Reasons Why Selling on eBay May Not Be Your Cup of Tea

Sep 30, 2023 | eBay Flipping | 21 comments

Reasons Why Selling on eBay May Not Be Your Cup of Tea




Why You’re Going to HATE Selling on eBay

eBay, the online marketplace behemoth, has revolutionized the way people buy and sell goods. It has become a go-to platform for individuals looking to make some extra cash or start their own businesses. However, there are several reasons why you might come to despise selling on eBay.

Firstly, the competition on eBay is fierce. Thousands of sellers are vying for the attention of potential buyers, making it increasingly difficult for new sellers to stand out. This saturation of sellers means that prices are often driven down, resulting in lower profit margins. Furthermore, the constant need to constantly monitor and adjust prices to remain competitive can be extremely time-consuming.

Secondly, eBay charges several fees that can eat into your profits. Aside from the listing fee, which you have to pay regardless of whether your item sells or not, there are additional fees such as the commission fee on the final selling price, and fees for optional features such as listing upgrades or seller tools. These fees can quickly add up, significantly reducing your earnings.

Moreover, eBay’s policy heavily favors buyers over sellers, which can be frustrating as a seller. eBay has a strict returns policy that allows buyers to return items for various reasons, even if the item was accurately described in the listing. This often leaves sellers having to accept returns and issue refunds, even if the buyer’s claim is unfounded. This can result in lost time, money, and the added hassle of managing returns and customer disputes.

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Another aspect that can be irritating is the feedback system. Although feedback can be useful to gauge the reputation of a buyer or seller, it can also work against you as a seller. Buyers have the ability to leave negative feedback, sometimes for reasons beyond your control, leading to a tarnished reputation that can affect future sales. This puts considerable pressure on sellers to please every customer to prevent negative feedback, even if the buyer’s expectations are unreasonable or the fault lies with the buyer.

Last but not least, dealing with customer service can be a headache. eBay’s customer service is notorious for being difficult to reach and unhelpful. If you encounter an issue or have a question, it can be a frustrating and time-consuming process to get the assistance you need. This lack of support can leave sellers feeling frustrated and unsupported.

In conclusion, while eBay offers a convenient platform for selling goods online, there are several reasons why you might end up hating the experience. Intense competition, high fees, buyer-centric policies, the feedback system, and inadequate customer service can make selling on eBay a less-than-ideal experience. Ultimately, it’s important to weigh the pros and cons before deciding to venture into the world of eBay selling.


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21 Comments

  1. Carson Doty

    not bad so far but ive only sold 7 items

    Reply
  2. Bair Freedom

    It is exhausting! Lol Was a power Seller for 8 years. It's alot of work

    Reply
  3. Red Ciroc

    How much do you make monthly selling on ebay?

    Reply
  4. Miami 2017

    I find taking pictures of the products takes up a lot of time. Can you share any insight on that process please? Thank you.

    Reply
  5. J&N Pyle

    Thanks for this video, this is the info I really needed.

    Reply
  6. zebageba

    Try working a real job and get back to me.

    Reply
  7. Concerned Citizen

    The thing of it is you have to find a niche and stay with that. I was all over the place in the beginning and I was starting to hate EBay early on. Now I only source dresses and jeans. I could never ever do a lot of different inventory that would drive me crazy

    Reply
  8. Mr Magoo

    I have a buyer right now that took a black marker and drew on a pink shirt to get out of paying for return shipping …..

    Reply
  9. stvlu733

    Most never check. Inspect, or properly describe their items so they reduce their prices as an easy fix and actually pay more for the shipping if it's free and below postage value. So basically, they are just paying to sell stuff. I hear this all the time. Someone will buy something for $30 and then end up selling it for $10 just because they need to recoup that money that they need now, probably to pay bills or something.

    Reply
  10. PeaceSeeking Missile

    The fees and stuff on Ebay prevent me from using it for selling. Buying is great I can get anything I need anytime. I sell on FB and Kijiji and in a big city thats all I need.

    Reply
  11. Kelly Kuchta

    Hey Dude!! I have has a eBay account since 2000 but a new eBayer and listing and selling items part time. I have been playing around with the promotion and wondering what you do for all your items that you list? Thank you in advance

    Reply
  12. KEA

    I mark ebay items I sell. If they are returned they must have that secret mark otherwise, I have proof they're trying to do a scam switcheroo on me.

    Reply
  13. V.Henderson

    I've been selling for 3 months now and am finding out just how much work and time it takes. Everything you said is right on the money. I had my first return recently and am now finding myself second guessing everything I do from packing the right item for an order, putting in the right box dimensions and weight, etc… I'm no where near as excited as I used to be when I hear the "chaching" on the app. My first instinct just today was to panic about what I would mess up on with this order. Yikes. Hopefully I can kick this mindset asap.

    Reply
  14. Homer Munoz

    Great information. I've been selling on eBay since 1999. EVERYTHING you said is so true.

    Reply
  15. usabadone

    Me and the wife just recently started selling on eBay I’m retired the extra income is going to help we’ve been going to Goodwill and purchasing things and we went to a thrift store ran by salvation Army we need is the prices were a little high keeping in mind that everything that they get is donated to them so everything they sell is 100% profit but whoever they have been there managing I don’t know if it’s their company policy. But they’re checking to damn prices on eBay and pricing their merchandise accordingly it’s only about 2 to 3 dollars cheaper than they’re selling it for on eBay and that just really pisses me off like I said they’re getting it for free anyway you talk about some greedy no good rotten son of a

    Reply
  16. Chad Fenstermaker

    OMG, I'm about 2 years in. I've grown to HATE listing, I'm to that point where I have way more not listed than listed. Making myself list stuff now, and googled "I hate listing on ebay" and found this video…. I also have no offers and when people send offers I send a message saying you obviously don't understand how ebay works, if I was willing to accept offers I'd turn offers on and you'd see "or best offer" on the listing…

    Reply
  17. callmeMrMonkey

    eBay is so fucking user unfriendly bro, the customer support transfers me over 10 times, because of a bug while trying to list an item, it’s been a whole day and ebay is simply not letting me list variations to my items, im sick of this shit, fuck ebay

    Reply
  18. Thomas Cabral

    nice when I make a great sale,, 2 1o inch plates Tobacciana by mann paid $4.00 sold for $99.00

    Reply
  19. TimelessJoe

    Thanks for making this video, I was starting to fall into the category of "Horder" lol, now I will keep an eye on it. I just want to make some extra money to buy more Funko Pops lol

    Reply

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