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they acknowledged that the sales graphs are off as well…
I have a friend who will have a specific answer directly from Harry Temkin, the VP of Seller Experience, in a couple of hours..she stated to hold off revising all of your listings and give eBay a chance to fix this first..I will post the results as soon as I get them..
It could be worse, this could be Amazon, good luck getting any answers from them, lol!
Jay, it’s way more serious than you might think..I just shot you an email to check out..please look for it..
Kind Regards,
Rick
So I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but we clothing & footwear sellers have a HUGE ISSUE right now..eBay decided to make their item specific changes right at the start of 4th quarter, and now none of my clothing listings can be found in search, and every single one needs to be revised as the size is missing…people can not search item specifics by size either, so there is no way that they will be able to find your items unless they search the brand and size in their query…this is a nightmare, as every item needs to be revised one at a time…not to mention that there are now even more boxes to fill in..try revising one of your items, and you will see what I mean..also try to do a generic search as if you were a buyer, and try to sort by size…nightmare! they stated that the glitch was fixed yesterday, but it was certainly not..if your sales are down, this is why! If you simply look at one of your listings, it will appear normal, but it’s not, it’s not showing in search and needs revising..
Thanks again, and I do have a strong eye for quality, and I learn every time I’m sourcing by trusting my eye, and looking up tags..I’ve been a part time hobby seller on eBay since 2006, but just took it seriously..I still make mistakes, like my recent prom dress, lol, what was I thinking?
Thanks Jay,
When I decided to retire from being a fine dining server, I experimented with different eBay business models for quite some time..I just went full time on the 15th of September, 2 days before my 55th birthday..I have limited space, and have a solid brand knowledge of higher end clothing & footwear..My model is to only source items that will sell for $65.00 or more shipped, and it’s working out really well..I went full time with only 500 items in my store, and now have just over 600..I live very frugally, could give a shit about fancy things, cook at home, and am single with two dogs. I own my car and knew my numbers before I took the plunge, had all car repairs done, and made sure that I had 6 months of all bills in my paypal account..I mainly sell suits, sport coats, women’s knitwear, and both his & hers shoes..There are so many models that work for all of us, but I custom tailored a model that met my needs..Having said that, I plan on moving into a larger domicile in February that has more space & a garage..There is no way that I could ever have company over now, bins everywhere, lol..
It automatically integrates with etsy, eBay, shopify and multiple others..for any platforms that it does not integrate with, it makes no difference, you simply add the info into the fields and print a label to anywhere..
Retro, were you asking me? If so, about 6 to 7 months using Pirateship, I do free priority shipping domestically & use calculated International 1st class at the buyer’s expense for foreign sales..I never pass a penny on to anybody..If they pay me $39.00 and it only costs me $25.00, that’s $14.00 in my pocket..I utilize best offer on all of my listings, so when I receive an offer, I always check if it’s an International buyer first, and if it is, I will often accept a lower offer because I know that I will be making money on the shipping, & thus often get what I originally desired anyway..
99% of all of my shoes are under 4 pounds, so the most that I ever get charged for a pair under 4 lbs, is $8.92 coast to coast..whereas eBay, with the top rated seller discount, would still be well over $14.00..I stopped using priority boxes months ago and bubble wrap and double poly bag my shoes, even internationally, and it saves me huge, as often a box will put you over the next weight threshold..I’ve never had an issue using this method..Same for my suits and port coats, no bubble wrap, but double poly bagged..
hope this helps..
Great stuff! I sometimes seek out the wealthiest zip codes within 2 hours of me, and go source in those areas, I call it “reconnaissance thrifting”, lol…I totally agree with you about the “good enough” with photos..while we can always improve our quality, it does not necessarily improve the sell through rate, as long as your listings are solid in other ways..having said that, I personally am tired of my 3 clamp lights, lol…
Very cool that you are part of your community, and the farmers group..I just streamed an awesome news piece over the weekend on CBS that you might have interest in..It was called ” Behind the ugly produce movement.” It was covering a startup business that combats the food waste problem of fruits & veggies that are slightly bruised or oddly shaped, that would normally be thrown away, and how that business delivers them to your door for about 40% off of retail..Very cool concept, and thought you might like to see it..
Yes to the shoes, I never pay more than $8.92 for a pair of shoes going from Florida to California weighing between 3 to 4 pounds..Pirateship automatically integrates with eBay, you simply refresh within Pirateship and all of your items are automatically there, you then seamlessly print your label and it marks as shipped with tracking automatically uploaded in eBay..No difference, don’t overthink it, it’s actually easier than just using eBay..
Thanks for a great podcast as usual!
Kind Regards,
Rick
My Store Week October 6-12, 2019 ( 100% thrifted used clothing & footwear)
Total Items in Store: 608
Items Sold: 20
Gross Sales: $1565.75
Cost of Items Sold: $122.32
Cost of helpers: $0
Highest Price Sold: $160.75 (New deadstock pair of vintage Nettleton Derby shoes)
Average Price Sold: $78.28
Returns: 0
Money Spent on New Inventory This Week: $117.00
Number of items listed this week: 23I totally agree with Jay about custom tailoring a model that conforms to your lifestyle..Know your numbers..Know how much you need to make each month to cover your bills, and live frugally! Screw the BMW! I own my 2009 Scion, cook at home, thrift my furniture, clothing, footwear, etc..Minimalism rocks!
Great podcast as usual, thanks for keeping it real!
