Hello eBay Seller!

So many worrying things are happening in the business world these days and we’re sure you’ve read the headlines telling that eBay will slash their workforce by 10% as an attempt to improve their dwindling stock price, for example.

Yes, the global economy is undergoing a major shift at the moment and the companies are reacting accordingly trying to cut the costs as much as possible. However, smart folks don’t focus solely on reducing the expenses by all means. What they do instead is – analyze the overall performance of the company and try to increase the productivity and streamline the processes.

Even eBay – despite the ongoing dissatisfaction among the auction sellers – have started thinking about this. The lowered listing fees and the extended auction listings are just a small part of what the eBay’s Chief Executive John Donahoe is planning to carry out in the nearest future.

Starting in late October this year, eBay will incorporate another payment processor – ProPay – within their payment platform, which will certainly enhance both the sellers’ and the shoppers’ experience.

ProPay, for example, allows the shoppers to remotely “swipe” and process credit cards and the information is immediately encrypted and processed real time through ProPay’s virtual terminal. This is a step towards a 100% paperless transaction system and from now on the merchants and the shoppers will have three main payment options – credit card, PayPal or ProPay.

Also the eBay’s acquisition  of Bill Me Later – a company which offers online shoppers instant credits without pre-registration or a credit card, is expected to make the shopping easier and increase eBay’s competitiveness in the market with the biggest rival being Amozon.com, of course.

However, what you – as a seller who has to think about your own profits – can do to survive in these tough times?

The answer is – look at what eBay are doing and apply it on your personal level. Like eBay’s Chief John Donahoe, you should definitely conduct an analysis of your eBay business.

However, it doesn’t have to be a complicated and long process. The 80/20 rule is a universal benchmark, and if you’re not really familiar with it – here it goes: around 80% of your eBay selling profits come from just 20% of your eBay listings!

What this means for you? You have to look at around three past month’s sales figures and figure out which listings bring very little revenue. The surprising moment will emerge upon realization that you’ve probably spent 80% of your time on creating eBay listings that bring only 20% of the income!

Conclusion – focus on creating the listings which bring you the most revenue. This includes sorting out which listing description, design and headline combination works the least effective and you just have to stop using those.

Also calculate which products you list just for the sake of listing, just because they will make your eBay store look bigger.

Sure, you have to give your customers the choice; otherwise they will find other sellers offering a bigger variety. However, if you sell, for example, a large array of kids clothing, you definitely have to understand which 20% of your merchandise is worth the 80% of your business. Then you can start looking for similar products to expand your business and increase your profits exponentially – not gradually!

To your auction selling success,

SAT Team