Very Slow and/or NO Sales

[dusabwl]

Are other small sellers seeing low sales (and views) in 2021? I had a similar (lower) number of sales YTD in 2020 which I figured was due to COVID, but I'm 50% down from the number of sales (not $$, but that's another story) vs. 2019 YTD. I have lots of items listed, however I'm also seeing low views. And those with high views aren't selling, even with me lowering prices weekly. Not sure if it's my particular items, or whether other small sellers are also seeing lower sales in 2021. What am I missing? Advice on what I can do differently? Thanks in advance for any insights.

[orod4610]

My Question is are you sure its christmas- this does not look like the christmas i know on ebay- WHAT THE HECK HAS HAPPENED- NO TOY SALES I MEAN ZERO- IN twenty years of selling on ebay- this is by far the most horrible i have ever done- It does not even feel like christmas- sold $167.02 in last 7 days- the best selling days of the year- again feebay is in the business of charging fees not selling your  goods !

I am out of here soon as i am waisting my money on fees to lose money- i am in the business to make money not pay fees, ad fees, shipping fees,chargeback fees, return fee, return shipping fees, and get nothing in return for my hard work except fees!  It all started going downhill with best match and never got good again.

SAD SAD SAD - They have gotten rid of so many sellers, sellers are the buyers- your not to big to fail ebay-

PEOPLE ARE CATCHING ON TO YOU !

Like me you will not be seeing my money for fees soon !
What have you done for me lately?????

I scratch your back and in return all i get are fleas!

[thejo-52]

have a sale for Pete's sake or make a coupon for people to use or sell similar if your items are over 30 days old put the work in or do you just like to store all your items for fun?

[femmefan1946]

@dusabwl  Raise your prices.

Many people think that when there are multiple discounts it's because the sale item is poor quality.

It won't hurt.

When you do this, first end the listing.

Then relist from your Unsolds, using Sell Similar for the tiny boost you get. The algorithms think you are making a new listing for different stock.

Viewers view. Watchers watch.

Buyers buy.

[my_boston_baked_beans]

You are not missing anything except $$ most sellers are these days!

As a buyer as well as a seller myself, if my sales are tanked, as they currently are, I am not going to spend $$ I do not have.

[closetavalanche]

Like many. I have a separate sellers account. Last Oct-Dec, despite being the ‘inaugural year of Covid’, my sales we’re doing quite well. This year, however, barely anything at all is moving. I have lots of money tied up… Fees have gone up to nearly 13% (!) … postage has gone up. Mega-Sellers with identical items are at “pricing wars” with everyone else, and each other.  I have small items that are $100-200 retail at department stores that have depreciated in sale price to $30-35. And Buyers won’t do business with you without complimentary shipping - It has become the standard. On the items that do sell, I am taking as little as $3-4 profit.  I am so close to just saying “screw it”, and liquidating everything. Maybe I’ll break even!  After many years, my time selling on eBay may just be about over with. So very sad, it is…

[dolcetreasures]

Profit is nonexistent at this point. 

[dusabwl]

Thank you. I do think some of my items are worth more than I'm selling them for, but I just want to get rid of them. However, I'll do what you suggested as I do believe th "watchers" can just be selllers with similar items. Thanks again for your input!

[hobyman58]

What you should first do otherthan selling your good stuff on eBay is to use Facebook's Marketplace which is free to list and sell, also you might want to do a website.

Michael Ormsby 

[gloryglorygifts]

I saw an interesting video on youtube a few months back. It said that the best thing that you can do to keep your items from falling into oblivion is to do something every day on your store or listings. Take care of your orders asap, add tracking, send messages, end listings, add listings, change pictures, promote things, send offers, coupons, keep your profile fresh. Things like that. I'm not sure if it works or not, but she swears by it and she has a pretty large following on her youtube channel. Doesn't hurt to try. Good luck to you!

[vintage_buy_sell]

It's getting bad for me again too. Not only are sales flat lined, so are my views. I put a bunch of records up in the last few days and some only have like 3 or 4 views, that is NOT normal, also 8 sales ALL weekend. We are a few weeks of Christmas, last year I spent every Monday in December making up packages having to make multiple trips to the post office, just to try and get all my weekend sales out of the door in time. 

This year - I am getting my weekend sales packaged up before I go to bed on Sunday.

This is sad and depressing.....

[humangroucho]

My sales were so slow I closed my store.  I am doing fewer listings and donating more items.  I have no idea what happened.  I am also selling items below value just to move them.  

[itolduandso]

People buying very different things now. If you sell sweat pants, ergonomic chairs and home saunas you would be selling like hot cakes. The heyday of 2020 is over. Typically people wouldn't come to ebay to buy any of these. The market has grown for ebay overall but ebay didn't achieve the same market growth as Amazon and Walmart did. If you look at the stats, ebay sales dropped 10% and sellers by 5%. 

[yuzuha]

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@vintage_buy_sell wrote:

We are a few weeks of Christmas, last year I spent every Monday in December making up packages having to make multiple trips to the post office, just to try and get all my weekend sales out of the door in time. 

---

Last year is honestly not a good metric to measure anything by given the massive boom in online sales. My 2020 Christmas was my best ever; compared to that, my sales this year would seem to be down a lot, but when I compare them to 2019 and 2018 they're solidly normal.

[vintage_buy_sell]

I can agree with the 2020 factor, but something is still not right with the platform.

My wife and I were testing some searching and getting some weird responses. She searched 'Hallmark Ornament' for example and got a whole page of 'beanie hats', then she changed some of the wording of her search and got like 4 completely unrelated items, nothing else. This is just one example (will not bore you with more), but I am thinking if eBay search is screwed up, then people can't find what they are looking for and thus not buying. 

Just a theory, but eBay's search has always been suspect in my opinion. If you can't find it, you can't buy it.

[femmefan1946]

Last Oct-Dec, despite being the ‘inaugural year of Covid’, my sales we’re doing quite well.

Yes.

2020 was a banner year for online sales.

I would suggest using 2019 and 2018 as comparisons, since most online sellers did extremely well while buyers were unable or unwilling to go out.

Fees have gone up to nearly 13% (!)

I've been here since 1998, with one account or another.

Fees have been around 12-18% during all that time, higher in some categories than others.

… postage has gone up.

Not an eBay decision.

Blame Postmaster General deJoy's confirmed attempts to close down the USPS.

I have small items that are $100-200 retail at department stores that have depreciated in sale price to $30-35.

If they are still selling well in shops at $100-$200, raise your prices.

There is a definite mindset that believes that if the price is low (especially if there are comps available ) there must be something wrong with the cheap one.

And Buyers won’t do business with you without complimentary shipping -

Yes, buyers love "free shipping" even though they understand it is not free.

It means the seller includes the cost of shipping in the price of the item.

Which is cheaper: A $5 item with $10 shipping? A $10 item with $5 shipping ? A $15 item with Free Shipping?