Community Poll 2 : is GTC Good or Bad for your Business? After a month what are your thoughts?

[gotoguys2000]

Just a simple poll for the Community.

Do you think the GTC format is beneficial for your current eBay needs?

IF eBay gave you a choice???? 

Would you have said Yes or No to a GTC format?  This is a simple yes or  no question.

This was a very interesting poll posted about two weeks ago.  My sales are down approximately 40% from last month and I feel the GTC policy is the primary reason.     In my opinion It creates a lot more work/time to manage and takes a way the "sense of urgency" from potential buyers.  I feel is it horrible for small/mid size sellers and will result in additional fees if sellers are not  very careful. 

Now that it's approaching a month since it was made the only fixed price option to sellers, what is your opinion?

Thanks

[froggyjump]

The problem isn't GTC. It's a great idea. The exploitation of listing against your will is what the issue is, the money grab

The river is fine, my listings are GTC BUT they allow a vacation setting so you have time to go thru your listings, keep close tabs on exp. dates coming up, versus the amt of time the buyer has left to consume the item.

There are no vacation settings on ebay forcing you to work the entire listing time of 30 days and NOW it's forever. 30 days was long enough But the river, now, their vacation settings allow your store to go offline during the time you need to re-organize. Everyone needs time off and they should'nt be reduced to sending some lame unprofessional email telling customers you are gone and cannot ship the item until such and such date. The item should've have been for sale during your sickness (we all call in sick at traditional jobs eh?) or vacation if you cannot even ship.

Ebay is so messed up. Now the postage is being screwed with, constantly inserting back_to_classic. They don't care about their customers, their green eyes are always on gleening more $ from sellers thus have lost a ton of customers allowing the River to take over. End of rant 🙂

[frodobagginskennedy]

I think fee bay should not be making it mandatory.  Choice is what makes it a free market.  

I have been away for two weeks and pmy handling time to 20 business days,  Believe it or not my sales were strong even with GTC.  Still not a fan of it but if everyone is on the same playing field it seems to be OK. 

BTW....with my dad being so sick and I have been away more then home.  I have NOT listed anything new since November 2018!!

[rixstuff]

I am tempted to say that it has made ZERO difference but honestly, I have had an uptick in sales - mostly auctions.

GTC is the norm on nearly EVERY OTHER online venue.  I also recall not long ago when BEST OFFERS were the villain that was supposedly killing sales - while I did 2/3 of my sales with best offers.  There doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason - GTC items sell at full price just an hour after listing, or auctions get bids at the last minute, and of course offers still come in.

My thoughts are:  Whatever gets it sold.

[ravensbeak]

Big, fat... NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[dres52346]

I agree with you 100%. I'm cutting my listings as I do it as a hobby more or less and I'm not gonna turn it into a full time job watching when the listing are about over. Your very right about buyers waiting everything out. I've changed most of my listings to auctions and then if it doesn't sell off to the local auction house. They say if something isn't broke don't fix it and that is what EBAY has done to the buy now listings and the shipping labels.

[cr251]

hate it its bad waste of time cancelling everything or pay a big fee or price it cheaper so it for sure sells

[sharonc99]

No I would not choose GTC

[832paulr]

My sales are down about fifty percent, the worst change e bay has made in 12 years of selling. I do hope they will resend the change and go back. I need the BIN for some items, without the unlimited time. Please e bay make the change for my goodness sake. I like e bay and need the income to supplement my retirement income . Paul

[michael4finearts]

NO

[aaholcs]

No good, when items are renewed the 30 items that were listed one after another originally are getting split up or lost completly. I had a group that was renewed 9 hrs. ago and there are fivr of them that are still pending. They are listed as ending first and have no time listed for them the same group that was listed say 29 days and 15 hrs. Also the count is being changed several times a day. My listings used to always end as a group within a few minutes of each other ( the tine it takes to list a single item 2-3 minutes or if I relisted usually 5-10 items will end at the same time as I try to keep cents, with cents, nickels with nickels and so on when I relist) Now they are all over the place and the couts are wrong on howmany have been relisted after the 30 days. GET RID OF GOOD TIL CANCELLED

[lbz492]

I hate this GTC now. I sell a lot of random things and it there are a lot of factors if i relist the item or not. I am at the point now that I list the items and cancel them a day or two before because I don't want them listed again. It is a lot more more now.

