May 2013 Fee Structure Changes

[CmtyGuide@ebay.com]

eBay will be introducing a new fee structure on May 1, 2013.

For some sellers fees will be going up, while others will see notable reductions.  We encourage you to take the time to visit the newly launched Seller Centre to see how the changes will affect you (http://sellercentre.ebay.com.au/fs5).

You will notice that to offset the fee change, we have worked to remove the major barriers to listing and have continued to reduce upfront fees to make selling on eBay easier and fairer. Most sellers should only be paying fees on an item after it sells – not before.

Your fees contribute to eBay’s ability to significantly invest in the overall experience for both sellers and buyers.  Enhancements on the buyer side of the equation are aimed squarely at driving traffic to your listings and ensuring the 7.3 million Australians who visit the site every month continue to do so. For example, investments in marketing, social media promotions and mobile commerce applications helped sellers to capture a greater share of online sales in 2012 and saw a 21% year on year increase of visits to eBay.

After reviewing the changes it should be clear that the new fee structure also encourages sellers to adopt the behaviours that we know buyers increasingly prefer (eg: fixed price over auction in some categories) – therefore increasing your chances of a successful sale.

In 2013 we will be working even harder to respond to the rapid pace of change in our industry and to ensure you are taken along on the journey. You will see a number of innovations announced in the coming months and throughout the year which support all of our sellers, no matter what their size or business aspirations.”

[arctos]

Yep,

I'll add my name to the list.

After 14 great years this is where we part ways.

Most of the items I sell small items of ephemera, swap cards, photos, first days covers, menus & magazines.

I used to list them for 50c and start them at $9.99.

They now cost $1.50 ( a 300% increase) plus a final value fee of 9.8 % ( another dollar) so that's $250 in fees ebay is taking. Not to mention the PAYPAL fees and the increase in Postage costs.

Over the years I have seen the fees rise and rise and the profits get squeezed more and more.

I'll use my monthy 40 freebies and that will be it.

Ebay has effectively capped my auctions.

I spoke to one of the ebay operators and he stated 'That's they way its going to be becuase that's the way the buyers want it"

Well without sellers, there are no buyers.

Very sad indeed!!

[putney32]

arctos..... why not open a $19.95 Store and get 80 free listings a month (including Auctions in the Collectables categories),  and if you want more than 80 listings a month, make the rest Buy it Now's for .50c a listing (from item 81...)

after 14 years and around 5,000 transactions surely you could price some listings at a satisfactory BIN price.?

[suitcase_of_memories]

Well said modelnerds ! Yes, we've worked our butts off to make this site both a household name & a rich company. Unfortunately like all large capitalist organisations they lose sight of their beginnings & when the Greed sets in all morals fly out the window !

Ebay is clearly targeting the mass production market of cheap junk [& we all know where that originates from], hundreds of listings per company at BIN prices turning over & over & over, nothing ORIGINAL anymore, nothing VINTAGE, nothing INTERESTING, just JUNK.

Those of us who have all the interesting collectible stuff get buried under tonnnnnnnnnnes of international junk listings & can't be found due to the way we 'have to play the game' by offering free postage, express post [which is NOT covered by PAYPAL, so we can be duped there by unscrupulous buyers], extended Returns Policies [why not give them 10 years return policy !], as well as battle with NEVER ENDING changes to ebay, to be VISIBLE to buyers & pay for the privelige???.

modelnerds wrote
But you know what, we can sit here all we like and complain, but ebay don't care, because they see us coming back and continuing to use their service.  The fact is, no other selling site has the market awareness and reach.  You maximize your chances of selling here because of the sheer weight of numbers visiting.  It's a great place for buyers, not so for sellers.  Ebay are simply milking the sellers to provide the ebay profit.  We as sellers really all just work for ebay, with none of the benefits of being an employee, such as Super Annuation, Sick leave, Annual Leave, etc.
 
 
 
The market desperately needs an alternative!

