How about more Promotions that favour the Seller ?

[santlache_sales]

In my line of selling, in early December 2023 ebay offered certain sellers with so many higher ticket items over £250 a offer which lasted six months until May 2024.

After signing up, this basically meant any new item listed that was over £250, they gave you an average FVF of 10% and this worked on a scale, so the higher the ticket price the more discount you got off this average 10%.

Items didn't exactly fly out the door, but I sold quite a few of these higher ticket items over the six months and it helped a great deal, but it also felt a lot more FAIR. It wasn't as if eBay were sacrificing much as they still got a nice cut.

I'd like to see more or even another offer like this please, eBay ????

[john8150_0]

None of what you claim (and claim it is as you have no evidence to backup the statement that most of us were at it) justifies the 10% fee being rigidly applied to all sellers postage charges.

To give you an analaogy: I'm a former traffic cop. We had reports of speeding on a section of road. I stopped every single car (speeding or not) and gave them all a ticket based on bogus evidence as "that'll sort out the ones who are speeding". In reality I should have set up speed detection equipment and dealt with the offenders.

It had nothing at all to do with buyers being upset and everything to do with ebay profit margins.

The Private seller situation is just as easy for ebay to eradicate but they really don't care as 3% of the sale on a "private item" is better than the rogue sellers selling via a rival platform and ebay getting 0%.

[therenewalworkshopltd]

It really doesn't matter, as it is what it is.

Especially when you consider, that to my knowledge, Ebay was the only site that ever actually didn't charge for postage costs.  Nowhere else does this.  Why should it be any different?

I really don't get why so many complain about things in the past, that are really no longer relevant.  Just deal with how it is now.  That is one of the biggest things that you do as a business, deal with change.

And to go back to the point I actually made, was simply that you can get an extra 10% by complying with what Ebay want's, rather than being inflexable and refusing to change, just to go against them.

[btr.style]

Indeed the past is the past. 

Depends what it is though. Complaining about no fee promos anymore for businesses is reasonable. Fee promos for businesses were in the past but it's the fact of the private business stuff which still causes people to be annoyed now. 

Businesses do deal with change but paying extra all the time is where it hits the hardest. No kind gestures to take the weight off and like I put a while ago, we've all had a *bleep* (I put the censoring so it wasn't just changed to that) 2023 with everything going up. It would have been a decent thing to give businesses, even some, 20% off fees for 100 listings around Christmas. But no. Nothing at all. eBay were too busy getting ready to offer private business sellers 100% off fees for a month and making it free to list clothing in April. 

The advantage thing has put me off eBay and tempted me to join that dark side. I was tempted to as it's so easy to do. New private account, list a load of clothing, done. No fees, all the cash. Yet I didn't and I just went to sell the majority elsewhere instead. 

As you put it though, if I had, that would be me dealing with change as a business. Nobody would say anything, trading standards wouldn't pop round for another 10 years after 100 reports to tell me not to do it again and eBay clearly don't care as they've been telling business sellers at events to go and sell clothing on a private account. 

If I'd started business now, or if I had a clothing business away from eBay and decided to start selling there, I'd be totally picking a private account and raking in the extra. Cash is key and I'm afraid that's what keeps me going... Free clothes and as much money as possible to achieve my financial goals. Extra money for the family and holidays for all the work I put in. I'd be thinking if eBay don't want to clamp down on it to take in more money, I'd hardly be worried about trading standards eventually, if at all telling me I've been a naughty boy and I must show my address on each listing. 

That's probably how it would be with TS. They'd probably not know the ins and outs of eBay accounts and would say I must accept returns and show my address. Well, adding a photo of the address would suffice (against eBay's terms but eBay don't like enforcing their own terms do they?)

[bojangled]

I honestly have thought about joining the dark side, I have seen some that have recently, and I really don't blame them. 
Particularly today, found a private seller, 11,000 plus listings, been on since 2015, no returns, you know the sort. As I repeatedly say every time, I don't care if they are correctly HMRC registered it's the basic flouting of eBay's rules, fee avoidance and DSR that infuriates me. 

