More eBay changes?

[Tynie Topics]

Thanks for sharing. I wonder if they are now going to charge buyers.

If it remains entirely free for most items, how do they make their money?
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[Tynie Topics]

https://community.ebay.co.uk/t5/Announcements/Changes-to-selling-fees-for-private-sellers-amp-new-benefits-for/ba-p/7684924
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[Supermono13]

As a business seller I got an email from eBay this morning explaining why they were doing this initiative towards private sellers. A lot of guff about how if they do not charge private sellers any fees then they might will spend the extra funds with business sellers etc. etc.

However the final paragraph may well be the actual reason :

More steps to address false private sellers

At eBay, we are dedicated to ensuring a fair and equitable marketplace for all business sellers. To achieve this, we monitor trading activities, and we’ll continuously help business sellers using a private account to transition to a business account, or restrict selling activity as necessary. In addition, we’ve reduced the number of free listings available to private sellers.

Over the next few months, we'll be ramping up our marketing initiatives to highlight the benefits of using eBay for both sellers and buyers, and showcase what makes it such a unique marketplace. Our goal is to continuously attract new customers and ensure they receive exceptional service.

[martino]

Good news for once.

I have just ended all the listings I loaded on Sunday and re-listed them under the new scheme.

[martino]

I suspect E Bay are concerned about social media, Facebook etc, where there are no fees for the buyer or the seller. I had my first go on Facebook last weekend and I am happy to see how it goes.

As for E Bay making money, they will make it on the credit balances they will hold for customers in the new system. A good rule in business is to let other people's money finance your working capital.

At present, I have money transferred out automatically to my Bank account once a week. Now it looks as though I will have to request a transfer each time. A percentage of sellers will probably not do this and let the credit balance grow.

[WHU2711]

martino wrote:

Good news for once. I have just ended all the listings I loaded on Sunday and re-listed them under the new scheme.

I was going to do this when I saw your message, then an item I listed on EBAY over a year ago sold, money has been received with no fees, so looks like it applies to all existing listings automatically.

[martino]

WHU2711 wrote:

martino wrote: Good news for once. I have just ended all the listings I loaded on Sunday and re-listed them under the new scheme. I was going to do this when I saw your message, then an item I listed on EBAY over a year ago sold, money has been received with no fees, so looks like it applies to all existing listings automatically.

Thanks for that. I did wonder but I did it anyway just to be sure. Perhaps it was something to do with getting hit with a £10 fee for a book I listed on Sunday and it sold in a couple of hours!

[colchestersid]

Tynie Topics wrote:

If it remains entirely free for most items, how do they make their money?

- Business sellers will still be paying fees
- eBay are defaulting everything to be delivered by Evri - you can opt out but presumably they'll be making a lot of money from that

This feels like an aggressive move to protect their market share from emerging rivals. eBay have succeeded over the years by being adaptable in how they make money. it does feel though like a win for those of us who sell privately however will be interesting to see if it encourages more quality (rather than quantity) onto eBay in the coming weeks

[colchestersid]

Just spotted an interview on Sky News - eBay have admitted they will start charging buyer fees next year - whether that's a fixed fee or a percentage or both we'll have to wait and see

So it's good news in the short term with all the gains clawed back next year

[Tynie Topics]

colchestersid wrote:

Just spotted an interview on Sky News - eBay have admitted they will start charging buyer fees next year - whether that's a fixed fee or a percentage or both we'll have to wait and see So it's good news in the short term with all the gains clawed back next year

Not exactly fair on those who generally buy and rarely sell, they're not helping themselves.
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