Ebay Sales Levels Are The Worst I Have Seen In 12 Years

[arb_games]

Are any other sellers experiencing a severe downturn in sales?

In 12 years on Ebay, I have never seen it this bad.

I realise that the retail economy is dead at the moment, but I also suspect that the downturn in sales are due to Ebay allowing 5 sponsored ads at the bottom of every listing, in direct competition with the item that is listed.

Furthermore, I do the odd random search for items that I am selling and I always find them at the bottom of searches - absolutely ridiculous.

Ebay has dropped the ball when it comes to looking after Australian sellers, Australian items should be at the top of search lists on the Ebay Australia site, not be below the foreign sellers.

I normally only have a maximum of 2,000 listings but currently have just over 3,800 listings and increasing, yet I am struggling to attract more than 15 sales per day.

When you consider that up to about 12 months ago, I was averaaging around 40 sales per day with 2,000 listings so you can see the percentage in downturn.

[collins-clothing-co]

I completely agree with arb_games. This time last year we had around 50 items listed and sold 16 in a week. Now we have 1,300 (300 different items) and are selling 4 a day if we are lucky. It has only been since march that our sales have fallen. We just aren't getting the traffic through our store that we were before. I am with every other Australian seller who is trying to compete. We need to be better looked after in the search results.

[digital*ghost]

There could be lots of reasons for your downturn in sales. These could include: a shift in the market (eg is there the same demand in the market place for your games as there was a year ago; what impact are downloadable games and the expansion of smart phones and tablets having on your market place;

According to these recent statistics, "physical retail sales of computer and video games are currently on their lowest level since 2006" (though still maintan the largest percentage of total game sales).

NB: US stats, but still relevant to anyone who sells games.

[i.v.designs]

Possibly your downturn has more to do with your feedback and DSRs

:^O Oh come on....I had excellent feedback and DSRs and eBay still pushed me to the bottom 😉 Great feedback and DSR's and good customer service means nothing and you know it, it's all about the dollar.

I feel the same way OP. My ebay sales had been down since the search changes and all the extra adds.

Before the changes I only had to have 100 items listed to sell an average of 10 to 15 handbags a day. Some people would buy 2, 3 and 4 at a time around Christmas. The record was 30 handbags in 1 day 😄 it was great while it lasted.

But after the changes about 3 years ago, when international sellers flooded the search results, I tried to have around 200 items listed but sales slowed down and never picked up.

My business was at a loss in last years tax return, but I was willing to give it another shot with new stock.

It all went downhill untill I decided it's time to move on and close shop, so I did last December.

It was a hard decission, but a smart one I feel.

Now I get a decent income each week as eBay had taken that away from me so I had to look for it elsewhere and I'm glad I found it! 😄

[sexy*harley*chick]

You do realise though that any item over $50 that the buyer dosent pay registered post on you will will loose an item not received case?

Its your protection not the buyers, its your proof you posted the item, they buyer dosent need to pay it.

The only time my buyers pay it is if they request it, if an item goes over $50 for me, or items i should say, i then send it registered out of my own pocket.

[Anonymous]

mindtoobusy

Forgive me for my god comment.

When I cool down I realise that it's just the evil that mankind does in his name that riles me.

Thank you for including my children your prayers.

The old complaints ( like why does he allow children to suffer ) aren't really valid because he is patiently waiting for us to fix this world.

[the-kazbar]

I know nothing about computer games and that sort of thing so I have nothing to offer on that part of your quandry, sorry.

One thing I think we need to remember is how hugely busy and in a hurry people are these days. That is something that can help Aussie sellers over their foreign-based competitiors - shipping speed. 

I think I saw on one of your listings that you had a 5 day handling time. Is that right? I would be aiming to get parcels out faster than that so that you can offer a faster turnaround than any of your OS competitiors 🙂 

[*kazumi*]

Its the same old story, when business is doing well it is all due to the owner's brilliance & hard work.  When business is not doing well, it is all someone else's fault 🙂

There is no conspiracy from eBay regarding one kind of business, they do not care who sells an item, they still get their cut.  Do you really think there is a little person looking who should be placed ahead of whom in 'best match" search?  NO, it is just a computer choosing by who knows what criteria.

As far as the ads go; it is not "your page", it is just your listing; just as any ad in paper or elsewhere, there will be other content.

The world is changing very rapidly in this moment, what was selling well last year may not be selling now.  People feel insecure.  I used to spend heaps on clothing; now I do not even remember when I last time bought something for myself - definitely more than few months ago.  Not because I am worried about money, I am just not very interested, I have other things to do.  Occasionally I think I would like something new for an occasion, I look, but in the end wear something old.

[lakeland27]

i have noticed a switch toward online games among gamers,

minecraft, KAG , ace of spades etc. my 11 yr old son doesn't use his consoles as much as a year or even 6 months ago.

[x3n0m]

The advert links that ebay allows on our listings pages that direct customers to other websites are obnoxious in the extreme but I think there are other factors at work too .. "best match" is a joke and should be called "mad mans carp".

I think what is doing your business damage is the Australian postal rates as an overseas competitor is able to post to anywhere in Australia for the same price (or less by half) as it costs you to post the same item to a neighbouring suburb.

Sorry if that is not the answer that you wanted to hear but am seeing Ausposts pricing is destroying many peoples business models especially now that ebay has adjusted their “"mad mans carp" default to give preference to overseas sellers within Australia.

In Summary; it seems that any item you can think of costs less or the same to post from most all overseas countries to Australia as it does for us to post less than 100km within Australia, in fact it costs about $70+ to post a guitar from one city to another in Australia yet it seems that the same guitar can make it here from Germany for $50. We are getting Fd over every which way but the nauseating feeling in my gut tells me that it is our very own Auspost behaving like some giant parasite that is sucking the life out of us Aussies and then defecating in our faces and of course then laughing all the way to the bank.

[Anonymous]

There is another factor ( I believe ) for prominence in search results.

For months a competitor who had been selling very little compared to me was always above me in search results.

He was also using that pay-per-click sponsored ad system ebay has.

Now he is no longer consistently above me because his sponsored ads are no longer there.

Times are very tight with a lot of financial uncertainty in the air.

The good times are over and too many people have entered a quite time dragging debt accumulated during the period when banks were extending credit limit increases at the drop of a hat.

Tell me about it...lol

My termite stuff is ( sadly ) pocket money.

Our real enterprise is going down the gurgler.