I've Called It Quits From Selling on Ebay

[easysurfer]

Like the next person, I've always found ebay a good place to sell some stuff I no longer use but too good to just drop off to charity. Used to be putting something up for auction there'd just about always be some bidders.

That was then. I just put up something at a low price for auction. Ebay has that add a bit extra to promote. So, I did that, $5.99 for 7 days promotion. It's already been over 5 days and 0 bids. Only 5 views. Then there is the "share listing" option to share the listing to my social media accounts? What? ebay wants me to go spamming my friends and their friends. Not only bug them but have the seller do the work of promoting?

I'll still be an ebay buyer as bargains can be had as seems like things are tilted in favor of buyers there. But as an ebay seller, I've seen better days .

 

[freedomatlast]

Like the next person, I've always found ebay a good place to sell some stuff I no longer use but too good to just drop off to charity. Used to be putting something up for auction there'd just about always be some bidders.

That was then. I just put up something at a low price for auction. Ebay has that add a bit extra to promote. So, I did that, $5.99 for 7 days promotion. It's already been over 5 days and 0 bids. Only 5 views. Then there is the "share listing" option to share the listing to my social media accounts? What? ebay wants me to go spamming my friends and their friends. Not only bug them but have the seller do the work of promoting?

I'll still be an ebay buyer as bargains can be had as seems like things are tilted in favor of buyers there. But as an ebay seller, I've seen better days .

You don't need to do anything extra to promote and no need to share the listing. Just post the listing and forget about it. I just sold a very unique item yesterday that I listed back in April. A well thought out description and patience is all you really need.

 

[easysurfer]

You don't need to do anything extra to promote and no need to share the listing. Just post the listing and forget about it. I just sold a very unique item yesterday that I listed back in April. A well thought out description and patience is all you really need.

I'm done. Don't want to have stuff cluttering up my place waiting on a sale. Don't you get charge a listing fee each relist even if things don't sell?

I don't have the patience .

 

[freedomatlast]

I can understand if you just don't want to bother with it anymore. I don't list near as much as I used to.

I never have paid a listing fee just to list an item, and if I decide I no longer want to sell the item, I just end the item early and there is no fee for that either. All my listings are in the category "good till cancelled" so I can just list it and forget about it.

 

[MichaelL]

I used to sell on eBay but also decided that it wasn't worth it. I used Craigslist for some things, but now I've found that Facebook Marketplace gets more action.

 

[easysurfer]

I can understand if you just don't want to bother with it anymore. I don't list near as much as I used to.

I never have paid a listing fee just to list an item, and if I decide I no longer want to sell the item, I just end the item early and there is no fee for that either. All my listings are in the category "good till cancelled" so I can just list it and forget about it.

You have a better system than me. So, I assume that you don't list as an auction but as a Buy It Now?

Maybe I shouldn't totally quit but follow your lead. Like I said, used to be I'd just put a 7 day auction and things would sell with several bidders. So, I'd expect to get rid of the item I was selling in 7 days. But now seems like either I get no bidders. Or one that bids meaning I sell at a low price or if lucky, more than one bidder.

 

[OldShooter]

EBay selling has so many negatives that it is absolutely my last choice, slightly below charities.

 

[W2R]

Never bought, sold, or browsed on e-bay. So, I can attest that life goes on fairly nicely even without e-bay.

 

[easysurfer]

Never bought, sold, or browsed on e-bay. So, I can attest that life goes on fairly nicely even without e-bay.

Genius!

 

[disneysteve]

ebay hasn't been primarily an auction site for years. Most everything should be listed Buy It Now. The exception is some rare or unusual item for which you can't establish a solid value.


I sell on ebay regularly - currently have 360 listings. None are auctions. I average a couple of sales a day. Sold 4 things yesterday and 3 so far today but it's peak season. I do not pay to promote anything, especially auctions. With BIN listings, you only pay the promotion fee if the item sells through the promotion but with auctions you pay that fee upfront whether it sells or not. No thanks.


And no, there are no listing fees unless you exceed your allotted free listings each month (250 items generally).


I've done about $12,000 in sales so far this year.

 

[mystang52]

I've successfully sold a few items on local Facebook Marketplace and other online local marketplaces (e.g., "North Jersey Garage Sale," etc.). There probably are similar sites for your area. You list the item, designate "local pickup," and get offers online. My town has a safe location pickup area next to the police station. If I don't sell something in a few days, I post it on freecycle.

 

[disneysteve]

I've successfully sold a few items on local Facebook Marketplace and other online local marketplaces (e.g., "North Jersey Garage Sale," etc.). There probably are similar sites for your area. You list the item, designate "local pickup," and get offers online. My town has a safe location pickup area next to the police station. If I don't sell something in a few days, I post it on freecycle.

