Part of being a successful eBay seller is to keep tabs on the competition. Right now, it looks like US sellers offering goods on the eBay UK site are giving up and heading for the hills. Just this week, 3 sellers that I follow have closed their stores. One is no longer a registered user – POOF – just disappeared. One seller even added a note to all of her store pages explaining that she won’t be offering her products on eBay UK, or worldwide, due to a weak conversion rate.

It doesn’t have to be this way! Granted, the USD / GBP exchange rate is at an all time low right now (1.45%), you don’t have to lose money or go out of business. Simply change your GBP prices to reflect the lower rate. For example, if you are currently offering a product at £10 and your profit is $8 based on a 1.9% exchange rate, just change the price to £12.75. Problem solved. (Be sure to change your shipping fees to reflect the higher rate.)

So why aren’t more sellers just adjusting their pricing? My guess, they are too lazy! Many have hundreds of listings and when they set up their stores, they never considered that the exchange rates would fluctuate. So now they are stuck with 500 – 1,000 listings based on a 1.9% exchange rate. These sellers are either making extremely low profit, or they are operating at a loss. Even worse, some don’t even know that they aren’t making any money as they never track inventory costs, fees, profits, or any other financial information.

This is another example of the attitude, “eBay is easy money.” Many sellers who open UK stores think that they can set up their stores, add hundreds of products, and watch the money roll in without ever having to make adjustments, check on their competitors, or fine-tune their stores. I see this happen all the time. Newsflash: NOTHING ON EBAY IS EASY. eBay is work just like any other business. The market, demand, and consumer buying habits will continue to fluctuate and to continue to make a profit, you have to make adustments.

You can go in one of two directions now.

Proverbs 12:24: “Work hard, become a leader. Be lazy, never succeed.”

As Bill Gates said, “I believe that if you show people the problems and you show them the solutions they will be moved to act.” In other words, don’t give up, just spend some time adusting your pricing. For more detailed information on eBay UK selling, check out my eBook, “How to Maximize Profits on eBay UK.”

[Image Source: Flickr, eBay Coach Photos]

Post from: EveryJoe

US eBay UK Sellers Dropping Like Flies

I received this email from a US seller who sells items on eBay UK.

“Tell your readers to be careful listing items on the eBay UK. This week my listing for (an over the counter medicine) was ended as it is a prohibited prescription item on eBay UK. I didn’t realize that because about 25 other US sellers offer it, too. I am confused as to why so many other sellers can offer it and their listings aren’t removed. If you have ever read the eBay UK help section on Prohibited and Restricted Items, you will agree that the verbiage is rather vague and cryptic. So, I emailed eBay UK to get to the bottom of the issue. Here is their response:

‘Please note that our prohibited items policies cover tens of thousands of products and auctions are listed continuously. By the time we remove a prohibited item, a new prohibited item is listed. Therefore, at any given time, you may see prohibited items listed on eBay, but it does not mean they are allowed. You may ask eBay UK before you list an item. However, as a rule of thumb, if the drug comes in large quantities, it’s almost always pharmacy licensed in the UK and not allowed to be sold on eBay UK.’

In other words, the members have to police each other. But there is a little more to it. Competition is brutal on eBay UK. Rather than lowering their price to beat their competitors, some sellers play dirty and examine other sellers’ listings with a microscope to find something petty to report. Unfortunate that some sellers cannot exist on their own merits, they must attack other sellers in order to stay in business. Warn your readers that if they get involved on eBay UK, they will be in for a territorial fight. Don’t ever assume that because a seller has an item listed that is is allowed. The ones who have been there know what is not allowed, and they get a rush out of reporting the new sellers.

As for me, I will continue to mind my business and run my store as best I can. I don’t have time to be the eBay police, and frankly, have better things to do than to sit around reporting violations all day. I’d rather be listing new items, doing more research, and serving the customers who want to buy from me.

Thanks for your blog, so many good ideas!”

V.A. Taylor, eBay Power Seller

[Image Source: Flickr]

Post from: EveryJoe

Deciphering the Rules on eBay UK