What increases sales?

[oddsandendsoz]

Hey all,

I hope everyone is doing ok and sales are booming in a tough climate. 

I was wondering what you guys have found that seems to increase sales. I have heard on these boards over the years many theories about ways to increase sales such as; continuously adding new stock/listings, editing older listings, key words in the title etc. Obviously the major things go without saying which is quality of stock and price and quality of images. 

At other times though there have been theories that it doesn't matter what you list as eBay will 'throttle' your account with 'lights out' periods. I certainly have experienced many times where nothing is happening which does suggest that the 'lights out' phenomena does indeed exist. 

Does it go hand in hand that the more listings you have, the more share of sales you get? let's say you have 200 listings valued at $2000, and you sell a monthly figure of $300, would you expect to double your monthly figure if you doubled the listings and value? 

Wondering what others thoughts are on what they have found has increased sales if anything? 

[p9games]

The answer to this question depends entirely on the market you work in and your position within it.  Growing an Ebay business is like growing any other business and success depends on a huge variety of factors.  Product, innovation, customer servicing, pricing etc  There is no silver bullet.  Know your product, know your market, innovate, provide great service, charge a fair price, optimise your back office, improve process and so on.  And be in it for the long haul, not to make a quick buck.  It's a general response because any substantial response would need a detailed knowledge of your business and the market you operate in and I have neither..  

Regarding 'lights out' periods.  This is nonsense.  Business ebbs and flows, but to suggest that these variances are because of Ebay throttling your business is crazy.  Explain to me why Ebay would be motivated to limit sales when they have a vested interest in maximising sales given their earnings are linked to ours (collectively).  

[oddsandendsoz]

Some great input and appreciated. I think you have answered more along the lines of 'how to grow a business' rather than, 'how to increase sales on eBay' and whilst they may be the same in many respects, they also have some very unique differences. 

The 'lights out' phenomena I respectfully disagree. There have been many posters over many years adding their experiences with many different criteria in arriving at that conclusion. I personally have seen very consistent sales over long periods and after a rush of sales it all goes quiet as quick as the rush came. Not only that but sales are sometimes restricted to certain geographical areas. For instance last week after many days of zero sales I got 3 sales all in the QLD area, within a 200km radius. Now that may be a coincidence but I have seen that many times previously where there are those phenomena. So I will respectfully disagree on the lights out stuff having both experienced it, and heard many other sellers document their own experiences. 

[davewil1964]

List more items.

[jellybirddesigns]

@oddsandendsoz - your post resonates with me.

After seeing my shop increase in turnover every single year, all of a sudden sales fell off a cliff in late 2020 after we had to add all the item specifics. International sales, which used to make up 30% of my business, evaporated completely.

I never used to experience phases of "lights out" or "throttling", but I can definitely say that this is exactly what my shop is now like and I can see it in my traffic metrics. When sales do come along, there will be one or two small transactions and then up to 15 days with crickets. Before Nov 2020, there would be a few sales a day and my weekends were always busy with an average of a dozen+ sales.

I've added new items, updated photographs, updated listings and nothing has changed.

Revenue here is down by 90%.

Although @p9games says it depends on the market - my shop on another platform sells exactly the same things (at a higher price point) and is up around 300% this year alone. There are no "ebbs and flows" over there to the extent that they are noticeable. 

[twyngwyn]

A Trick to Bring Your eBay Sales Back from the Dead (ecommercebytes.com)

Seller Satisfaction Survey: Visibility on eBay - Part 2 - EcommerceBytes

and, from 2014:

Leaked: eBay Hidden Limits Throttle Seller Sales (ecommercebytes.com)

[oddsandendsoz]

Yes jellybird, there is simply no doubt in my mind that the 'lights out' phenomena does indeed exist. You can see it across all areas; no messages, no watchers, low or stagnate views, a run of sales and then nothing again, no offers, no sales, and then there are times when the floodgates open and you can see patterns of location specific sales. 

What are the chances that you have no sale for 7-10 days and then you get 3 sales all from QLD or from SA, I would say very low chances in a 'normal' situation. Like you, on my main account we also have a website and those sales rarely show 'patterns' that you see on eBay. Obviously it will be worse depending on the market you are selling in, my main account is very competitive now so the 'share of the pot' is less and the 'lights out' phenomena appears to last longer these days. 

My OP was actually more about a newer account which I am trying to grow, which is why I asked the question in an attempt to see if it is possible to circumvent to an extent the throttling. 

I wonder if your market has also seen an influx of competitors which means more time in 'lights out'? 

[oddsandendsoz]

Thanks twyngwyn, they all confirm what many of have suspected for many years. I loved the eBay satisfaction survey that showed 73% believed visibility was not fairly distributed. 

[japatech]

Definitely throttling occurring. Same hear, last 12 months will have a month of no sales then 4 or 5 quick sales then nothing for another month. Pure throttling by ebay to keep sellers interested.

[eol-products]

Fast shipping and low handling time is supposed to help. Listing everyday I am still not sold on but will help get traffic.