Home › Forums › Random Thoughts › When to take the next step up in size of eBay store
Tagged: eBay store level
- This topic has 16 replies, 7 voices, and was last updated 3 years, 11 months ago by
MyCottage.
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08/16/2017 at 1:03 pm #21872
So I have a basic store and thinking about making the jump to the premium store. So $20 to $60 a month. Yes you get a lot, but I maxed out my listings for fixed and auction yesterday. I have switched a lot of my fixed to Good Til Cancelled (hopefully Sold) and I can list anywhere from 15-40 items a day because I do similar items. I have switched to more volumn so selling $3-$10 items, but 3-10 items a day. These items are easy to ship.
So, advice if I should move up to the next store level now OR build up drafts to the point where I almost make the premium store level? -
08/16/2017 at 2:47 pm #21887
There is a break even point somewhere between your max free items now and the free items on the next level store. Remember to include the items sold in the current month with your current active listings to get to the number of items you are being charged for.
I wouldn’t hold back on any listings before the change. The benefit you get from listing them far outweighs any listing costs.
What are the costs for the two stores, and number of free items involved.
Good Luck.
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08/16/2017 at 4:26 pm #21892
So here is what came off my head
Basic Store
# Free listing
Auction 250
Fixed. 250
List fee
.20 fixed
.25 auction
Subscription Fee =$20Premium store
# Free Listings
Auction 500
Fixed 1000
Subscription fee = $60If I pay the listing fee for just fixed items, 200 x .20
= $40Given other things that keep me from listing, minimum have to average more than 20 items in the 10 days I know I can list.
Hmmmmmmm… -
08/16/2017 at 4:44 pm #21893
There you go 450 items (sold plus active for the month.) Of course, some of your solds will have been part of last month’s listings, so it’s not an exact science.
450 items will cost you the same as the 1000 item store. Once you see yourself being above that number consistently, it makes financial sense to move up.
You’ll also get the $50 free shipping supplies each quarter, which has a value.
In the meantime.. list list list..
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08/17/2017 at 7:49 am #21909
Can someone tell me if my logic is sound here?
Thinking about the cost between premium and anchor store subscriptions. Currently have a premium and my monthly eBay invoice had $116 in listing fees (for listing over my free 1000 per month).
The math doesn’t justify the cost of an anchor store sub yet, but the $116 is just gnawing at me.
Would this be a reason to have a second premium store?????
I’d pay an extra $59.95 per month in subscription fees but get an additional 1000 free listings per month thereby saving me around $60 every month (116-59.95= 56.05)
The final value fees wouldn’t change and neither would the shipping fees. The hassle would be “moving” my listing over to the second store and moving them again when I got big enough to justify an Anchor store.
Why eBay doesn’t have a level between premium and anchor is beyond me.Just looking for a second insight into this conundrum.
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08/17/2017 at 8:10 am #21910
Play with the calculator. You’ll find your break even point. http://www.subs.ebay.com/feeweb/feeillustrator
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08/17/2017 at 3:09 pm #21935
Thanks.
Yea, these are very subject to variance and still show a HUGE gap between Premium and Anchor subscription prices.
How do I save money on subscriptions UNTIL I’m large enough for an Anchor store??
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08/18/2017 at 11:17 am #21951
You don’t. It’s just the cost of doing business. Hopefully your sales volume justifies the expense of maintaining a large store.
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08/18/2017 at 12:48 pm #21952
Uncle Taco .. Retro Teasures is spot on. You don’t is the short, direct answer to the question.
Jay started a section here on the forum Title Ways Ebay Can Improve. Check it out. This is just one of many suggestions posted there about ways to improve and having a larger amount of store tiers is one of them. The jump between 1,000 and 10,000 is huge. We will come up on 1,000 listings in a few weeks and nothing we can do except wait until we hit enough paid for listings over the 1,000 mark to equal out to what the anchor store costs. [Don’t forget you get a discount if you subscribe to your store on an annual basis]. I think Jay says that Ebay still bills you monthly but you have agreed to a full 12 months so you don’t have to pay the total amount at one time.
Using the Ebay fee calculator we need to be at approx. 3,400 monthly listings before it says to jump to the anchor store but 3,300 listings says to stay at our current Premium Store level and a cost based on those variables one has to put into the calculator our store costs would be $807 a month and the Anchor Store would be $807 a month but allow 6,700 more listings. So many sellers would love to see Ebay implement a couple of more tiers of stores like 2,500 and 5,000 or even just one more level at 5,000. Anything that would split up the jump between 1,000 premium to the 10,000 anchor store. But guess Ebay counts on those extra FVF on the overage listings on that “void” in between the tiers.
At these levels it would make sense to evaluate the “two store” concept until the amount of listings got really close to the 10,000 anchor level.
Just thinking out loud in reply to your questioning .. no deep analysis.
Mike & Susan at MDC Galleries in Atlanta
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This reply was modified 4 years ago by
MDC Galleries & Fine Art.
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This reply was modified 4 years ago by
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08/18/2017 at 2:37 pm #21954
Thanks Mike,
What about my original idea….a second premium store. Another $59.95 per month but no insertion fees for the extra 1000 items it would probably take to make it worth an anchor store.
