

   My sales have actually picked up a bit. Not a lot, but on a slow upward trend.

   Think ahead! With the average gasoline price over $5 a gallon and going higher, a lot of people have been rethinking and ditching their shopping trips to B&M stores. As gas goes higher yet, more and more people will be doing their non-grocery shopping online - at YOUR online store! What's becoming worse for B&M shopping will be getting better for online commerce, IMHO.

   Just be patient and THINK... and maybe make some wise marketing decisions on your listings because of the current economic downturn. I don't see online commerce going down like B&M stores are, with people being able to shop right at their laptop instead of getting behind the wheel.

Cheers, Duffy

[mr_lincoln]

@natoman777   Unfortunately, I can not agree that the economy is the only issue negatively affecting sales and yes, eBay is to blame for a portion of sales dropping off.   Below is from their Traffic report, Impressions dropped off by over 80% in a three week period ... that was about on par with one of their recent changes.  They have made a lot of them.  I've been selling long enough to notice regular ebbs and flows of sales but this is not one of those.  They have made a number of key changes over the last 6-8 months.

Its one thing for people to look around and not Buy during low economic times ... its another when items are not found in Search (ie: an Impression) and that is what I see ...

[my-cottage-books-and-antiques]

@mr_lincoln I just looked at my traffic report for 5.21 to 6.9 compared to 5.1-5.20----impressions down 4.3%.

What should I make of that?  

[mrdutch1001]

no, we cannot all agree that "the economy is effecting sales" ...

because not all sellers are experiencing no/slow sales...

some sellers may lower their prices just to get a sale, but others have no reason to do so because they can accommodate  the "supply and demand"...

trends come, trends go...buyer habits change...

many categories over-saturated with mass-produced items/products, and may or may not have the same appeal..

it matters not what the circumstance, sellers will always look for something to blame ...

have been  an online sellers for the past 20 years and have seen anything and everything thrown out there as a reason for no/slow sales...

the economy,income tax time, election year, hurricanes, floods, wildfires, blizzards, and on and on...year after year... more recently the pandemic, and of course the latest one = high gas prices..

Go to the malls much? Folks are filling the parking lots, folks are filling their shopping carts...folks are spending money, folks are indeed buying...it just may not be that folks are not buying as much online!

[duffy4444]

---

@mr_lincoln wrote:

@natoman777   Unfortunately, I can not agree that the economy is the only issue negatively affecting sales and yes, eBay is to blame for a portion of sales dropping off.   Below is from their Traffic report, Impressions dropped off by over 80% in a three week period ... that was about on par with one of their recent changes.  They have made a lot of them.  I've been selling long enough to notice regular ebbs and flows of sales but this is not one of those.  They have made a number of key changes over the last 6-8 months.

Its one thing for people to look around and not Buy during low economic times ... its another when items are not found in Search (ie: an Impression) and that is what I see ...

---

Greetings, Mr. L,

    I agree with you that many factors are causing some sellers' dips in sales. But some sellers are actually doing better...'Tis a puzzlement!" (from The King And I)... But I also think that factors such as a seller's price, competition, promotions, and even listing new and different items just may have a part to play as well.

   After adding about 10% more listings in a new category last month, this is what my listing impressions and listing views today show for ~the last month (the previous month they were down about 20%):

I don't have all the answers. But I think the idea is to hang in there and somehow modify one's business model to accommodate the current circumstances.

Cheers, Duffy