The exit strategy has begun!

[bmp_auto_salvage]

Hello Everyone,

It saddens me to do this but as of yesterday I've made up my mind to no longer choose to sell on eBay full time. I have been doing so since I was 18 (almost 30 now) and it went from something which I truly loved to do and was excited about to completely dreading. I started with a small 5x5 storage unit where I would store my parts to a 1300 SQ FT warehouse with thousands of dollars in heavy duty shelving, a forklift,  office, lift and more. My reason for leaving all this hard work behind stems from the lack of respect and protection in which they give us (the sellers) as well as the most greed filled, disgusting, policy yet, the additional 4% hit on final value fees for "high returns". I average about $15,000 in sales a month and between my "anchor" store and final value fees I believe eBay is paid quite well. Now, for reasons out of your control if a buyer opens a return and claims the item as "defective" even when it may not be we take that hit. I sell auto parts and it is a tough gig, buyers usually do not have a full understanding as to what it is they are buying or simply have a remorse return for a misdiagnosed part and unfortunately we take the hit. Just yesterday I sold an air bag (non deployed of course) and the buyer stated it "does not work" now, nothing short of the buyer installing the bag into the vehicle and driving it straight into a wall would this return make any sense. Very upset about this, I called eBay and explained the situation to a staff member, he completely agreed with me however stated that I "cannot have this defect removed" which then causes my return rate to go "up". I am sorry but a 3% return rate in no way shape or form should be considered "high" nor should a 3.50% be "very high" and subject me to an additional 4% final value fee. This whole comparing you to your "peers" is absolute garbage and just an excuse for them to pocket an extra $600 from me a month (on average ). I am disgusted with this and no longer going to invest my time into a company which treats its sellers so poorly. I have since switched all my items from same day handling to one day handling and have begun my new path into the real estate market. After completion of my course I already have a company ready to take me in (its always good to know people). From then on my handling time will be switched to 3 or 4 business days and as I build a new career for myself I will put eBay on the back burner and slowly transistion out of this market until a good chunk of my higher ticket items are sold here and then sell off the rest of my warehouse and supplies such as the racks, fork lifts, etc, in due time. It is something that truly pains me but I cannot take this blatant disrespect and abuse from eBay and the scammer buyers alike. I have put forth neraly 12 years of my life selling on here but I just cannot take it anymore. My stress levels are through the roof, everytime I get a return I get this pain in my gut and I have more grey hairs than a 30 year old should. At the end of the day I'm truly looking forward to this new route I am taking and one thing I'd like for eBay to remember is that they did this to themselves and I am sure more, now than ever sellers like myself are leaving this platform and either seeking new platforms or taking new career paths as well due to eBays greed and blatant disrespect to its foundation which helped make it what it is, the sellers.

[rainbowcolorz]

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@hudsonvalleyartandantiques wrote:

search for earl nightengale this will help you

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What  ??

[hillbillymedia]

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@zamo-zuan wrote:

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@hillbillymedia wrote:

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@gramophone-georg wrote:

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@goodluckselling wrote:

All I did was point out what eBay defines a peer as,  and also pointed out the areas you want to be part of the formula and wondered why you would think those areas have anything to do with an SNAD and or return against your ratings?

Because you have more transactions makes sense you will hit the minimum number easier than a lower transaction seller but they will also fall of the back end quicker as well, so as you make changes to limit these events your number gain in standings.

It does not seem to matter how much you sell for this rating.  It is about other sellers with like items at similiar prices and policies, which are comparable in a refined group to see how each rates against each other.   It is completely probable that different products  would have different sets of peers for that product.

I am not sure where this whole thing about calling you a liar is coming from?

Good Luck Selling!

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It really doesn't matter what the raison du jour or the "metric" is... when you need to start backing into a profit by cutting payroll and creating backdoor revenue sources you got serious probs... and eBay has done both recently.

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I agree. All we have to do as reasonable, thinking human beings is ask ourselves a question Q. Which is more likely?

Option A:  A giant corp. like ebay fudging "statistics" here and there to generate more revenue

Option B: Sellers that have been selling on ebay for years continually being "conspiracy theorists"

I love it when people tell me I`m not seeing what I`m seeing. It`s like if they keep saying it long enough it will become true.

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If we're talking about fudged statistics, another blatant example is the "trending rates" of sponsored listings. We did some research on this one too. We looked at which competitors are doing sponsored listings, and how often these sponsored listings are appearing in search.

Funny how if you do sponsored listings with 1%, you appear just as much as competitors, when the supposed "trending rate" is above 5%. 

This is besides the fact that there's not many sellers with competitive prices on the sponsored listings, and you can network with them and inquire their rates, and find they are nowhere near the trending... 

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Bingo Zamo!....."trending rates" of sponsored listings is a perfect example of what I`m talking about.  Most of those "trending rates" are crazy! Ebay can`t convince me sellers are paying that "trending rate" or can even afford to pay the rates they are suggesting. Why would I (or anyone) pay a 17% sponsored listing rate on top of regular FVFees on an $8 item? No way ebay is going to convince me 1 seller paid an additional 17% let alone enough sellers to garner a "trending rate" LOL.

"Trending price" is another dosey. According to Ebay: "Trending price is based on prices over the last 90 days". Is this "trending price" based on ALL conditions from Brand New to Acceptable? Is it based on ALL sales? If so were other items included in some of these sales? Was shipping included in the final price? Did ALL these sellers have 100% feedback rating? Were ALL these sellers top rated? There are so many variables they couldn`t possibly give an accurate "trending price".

