Profitable?

[allthings-collectible]

Before I begin, let me first acknowledge those of you who have been unaffected by all the glitches, all the down time, and all the effects of eBay's "exciting new features!", that we've experienced in the last 6-months or so. In fact, you may even be unaffected by our slumping economy. If that describes you, then congratulations! Does this mean that you have achieved some kind of eBay seller "guru" status? Well, um....nope. Because if anyone followed your advice, then they would see their sales normalize, improve, or maybe even increase right? Unfortunately, that ain't happenin'.

So, if in fact your sales are normal or even increasing, great, but you cannot expect that the majority of sellers represented here are less experienced or doing it all wrong. As a 24-yr seller, I've endured countless changes, including policy & platform changes, buying trends, changing market values, 2008, and I sold a few things along the way. But this year is significantly different, especially as a "for-profit" business. The numbers speak for themselves.

In fact, below you will see the YTD sales data from one of my stores. What do notice? Anything stand out to you?

 

 

[chariot_badges]

Not a bad way for eBay to line it's pockets with more seller dollars IF the seller pool was expanding. 

But it's not.

And despite what some of the cheerleaders think, Ebay's own numbers show it's seller pool is contracting. 

Two points:

1)  Ebay is a publically traded company.  They are responsible for the profitable management of the company and for posting profits to the shareholders, and investors.  Some of those investors are small fry who like me put their shares into the 401k and count on those profits to feed me so that YOU don't have to.  

2)  One of the things that a well managed company has to come to grips with is the fact that it is not profitable to have ALL of the business.  After owning and operating a brick-n-mortor store for a few years I came to the conclusion that there was about 20% of my customers that cost me more than I made from them.  I not only didn't care if they went to my competition - I encouraged it.  As a seller (and ebay IS a seller) it is important to recognize the 80/20 rule.   20% of your customers require 80% of your time and effort, and 80% require 20% of your time and effort.   What's wrong with working less and making the same?  I understand eBay's perspective.  

I don't like it - but I understand it.

[sextons-sweet-deals]

what is the selling cost break down?

I just ran a report a few days ago and my selling cost was 25%+ and I was shocked, but then I noticed that eBay is including my shipping labels purchases. 

Don't really understand that format. I think that should be separate number calculation. 

[greatmidwestcoin]

I believe that's a broad assumption or statement that ...."this was never meant to last." I mean seriously, hindsight is a no-brainer. I suppose when we were flying people to land on the moon, anyone at that time could say ....."well this is not going to last." or ......"I got up this morning, but that's not going to last." No one can predict what will be selling or what won't 5 or 10 years from today. Nobody could have surely stated 25 years ago that what was selling then won't be today. The pandemic proved that in many cases. Just say'in.

[my-cottage-books-and-antiques]

@allthings-collectible I stand corrected. You said you have gone multi channel. The implication that others perhaps should try it seems couched in this: 

"... That's what every seller must reconcile as we enter the bowels of today's eBay. For myself, the profit hemorrhage has forced me to diversify to other platforms and other venues. For those fairly new at selling or thinking about doing this full-time, I would strongly suggest looking closely at your costs and net profits. The easy reselling days are over...."

and this: " My post is entirely focused on the reality of what eBay has become, what it means for sellers, and what strategies are needed to survive."

As to "the easy reselling days are over"....seems to me, chapeau was making the same point...And your suggestion "look closely at your costs and net profits" is sound business advice, but it is true here or anywhere else. 

I am all in favor of sellers knowing their numbers, here or anywhere. I'm all in favor of sellers exploring their options, including multi channel selling, and also including changing what they sell, making other changes to their overall strategy etc. I think we are in agreement on all those things.

As to what ebay "has become"? Well, tell me, what has it become? 

[greatmidwestcoin]

What has eBay become? To me, eBay is the same as it was 25 years ago. I have been here for over 23 years. Why do I say that? I look around at my life in general at age 66. What do I see? More people, more businesses, more products, higher taxes, higher everything. That has been the cycle of life in the US for decades. eBay equates to that line of "mores". More buyers, more sellers, more products, higher fees, etc. I really don't see any differences. Just my thoughts. I am positive others may see it differently.

[greatmidwestcoin]

Kind of like, I now have the winning lottery number that was drawn yesterday. LOL!

