Please tell me more about this. I have not seen it.
eBay scrapping selling fees for private sellers
- Thread starter bp122
- Start date
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Personally I use Aliexpress or Alibaba first (if I'm going to buy Chinese stuff, I'd rather buy it direct rather than through an Ebay seller thats selling factory seconds for twice the price you can get from the manufacturer for good ones)- the biggest issue is the time it takes to get here- usually a week to three weeks is normal to Australia from China... I wil use Ebay in 'an emergency' if its time critical, but like I said- the Ebay sellers tend to be reselling factory seconds (often lower quality or with defects) and usually at quite a high markup!!!
I do use FB marketplace- (but only for 'local to me' stuff- thats one advantage, is that you can set a 'distance ring' around you so it ignores anything coming from outside that distance)
The last Ebay buy was ages ago (I needed some replacement clearance lights for a trailer I rent out, so needed them quickly) and although they were from the same manufacturer that I normally buy from direct- these were obviously factory seconds- about half of them (box of 10) were wired 'back to front' ie the positive and negative leads were reversed (something I had never seen from the actual manufacturers ones ever- before or after) so I had to test each one on a battery before hooking it up permanently...
They wanted evidence of it, so I actually made a short video of the issue...
Someone stuffed up...
(only 55 seconds long)
To add insult to injury, I paid more for those lights by over double, than buying a box of ten direct...
I do use FB marketplace- (but only for 'local to me' stuff- thats one advantage, is that you can set a 'distance ring' around you so it ignores anything coming from outside that distance)
The last Ebay buy was ages ago (I needed some replacement clearance lights for a trailer I rent out, so needed them quickly) and although they were from the same manufacturer that I normally buy from direct- these were obviously factory seconds- about half of them (box of 10) were wired 'back to front' ie the positive and negative leads were reversed (something I had never seen from the actual manufacturers ones ever- before or after) so I had to test each one on a battery before hooking it up permanently...
They wanted evidence of it, so I actually made a short video of the issue...
Someone stuffed up...
(only 55 seconds long)
To add insult to injury, I paid more for those lights by over double, than buying a box of ten direct...
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Etaf
Established Member
well, i had an item on sale at ebay , and because of the zero fees , i lowered its price and sold it
as a result, i had to link my bank - which i thought had already been linked and agree a direct debit
then having linked it - i then get an email telling me its a different account and will take a few days to verify
had the account since 1979 and not changed - so no idea what that was about
i suspect they will deposit a few pence and i have to tell them what pence was deposited when
but at least i sold and got what i was after money wise after all the fees , i have a spreadsheet that calculates that for me
so i enter the money i want at the end of the day , and it gives me the price to list (with postage few and paypal fee )
as a result, i had to link my bank - which i thought had already been linked and agree a direct debit
then having linked it - i then get an email telling me its a different account and will take a few days to verify
had the account since 1979 and not changed - so no idea what that was about
i suspect they will deposit a few pence and i have to tell them what pence was deposited when
but at least i sold and got what i was after money wise after all the fees , i have a spreadsheet that calculates that for me
so i enter the money i want at the end of the day , and it gives me the price to list (with postage few and paypal fee )
Robbo3
Established Member
So if i want to buy something from you or any other seller, what should my first contact be?
"Is it available" may not be to your liking but it starts the conversation & is not really a reason to ignore a potential buyer. Cutting off your nose to spite your face, comes to mind.
Saying that, I'm pretty sure Gumtree use a bot to occasionally ask if an item is still available.
bp122
Expert at Jibber-Jabber
First contact is, "Hi there, I'm interested in your <insert item name>
<Ask a specific question if you have one> (ex. Does it come with a memory card as I see it in your photo but you haven't listed it)
I am free most evenings to collect or can do weekends.
Please let me know what works for you and would you prefer cash or bank transfer.
Best regards
<Insert name>"
This is the format I follow if I want to buy something . It shows I have taken the time to read the blurb and see the photos, shows I'm serious and all the info a seller could possibly need without the seller having to type out the same info AGAIN.
If you as a buyer cannot be bothered to do the basics, you are not my kind of buyer and saves me the hassle of dealing with a person who hasn't done the bare minimum. As a result, I have sold the items to people who are genuine, didn't have a problematic buyer, generally like minded people (who agree my approach and share the same passion for the hobby and the quality of social interaction) and sometimes even make a good acquaintance or a friend (multiple examples of that)
I have had people follow this format. I have also had people who have the audacity to just write a price (generally around 30% of what the asking price is and put a question mark <£30? On a £100 item with no other character used>, who just get blocked)
So it's not cutting my nose off or anything, it's just being selective for the right reasons.
bp122
Expert at Jibber-Jabber
It's irrelevant now as the fees are no longer applicable.
