Ebay's total disregard for sellers...re: new 15 day limit on putting items on sale

[coniferclothingcompany]

I have been a seller for a few years, have done everything right according to Ebay, gone along with new policies (offer guaranteed delivery, free shipping, have 100% positive fb etc) and was a TPS Plus until the free shipping requirement. This morning I found out that Ebay has instituted a policy that an item that was on promotion cannot be put back on sale for 15 days. I sell clothing and this policy is going to significantly hurt my sales. Over the weekend I put a large part of my store on promotion and consequently had a significant boost in sales. I now can't put any of those items back on sale for 15 days. If I were to put some of these items back on sale next weekend and would get a similar boost in sales how is that a bad thing? I called Ebay and was told that buyers have complained about sellers marking items up and immediately putting them on sale. So instead of targeting those sellers and working with them Ebay institutes a blanket policy that affects all sellers. When I run a promotion it's generally 10-20% off. I do not mark up items before they go on sale. Increased volume of purchases as a result of a promotion is good for me and ultimately Ebay too. Also, there is no way to tell which items are eligible to be put on promotion. If I go to the promotions page and format a sale there is no indication as to which items are beyond the 15 day restriction. Finally, as a seller shouldn't I have received prior notice to this policy? I found out from another seller.

I have always been one to defend Ebay when others complain about policies as a great venue for selling but after they have made free shipping a requirement for TRS Plus and now this I am very discouraged. I would think I am the kind of seller Ebay wants to keep happy as I am making them money. It feels like Ebay is trying to get rid of sellers like me.

[luckyporkys]

Had to call 5 times to find out....................... been selling on Ebay 11 years........................ move older stock put on sale no more this could be the end of it for me......................  to many changes and not for the seller in mind  eBAY SAYS COME OVER HERE AND VOICE &^$^%$#&%(*&%%*&^)(&&_(

THIS SUCKS

[street*bandit]

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@dhbookds wrote:

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@street*bandit wrote:

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@dhbookds wrote:

might pay to read the

FTC GUIDES AGAINST DECEPTIVE PRICING

http://www.lawpublish.com/ftc-decprice.html

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what is this  in reply to

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The subject of pricing and sales.......  and perhaps is the reason ebay put the rules into effect..........

If you read the examples, some are very close to what people are doing and what the FTC labels as deceptive..........

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I guess I'm confused why you qoted me and put the link there.

I have ben reading this  thread.  I'm aware of wha is going on.

[coniferclothingcompany]

Doesn’t answer why those of us doing the right thing are being penalized. Go after those who are using these deceptive practices. I am not.

[hioctane62]

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@coniferclothingcompany wrote:

Doesn’t answer why those of us doing the right thing are being penalized. Go after those who are using these deceptive practices. I am not.

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Same reason we are all paying FVF's on S&H. Because it puts money in ebay's pockets. Now they can sell ad space on your listings for a full 2 weeks before you can mark them down to move them out.

[gew6463]

I understand that of course, having shopped at malls & department stores. The problem is, many buyers come to Ebay NOT to have that experience. And not to be disrespectful to you , but the comments I left for the others addressed very specific instances they mentioned. As I pointed out, buyers are passing up these 'just listed, but now on sale' listings. Now personally, I think they should just be ignored. I look at their listings and think "great, maybe I will get a buyer instead of them". It doesn't hurt me one bit. But I can understand why it irritates buyers. ALSO, your reply does not address the suggestion that 'newer, inexperienced sellers' should have this stipulation, and NOT expierenced sellers, when I clearly pointed out that the more experienced sellers (in my category at least) are the ones who abuse it the most. 

Having said all that...I don't understand the overly long period they are using for this rule. 15 days is just too long (unless I am missing something here in the logic). 5-7 days would seem to suffice. Does anyone know why they picked that timeframe?

[becky5481]

In terms of allowing them to reduce my set prices ---NO WAY IN HELL! What happens when they sell my item for less than I have to pay a client? OMG ...time to design my own website instead of this nonsense!

[coniferclothingcompany]

This  morning the brand of clothing I sell came out with new markdowns and I am faced with the choice of either editing my items' prices accordingly to keep them competitive or leaving them at the higher price to avoid resetting the clock on when I can put them on sale. It's not really a choice because I want to sell them so now they are all back to 14 days until they can be included in a promotion. This policy is strangling my ability to repond to the market as it changes. 

tyler@ebay

brian.t@ebay

[dhbookds]

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@gew6463 wrote:

I understand that of course, having shopped at malls & department stores. The problem is, many buyers come to Ebay NOT to have that experience. And not to be disrespectful to you , but the comments I left for the others addressed very specific instances they mentioned. As I pointed out, buyers are passing up these 'just listed, but now on sale' listings. Now personally, I think they should just be ignored. I look at their listings and think "great, maybe I will get a buyer instead of them". It doesn't hurt me one bit. But I can understand why it irritates buyers. ALSO, your reply does not address the suggestion that 'newer, inexperienced sellers' should have this stipulation, and NOT expierenced sellers, when I clearly pointed out that the more experienced sellers (in my category at least) are the ones who abuse it the most. 

Having said all that...I don't understand the overly long period they are using for this rule. 15 days is just too long (unless I am missing something here in the logic). 5-7 days would seem to suffice. Does anyone know why they picked that timeframe?

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As I understand it, the regular price has to be established as the usual price in order to justify the "sale" markdown, or it's deceptive according to the FTC.  To me, that means it has to be "the price" for at least 1/2 the time.......

[vintage_villages]

In most cases, I don't change prices at all even if it was listed a year ago. So the "regulations" does not apply to me at all, so why am I penalized for it?

If ebay is so worry about the regulations, why not have 2 or 3 days cooling period for "NEW" listing item?

[dhbookds]

@vintage_villages

Yes, you don't violate the rules, but others do.......and a lawsuit would be brought against Ebay for allowing it to happen.  With the rules they have put into place............it can't happen.............

[coniferclothingcompany]

So go after those that do and leave good sellers who provide great customer service and make Ebay money alone. It should not be mutually exclusive.

[tyler@ebay]

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@coniferclothingcompany wrote:

This  morning the brand of clothing I sell came out with new markdowns and I am faced with the choice of either editing my items' prices accordingly to keep them competitive or leaving them at the higher price to avoid resetting the clock on when I can put them on sale. It's not really a choice because I want to sell them so now they are all back to 14 days until they can be included in a promotion. This policy is strangling my ability to repond to the market as it changes. 

tyler@ebay

brian.t@ebay

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Hi @coniferclothingcompany - staying competitive is definitely important. With the new rules for Markdown Manager in effect as of this week, you are left with a choice to make as to how you want to discount items. 

In order to have items discounted via Markdown Manager, your items must have been listed for 14 calendar days at the same price.  In addition, the item must have not been included in another Sale event or markdown promotion within the past 14 days. We are working with the right teams to get this information added to the Promotions Manager help page. The Markdown tool does check listing eligibility regularly, and items will be included in the event as they qualify. 

If the price drop from your clothing brand is significant it may be worth adjusting the price now to match their standard, and then plan on a Markdown sale in the future. 

[coniferclothingcompany]

Thank you for coming here and responding Tyler but I feel like I am banging my head up against a brick wall. How do you suggest I set up a sale for say swimwear when each item has a different start date for the 14 day restriction? Ebay encourages editing of listings yet now when I edit I'm restarting the clock and further making it impossible for all items in a category to be eligible at the same time. 

tyler@ebay

[emerald40]

Why don't you just list the items at a fair price from the start?

[coniferclothingcompany]

@emerald40

I always do