If you were EBay what would you have done to sort out the private/business problem

[spence0175]

Firstly can we all stop arguing amongst ourselves. This is EBay’s mess not ours. People are fed up and angry but we should not take it out on each other.

So many things could have been better thought through before implementation.

So they are coming down hard on private sellers.  If you make things hard for private sellers it will just drive them away

But they could have had better incentives to encourage people to becoming a business. Lower the shop fees especially the basic shop. 
Same fees for all across the board.

Limit private to used only. 
Cheaper promoted prices for those who want to use promoted

When it’s not expensive to have a shop or be a business surely it’s a way of attracting more to becoming properly registered.

Anyone else and please no arguing….

[the_book_seekers]

When you compare UK shop allocations to what US sellers get (although the US allocations have a few more conditions) - we really are poor relations.

[jokers_toybox]

I didn't know there was a difference? Never really looked at it either, I just assumed it was the same, just $ instead of £ because that's how we usually get shafted

[jokers_toybox]

Anyway to answer the question posed in the original post

1. Flat rate FVF for all (don't care if seller or buyer faced but keep the playing field level)
2. No listing fees for all

3. Monthly limit of 100 listings for private sellers, Shop subscriptions for businesses to list more.
4. eBay to scrape the data for private sellers listing items for Pre-Order and auto convert accounts to business or stop them listing until they do. Private sellers cannot possibly know if they have an item coming in 2 weeks to sell
5. If a private seller sells more than 5 identical items in a year, auto convert account to business (this allows people who collect blind boxes to sell their doubles
6. Different colour titles/names/identifiers for type of account selling, something that marks a business more clearly, like feedback star colours but to show how much support you're likely to get if things go wrong.
7. Auto positive feedback 14 days after sale is marked as delivered for both buyer and seller. (personal grumble when I've sold over 15k items successfully but I still get a 3rd of that shown lol) this would also encourage people to use tracked shipping .
8. Sellers to be able to leave Negative feedback for bad buyers, they can keep it hidden, but it would allow them to track who may be committing fraud by filing shedloads of item not received claims for example. Failing that collate data from our block lists, there's a reason people are in there.

[crg_music]

Yeah there is no point listing everything and anything, if you dont think its going to sell but are listing it because its "free with shop" then dont list it and bundle a load up. Especially if a business seller where you are paying to list. I know people with massive storage overheads in order to store up the 100k + items they have for sale across various platforms and honestly the sell through rate is relatively atrocious compared to those with more selective listing choices but working from the spare room. Long term I think having a degree of quality control + concentrating on good stuff will pay off.

[jokers_toybox]

Yeah it's kinda frustrating, I have access to literally 1000's of dvds & video games for pennies, but while there is "some" market for them, they just aren't worth listing, with the fees and postage adding up so much.

I'd be happy getting 10p each after each sale and after costs due to the volume, just can't make it worth it on ebay taking the time to list them, pay 12p per listing for renewals over my limit etc.

I fully agree with not clogging up with pointless listings, bundling up DVD's doesn't work, so just my game bundles get listed on here

[crg_music]

Yeah dvds seem a funny one, probably where cds were 10 years ago, might be worth putting away anything that didnt sell millions or a bit niche for a few years if you can pick them up for 10p. The only ones I grab now are full boxsets or music and have done pretty well with them but they were never cheap even new so probably sold relatively less than movies etc.

[jokers_toybox]

I literally pay less than a penny per disc usually luckily, it's a blind buy but normally I buy around 2500 for £20 mixed cd/dvd/blu ray & video games (sometimes there's VHS and music tapes in there too) , I bin a lot off to CEX if the trade in is decent, just wish I could find a platform that I could afford to list them on to find them new homes

[stecomedia]

I think some sellers sell the discs and sleeve loose so they can send them as a letter for 85p. You can then sell the Amaray cases in bulk. 

It doesn’t solve the insertion fee problem and tbh I’m not sure how viable it is but just an idea. 

[da-vids]

A couple of references made to listing price for cheap items so I can tell you that if you go into preferences your listings can be set to not end when something sells so effectively only pay 1 listing fee per month rather than per item sold. In practice you list an item with quantity 1, it sells, then listing will disappear from view as quantity will now be zero (it won't end, just disappear). Then change the listing content to next item, put quantity as 1 then listing reappears. It's like when a listing with multi quantity sells out it disappears, restock listing by putting quantity back to 10 or whatever and it reappears. You can use it for 1 item at a time by changing it's content each time and entering quantity as 1, hey presto listing reappears. Hope this makes sense. Saves you needing a shop to get cheaper listing fees. Not a lot of people seem to know this.