But until now, according to the eBay forums, some "selective" ebayers get this offer sent to them by eBay into their eBay inbox saying "80% off selling fees" - (I think motors were excluded)
It's almost religiously sent on a Thursday evening or a Friday, but the deal is you have to list by end of play Monday o(within 3 /4 days of the email / message coming in)
The deal is:
1. Activate the offer using the button /link
2. You have to start a brand new listing (relisting existing items under the same listing won't qualify) - basically copy paste the details into a new listing
3. It's valid for 30 days, over 100 listings (I think)
4. Generally, the fees works out at around 13-14% (used to be eBay & PayPal, but then eBay started processing the payment themselves)
But after the offer activation it works out anywhere between 2.9-3.5% overall or something. So quite a bit of savings especially on big ticket items. (Sold a lens for £600 earlier this year, got £580 for it after fees rather than £520!)
I sold a manual camera lens 2 months ago and ebay would not give me my money for 30 days, claiming that the seller has 30 days to decide if he wants the item.
I told ebay that this is more generous than a shop and I’m a pvt seller. I told them to undo the sale and return my item they refused.
That is the last time I’ve used them.
Ebay has tossed sellers to the wolves and given buyers way too much protection (and themselves). It is unreasonable to expect a pvt seller to have to give a 30 money back guarantee to a buyer.
What happens now in Photography is a photographer will buy a lense, use it to shoot a wedding and then return it. This could also happen with tools, turning ebay sellers into unwitting free loan shops.
The only way to avoid this is ‘pick up only’ and get them to scan the code. That way evay will pay you out almost instantly. I suspect though that will change and they will give the buyer more rights, the more expensive the item.
I feel unsure of ebays new changes. They have teams of very smart people working out how to extract more money from their model, so this is not all it seems.
Ebay holding the money effectively turns them into a bank so it could be they’re diversifying away from their core business model into money market/finance.
Expect ebay ’finance’ to be a thing (if not already) or a payment plan to purchase with interest.
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bp122
Expert at Jibber-Jabber
That's very strange, as I have sold quite a lot of items in the last 90 days, most recent being 3 weeks ago.
The money was in my account the following morning at 7 am.
It depends the price.
The camera lens was £1,500 so considered a high value item.
Ebay also said that because I hadn’t sold something in longer than a month the money had to be out in hold.
My suspicion is they were actually suspicious of the buyer and wanted to hold off paying me, in case he tried something dodgy and it effected them.
Ebay is my first port of call for most purchases. I'll even go to online seller's ebay stores often over their own stores because ebay is another avenue of appeal in case you get an argumentative seller who mis-describes and doesn't want to refund.
But after they cut paypal out so they can make more money by sitting on our money, I simply won't ship anything I'm selling myself until the money is cleared into my bank.
I wholly agree that they have been prioritising themselves and the buyers over sellers for years, and getting worse. The latest lark about requiring a payment method before bidding is a low point. They've lost sales to me because of that and will continue that way.
They must've been hiring ex Amazon types ! Amazon famously exploit their sellers.
I expect only that a seller is honest and accurate in their listings. Don't try to sneak some defect across or claim something untrue. They should take care over post and packing and if they make a mistake, it's on them. I stand by those principles as a seller. I expect them as a buyer. Easy.
But after they cut paypal out so they can make more money by sitting on our money, I simply won't ship anything I'm selling myself until the money is cleared into my bank.
I wholly agree that they have been prioritising themselves and the buyers over sellers for years, and getting worse. The latest lark about requiring a payment method before bidding is a low point. They've lost sales to me because of that and will continue that way.
They must've been hiring ex Amazon types ! Amazon famously exploit their sellers.
I expect only that a seller is honest and accurate in their listings. Don't try to sneak some defect across or claim something untrue. They should take care over post and packing and if they make a mistake, it's on them. I stand by those principles as a seller. I expect them as a buyer. Easy.
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Etaf
Established Member
Dont they hold the money now , until the item has been delivered or collected with a QR Code /code
I haven't found that.
When first introduced, they seemed to take a couple of days to pass the money along. Speaking only for myself, this doesn't seem to be an issue any more and the money clears through usually within hours.
If they held it, I would simply not ship and call the concierge service.
When first introduced, they seemed to take a couple of days to pass the money along. Speaking only for myself, this doesn't seem to be an issue any more and the money clears through usually within hours.
If they held it, I would simply not ship and call the concierge service.