I think most people end up feeling so defeated, having to

• constantly cope with the never ending ebay changes


•  price rises & changes to Australia Post


• ebay/paypal fee changes/increase


• problems with sites such as photobucket or similar


• problems with their telco providers


• problems with listing tools such as Turbo Lister, etc.etc.

on top of compiliing their listings, which can take quite a while for individual items

• trying to work out the LATEST categories that ARE still available, seems to change every week


• dealing with the queries, then the buyers needs


• then the postage, weighing packaging, protection, etc


• petrol costs to get it to the Post Office ON TIME so you don't get negged on your Star Ratings [laughable really]




• and then just daily life lol

.... that you have to wonder is ANY of this really worth ALL THAT EFFORT ?

I know I myself end up so exhausted after a few weeks of listing on here, PLUS dealing with the never ending changes [both here & to ancillary sites linked to working on ebay]  that I couldn't list if I wanted to, I am to drained to deal with it.

I think it would be easier to open my own shop BRICKS & MORTAR

[appletreeaaa]

The main reasons businesses increase their fees is very simple that is too make more profit but I have never heard a business say that the reason they are increasing their prices is to make more profit instead many businesses when they are increasing their prices  also decrease some of their prices and  they also  often state that from the increase you will receive extra benefits when the true fact is that their bottom line profit will increase from the increases which is the main purpose of the increases and in the process consumers of the business can become confused in the process .

Psychology marketing is a tool that many business use when they are increasing their prices so their users think that the increases are more positive than negative after the increases .

To judge if the users are  more better off or not or paying extra could be assessed by looking at the averages for all users and if after the increases who is better off and who is worse off .

Often it is the one who is increasing their prices gets the most out of the increase unless they lose customers and their takings decease because the increases become be excessive and their customers stop spending completely .

[davewil1964]

True.

An example. I have downgraded my store to basic, resulting in a $32 saving per month on typical sales.

[*crikey*mate*]

eBay is a business. The general goal of operating any business is to maximize profit. Profit margins and bottom lines are rarely forgone for the sake of loyalty or nostalgia.

Some businesses like to pretend that they do, but the reality is very different. What is discussed in the board room will always be different from what is actually disclosed.

Economics 101. Demand and Supply.

eBay believes there is a demand for their service, so they determine the price at which they are prepared to enter the market to supply that demand.

It's exactly the same principle when people say "it's not worth it". You have determined that you are not prepared to enter the market at a particular price because you don't believe that your profit margin will be sufficient when all factors are considered.

That's business. That's capitalism. That's a free market.

[kimisale]

man...........this is crazy...too hard to survive here....ebay fee increases so does auspost...maybe next time paypal !! and we don't have any alternatives....quicksales has no buyers...gumtree can be a time wasting place sometimes because of some dodgee buyers...

[lindy3327]

Just on that subject Putney of a basic store i just down graded and now i can't see how many free listings i have left i did find it before bottom of the page but not now is it there for a basic store pls?

[putney32]

yes, Lindy, it shows once you have used 1 listing for the month,

make sure you are on the All Selling page.

[acrowsa]

For those like me that have cancelled a store and reverted to the Standard structure (no store), be aware of the re-list fee once you have utilised the first 40 free listings in a month.

I have used my 40 listings already :_| in which I spread them over  3 - 10 day duration so not to have them all 'expire' at the same time.

But if I were to re-list some of them the relist fee is either $1.50 (item start price under $100) or $3.35 (item start price 0ver $100).

My start price for all items is less than $100, so I would have presumed I get charged at $1.50 for each relist......NO!

Unless ebay has yet got another glitch, or I have misread  the re-list fee structure, the re-list fee I am being charged is $3.50 for a start list price of $25.00.

The only other reason I can think of to why I am being charged $3.50 (instead of $1.50) is that there are 5 items in that one listing (1 listing with 5 items to sell @ $25 each=$125).

I am right, wrong or mis-read it?