[crg_music]

Nice. Always the best way to buy and if you strike gold on a £20 gamble theres nothing better.

[bittyboy101]

"If you were EBay what would you have done to sort out the private/business problem"

For starters I would sack that change-happy-leave-nothing-original useless GEO !

Then I would take the same approach like most banks do by making a business only eBay site and a private seller only eBay site.

So business sellers can log into the business division of eBay with their credentials and private sellers can log in to the private domestic seller division of eBay using their credentials.

This will help avoid and solve the conflict between business and private sellers alike.

There is really no need for these payment holds and for eBay to be now treating private sellers like naughty school children that cannot be trusted.

They are some good honourable private sellers on here who have pride and who would put some business sellers to shame !  

[the_book_seekers]

So business sellers can log into the business division of eBay with their credentials and private sellers can log in to the private domestic seller division of eBay using their credentials.

This will help avoid and solve the conflict between business and private sellers alike.

I'm afraid it won't stop business sellers registering under private accounts if the terms are advantageous which is the thing causing conflict. Until ebay really gets a handle on this problem the conflict will remain.

I doubt big businesses would tolerate two sides to ebay. It didn't work the last time it was tried.

[bittyboy101]

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@the_book_seekers wrote:

So business sellers can log into the business division of eBay with their credentials and private sellers can log in to the private domestic seller division of eBay using their credentials.

This will help avoid and solve the conflict between business and private sellers alike.

I'm afraid it won't stop business sellers registering under private accounts if the terms are advantageous which is the thing causing conflict. Until ebay really gets a handle on this problem the conflict will remain.

I doubt big businesses would tolerate two sides to ebay. It didn't work the last time it was tried.

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Times have changed now.

Besides what makes you think that private sellers will tolerate payment delays until after delivery or 14 days if they didn't send via a tracked service, or the postie didn't scan item as "Delivered"  ?

Private sellers also have rights too, not just business sellers.  

[jokers_toybox]

I don't think it's really as simple as Private Vs Business, it's more a Private Business, Vs Private Sellers & Businesses Vs eBay

These changes are I suspect to try and get Private Businesses to convert over as the lack of cashflow "should" make them harder to run.

Private sellers "shouldn't" need that cashflow, are more likely (sadly) to ship slower because they need to fit it around work etc, so they've done it to encourage faster shipping.

Businesses already pay through the nose to then be asked for more money to make their listings more visible via promoted listings which are now not available to private sellers thus theoretically encouraging more to register properly as a business. 

But to cut to the crux, eBay are punishing everyone to try and fix it and failing.

Users are all railing against each other when really it's eBay's mismanagement of the situation that's causing the most gears to grind.

Everyone is angry at each other, not the people who are actually at fault.

[the_book_seekers]

I disagree with Simple Delivery, the Buyer Protection Fee and holding back payments. I see them as money making ideas over any benefit they're alleged to have, which are few. As a business seller I can't understand a strategy that hacks off potential buyers. Business sellers may not be subject to the BPF, but if it drives buyers from the site the effect will hit all sellers. To me holding back private seller's money makes it less likely they will spend it on the site when they do get it.

The economy is still struggling and we've yet to take the hit of the government's rise in National Insurance. Somebody described what ebay is doing as a car crash and I don't think that's too wide of the mark. 

[bittyboy101]

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@jokers_toybox wrote:

I don't think it's really as simple as Private Vs Business, it's more a Private Business, Vs Private Sellers & Businesses Vs eBay

These changes are I suspect to try and get Private Businesses to convert over as the lack of cashflow "should" make them harder to run.

Private sellers "shouldn't" need that cashflow, are more likely (sadly) to ship slower because they need to fit it around work etc, so they've done it to encourage faster shipping.

Businesses already pay through the nose to then be asked for more money to make their listings more visible via promoted listings which are now not available to private sellers thus theoretically encouraging more to register properly as a business. 

But to cut to the crux, eBay are punishing everyone to try and fix it and failing.

Users are all railing against each other when really it's eBay's mismanagement of the situation that's causing the most gears to grind.

Everyone is angry at each other, not the people who are actually at fault.

