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Anyone have an eBay Store?

caeryon

New member
Does anyone have an eBay Store or sell crafts or such pretty regularly on the Bay? I've been thinking for some time about trying to sell cloth dolls I make there, but I'm curious how good a venue for that sort of thing it really can be. Friends have told me that they've quit selling on eBay because the fees keep going up. Some have moved to smaller auction sites instead. It seems to me, though, that the size and popularity of eBay would probably mean more sales, which would offset the higher fees in the long run. I mean, for example, if I sold 20 dolls on eBay rather than 5 somewhere else, it would seem logical that I'd make more, even if I had to pay out a bit more to do so.
 

California

Charter Member
Site Supporter
caeryon said:
Friends have told me that they've quit selling on eBay because the fees keep going up. Some have moved to smaller auction sites instead. It seems to me, though, that the size and popularity of eBay would probably mean more sales, which would offset the higher fees in the long run.
My experience is dated - I was a Power Seller for most of 2002 but haven't sold as extensively since.

I think Ebay and perhaps Amazon (for books) are the only 'big time' sites where you will reach the entire potential market.

Keep in mind the cardinal rule, at least according to self-proclaimed Ebay guru Don Lancaster: Don't bother listing anything that doesn't have at least $20 margin between ALL costs, and the starting price or reserve. Otherwise you won't make a living wage and you might as well donate the item to charity for the writeoff. For crafts, you need to price the item at a starting bid that returns a good hourly wage for building the item, plus recovers all selling costs including an hourly wage for handling the transaction.

It seems to me that most crafts aren't that profitable but it wouldn't hurt to list a trial batch and see what happens.

I don't think ebay fees are high, considering there is no other way to reach such a broad market. Just consider them an essential cost of doing business.

I think the only way to make money on Ebay is to sell a high-markup item where there no competing sellers, and move on to something else as soon as competitors arrive as they certainly will. This isn't as easy as it sounds.

As for other sites - It looks to me that Craigslist is becoming the dominant site for transactions that are necessarily local, like rentals and most vehicle listings. I don't know if crafts would sell well there.
 
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