I did report this one as listing stated 'from my own private collection'.
Yeah right brand new items 15 of....

[therenewalworkshopltd]

Look, I really don't disagree with you here.

It's just that this all started saying that by getting an extra discount, it was fairer for that particular individual.

It's not, it really isn't.  It's only "fair" for whoever is getting the discount.

It needs to be a level playing field.  So if they are going to give discounts away, then it needs to be across the board, or at least targeted to specific sectors etc.  However, from my own perspective, I am seeing things happening like this, such as shared discounts on promotions and so on.

I agree, if I were starting out now and didn't know any better, I would be tempted myself to go the free route.

But I don't, because I want to comply with the law and build a sucessful business.  I don't want to build something that is not built on bricks.  As by going the "private" account, you are effectively building on sand.  Who knows what will happen over time.  If they manage to beat the likes of Vinted, then I'm pretty sure that it will be back charging private sellers again, though no doubt with incentives.

Whilst there are reports of Ebay doing nothing, do we really know that is the case?  

In most cases, it's hearsay and nothing more.  But it's quite possible, that they turn around in the next week, month, year and have a clearout of these types of accounts.  And if that happens to you, when you are trading this way, it's unlikely that you will be able to sell on Ebay again.  As it will probably end in a ban.

The fact of the matter is, that by operating an Ebay account in that way, no matter how you look at it, you are breaking the law.  And as such, if action is taken, you could actually be procecuted.

Nobody seems to see that part of it though.

[btr.style]

Fair play to yourself with the reply. 

I mean the thing is though, nobody cared when they downloaded Napster mp3's in the early 2k's. Nobody caught up with anyone aside from the site owners. This is similar in so many ways. It took how many years of knowing it's a dodgy platform for Napster to be taken down properly (and it went legal with some other company buying it out). 

So for 1 individual, it's either eBay will clamp down or nothing will happen (unless dodging tax). 

I've worked hard to bring in some of the rarest and most sought after Ralph Lauren jumpers. Container imports, going almost bankrupt funding every single penny (literally I was in 90k of debt at one point). Securing said exclusive supply line nobody else in all of the UK can get. It really was a huge 200/1 gamble for me. Only for eBay to then say "ah well, private sellers 0 fees for clothing". Not literal obviously but still. 

Probably *bleep* of me but when they announced that, I was at rock bottom. After all the *bleep* I went through to secure that line, they go and announce that MEGA unfair advantage. I went out to throw myself off a bridge to be honest. All that work, seeking more money when I didn't have it to continue the supply and stop them finding some competitor. I was away for a while with just too much mental health stuff caused by this kick in the teeth. So I guess, "prosecution" or more likely a slap on the wrist just pales in comparison. 

The law is the law but why should I pay £15 fees on a £100 jumper sale. One that would have stayed in USA had I not blown every last penny to bring over. When eBay allow those based on account status to pay no fees at all. 

[therenewalworkshopltd]

I remember Napster well.  🙂

From memory though, it was Metallica taking them on that killed them, rather than anything else in particular.

A lot of people were not too happy with Metallica at that time.  

But your right, Ebay will or won't clamp down.  I'm betting that they will end up with no real choice but to do so at some point.  I certainly hope so, as the way things are at the moment, is unfair to all the legitimate business sellers out there.

It's sounds like you have had quite the time of it, i hope that you at least start to see the better side of things now.  Life can be really s****y some days......

As a aside though, I would be very interested in hearing some more about how you have gone through the process of shipping containers from the USA, as it's something that I would very much like to do at some point in the future.  I have a business unit, but certainly not enough space for an entire container, so how on earth do you get around that part of things?

[btr.style]

The good old days. Oh yeah, I remember there was some joke flash game back then on ummmm.... Grrr.....what's the name....coffeebreakarcade.... Or something like that. Which literally took the pee out of Metallica. I can't remember the plot but it had a 30 second sample of one of their songs playing throughout (a guitar riff) and the player had to throw music into a bin (avoiding capture by Metallica band members) or something stupid like that. 