[stainlessenginecovers]

---

@allthings-collectible wrote:

Correct. Store is set to 7.5% PL. Also, used "Send Offer" feature on all watchers. 

---

Your PL must be set MUCH higher than that...more like 22%!

 (36.1% as shown, 22% above and beyond 14% (rounded)). 

[chapeau-noir]

---

@greatmidwestcoin wrote:

What has eBay become? To me, eBay is the same as it was 25 years ago. I have been here for over 23 years. Why do I say that? I look around at my life in general at age 66. What do I see? More people, more businesses, more products, higher taxes, higher everything. That has been the cycle of life in the US for decades. eBay equates to that line of "mores". More buyers, more sellers, more products, higher fees, etc. I really don't see any differences. Just my thoughts. I am positive others may see it differently.

---

That was my whole point.

ETA: Although eBay is NOT the same as it was 25 years ago - it can't be. Everything evolves.

[allthings-collectible]

Not just PL my friend...

" *Includes all eBay fees and the amount you paid to buy shipping labels on eBay, if applicable."

[tobaccocardyahoo]

Your numbers look fairly similar to mine.

Your average sale has dropped from ~$35 to ~$25 which means that your selling costs are rising. That first drop on shipping costs and the fixed portion of the FVF are impacting your costs and profits.

If you, like I, consider what you are actually selling when choosing what to offer, you may be feeding the drop in sale price. I find myself listing item at the lower end of the price range with more frequency because I am selling cheaper items and need to replenish what I sell.

We contribute to the changes in our results, and need to try to optimize the return on our efforts. The only numbers I look at on a consistent basis are my 30 day sales total and my average sale. And I have targets for both numbers.

My average sale this year is $25, last year was $35 and adding bigger ticket items to my offers is not generation enough sales to bring the average up. That is probably a reflection on the economic situation for the buyers of what I sell.

[cardxcraft]

Are you calling postcards old stuff that no one wants?  I agree, they may be old stuff but they're also one of the biggest sellers in the collectibles market.  

[diane1959]

But her selling costs have ballooned from 14% in 2022 to 36% in 2023 - She almost sold double the amount of items 822 in 2023 compared to 468 in 2022 ( so working much harder in 2023 - listing, packing, materials) and netted a little over 3K more. Thats the impact of having to promoted items at a high rate if you are in saturated categories like clothing.   I feel the pain because I am in the same boat. More sales but way less dollars. 

[gone.c-33]

---

@allthings-collectible wrote:

Although I appreciate your need to defend chapeau-noir's response, I can't help but notice that you are also very careful of your criticism of eBay. Diluting eBay's current choices with broad realities doesn't cut it for me personally. Over-crowded seller space, changing nature of the workplace, changing seller demographics are all related forces of retail in general. The same can and was said of Sears, K-Mart, Toys-R-Us, J. C. Penney etc. But, what happened to them? Well, they too tried to make changes to keep them afloat during desperate times but their demise was bankruptcy. Obviously, they made mistakes and sank.  That is why its imperative for sellers like us to carefully inspect the ship. 🙂

---

In this example, Sears, K-Mart, Toys r Us are sellers and eBay is the mall. Stores that closed down because their business model didn’t fulfill today’s needs and they were replaced by others. Maybe not all mall spaces were filled up but the malls stayed open.

[ed8108]

---

@bill.purvis2012 wrote:

 I seek out deals, am more selective. I buy for $.25 and sell for $20.  Or $10 and sell for $100.  Yes. It's a buyer's market.  Example: Just bought an item for $6 and sold overnight for $80.  There's always a way to roll with the punches.  

---

Your competitors will now know how to roll with the punches, paying more than you would pay.

[cardxcraft]

The mall analogy you're using doesn't work and never has.  As a mall space renter you pay for a store front, and we have done that with our store fees.

The mall owner, Ebay, has decided to litter our rental space with the competitors neons signs.  

On top of this, the mall owner has put their locked door in front of our door and the only way to let a few customers in is we have to pay the mall owner an extortion fee, a percentage of our sales.  The more extortion money we pay the mall owner, the more customers he'll let in. 

Then one day, the mall owner, feeling more and more like a mobster, decides that a percentage of the fees aren't enough.  So, he comes up with a shakedown method where we pay him up front, cold hard cash, to let customers in.  (PLA).

Its not the economy folks

-The Monopoly Guy from Ace Ventura