The "peer" metrics are just as skewed as the rest of the "statistics" Ebay provides. Let`s face it....Ebay isn`t known for their transparency, accuracy or attention to detail. They can`t even get their site running properly or keep it running properly. I hardly get returns so I really don`t have any skin in the game luckily. It does weigh heavily on me that some people pay more than me based on super secret "peer" metrics that common sense tells me are skewed.

It won`t be long now and I`m going to have to trust them handling my money? I used to love ebay but I don`t love what this site has become and I`m obviously not the only one. I`m saddened by this.

[wickedwolfauto]

@hudsonvalleyartandantiques wrote:

search for earl nightengale this will help you

What  ??

Its a book, quick read.  I've read it multiple times, its a great book. 

[futuretomorrow]

@hillbillymedia

As insane as that is I completely believe it. What I didn't mention in my initial response was the store downstairs is part of a small franchise and is the smallest location. All returns combined from all 6 stores in NJ alone is probably half a 18 wheeler if not at least 1 weekly. If we add their NY locations then forget it. Still way under AutoZone I would imagine but this helps to paint a clearer picture for others of how challenging AZ's category is, especially with eBay's rules.

[ifyouloveit]

It is a posting ID, not my main account, fault finder 🙂

[soccerteeth]

I just read today that the other big site "the so-called river" is dropping its fees in a lot of categoris starting feb 19.  It was just announced so Im sure we'll see more about it. If that place opens a collectables market, look out!  Sellers have been so mistreated here that theyll go anywhere else promising. 

We sell hundreds of thousands per year, for years and have been closed now for almost a month.  Weve done everything in our power to stay at the top and have but, the constant psychological battle has taken a toll to the point of us closing for a while to figure out what we really want to do.  We were growing nonstop for a decade until mid years crazy changes.  Weve havent been able to get much new stuff done as we were constantly fighting to not lose it and dealing with a site with so many errors.

  We were on target to have our biggest year ever and the rug was pulled out from under us.  We had our greatest sales months ever breaking 50k a month.  Interest in our category hasnt decreased and were still doing well enough elsewhere.

We gave up in November. Something that was somewhat fun in the past became much more work for less money with less confidence that spending hours and hours tweaking was going to make a difference this time.

A lot of the changes were just terrible for sellers. I dont like a lot of changes over the years and havenet complained but this year was different.

[hugnkiss33]

I agree with the OP. Even 4 years ago, selling was better on ebay. I've had my third bogus return request in a month and I'm done. This time I refused it and I'm terrified that the buyer is going to purposely destroy my item just to prove that it was damaged. If eBay hadn't allowed them to get away with this for so long, then maybe they wouldn't be blatantly trying to return things when they know the product is fine.

Is the "big river" the thing that starts with an A?

Honestly, I sense a class action lawsuit coming for eBay. If they continue to side in the buyer's favor, causing the seller to lose money, someone is eventually going to be sick of it and file a lawsuit against eBay. We're not only losing the money from the returns but from the bogus negative feedback.

[hugnkiss33]

I would gladly pay higher fees to the river if they're going to have my back as a seller

[moopsliveson4ever]

Congradulations, enough is enough. Best of luck whatever you do. you are sooo right in your comments concerning ANY  respect for sellers.

[seattlesportstuff]

Everything ebay does is geared towards becoming Chinesebay.

[one_time_deal]

You are NOT alone, there are hundreds, if not thousands, of current sellers on their way off this platform. We enjoy great success of other very main stream platforms that appreciate their sellers and actually protect them and care about them......hence why ebay has struggled to maintain sellers and profit and why other platforms have emerged and are now very mainstream giants..........most of the problems at ebay come straight from the top, that's why their COO went to Intel as CEO, ebay fired all its mid level managers between 2015-16, outsourced 80% of their customer service reps (good luck speaking to a non-specialist who doesn't have an Asian accent), continues to release buyer friendly policies and hit sellers with increased fee %'s, store subscriptions increases, etc etc etc.....and let's not mention the horrible feedback issue sellers deal with on dishonest buyers, regardless of how much proof you have, as the seller (in ebay's eyes) you're always wrong! The time to leave has long been on the front burner, just glad we don't have all our eggs in one basket. Don't get me wrong, every selling platform has its challenges and mishaps, but NONE value the buyer 110% vs the seller 0% like ebay. We wish everybody the best of luck and congrats on your endeavors, we hope to continue doing good business with all the wonderful sellers we've come across, whether here or beyond.

[allstar-comics]

Congratulations, you are moving forward.  I'm stuck trying to figure out what is next for me and my family.  Its obvious the situation here is going to continue to get worse for sellers.

[around-the-block]

I am going to sell through my remaining inventory and be done as well. I am not buying for resell anymore. I can't sell on Amazon because I am brand gated, so I will just find some other way to make extra money. I am basically slaving away and spending an extra 20 hours a week on top of my 40 hour job to break even or lose money on every sale. The only person making money from my sales is ebay and paypal. It's just not worth it.

[fairdeal*lb]

I'm so sorry,  oh yeah on so many levels your not the only one. A new surprise virtually every day. The platform has changed even more so to accommodate predator buyers. I'm rewarding employees in reducing our ebay exposure.