Those were the days eh? Silly flash games, hitting someone via the club of the abominable snowman to get them as far as they could (again, hazy memory with that but it served as inspiration to "learn to fly" by namco and so on). 

I mean to be fair, it was all about some alternative in the end. Crushing with eBays move but alas, no choice but to pick myself up and go on. 

With containers, the first lot was a pooled lot. I chipped in a big enough amount for an order. It's a very boring thing for most (so close your eyes or change page now for those that aren't interested). It went off to a huge warehouse, split as was agreed and shipped out accordingly. I was miles away from the main warehouse/unit at the time so had to just go with the split being delivered to my house. I can't even remember how many 40kg bales it was, but the house was stacked. The forwarding courier was DPD and pretty much took up the whole van and 1 extra. It was painful, had to get another van sorted to take it all away. 

I can't even lift one bale with my lack of muscle so yeah, that was bad. 

Second. The huge spend. You've really got to ask at bigger businesses around if they will take it and have it loaded in. 

The whole thing was it had been a nightmare. I had to ask a charity warehouse who owned the loading bay and whole area if they'd take it. I had to sit down with the manager and as it was a local charity place they agreed. It was dumped in their warehouse loading area and I realised the task. 

The lorry came, unloaded the container and wham, on your own. Bleak. Not even sure myself if H&S or even the council would have allowed it (all sorts of permission to get through, even if it's outside your own premises). Still. It took something mad like 10 or 15 stacked crafter vans trips to the brim to get the stuff moved and yeah, it was a 1 off, never again. 

Anyway, any other q's as it is a big step, bigger than I thought, send a message, I might be able to help. 

[therenewalworkshopltd]

Can't say I remember the game to be honest, but do remember all the various little games that you could play back then.

I've had loads as big as about 5000kg in the past (not clothing), but they have been quite specific and are a bit of a nightmare to move that kind of weight, so have a fair idea of what's involved with a full container.

But as I said, I'm nowhere near that point yet, though the plans are definately sat there in the background.

It would actually be good, to be able to team up with a couple of people to handle something like that.

How did you manage to find a group to pool together?  Just people you knew or facebook/something else entirely?

I appreciate the insight though, and I may well pester you in a bit more depth at some point in the future if you don't mind?

[btr.style]

Loads of stupid stuff existed at the time. I think there was even a blink 182 game. 

Anyway, with containers yeah, it's really an idea to keep hold of as it's the ultimate step, especially if it's fast moving (arrives, listed for sale asap and then out the door to reinvest). 

If you find something you may want to pool with, get in touch by all means. As I put before, it's sell sell sell for me now but if something comes along, I may have to invest. 

The initial pool was as I spent big with a certain almost unknown wholesaler. Supposedly I was one of their biggest spenders who then provided me with reps and the top service. I was pestered on WhatsApp about the pooling stuff and went ahead. 

At the same time or thereabouts someone I knew who moved to USA was bigging up thrift stores there. I honestly can't remember how but I was in contact with a guy who basically takes out the unsold stuff and dumps it in a warehouse. So I contacted the rag house with proof of spending and we went from there. All the gold/'cream' stuff for me, bugger all for the rest 😂. Of course that required huge spends and here we are. 

As I'm nigh on done, ask away and inbox if you want and I'll spill over the pooling way (depending on what you are after, by the looks of your listings... A few might clash but it is what it is)

[btr.style]

Once the cream gold is in, that's the jackpot. 

Around £4 per item. Sod eBay nabbing such a cut to be honest though. 

[therenewalworkshopltd]

Thanks.  

I'll more than likely get in touch in the future.  As I said, at this point I'm nowhere near there yet.  This is a goal, but achievable in time.

I wouldn't worry too much about clashing, I don't specialise in any real way with this shop, though I have split off into other stores now, with a bit more focus.  I can see that being a better way to go, rather than being a generalist.

[gardenspray_official]

Spot on, my research concludes that Ebay are clear in their minds that private sellers spend a lot of what they earn back on Ebay, which when you think about it makes sense as people who have a mindset to sell on Ebay will have a mindset to buy on Ebay.