I sell things on Marketplace if they're too big to ship with ebay or not worth enough to sell on ebay. There are SO MANY scammers on Marketplace, though, and so many people who ask if the item is available and then never follow through. I've lost count of the no shows that I waited for. It's a huge waste of time.


ebay is so much easier. I list the item. Buyer pays. I ship. Done. But there are things that just aren't right for ebay.

 

[COcheesehead]

My lifetime dollar sales on eBay is approaching $100k. Yes, there are some hassles. Yes, things don’t always sell, but $100k in my pocket for selling my used stuff is hard to beat. YMMV.

 

[disneysteve]

My lifetime dollar sales on eBay is approaching $100k. Yes, there are some hassles. Yes, things don’t always sell, but $100k in my pocket for selling my used stuff is hard to beat. YMMV.

Exactly. No platform is perfect but eBay is by far the best and biggest. There are over 1.7 billion items listed on eBay. You can find nearly anything. I sell on eBay but I also shop on eBay when we need stuff as it’s often cheaper than Amazon.

And you can’t beat it for selling. I bought a flashlight at an estate sale yesterday for about $4. Listed it last night. Sold it this morning for $75. Where else could I do that?

 

[MichaelL]

There are a lot of scammers on Facebook Marketplace and no shows. I see items all day priced 1/10th of what they should be and the pictures are clearly not from my area, but I still get 10 times the action there than I do from Craigslist.

 

[Dawg52]

I've sold some of my old golf equipment on Ebay. Never had a problem. But it's probably been 2 years since I've sold something.

 

[freedomatlast]

Y So, I assume that you don't list as an auction but as a Buy It Now?

Correct. I've found most buyers want to just buy it and not mess around checking the auction, so buy it now works for me as a seller.

Likewise, as a buyer, I'd just as soon buy it and know I have it rather than wait till the auction's over to find out. Comparing prices to Amazon for new items, I can almost always find what I want on ebay for less.

For larger used items FB marketplace works best for me.






ve ebay

 

[MichaelB]

I tried to sell my kids on EBay but there were no takers. Even though she denies it, I suspect DW put me up for bid. She got no takers, though - wasn’t offering enough.

 

[disneysteve]

Correct. I've found most buyers want to just buy it and not mess around checking the auction, so buy it now works for me as a seller.

Likewise, as a buyer, I'd just as soon buy it and know I have it rather than wait till the auction's over to find out.

Not only that, but before you list anything for sale on ebay, you need to do some basic research. Look up sold comps to see what the item has sold for and in what format. Also look at active listings and their format.


If you are putting up an auction for an item but there are 50 others listed Buy It Now, why would anyone bother with your auction? They can buy one of the others and have it in their hands before your auction even ends.


All of that said, ebay auctions absolutely still serve a purpose. I think 4 of my 5 highest sales ever were auctions, but they were all very rare or even one-of-a-kind items. There was no basis for me to establish a buy it now price. 99% of what people list, though, is common stuff and should be buy it now.

 

[TrvlBug]

I tried to sell my kids on EBay but there were no takers. Even though she denies it, I suspect DW put me up for bid. She got no takers, though - wasn’t offering enough.

 

[aja8888]

The eBay good old days.

I Have sold on eBay since it started (~1998). I remember when you could leave feedback on users that you had no part in their auction, really!

In the early 2000's, I sold off my R/C model airplane (unassembled) kit collection of probably 200 very rare kits (Hal DeBolt, Sterling, etc). I even shipped these kits to buyers in New Zealand, Europe and Canada.

Boy, those were good times. People sent cash, money orders, checks, etc.

I never got stung, and I never stung a seller.

The site went completely to Hell after it got commercialized and greedy.

I quit selling years ago, but it was fun while it lasted and I sold near 500 collectables and other items over my time there.

 

[disneysteve]

I Have sold on eBay since it started (~1998).

Boy, those were good times. People sent cash, money orders, checks, etc.

The site went completely to Hell after it got commercialized and greedy.

Funny how wildly different opinions can be. I've been on ebay since May 1997 (it started in 1995 btw).


It really was the Wild West back then. Now it's phenomenally better organized, far easier to list and sell, safer, and more streamlined. I wouldn't want to go back to those early days at all, fun as they were. Every aspect of the process is better today in my opinion.

 

[freedomatlast]

Slightly off original topic but nevertheless since we're discussing ebay, as a buyer, keep an eye out for ebay collecting state sales tax when they shouldn't be. I recently bought a new item of clothing and they charged me state sales tax, but in the state in which I reside, clothing is not subjected to state sales tax. I finally got ahold of a customer service representative who said she would look into it and get back to me. Still waiting....

 

[iloveyoga]

I have sold on eBay for quite a few years. Recently for the first time I switched labels and mailed two things to the wrong people! Uh Oh, refund time! A good reminder to me to pay better attention.

The thing I like most about eBay is all the stuff I have gotten rid of. My closets and cupboards stay mostly clean and neat. Works for me, and a little pin money too.

 

[COcheesehead]

Don't you get charge a listing fee each relist even if things don't sell?

.

To list is free and you pay only if it sells.