Ebay is dead

webjaved

eBay has changed quite abit over the years, that is why many think the auction site is dead.

It would be useful if you posted a link to one of the listings so we can take a look and let you know what improvements you can make to it.

It's all about optimising your listings, so using specific keywords, listing in a few categories and the list goes on.

But I agree, selling on eBay has become difficult, but dead, definitely not.

You can look at Etsy, Facebook groups, Shpock, Gumtree and local auctions that would be willing to sell on your behalf.

TripleH

"Ebay" by Weird Al sums the site up perfectly.
'The kind of stuff YOU'D THROW AWAY, ILL BUY on eBay'

People now try and sell items they'd previously bin so supply is higher and price falls.

harz99

prowla wrote: »

I still buy things on ebay, but I rarely sell there nowadays.


I buy and sell via specialist FB groups.

Same here, I achieve better prices on FB marketplace and local groups than on Ebay.

Julio72

I've had a great experience with eBay, it just depends on what you are selling. Before I list anything I normally have a look on the sold tab to see how much items are selling for to see if it's worth my time making a listing.

[Deleted User]

I agree that ebay has changed alot from when I first started out but not sure if one can say it's completely dead. When I shop for most things now it is always amazon and ebay that are viewed first before looking at other online shops. This isn't inclusive of clothing but is pretty much for most other things I need with regards to stationary, packaging craft items, work related items etc.



I first started out selling on ebay back around 2002 and used to sell mainly old vinyl records. I did well but technology changes and vinyl went out of fashion for a long time and with that sales fell and I removed my items and ended up selling bulk lots off ebay. But in recent years vinyl is back in again and there seems a steady growth in vinyl depending on the genres you sell and I see this too on ebay. I have some old records recently listed and whilst I've sold a few haven't sold anywhere near like what I used to sell but I can't blame this on ebay it's more to do with the demand of the music and the fact one can now go onto discogs or facebook and probably get a better deal. Ebay is still great for rarities and hard to find classics. After years of using the site I still can't fathom how buyers operate as for example I had a vinyl I listed about 3 months ago at a BUY IT NOW price of £19.99. It had watchers and enquiries but no one made the purchase. I removed it 2 weeks ago and listed it at £4.99 auction. It ended up selling for over £30.00. I had some cricket trainers listed last year at £9.99 auction and no bids. This year I put them up starting at £4.99 and they sold for just over £30.00. Possibly because the cricket world cup had not long finished and cricket items were far more in demand.


Saying that I've been a garment t-shirt printer for over 20 years and started out on ebay some years ago where I could easily get £11.99 a t-shirt. I never did amazingly from t-shirts but they were a decent side business. However, sales declined year on year and the market place just became saturated with sellers. It got to the point I wasn't getting many views and my items were just sitting amongst thousands of other similar items. However, whenever I've sold 2nd hand branded mens garments that are highly searched for items they always attract lots of views and generate sales. I can't say whether or not these sell day in day out and are enough to make a business out of as I've only ever sold my own worn garments but if you are listing commonly searched for items or brands then that is where ebay seems to work best.


With regards to your line of business selling collectables, I recently listed some old toys and had a few retro star wars figures from the original film and these sold at auction far beyond my expectations. Lots of views, lots of watchers, so customers are still there it just depends what your selling and if there is the demand for that item at that particular time.


I seem to have had more luck with auctioned 2nd hand items recently than new items but I think that has more to do with the fact that on the occasions I'm selling new items they are either generic/unbranded or just don't have the keywords such as particualr brands that buyers might be using.

messia07

Julio72 wrote: »

I've had a great experience with eBay, it just depends on what you are selling. Before I list anything I normally have a look on the sold tab to see how much items are selling for to see if it's worth my time making a listing.

i agree.

then you weigh up your time, postal costs and overall profit.. is it better to sell your item elsewhere at a reduced rate? ie on another website, forum classifieds or take the item to cex etc.

Blackpool_Saver

Amazon is the top choice for me now, followed by Ebay if I haven't got what I want on Amazon. Prime membership is what has done it IMO

StumpyPumpy

Blackpool_Saver wrote: »

Amazon is the top choice for me now, followed by Ebay if I haven't got what I want on Amazon. Prime membership is what has done it IMO

That is such a double edged sword. I used to use Amazon for most things but have never felt the need nor desire to get a Prime subscription. Without one Amazon make you feel like a second class citizen and try every trick in the book to fool you into subscribing to Prime that I seldom visit these days. And if I do visit I try to seek out any interesting vendors' own websites to buy from (which are often cheaper than the same items on Amazon or eBay).

SP

retireby35

I used to do quite well with eBay around 5-10 years ago - but now find the market too saturated. For me, the return I get is now not worth the effort. So everything that once went to eBay now goes straight to the charity shop.

If you feel like this, then give up. Donate all your items or sell off cheap as a joblot; Cut your losses and move on with your life.

RFW

StumpyPumpy wrote: »

That is such a double edged sword. I used to use Amazon for most things but have never felt the need nor desire to get a Prime subscription. Without one Amazon make you feel like a second class citizen and try every trick in the book to fool you into subscribing to Prime that I seldom visit these days. And if I do visit I try to seek out any interesting vendors' own websites to buy from (which are often cheaper than the same items on Amazon or eBay).

SP

I'm often surprised that any Amazon customers don't have a Prime account these days. With the TV and music available as well as the better Amazon service it's good value. Obviously if you don't use the additional services and rarely buy then I can see the lack of value.


My own website is still a work in progress, I'm too busy on Amazon to get round to sorting it out. The time and money I need to spend to get it to even approach 10% of the business I do on Amazon would be quite high.