eBay

jmbwise · ‎02-12-2018

The Amazon Drop ship items have overtaken ebay. They are easy to spot when you search for an item and find 10 or more ads that look identical except for the price and if you cross check the title back to Amazon you will find they are listing these items for pennies over cost. Herein lies my question and hopefully someone can explain it to me. I sold a kitchenaid coffee spice grinder for $44.95 I bought it for 39.95 with free prime 3 day shipping, but when I ordered the item Amazon charged the sales tax to the destnation address and of course Paypal got their fee. I think I cleared $1.04 but then I realized I forgot the roughly 10% that Ebay charges and so in reality I lost about $4.00 or so. What have I done wrong? Surely ebayers are not losing money hand over fist using Amazon. Please help me to understand what I'm missing?

klassic*kids · ‎02-12-2018

Leaving the A out of the equation altogether how did you expect to make a profit buying something for $39.95 and selling for $44.95? No profit margin whatsoever when you account for eBay and Paypal's fvfs. Sounds like you really need to find a better business model if you expect to make profit. Buy low, sell high.

I don't know how dropshippers do it but I presume they have a much higher markup.

PS: Are you saying the destination address (buyer) was charged sales tax? Never heard of that and am slightly confused.

Happy 2018! May this upcoming year be a prosperous one!

tunicaslot · ‎02-12-2018

Amazon charges state tax if shipments are sent to one of the 33 states they currently have an agreement with and the number is growing every day. States don't want to be out their sales tax for online purchases.

OP - I don't know how other drop shippers do it and I don't care. Drop shipping is making buyers on Ebay very upset. Many buy on Ebay as they don't like other stores like Amazon or Walmart - when they received the item dropshipped from another store - they definitely will let you know of their displeasure.

It's best if you just find a niche and purchase the items yourself to ship so that you have them in hand.

klassic*kids · ‎02-12-2018

wrote:
Amazon charges state tax if shipments are sent to one of the 33 states they currently have an agreement with and the number is growing every day. States don't want to be out their sales tax for online purchases.

Oh, gotcha. Thanks.

Happy 2018! May this upcoming year be a prosperous one!

fern*wood · ‎02-12-2018

I thought Amazon didn't allow members to use Prime shipping in this manner.

chrysylys · ‎02-12-2018

@jmbwise wrote:
What have I done wrong?

Dropshipped.

STOP doing that.

You most likley also violated the Item Location Misrepresentation policy.

Forget keeping up with the Joneses. Be the Finklegrubers!
OK kids, time to get the Dodge loaded up again. I hear 'Poppy's By the Tree' calling. This trip might be a long one too.

chrysylys · ‎02-12-2018

People like the OP being deceptive on where items are shipped from are why states are jumping on the bandwagon to increase tax collection and enforcement. They are also why we may sooner than later see a national sales tax on web purchases somehow.

I'd expect states to start going after sellers involved in this practice also to increase recordkeeping and reporting requirements and possibly business license fees.

Forget keeping up with the Joneses. Be the Finklegrubers!
OK kids, time to get the Dodge loaded up again. I hear 'Poppy's By the Tree' calling. This trip might be a long one too.

orangehound · ‎02-12-2018

wrote:
I think I cleared $1.04 but then I realized I forgot the roughly 10% that Ebay charges and so in reality I lost about $4.00 or so. What have I done wrong? Surely ebayers are not losing money hand over fist using Amazon. Please help me to understand what I'm missing?

It could have been much worse ... Amazon changes prices frequently, and it is not uncommon to see price swings of 20%. So this means you list that coffee maker one day thinking it sells for $39.95, but then the next day Amazon has the price at $49.95. You have to constantly monitor Amazon prices and adjust accordingly if you drop ship from them.

To see volatility on price, just go over to camelcamelcamel.com and paste the URL of the item's page.

Also, drop-shipping from Amazon is not a very wise business model ... though there are lots of courses and advice on doing it, I've never seen a seller who was successful with it (they may exist, but I've just never seen one). I can see a person making a few dollars with the model, but not making a living.

d-k_treasures · ‎02-12-2018

wrote:
I thought Amazon didn't allow members to use Prime shipping in this manner.

They don't. The OP will get their Prime account suspended if anyone reports them.

_____________________________
"Nothing is obvious to the oblivious"

chrysylys · ‎02-12-2018

wrote:
wrote:
I thought Amazon didn't allow members to use Prime shipping in this manner.
They don't. The OP will get their Prime account suspended if anyone reports them.

Which I would. And have.

I would also express my opinion for others to be warned by. And have.

Forget keeping up with the Joneses. Be the Finklegrubers!
OK kids, time to get the Dodge loaded up again. I hear 'Poppy's By the Tree' calling. This trip might be a long one too.

myangelandmyprincess · ‎02-12-2018

The seller charging just pennies more here may be the same sellers of it on amazon. Not Amazon customers just using their prime accounts. Sellers on Amazon who use the fulfillment by amazon

“Birth certificates show that you were born. Death certificates show that you died. Photographs show that you have lived.” -Unknown

dhbookds · ‎02-12-2018

listing these items for pennies over cost.

You have no idea what their costs are........ small sellers don't realize the volume these guys buy and from whom..... Containers (multiple) direct from factories are much cheaper than anything you can buy from a "wholesaler" here..... likewise those same sellers have programs that automatically adjust their prices (up and down) on multiple platforms as prices change to keep them in the game.

You are trying to do "retail" arbitrage which can work, but you really have to know what you are doing and be aware of what's going on at all levels, as you found out. You need to "study" up on it.....google for information.

webwanna · ‎02-12-2018

You didn't price the item high enough. I don't know the item specifics but maybe other sellers have a lower final item fee than you, & there are some Paypal accounts that have lower processing fees... it's all a numbers game down to the fraction of a percentage when you are trying to outprice items that 100 other sellers are listing. & Don't forget.... you may still get a return request....

It is hard to find items from dropshippers that you can actually make money on.... & it is difficult to ensure that your item will arrive on time if you have no control over the actual shipping process & it is impossible to ensure that you will not have to cancel because you don't maintain the inventory.

luckythewinner · ‎02-12-2018

What have I done wrong?

You already know exactly what you did wrong - you sold an item without understanding the costs and without accurately calculating the profit you would make.

Surely ebayers are not losing money hand over fist using Amazon. Please help me to understand what I'm missing?

I doubt many sellers are actively losing money doing this. But if you are asking how other sellers have gained a competitive advantage over you, I doubt any of them are going to share their secrets.

Let's face it - if buying items from a big box retailer and getting people to re-buy them from you at a profit was easy, then everyone here would be rich.

hawgryders · ‎02-12-2018

wrote:

listing these items for pennies over cost.

You have no idea what their costs are........

small sellers don't realize the volume these guys buy and from whom.....

Truer statements have never been written --- most people do not understand you make your profit when you buy - not when you sell ...