Just when I thought it was on...

[movieman630]

Traffic and sales were NON-existent today.  The patterns here are just so odd anymore.

Is it just me or does everything here seem overly orchestrated?  It just doesn't have the same operational feel as it did even 5 years ago.  I can't put my finger on it but things just don't feel like they are operating like the "well oiled machine" it used to be.

Is it too much to wish things could just be straight forward? 

I miss the good ol' days of ebay.

[chapeau-noir]

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@reallynicestamps wrote:

@chapeau-noir  East Coast coffee break shoppers.

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I've wondered for years what it could be, because my sales come from all over at that time. 🤔

[meme6253]

Sorry but I hate hearing all that, Change to what?, Adapt to what?, Like you know what the next best thing is, How can you expect sellers to suddenly just change their inventory constantly, There is actually a severe problem here, It is brought up every year, Year after year, Sellers complaining including myself & nothing done about it!, Just try to pacify us with you need to change your inventory, you need to lower your prices, you need to adapt, C'mon Man.

[meme6253]

It's not the inventory, everything can sell, to anyone on any given day, It needs to get in front of eyes!

[robbie31415]

You can hate hearing it all you want.

Plenty of sellers are driving good traffic and doing just fine.

The forums are a poor reflection of the actual state of eBay.

Majority of people I see complaining here have a lot of issues with their listings. They don't seem to spend the time to optimize to drive traffic.

Maybe it's because I've ran multiple websites. Having a good service or product is a small part. The majority is how to optimize to get the best placements.

I reviewed the OPs listings. I see a lot of issues that would reduce placement and reach.

[yuzuha]

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@meme6253 wrote:

Sorry but I hate hearing all that, Change to what?, Adapt to what?, Like you know what the next best thing is, How can you expect sellers to suddenly just change their inventory constantly, There is actually a severe problem here, It is brought up every year, Year after year, Sellers complaining including myself & nothing done about it!, Just try to pacify us with you need to change your inventory, you need to lower your prices, you need to adapt, C'mon Man.

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You do need to change your inventory and adapt, though. Even B&M stores change up their inventory on a regular basis-- they may carry some staple items, but they also add new things and drop older things to stay fresh. I work B&M retail and while we have some steady product lines, a lot of our other inventory is constantly being rotated in and out/adjusted based on what is currently selling well and what isn't. The stuff that is no longer selling well goes to the clearance shelf and steadily drops in price until it's finally gone.

[chevymontecarlo88]

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@meme6253 wrote:

It's not the inventory, everything can sell, to anyone on any given day, It needs to get in front of eyes!

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Of course it is (inventory) but there are other variables in play. (price, availability and need to name a few) I buy a lot of items monthly and look through every item in certain categories. I never have missed an item or had one hidden from my search query. Every seller gets an even chance to sell me their gear. My buying habits are determined by what I am looking for, not just because something is listed.

If your items are not getting views, one could advertise them. That does not guarantee it will sell quickly but will put more eyes on it.

[the-hook-and-the-loop]

It's 100% eBay and the need/desire to control every aspect of every sale. While they continue to chase ad fees from sellers, they lose millions daily in what would have been organic sales.

[adamcartwright]

@movieman630

Last time you complained about low sales and expressed concern about feeding your kids, someone tried pretty hard to make the case that you should get a vasectomy.

I see today's crowd is going with the more traditional advice, such as changing up your inventory and running promos.

[jonesdm63]

About 3 weeks ago I could not log in from my mobile device. After I entered my user name and password pushed enter and a page came up telling me I was a bot.  I am a mainly a seller, so how can this be? I tried my desktop and I could sign in, so I am not a bot on a desktop.How many people that are buyers are having this happen to them and they go somewhere else to shop?. Most people are shopping from their mobile devices nowadays! Ebay what updates have you added to the web site? You just might be chasing customers away!

[chariot_badges]

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@adamcartwright wrote:

@movieman630

Last time you complained about low sales and expressed concern about feeding your kids, someone tried pretty hard to make the case that you should get a vasectomy.

I see today's crowd is going with the more traditional advice, such as changing up your inventory and running promos.

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Next door neighbor was crying on my doorstep the other day.  She has four kids ... each about 9 months and four days apart in age ... I won't comment on that.
Her two year old locked the bathroom door and she didn't know how to unlock it.  Had a newborn hooked up to the right side the whole time she's talking to me.

She finally whined, "I just don't know what to doooooo ..."

I said, "Well, if you're looking for advice, I could suggest ... birth control ..."

My wife said that was mean ... but, why do I have to help raise her kids?

Honestly though, I think it's the economy.

People are scared.  Elections are very important, we're fighting two wars ... soon to be three when China jumps on Taiwan.  People are getting cars repossessed, utilities turned off, empty refrigerators.   Crime has gone off the charts in big cities, homelessness like never before, and thousands of criminals per day stream across our borders.

Ebay is the least of our worries.

Really.

[adamcartwright]

@chariot_badges 

I agree about the economy, crime, and homelessness.

My state has been hit hard on all three fronts.

But on a human note, how about being neighborly and helping her unlock the bathroom door?

[my-cottage-books-and-antiques]

@worldwide_ship 

Can't say for sure that it is causing problems, but you are right that we are coming up on the Fall Seller Update, probably in a week or two, and ebay might be making changes in the background in advance of some of the changes to be announced. That's been pretty standard for years.

With Q4 officially launching in less than 2 weeks, any lull in sales is a good time to focus on any preparations that haven't been completed....check shipping supplies, list more inventory if you have it to list, maybe schedule out some discount sales, etc. I can understand the OP's anxiety, but my philosophy is: ebay will do what ebay will do, and we can only do what we can do. So just keep on doing....

[mynewfindstore]

Well, all I know is that I had a no sale day the other day and again yesterday....and today is looking like it is going to be another one!  I can't even tell you how many years it's been since this has happened.  We are listing more items since a few weeks ago and had our best weekend in years the weekend after Labor Day.  Now it's gone downhill for no reason.  eBay must be making some huge changes to the site....that would be the only reason.  We sell on two other platforms and we are still making sales on both.  eBay used to be the biggest source of income but now it's slipping....sad!

[my-cottage-books-and-antiques]

I agree that it could be the result of something eBay is working on in the background. But I also don't think we should dismiss the fact that you are getting sales on other sites... The explanation may be as simple as: those sites are doing an effective job of attracting buyers , and eBay is not doing such an effective job.

[fashunu4eeuh]

@movieman630 wrote:

“…sales were NON-existent today.”

On 9-18 you got 4 more sales than i did, so describing one’s sales as “non-existent” is not wholly accurate. 

Please note: i am not saying that your frustration is baseless. It is understandable when one has over 4500 active listings, and then makes only four sales in a day’s time. Sure that must feel like inconsequential results.

Looking at your overall sales, your business seems very healthy to an outside observer. You have made thousands of sales with an infinitesimal percentage of buyer issues.  Why sweat one “off” day as if it is indicative of a greater problem? Especially when you’ve got such a fantastic record? In the overall scheme of things, some down times can be attributed to normal variations in retail sales.

Myself, i’ve never had expectations for daily sales. Monthly sales goals make more sense, at least for the niche i sell in.