eBay fees for sellers

[music*2014]

I have been selling collectables on eBay for 1 year.

I have 3 accounts now. I list fairly inexpensive items. I don't add extras like subtitles etc. and I always use free insertions.

I am usually accurate in estimating postage costs for buyers

In one month recently, my total sales were $594 and my total eBay fees were $267!!

I know that eBay takes a higher % of the sale price for less expensive items, but all my hard work is going down the gurgler.

I rang the Phillipines hotline who told me that my greatest outlay was in postage costs.

It was suggested that I stop using the eBay postage labels. Would this help cut costs?

I would be grateful for some expert advice.

Thanks

Nina

[curraone]

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music*2014 wrote:.

I rang the Phillipines hotline who told me that my greatest outlay was in postage costs.

It was suggested that I stop using the eBay postage labels. Would this help cut costs?

I would be grateful for some expert advice.

Thanks

Nina

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Sorry, that seems a silly response from the hotline.    You still have to post the items, what do they suggest you do, hand deliver them?   And ebay postage labels are cheaper.

And a little off topic, your postage costs seem all over the place.   Why would you charge $9.20 to post a comic?

And wouldn't the flat rate ebay parcel rates work better for you?

[digital*ghost]

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@music*2014 wrote:

I rang the Phillipines hotline who told me that my greatest outlay was in postage costs.

It was suggested that I stop using the eBay postage labels. Would this help cut costs?

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I think what they were saying to you is that the cost of the postage labels is added to your bill, so the actual final value fee total is less than the $267 total (say for example you sold 30 items that month, each sent in a <500gm parcel for $7.20 - that's 30 x $7.20 that's added to your bill, i.e. an extra $216 added on the the actual FVF that's being charged on each sale - this postage does have to be paid regardless of where you buy it, it just makes the eBay bill blow out quite a bit. I recommend making a couple of one-off payments during the month. I pay the outstanding amount on eBay around once a week, just so I don't have a huge bill at the end of the month. 

[music*2014]

Thanks for your reply. Great idea to stagger the payments during the month.

So is the payment to eBay of close to half of my sales amount experienced by other sellers?

Have you any suggested ways to reduce this?

Am I doing something wrong?

Many thanks

Nina

[music*2014]

Thanks for your reply.

The hotline suggestion was that I label the items myself and add the Aust Post tracking numbers.

It seemed a bit odd, as you say, someone has to pay the postage.

Is there anything else I could do to reduce costs apart from lowering my postage charges?

Paying nearly half my takings to eBay seems pretty heavy.

Many thanks

Nina

[digital*ghost]

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@music*2014 wrote:

Thanks for your reply. Great idea to stagger the payments during the month.

So is the payment to eBay of close to half of my sales amount experienced by other sellers?

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It would be by sellers who purchase postage labels through eBay.

I'll try and break it down another way, using my previous example of 30 sales with $7.20 postage, and those 30 items average $10 sale price with $7.20 postage. Your sale amount is $300, and you receive $300 plus $216 in postage costs from your buyers, making your gross revenue from buyers $516, even though the sales figure shown in eBay is $300.

The final value fee total is going to be $51.08, so eBay is charging you near-on 10% of your gross revenue in fees.

If you buy your postage elsewhere, eBay's bill is going to just be that $51.08. 

If you buy the labels on eBay, suddenly your bill is $267.08, making it look like you only have $33-odd left from $300 worth of sales, but it is in actual fact a bit under $250 left from a $516 gross revenue - or, in other words, $248 left from $300 worth of sales.

I hope that makes sense?

[i-love-my-sheep]

When I checked my January invoice, it said my fees were 11.35%. I don't use postage labels, I address myself and pay postage over the counter as I post. I was under the impression that fees were 9.9%, so not sure where the 11.35% came into it!

[curraone]

final value fees 9.9%

add cost of listings

[i-love-my-sheep]

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@curraone wrote:

final value fees 9.9%

add cost of listings

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I only ever use the free listing allocation. Is there a hidden fee in the freebie allocation?

[digital*ghost]

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@i-love-my-sheep wrote:

When I checked my January invoice, it said my fees were 11.35%. I don't use postage labels, I address myself and pay postage over the counter as I post. I was under the impression that fees were 9.9%, so not sure where the 11.35% came into it!

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The percentage is of the sale amount, but fees are on the gross revenue. (eg FVF on $200 sales and $50 P&H charged separately, so FVF on $250, which is $24.75, but 24.75 is 12.3% of $200, so eBay will show 12.3%).

Just in regards to reducing eBay fees and postage costs, the only way you can really do it is to look at whether or not some of your items can go as large letters (the postage for these can't be purchased on eBay). Things like the comic, for example, could be posted for as little as $1.40, plus packaging (you'd want to use either a rigid envelope, or place card stiffeners in the package).

That way you can charge lower P&H, which in turn means a lower FVF on the sale total, even when the sale price is the same.