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Whilst I totally agree with you,  As far back as I can remember there have always been small businesses or retired business owners selling via their eBay private accounts... this has been going on for donkeys years and eBay have always turned a blind eye and let it go.... So I am struggling to understand what's this all about now ?... why some 29 years and a few months after eBay was born is this now such an issue/problem ??

I mean over the past 2 years the folks at eBay now seem to be running some sort of vendetta campaign to crucify anyone trying to earn a living on their own private selling account... It was never really a problem before for all this time... so why now ?... has the laws changed or something ???

Everyday whilst looking at all sorts of auctions I see and witness Shill bidding going on all the time !... and I even see sellers win their own auctions ! and then a week later the same item is relisted again with the seller claiming that they had a "non paying bidder" but no sign of any feedback left by the seller to that non payer asking why they hadn't completed their payment for the auction they had just won ? 

But yet eBay don't do anything about this on going problem which is basically FRAUD ! so why pick on the poorer people only trying to make ends meet, especially with regard to the high cost of living we have nowadays...

[the_book_seekers]

 It was never really a problem before for all this time... so why now ?... has the laws changed or something ???

It's been an issue for sometime. It's just coming to a head now. Giving private sellers up to 1000 free listings increased the problem and fee free selling was the final straw. ebay says it's trying to level the playing field, but it doesn't seem to be working.  

[triple512]

Spot on. EBay won’t fix the real issue which is the businesses operating on private accounts in order to avoid fees and it’s messed it up for everyone.

[triple512]

I agree, it’s always been an issue in the 20 plus years I’ve been here too. EBay is well known for it.

Yes, eBay always turned a blind eye because no matter what the account, eBay made money on the sale so the main reason for businesses to hide on private accounts was to avoid having to offer returns and go under the radar with HMRC with the added bonus of an occasional 80% FVFs week here and there.

Generally, whilst wrong, it didn’t affect small business too much as quite often fees were broadly the same.

I think what changed was the initial HMRC reporting rules which scared off a lot of sellers (no doubt some dubious businesses that were deliberately avoiding tax).

Ebay then needed to encourage them back so offered free selling which, because eBay don’t police the accounts properly has encouraged some businesses, already struggling with a lack of traffic and paying anything up to 40% in fees with promoted listings to trade illegally.

EBay’s response to genuinely disgruntled correctly registered, fee-paying business sellers is to impose a buyer tax! Absolutely stupid move which has done nothing but annoy genuine private sellers and small businesses alike and actually driven more buyers away from the site!

To your last point regarding feedback for non-paying bidders, you are not allowed to leave anything but a positive for a buyer, so you will not see references to NPBs.
False positives are removed and even saying something like “unfortunately the highest bidder did not complete their purchase” will be removed (as I found out) and your account will be in trouble if you keep doing it.

Another unfair move by eBay because they don’t want negative feedback potentially putting off buyers.

Yes, you can report & block NPB’s but they just open another account to get round it which is why it happens so often.

[bittyboy101]

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@triple512 wrote:

I agree, it’s always been an issue in the 20 plus years I’ve been here too. EBay is well known for it.

Yes, eBay always turned a blind eye because no matter what the account, eBay made money on the sale so the main reason for businesses to hide on private accounts was to avoid having to offer returns and go under the radar with HMRC with the added bonus of an occasional 80% FVFs week here and there.

Generally, whilst wrong, it didn’t affect small business too much as quite often fees were broadly the same.

I think what changed was the initial HMRC reporting rules which scared off a lot of sellers (no doubt some dubious businesses that were deliberately avoiding tax).

Ebay then needed to encourage them back so offered free selling which, because eBay don’t police the accounts properly has encouraged some businesses, already struggling with a lack of traffic and paying anything up to 40% in fees with promoted listings to trade illegally.

EBay’s response to genuinely disgruntled correctly registered, fee-paying business sellers is to impose a buyer tax! Absolutely stupid move which has done nothing but annoy genuine private sellers and small businesses alike and actually driven more buyers away from the site!

To your last point regarding feedback for non-paying bidders, you are not allowed to leave anything but a positive for a buyer, so you will not see references to NPBs.
False positives are removed and even saying something like “unfortunately the highest bidder did not complete their purchase” will be removed (as I found out) and your account will be in trouble if you keep doing it.

Another unfair move by eBay because they don’t want negative feedback potentially putting off buyers.

Yes, you can report & block NPB’s but they just open another account to get round it which is why it happens so often.

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Great informative post.

Now that make sense.