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Jay,
Yes, some buyers do narrow down their searches by category. Also, even if you have your search set to “all categories” ebay will sometimes switch it to their preferred category (not sure if they are still doing this or not, but I think so). And, yes, ebay in some cases will unilaterally move an item from the “wrong” category to the “right” category. But, as ctebay notes, there are a lot of things that can justifiably go in a number of categories. I haven’t heard of ebay actually “punishing” anyone for doing this, but I suppose it would be possible under ebay’s “fee avoidance” policy.
Pikapop,
No, there is no requirement to use one. Some sellers do, some don’t. (I think Amazon requires one, but I imagine even then, not all sellers include one.) But on eBay, it’s definitely each seller’s choice.
Margana, Personally I’m glad there are two ways to print packing slips (I’ve known about this for a long time). This sort of redundancy isn’t a bad thing. If the regular packing slip is glitchy, I can use the other one as a back-up. But I agree, it is kind of odd that they are not basically the same layout….
Thinking about this some more, before taking any of my suggestions, eBay will need to look at what the USPS permits….would a mini-catalog violate some postal rule about what can and cannot be enclosed in certain classes of mail? That’s not something I researched….
Amatino, Thanks! And, to be clear, my idea is the seller creating the packing slip gets to populate the catalog at the bottom of the packing slip. I know ebay has confidence in its AI and all that stuff to figure out what to show the buyer, but this should be about seller empowerment….I might make poor choices to show the buyer, but they are MY choices….and hopefully they’ll mostly be good choices….
Thanks Malinda….would love to see some of these ideas actually become reality!
How about an (optional) QR code that links to our store home page or a non-store’s landing page? Yesterday Jamie said that the majority of transactions take place on the app….If a buyer opens the package, likes the item, he might want to go back to the seller’s store to look at more stuff, but might not want to take the time to type in a seller’s ID….if he could use the app to scan in a QR code and be taken directly to the store, the seller might be able to make some more sales. (Come to think of it, if I provide the buyer with a discount coupon, maybe it could be both a code and a QR, for those who can scan it quickly.
I think anything ebay can do to empower sellers, to provide tools we can use to try to increase our sales velocity, would be a good thing. That’s why I like SIOs…frankly, I send out a lot of offers and don’t get many sales back from the offers , but at least I have a tool I can use that increases my chances of making a sale. And I’m always happy when I do get a sale from a SIO.
Old Dad, In line with what you are saying, here’s at least one analyst who anticipates a decelerated growth rate, post-COVID (but then, I’d guess that’s an expectation many would have for most online retail type businesses. So, the real question will be: will eBay be able to really capitalize on the COVID “bump” going forward. The new CEO seems to think that post COVID, they will have lower growth rate, but that it will still be higher than the pre-COVID growth rate they had been seeing…..
For anyone who might be interested, the earnings call transcript can be found here (or you can listen to it here too):
Old Dad, Yeah, ebay was pretty clear that Covid was the biggest factor. That said, I think it’s also fairly clear that ebay is working to leverage the momentum, so when Covid is no longer a factor, ebay will still be seeing good growth. I listened to the Conference Call with the Market Analysts, and a few things I was very happy to hear from the new CEO: Acknowledgment that ebay had been headed in the wrong direction for too long, that niche competitors have gained ground because of that, and that going forward, while new items will continue to be sold, ebay will be emphasizing small and medium businesses and “NON new, in season merchandise”….and “Non-new” is what many of us here sell, and we’ve been saying for years that’s where ebay’s emphasis should be.
mallybills,
Thanks for asking us. I’d like to see the Packing Slip made into a Marketing Tool (for those who want to use it as such—so I envision this as customizable , sellers could choose to use these options if they wanted to, or not. I’d like to see:
The ability to add a discount coupon code, so I can use the Packing Slip to offer my buyer 10% off her next purchase (or some other offer).
The ability to add a thumbnail of the item enclosed with the packing slip.
The ability to add a short “catalog” on the otherwise never used bottom half of the page— let’s say I could add 1 to 6 thumbnails (with item titles) of other items I have for sale that might be of interest., all “subject to prior sale” of course.
Mike, Thanks. Very informative.
This one? https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/picasso-francoise-gilot-signed-artist-1869633520
sold for $1400 in 2017, but note seller says his is an Artists Proof, which I believe are generally somewhat more valuable than a numbered litho.
The poster for the event brought $495 in 2018
Jay, That would depend on who buys it I think. If Google or WalMart bough it, it would be part of those companies and so publicly owned. If a Private Equity outfit bought it, it would be privately owned.
I know there are ebay oldtimers who think ebay was better back when it was privately owned and that going public meant the company would be too focused on the bottom line. But if ti goes private at this point, I would expect the new owners to be just as focused on profit, AND there would be less transparency (publicly owned companies have to disclose much more).
As I said, with the pandemic and the general stock upswing (ebay, not the entire market), I wouldn’t expect a sale anytime soon. But stranger things have happened. It also seems to me that since ebay has taken an ownership stake in the new merged Classifieds business, that stake has value, and anyone making play for ebay would probably have to pony up money for the marketplace business and the stake in the Classifieds. So it might have been a smart move to hold off hostile takeover attempts.
And I should emphasize, to get the free “selected category” listings, you MUST be in Managed Payments. I was just onboarded last night, so come August 1st my Premium Store will get the freebies.
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