So who else has been seeing a pattern of alternating good/bad days since mid Feb?

[blurryrobot]

Because I sure seem to have that going. 

It's not as visible in my "number of sales graph".  Some of those "good" (mediocre) days I sell 5 items to make the total, other days 10, but Ebay seems to be doing some sort of rationing here since mid-Feb based on how many dollars they think I should be making per day. 

I can't see any other way to get such a clearly inorganic pattern. Suspect there is code that looks at day 1's sales and if they seem 'excessive' it clamps down somehow on day 2.    And the reverse, if they seem 'insufficient'.  And I think that whatever constants they are using, are turned up too high, which is making this visible as an alternating overshoot / undershoot. 

Now, some of you are going to look at the daily average and think, well, that seems pretty good. But in fact it's terrible.  Because my livelihood is running a full on curio shop with a good proportion of my inventory listed, 6000+ items.    

But regardless of what level sales should be, they should NOT be so obviously alternating like that.  
THAT is not organic.   That is not recession.  That is clear manipulation by the platform. 
And counterproductive to themselves too, because they get a percentage of sales. 

For goodness sake Ebay, TAKE your fees.  But let my customers shop!

[partfinds]

My pattern is worse with the past week or so 60% down sales. I get 1 day sale and then at least 3 days of 0. 

[blurryrobot]

Fine, I'll ask myself, since I *run* a small brick and mortar store. 

[traditonalproducts]

My graph is far worse than that with the extreme highs/lows. I am 4% down compared to the previous 30 days.

[kathieskorner]

I keep weekly stats - not enough sales to look at a daily chart even though I continually have around 950 listings spread over four accounts.  What I have noticed for the past 18 months - I rarely have to go to the post office on Mondays - for me weekend sales have all but disappeared.   I used to go to the post office M-W-F and sometimes Saturdays.  Now I am on a T-F schedule - on days when I have one small item - I just put it in my mailbox for the carrier to pick up.  Saving a lot of gas at least.

For the past couple of weeks I think unusual weather may be a factor when to comes to sales which have been down overall - I have had only one Western state sale since Feb 15,  and the West would normally have accounted for 30% of my sales.    Weather could be playing a part in your chart for the past 31 days. 

[clown_car_driver]

I have owned and managed  a LOT of B&M stores.

There is not rhyme or reason to sales/traffic.

I've tried for YEARS to figure out a predictable pattern.

(To that, and the lottery and my wife's drifting moods)

I spent three days once .. THREE DAYS and saw nobody walk into my store.

Scary as hell.  

Then ... it was like a tourist bus pulled up in front, and I did three days worth of sales in six hours.

Reason?  Ha ... I dunno.

I remember asking one of the customers in the store "which one of you is the bus driver?"

But, look at what's been going on recently.

The weather in this country has been AWFUL.

Does that have an effect?  On mood?  Shopping patterns?

We'll know in a few weeks - the weather will change.

The economy has been worsening .. people are tightening belts.

Does that have an effect?  On mood?  Shopping patterns?

We'll know in a few months - the current socialist regime will leave the White House and us evil Capitalists will come back.

Till then, we can sit and wonder.