Is eBay gouging us sellers?

[pnwgooddeals]

So my auction ends with a .99¢ bid and I end up owing EBay more than the final value lol. I was -0.07! Now I know they’re a rip off but when you have pay on top of making nothing that’s crazy! My recent auction ended at $2.99 and I get a whopping.87¢ after shipping. Sorry for the rant but please share your negatives about corporate greed too😊

[maxine*j]

It is not eBay's fault that you use auctions and that you use starting bids that don't even cover your costs, much less make a profit.  All the fees are upfront.

Why do you do that?  Fewer than 15% of sales on eBay are through auctions, because most people nowadays don't like them.  They don't want to wait to see if they won and, if so, how much it's going to cost them.   They also attract a fair number of gameplayers, who like to nibble and sport bid, with no intention of paying if they do win an auction.

Despite all that, if you do think auctions are still right for you, why do you not make the opening bid the minimum amount you need to make it worth your while to auction the thing at all?

I don't see any "corporate greed" here.  I see a seller who needs to rethink his approach to selling, which has changed a lot on eBay in the past ten years.

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[bonjourami]

The fees are the fees, plain and simple. Its hardly worth it to list such low cost items.Why wouldnt you check those before even listing?

[inhawaii]

Is eBay gouging us sellers?

No. 

Selling on ebay is voluntary.

If you're ok with the fees you sell here.

If you're not ok with the fees you don't sell here.

Do I wish the fees were lower? Of course I do.  Who wouldn't.

[monroe67]

Oh, I do have a few "negatives" about corporate greed.  

They do not concern eBay.   
(However:  International Oil Companies, anybody?)

I have made it my business, for my eBay selling ID, to look up, learn, and know the fee schedule, fee policies, and fee procedures.  When I sell a piece of Joan Rivers' fashion jewelry on eBay, I know that eBay's fee will be 15% of the Total Amount Paid By The Buyer.  When I sell a vintage sewing pattern, I know that the fee will be 13.25% of the Total Amount Paid By The Buyer.  

My most recent sale was one of those "vintage" sewing patterns.  I had it listed for $5.00 with buyer-paid shipping.  My payout was $3.92.  I cannot rant about that.   Because I KNOW and ACCEPT the terms of selling on eBay.  

I wonder a lot about "common" sense.   I remember when I was first buying and starting to think about selling on eBay, a good 20 years ago.  I would see auction listings for a wide variety of things, with bidding starting at $0.99.  And I still see listings with tiny prices like that.  I cannot understand that, and never could.

What kind of "logic" are those sellers using?  Why would anybody try to list a perfectly good book or coffee cup or sweater or any Thing at all, really -- for only Ninety-Nine Cents?  Somebody might actually win the auction for Ninety-Nine Cents!!  Why not just give it away?  

[inhawaii]

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@pnwgooddeals wrote:

So my auction ends with a .99¢ bid and I end up owing EBay more than the final value lol. I was -0.07! Now I know they’re a rip off but when you have pay on top of making nothing that’s crazy! My recent auction ended at $2.99 and I get a whopping.87¢ after shipping. Sorry for the rant but please share your negatives about corporate greed too😊

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If your 99 cent auction closed for $100, then ebay's fees would be ok?

If your $2.99 auction closed for $200, then ebay's fees would be ok?

So it appears ebay is not the problem.

The problem is your business model.

Ebay is up front with what their fees are.

Set up your listings so that after paying ebay's fees you make what you want to make (or more).

Very simple.

[robbie31415]

One of the risks of staring a .99 auction.

Your starting price should be something you won't end up in the negative at in the very least.

[janet9988]

You new the costs before you listed.

It is not gouging.

[soh.maryl]

You have been selling on eBay for a pretty long time.  You presumably knew the fee schedule.

Yet you chose to list an item starting at 99 cents.  And this is evidence of eBay's gouging how? 

[meme6253]

That is one reason I do not do auctions, I have heard to many nightmares, & When I did choose to do them I never did very well, BIN is all I do!

[meme6253]

Common Sense is not taught in school, So nobody has it anymore!

[yuzuha]

If you list an auction with a starting bid of .99, you need to be prepared to sell it for .99 because it might only get one bid.

Never start an auction for a price that's lower than you're willing to take in the event that it does in fact only get one bid.

[gwens*4saleitems*]

I don't do auctions, and especially starting at 99 cents but I do know that IF I sold hand tools that I just found my source for inventory. 😉

[yoonix1]

Yes, it's a such a waist of time and money for Sellers. It would be better just to donate your stuff to a local community for people in need. I don't do actions. Whatever doesn't sell goes to somebody who needs it.

[inhawaii]

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@meme6253 wrote:

Common Sense is not taught in school, So nobody has it anymore!

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I agree.

Common sense is no longer that common.