Disheartening week for me, sales were down 52% and asp was down 20%..I had slacked the prior 2 weeks before and taken some personal time and was not listing, and was also experimenting by turning promoted listings off..turned them back on and am back on track with listing..hope to have a stronger week next time..
My Store Week September 29 – October 5, 2019
Total Items in Store: 588
Items Sold: 14
Gross Sales: $939.00
Cost of Items Sold: $87.50
Cost of helpers: $0
Highest Price Sold: $120.00 (pair of Men’s Chippewa boots)
Average Price Sold: $67.07
Returns: 0
Money Spent on New Inventory This Week: $142.00
Number of items listed this week: 37Thanks Jay,
I have not thus far had a single issue with tracking….Canada and Australia ship super fast and my longest 2 transport times thus far were Mexico, and Italy..Italy took 3 weeks, Mexico closer to 4, both were trackable and I recieved positive feedback on both, but there were some lag times in the tracking, but then they update towards the end as delivered..I have heard others have issues with South Africa but can not confirm..
Kind Regards,
Rick
Hello! My name is Rick, ( not Ricker, can not edit my profile name dammit lol), and I have been a casual part time seller on eBay for just under 14 years..Early this year, I decided to make this a full time endeavor, and just went full time 2 weeks ago! I sell 100% clothing & footwear only and have a business model of a very high ASP with less inventory, and it has been working out perfectly for my lifestyle. Enough about me, this post is my feedback on Pirateship and how it has been the best business decision that I have made thus far..
I began using Pirateship on the 1st of May, 2019 so have 5 months of experience with the platform..Here are some of my thoughts:
1- Most importantly (and often missed) is that as soon as you sign up, you MUST IMMEDIATELY SEND THEM A MESSAGE IN THEIR MESSAGE BOX ASKING THEM TO ADD YOU TO THEIR “SIMPLE EXPORT RATE PROGRAM”…Their customer service is impeccable, and they will do this instantaneously…this must be done, or you will not get the global shipping discount rates for USPS International 1st Class..
2-Pirateship will generally only save you the most on USPS International 1st class, and on USPS domestic priority..If you are using USPS flat rate boxes, eBay will be less expensive..If you are shipping domestic 1st class, eBay will often be the same price…they also offer a service called “box in a bag”, which I have never used so can not attest to the potential savings..
3- The type of domestic USPS Priority that is exclusive to Pirateship is called USPS Cubic Priority…what differentiates this method from eBay, is that on a poly mailer, you only need to include two dimensions, rather than 3…just the length & the width of the mailer, and never the girth..
4- When using the cubic priority poly mailer method, your poly mailer must be sealed as it would naturally seal, and you can not use the poly mailer as a wrapper, and then tape over the mailer with normal tape..For example, about 80% of my footwear will fit into a 12 x 15 poly mailer, and seal perfectly..for larger sized footwear, you will need a larger mailer, I use a 17 x 11..
5-If you are concerned about sending footwear in poly bags because it does not offer protection, that would be unjustified..For years, I only used USPS shoe boxes, which adds another 5 ounces to your shipping weight, often putting you over the next price threshold for priority..I bubble wrap my shoes, and then double poly bag them into the 12 x 15 bags, and still have perfect feedback..I have also used this method for 1st class International for both high end footwear, and sport coats without issue..
6- The savings are the best part of Pirateship, I mean I am making so much more money on every sale, that it is just mind blowing! I reside on the West Coast of Florida, and the largest % of my shoe sale s go to California..The most that I pay for a pair of shoes to California, under 4 pounds priority, is , ready for this???????? $8.92!!!! With my top rated seller discount on eBay, it would still cost me around $14.50 or more..now with International first class, the savings is also crazy! I have best offer on my listings, and the 1st thing that I do upon receiving a decent offer, is to click on the user’s id to see which country they reside in..I will often accept offers based on the seller’s Country, as on my last sale to Canada, I made over $15.00 additional profit on the shipping, so this is a huge benefit..
7- International sales for me have literally exploded in huge multiples since I got rid of GSP and upgraded my business policies to International 1st class only..In the past, I rarely got International sales, and when I did, they were to an APO, or to a Canadian buyer asking me to ship a different method..I do realize that getting rid of GSP is controversial for some, and especially for those that sell a lot of hard goods, but you could still offer both, ,and are also able to purchase Insurance on Pirateship which still comes out way cheaper after your discounts…
So I have hopefully shed some proverbial light upon the platform, and will share now with you my average costs using the platform…Keep in mind that I sell 100% clothing & footwear, ,and the majority of my items are under 4 pounds, and I only offer priority domestically or domestic 1st class, and only International 1st class for the rest of the mundo..I hope that this helps shed some light over what the buzz is all about, thanks for reading..
Avg. Domestic
$8.54Avg. International
$16.951. California – 20% – 9 shipments – $8.53 avg
Yeah, I could pretty much care less…I haven’t moved over to managed payments as of yet, but got the invite..I need to open another bank account first..just a cost of doing business, but totally annoying when a buyer pays you, then instant sends you a message to cancel the transaction, lol…it is what it is…btw, I reside in Pinellas County, and lived in Lakeland during the 80’s..old Lake Hollingsworth was a regular walk..
Hello! Just now listening to the new podcast and wanted to add one thing regarding the new Paypal change starting on October 11th..It does not only apply to returns, but they will also not refund the transaction fee for cancellations..I am far from a complainer, but this aspect bothers me as I have been getting several cancellations recently…Great podcast as always..Long time listener here who has never commented before, maybe once years ago..Enjoy the rest of your weekend..
Kind Regards,
Rick
