I see this sort of thread time & time again with regards to fees etc.
I see the arguments both in agreement that the fees are high & the arguments that they are in line with other platforms or B&M auction houses.
So I do see both sides of the coin, as in sellers want to make money as do ebay, but it's a fine line.
If I look at it solely from the point of a seller ( Business registered ) as I am, then to me the fess are not only high, but massively high.
To the point in most cases ebay now take more in fees than I do profit on a sale, simply as that is how tight margins are, especially in the current economic climate.
Plus as a seller there are other costs to take into account, postage being the 2nd biggest outlay & with Royal Mail due to increase prices again it's a nightmare.
But the fact that Royal Mail increase their prices is not the fault of Ebay, but they will again profit from this increase, as sellers will have to pass on that cost to buyers & Ebay will make more in fvf's.
And there for me anyway is the problem, increasing costs everywhere, coupled with Ebay fees & the economic climate we are in.
Lets say I have an item that I want for £10.00, having paid £5.00 to buy it in.
To come out with a clear £5.00 profit after Ebay fees, p&p etc I have to sell that item for approx £19.00, sometimes more.
Now that limits the market ability to sell it, if at that price I can sell it at all.
Is that Ebays fault, no not really they have to make a living as well, so it's a fine balancing act.
If however you asked me could Ebay do more for registered business sellers, who get little to no help / offers from ebay & of course have to adhere to many more rules & regulations than private sellers, then my answer would be a resounding YES they could.
But again they are not going to do that, as that is where most of their income comes from & enables them to keep going.
What else can you do as a seller if you don't like the fees / costs, well in the case of my £5.00 item I want £10.00 for, a bootsale seems to be the logical alternative choice or a fee free online selling platform.
But bear in mind, no matter what people say about alternative sites, Ebay is still the biggest online selling platform out there , with millions of customers & dispite what people say, little to no real opposition for certain products.
So as I said, it's a balancing act, you have to weigh up what you have for sale, decide on the best platform to sell it on ( As no matter what the fees, selling it is the paramount outcome ) & decide from there.
