posted on February 10, 2001 09:50:38 AM
I have noticed a few things selling on ebay in the past couple of months. I have been selling on ebay for about three years now. I get all my items exclusively from goodwill, rumage sales(summer), and auctions. My sales have been cut in half over the last couple of months. It was almost like someone turned of a switch on the bids for items I have been selling for years. I just went to goodwill today and an auction a couple of weeks ago and there was very little there that I could find to make a profit on. In the past I could find enough items at goodwill to give me a week of profits, and usually an auction gave me 2 weeks to a month of profits. All the items are still at these places that I have always sold but when reseaching completed items on ebay I found that they are not profitable anymore. I sell mainly toys, games, knicknacks, figures, collectibles. Has anyone else noticed any of the things I have and does anyone have any advice? I need help! Any input on the above mentioned subjects would be much appreciated. Thanks All!
posted on February 10, 2001 10:07:12 AM
Sales are slowing for sure last week was the pits for some sellers for me this week was better.
There are many reasons for the slow down but online auction selling I found has alway been up a bit down a bit then go back up slowly again.
its tax time there will be many with good returns paying down Xmas bill and some releif from energy costs freeing up some buying $$$ so I think march apirl and in to may will be steady sales even if nothing in the way of big growth for sellers. http://www.Dman-N-Company.com
posted on February 10, 2001 10:12:48 AM
I probably shouldn't say this, but my sales have picked up again over the last couple of weeks. I hope things continue as they are!
posted on February 10, 2001 10:22:15 AM
My biggest problem is that listing fees are killing me. I am trying to get rid of literally hundreds of items that are not selling as of late. I'm running out of room in the garage and paying as much as $100.00 a month to keep relisting these items only to get 20-30 hits but no bids!
posted on February 10, 2001 10:28:09 AM
I used to keep my "dead stock" over on Yahoo listed as "First Bid Wins". Mostly paperbacks and such, or things that did not sell the second time around on eBay. People were finding the items at a decent pace, but not enough to justify Yahoo's new listing fees. (It was priced reasonably, I think it takes a while for the right person to find stuff sometimes.) Now I am looking into setting up a storefront with some sort of free (or dirt cheap) shopping cart so that I don't kill myself with listing fees. I do think (hope!) that my main "specialty" will pick up with warmer weather approaching.
posted on February 10, 2001 12:57:00 PM
I have three general categories I sell in and they are very unlike each other, and when one category loses bids, I simply rotate to another category.
\"They say the grass is greener on the other side. But have you flipped it over and looked?
\"
posted on February 10, 2001 03:16:19 PM
hhsales; if you don't mind e-mail me your userid, so I can take a look at your stuff. Seems like we're doing about the same types of things. I started last March and at that time I was selling 70-90% first time around. Now I'm down to about 25-30, but I do get the hits so maybe folks don't have the money for non-essentials. I think they are doing much more 'window-shopping'. A lot of the stuff I do sell goes with BIN. [email protected]
posted on February 11, 2001 06:08:05 AM
I usually just lurk here but wanted to let you know you are not alone!
My sales have shut off like a faucet! Items that were selling like "hot cakes" (nearly 90%) are still getting hits but hardly any bids. I wish I knew what was going on as well.
I've only been selling since August so I don't have the benefit of seeing montly trends. From what I have read on this board, however, it does not seem to be "just typical" for February.
I'm hoping that the average consumer is just temporarily "stunned" from all of the recent price increases (ie gasoline, home heating)and will come back around soon.
posted on February 11, 2001 07:48:33 AM
I've been selling on ebay for over two years and even though February has always been slow for me, this year is worse. I've got 41 auctions running that end today and only 4 items have bids. Won't even pay the ebay fees from those sales. Ebay usually picks up mid-March, so hang in there!! Makes me glad that selling is just for pin money, not to put food on the table.
posted on February 11, 2001 07:56:38 AM
I, also, have done well the past couple weeks. It goes up & down! I try not to get discouraged when I have a slow week because the next week may just kick butt! Just never know.
To one of your comments on the lack of finding items at auctions and Goodwill.
About 5 or 6 years ago, we went to local "missions" and GoodWill to find auction items. It wasn't long till we noticed that items we normally found had totally disappeared. We would then switch "missions" and again find a supply of such items only to find in a short time they too just seemed to disappear. What we finally realized was, because we also own an antique shop, and live in a relatively small, rural area, that the employees of these places were watching our buying habits, and when they noticed we were particularly interested in a given type of item, they decided that such items were all of the sudden valuable, and the employees were themselves buying up all such items. In time we could find nothing at the missions, and at local auctions, the same became true at local auctions. If we bid on an item, locals decided it was valuable, and the price would run out of site. In time we stopped going to the "missions" and to local auctions as there was no product left.
What to us is funny today, is how we imagine some of these "mission" and GoodWill employee's garages look with all that "stuff" that they presumed valuable and they bought up simply because we were buying it. There neither never was nor is a local market for such items and I am sure many are stuck with a garage full.
