reason why sales could be down

[Anonymous]

hi there

I am a seller on Ebay, my sale are slow at this moment same as most of you.

reasons could be the virus or the worrying of the virus.

We live in Lanzarote one of the canary island, and we come under as part of Spain.

As you will realize Spain is on lockdown because of the virus.

Since Thursday we have been unable to work on the markets which is our main source of income, because of the large number of people that go to the markets here, as we are a tourist Island.

On Saturday at 12pm Spain went on lockdown.

lockdown means only going out when you really have to, to keep you and your family safe and to help to control the spread of the virus.

The only people now that can work is supermarket, chemists, hospital, post offices, banks, fuel stations etc. only essential  things.

All bars,restaurants, gift shops, market,clothes shop etc. have have to close there doors and send there works home for a minimum of 15 days that can be extended to 30.

People get paid what is on there contract so if your contract says 10 hours that what you get paid.

But lots of people here are self employed so they have no contract, therefore no money at the moment.

So to live to buy food, pay bill, and rent of the house, you have to use your savings if you have any.

But as we all know your savings will go down fast.

So you only get the essentials you need.

The lockdown no one know how long it will last, so everyone is going extra careful with what ever money they have.

As time goes on more and more countries are going on lockdown, so what i just explained above will happen there as well.

At the moment count every sale you do get count as a blessing.

something is better than nothing.

As the moment we are thinking about getting through this month, not we might have need or have for next month.

I hoped this helped some people understand.

And wish you all good health for now and the future.

Thanks Toni

[bill.purvis2012]

Toni, I think we're beginning to feel the same here. It's a storm to be weathered.

[vintage-camerastuff]

Sorry to hear some peoples sales are way down.  My sale are up 38% from last month and over 50% over last year.  Amazon is hiring an additional 100,000 people because sales have increased.  People can't go to sporting events, bars, restaurants, movie houses, churches etc.  So what will people do with all the extra time and extra money they are saving?  They will shop online.   Not because they need stuff but because they are bored out of there minds and need something to do.  So stay safe, stay at home and keep on shopping.

[saresales1]

My sales over last month are up but so far sense Saturday they are dropping fast, it has been dead. Same with views and watchers I guess its the virus but who really knows for sure. Yes Amazon maybe increasing because they sell food and bathroom stuff like toilet paper which the regular stores in my area are out of a half hour after they open.

[iart]

Our sales are fairly even, but going into a typically slow time of year for us, so we expected them to go down. I think a lot of people, stuck at home and bored, are buying on-line.

[prettywoman-2012]

Toni, Stay safe on the beautiful island of Lanzarote! I am sure that your Government will sooner or later come up with some sort of stimulus package - payment - to all residents, as they will want to prevent looting and crime, as well as people perishing because they have nothing to eat, or cannot buy medicine. Hang in there, and best of luck with your sales! 

PW🐿

[sakic92710]

More people are going be harmed financially than those who will be affected by the virus.  Good luck to all.

[mam98031]

While what we are experience with this National State of Emergency is different than any of us has been through before, no matter your age, slow sales on Ebay isn't a new thing.

You can come to the threads any given week and there are sellers that are concerned over slow sales.  

If we end up in a recession over this, then yes we could all suffer financially over that in many ways and not just sales on this site.  

Right now I think people are directing their energy to making sure their homes are prepared and their families are taken care of the best they can.  Shopping for new clothes or collectibles or something else might not be as important right now.  The priority is family and friends.

As people find themselves feeling more comfortable in the fact they have done all they can to stock their homes and protect their families, we might just see them showing up to shop on the site.  They may have more free time and decide they are going to get to some things that otherwise may not have time to get to otherwise.

[cathydale]

I think after people stop spending all their excess cash buying alot of toilet paper and stocking up in a panic THEY WILL get bored and be on line buying things and eventually come back. If stimulus check go in the mail as was discussed today that will help.

[mam98031]

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@cathydale wrote:

I think after people stop spending all their excess cash buying alot of toilet paper and stocking up in a panic THEY WILL get bored and be on line buying things and eventually come back. If stimulus check go in the mail as was discussed today that will help.

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Just to clarify on that just a little.  To stock up doesn't mean you are panicked about anything.  Most are just trying to be responsible and  prepared.  Some are panicking because they are so scared.  

Did you hear anything about the $$ amount of those checks or who would qualify for them?  I too heard they were going to do this, but I didn't or haven't heard any details.  Please share if you know as I'm sure everyone would like to know.

@cathydale 

[mam98031]

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@mam98031 wrote:

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@cathydale wrote:

I think after people stop spending all their excess cash buying alot of toilet paper and stocking up in a panic THEY WILL get bored and be on line buying things and eventually come back. If stimulus check go in the mail as was discussed today that will help.

---

Just to clarify on that just a little.  To stock up doesn't mean you are panicked about anything.  Most are just trying to be responsible and  prepared.  Some are panicking because they are so scared.  

Did you hear anything about the $$ amount of those checks or who would qualify for them?  I too heard they were going to do this, but I didn't or haven't heard any details.  Please share if you know as I'm sure everyone would like to know.

@cathydale 

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@cathydale 

I found it.  It is $1,000 in about two weeks.  Not a for sure thing yet.  But on the table.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-03-17/mnuchin-says-trump-wants-money-sent-to-americans-...

[chapeau-noir]

I'm out and about quite a bit on my bike or on foot running errands or sourcing inventory, so tend to hear a lot just as I pass by people talking in the streets, in and out of stores or whatever, but the talk I'm hearing in the past week reminds me so much of the dot-com bust here.  The bubble burst and so many people were thrown out of work, small businesses went bankrupt as a knock-on effect (a good friend lost his shop and I lost my business and narrowly avoided bankruptsy, we were only a few.  Software paper millionaires lost everything).  The talk of "well, I'm out of work right now...don't know when we'll be back...I'm not sure if my daughter will be able to keep working...my son is down to 15 hours a week...I'm looking for more work...well, just one day at a time I say", etc., - I was struck today how similar it was.

OK, it was not a virus, but insofar as being out of work or struggling along (I was working 3 part-time jobs), we all persevered, held whip-rounds to gather money and household goods/food for those who were struggling, and basically put one foot in front of the other and weathered it.

My sales are low but now I remembered - oh yeah, I've been through this before.