[evry1nositswindy]

NO.  I have spent less time creating new listings and more time counting the number of old listings that will be renewing.  This weekend I am selling at an antique show and will take many of my items.  I have to end them just in case they sell there because I don't have internet service.  Previously I would not have those items listed in preparation for the show.  Big pain.  I would rather be creating new listings and rotating older ones.  I would rather have a choice of how to list my items rather than the choice taken away from me.

[fashion-lister]

I say NO to the GTC policy. My sales are down 50%! Private sellers and auctions go to the top of the lists I suppose. Small business sellers are suffering. I can not complete with the likes of Amazon, offering first class free postage and 30 day returns. The latest changes mean I'm thinking of giving up Ebay.

[jgierer1]

I've been a faithful Ebay seller/buyer since July 16, 1998 and I have felt proud that I kept the same ID and maintained a good feedback reputation all these years. Like so many of us who sell on this site, I have maintained a job in addition to selling on Ebay. It wasn't unusual for me to work 50 hrs a week at a job, come home from work, be a mom and wife, then spend 40+ hrs a week taking photos, listing, packing items, etc on Ebay. I kept up this schedule because it was worth it, for awhile. Once Ebay made it clear that Sellers, especially us smaller volume sellers weren't important (21 years later and I still can't wrap my head around their logic) coupled with all the changes we have been forced to accept through the years, I am of the attitude that Ebay just doesn't want us smaller sellers on their site. Our loyalty and the hard work it takes just doesn't matter. Ebay has become the real life boss most of have had to endure at one time or another who doesn't pay his/her faithful employees a fair wage, then puts employees on salary in order to make them work additional hours a week so he/she can put more money in their own pocket. With all the policy/procedural changes through the years, traditionally only beneficial for buyers, I expect in the very near future that Ebay will issue a notice to all that if we can't produce any sales within a three week period, we will be automatically terminated from using Ebay. Thank goodness we don't live in China where low producers are treated far worse. Ebay, you are cutting off your noses to spite your faces. Read the posts on your site.....you have succeeded in running off good people (which represent money) from your auction site with changes that make no sense to any of us.

[mpavlot]

It's too bad that Ebay does not listen to its users.  I have been a member since 1999 and like many other who have commented do Ebay as a side business.  The new GTC format has all but eliminated the small do it at home seller.  What is the sense of being offered 100 to 500 free listings now?  This is simply a money grab by Ebay to collect fees on the automatic renewal.  This was the final straw for me.  I have started to move all of my clothing sales to Poshmark with no listing fees.  Much easier format to list and sell and even a pre-negotiated price with the US Postal.  You mean to tell me with the volume that Ebay does they could not have worked out a fixed priority pricing with  US Postal like Poshmark did?  The elimination of the small seller started when we were forced to list returns and them forced to offer free returns.  I am not a store!!  Most small sellers sell one of a kind unique items that they no longer use or need but is still in great condition.  Now if I sell a $3.00 shirt and the buyer "doesn't like" the fit I have to pay for them to return it to me??  The GTC forced selling format is the worst!!  I can no longer see how my 30 day sales went and then decide to relist or not based on the # of free listing I had left.  Ebay you have SUCCEEDED IN CHASING ME AWAY.  No longer will I have more than 50 listings up for sale, meaning more stagnant listings.  No wonder the primary sellers are foreign cheap merchandise venders, Ebay has single-handedly eliminated the mom and pop sellers (the foundation of the business).  Talk about the left hand not knowing what the right hand is doing, look at this offer I just received from Ebay for free listings, "

Special offer: get 100 extra free fixed priced listings!

Offer valid for fixed price listings with 30-day or Good Til Cancelled duration."

REALLY, REALLY????  How do you offer me free listing of 30-day listings when they no longer exist.  This is like bait and switch and Ebay should be held accountable for this!  20 years selling on Ebay and now it is Good-bye.  Think they care???????????