In time we totally got away from handling such, since it was too time consuming, and as I said the sources had dried up. I am glad now that we don't handle such as for us it wasn't truly cost effective.
posted on February 11, 2001 08:27:17 AM
Pre Tax time in US is always slow. It will pick up after April. I remember crying the blues last year Mid Feb too.
posted on February 11, 2001 10:07:00 AM
I notice the same thing as cmdar. Items that sell are sure changing. My sales have been way done since Christmas. As far as Bush screwing up the economy,you got that all wrong.You are now enjoying what Mr. Clinton had already set in motion,and you haven't seen anything yet.
posted on February 11, 2001 12:20:01 PM
It's not any President's fault. This is a normal economic cycle. As far as it continuing until the end of Bush's term, you are so wrong. Recessions don't last that long. Secondly, companies have been able to turn around their inventory faster due to computers lessening the duration that inventory that would sit in their warehouses. What used to take months to take action once buying slowed, now takes just weeks.
I saw this recession coming since five years ago, no matter who would be reigning President. Oh yea, Bush will end his term in a good economy locking him in for a second term. Democrats should be outlawed for their ignorance. Hey, here's a great idea, we'll allow people to be unproductive and make everyone else pay for them. Fantasic plan, DEMS!
posted on February 11, 2001 01:11:59 PM
You said it MAH645 and quickdraw! I don't want to get into a political debate here, but I can't see how a man who has been in the president's seat for less than a month could be responsible for eBay sales dropping or our current economy. The logic in that eludes me.
posted on February 11, 2001 02:35:36 PM
When I was selling on ebay my sales always went down in Jan., Feb. and March. They started to pick up in April and May. And this was when we had a Democrat for a prez. So that doesn't seem to have anything to do with it. It all depends on what is HOT at the moment. HOT items sell. I may start selling again if ebay ever gets it together.
posted on February 11, 2001 02:51:52 PM
Quickdraw. DITTO.
How foolish can people be??
Just like a Democrat.
"My Ebay sales are dropping, it must be the Republicans."
Maybe if a Democrat were elected they would be looking into Ebay welfare programs instead of the EDUCATION REFORM the silly Republicans are doing.
*********************************
You want to talk about a fraudulent statement??
Take a look on the side of a box of PAMPERS where it says "Fits 12 to 18 pounds". NO WAY!!!!
It's not about Bush or Clinton, IT"S ABOUT PEOPLE, people is afraid about this new change of presidency, ALSO a lots of the .DOT com's are out of bidness, AND people have heard all this, so they relate everything with any e-Company.
And DEFINITELY sales are low. I'm not trying to impress anybody but I for every item I listed I used to get from 35 to 45 bids (sales) How many am I getting now? no more than 5 sales. All happened a few days before Christmas, it really surprised me I WAS IN SHOCK when sales drooped almost 85% in less than a week, I though I a mistake, I checked my ad, the category where I was listing, etc. etc. And everything was exactly as always, but people were not buying, IT'S LIKE SOMEBODY TURNED THE WITCH OFF, BUT you are not alone. Once this happened I also noticed that many powersellers were not selling either, many of them stooped listing, for a few days, then I saw them listing again but only a few, and they still don't have many bids as usual. Of course, some people will say, sales are the same, if you sell paper toilet, your sales will never drop, people will never stop going to the bathroom (you get the idea right) but those sellers are only a few, they sell like always, but their profits are just cents.
Now it's been 50 days after Christmas and my sales are still down by 85% yes, by that much.
BUT Bidville.com is getting a lot of traffic and seller started to post there, and I will do the same, I'm formatting my ads, I prefer to invest time, than money, so I will start selling there.
posted on February 12, 2001 01:18:37 PM
It must be the slowdown of the whole US economy. It is in the news and on the covers of every magazine and newspaper, so i suppose, people are holding on to their money until they see the light at the end of the (not too dark, but dim) tunnel. I am not from the US, but this is what i think is going on based on what i read here and in the media. Hang in there, the slowdown will be foloowed by a gooood period eventually!!
posted on February 12, 2001 01:30:55 PM
As someone above stated HOT things sell!!!!!
There are too many common things on now. Too much competition. Sad, but true. More sellers than buyers.
posted on February 12, 2001 01:32:07 PM
I have CNN, CNET, and more than 15 channels related to the technology and econmy of the US and all of them are anouncing this:
Yahoo is laying off 25% of its staff
Amazon 15%
CNET itself says: We are reducing our staff by 7%
eToy is going out of business by April.
Napster probably closes its doors today.
Fraud on the Internet.
That's what they are talking about all day, basically scaring people away.
51 days after christmas and my sales are still 85% below normal.
Poton.
[ edited by POTON on Feb 12, 2001 03:32 PM ]
Ebay usually picks up mid-March, so hang in there!! Makes me glad that selling is just for pin money, not to put food on the table. 