The challenge would be “moving” those items from one store to the new one.
Thoughts???-
08/18/2017 at 2:57 pm #21957
From a financial stand point it makes sense for the second store when the amount of listings accumulate to an amount that is equal to the new premium store costs. BUT… the new store will not have any feed backs, no reviews or nice things said about you, your products or service. You will have sales limits to what Ebay will allow you to list with regards to dollar sales amounts and things like that. Tese things have been talked about before if you do a search here on SL forum and older blog about a second store.
These things J&R ran into when they first opened up there 2nd store. But they can be overcome with a few phone calls, and time of course. You can also buy things from your second store to bump it up with some feed backs, though buyer feed backs.Now as far as getting items unlisted from the first store and moved into the second store, for me, that is about a 2 to 3 minute process. That is because we have used WonderLister for years and others use SixBit. Either of these programs will do something like that injust a few minutes. All I would do is go to my active listings, review my list of items, click / highlight which ones I want to move into my new store. Then click on end the highlighted listings. Then those auto appear in my just unlisted-unsold folder. There they are still highlighted. Then all I would do is high light my second store name [WL allows up to 5 stores-ID’s I believe with my Silver Subscription level – $25 a month] and then click re-list and in a few minutes they are all relisted in the new store. Part of the beauty of an offline secondary inventory management software.
Mike at MDC Galleries in Atlanta
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08/19/2017 at 6:28 pm #21988
Thanks Mike.
I hadn’t thought of “starting over” with feedback and number of listings I could start out with in a new store.
It might be worth it just to avoid the fees (maybe not)I agree with the 3400 listings being the “break even” spot (at least that’s what my math was telling me) and I am at about 2300 so I’ve still got a way to go.
Time to make a decision.
Thanks for the help and suggestions
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08/18/2017 at 5:48 pm #21962
The anchor store used to be at 2500 items plus 5 cents a listing afterwards. I would be very surprised to see this level come back although it would be welcome. Ebay is in the business to make money and as long as the platform is successful, the rates will probably continue to increase.
I have just over 2000 items listed now and hope that things don’t change again before I hit 3500.
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09/26/2017 at 8:57 pm #23328
Wondering if anyone else experienced this benefit and for how long. Ebay is giving me a credit for my insertion fees over the store subscription limit (basic, 250). So last month there was a $50 credit against insertion fees on the extra 150 items in my 400 item store. They just sent me a promotion to upgrade my store to premium, but the discount to $30 was only for one month, not for the year like last time. I think the offer was artfully crafted to make it seem like the ongoing monthly fee would be $30, but scavengers the promo period was only 1 month if you read the fine print. I’m wondering if Ebay will continue to waive my insertion fees or if this is just temporary. Guess I will keep an eye on my invoices and upgrade once I see it go up or on the next promotion.
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09/27/2017 at 8:52 am #23337
I’m not getting the credit you speak of, so I really don’t know what to say about that. Are you saying this is something ebay gives you monthly? I do get occasional listing “promos” but these are hit or miss, and the number has diminished.
We have basic stores. We’ve talked about this new offer ($30 for one month of Premium) and will probably try it. We haven’t used our Q3 Shipping Supplies credit yet, so we’re trying to figure out if we opt in now (before Oct 1st), will we also get the larger shipping credit for the end of Sept (still Q3), plus use the larger Q4 credit in October? That would leverage the savings.
We see it as a trial run. IF it works for us, we’ll move to Premium on a yearly subscription plan ($59.95)/month. The way I figure it, leaving out the free auction listings (which we rarely use) and the possibility of getting listing promos (not dependable), the break even point is around 450 listings per month. (Not in store at any one time, but total per month, including relists). I think most months we’ve been in that neighborhood, and we want to ramp up for Q4, so I’m hoping we can get past—way past—the break even point in October. God knows we have more than enough inventory to do that, it’s actually listing it the hard part for us.
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09/27/2017 at 1:14 pm #23350
Yes, monthly. I don’t check my invoice every month but I have more often in the past few as I’ve started using Smartpost more often. About a year ago I stopped getting any free listing promos. I used to get them all the time. The calculator wasn’t working in the field asking about the number of TRS items, but I think at about 425 I’d be better off upgrading without the credit. I’d do it before October 1 if I knew I would have good listing time available this quarter. Hopefully you will get the extra coupon amount if you do.
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09/27/2017 at 8:33 pm #23371
Just a quick note about this store upgrade promo. I have a Basic Store on an annual subscription. Be forewarned: if you “upgrade” to a Premium Store on a monthly subscription, you will be charged a termination fee of your annual Basic subscription. My partner did this, and got hit with the early termination fee. She called ebay and they promised to reverse the charge.
So I went ahead and upgraded from an annual Basic to an annual Premium. That is considered an upgrade without termination, I guess because I’m retaining the annual configuration. So, no early termination fee.
However, this means if I decide the Premium is more than I need, I must cancel it within the next 30 days (the promotion period). If I go beyond that and then cancel, I will be charged a termination fee.
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