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eBay Makes Big Changes to Selling Fees, Feedback, & More

eBay Makes Big Changes & Raises Selling Fees & Changes Feedback Policy

Oh NO!! eBay has done it again! Now the Gigantic auction site is changing its fee structure, feedback policy, & more. What does this mean for us online sellers???

I received a message from eBay today about the new pending changes that will be taking place soon in February. Now, sellers will get free gallery pictures, and be charged less for insertion fees. This seems great!

Don't get too excited, however, because it appears sellers will end up paying a higher final value fee. It seems like it will raise your total selling fees slightly by a few cents to a few dollars depending on the price of your auctions....OUCH!! So actually it will end up increasing fees overall.

There is also good news if you are a PowerSeller. Now, you will have the opportunity to save money on your eBay final value fees by keeping your DSR's (detailed seller ratings) high.

This means that if your stars on your feedback score remain a certain level (around 4.6 or higher), you can enjoy discounts on your fees. ME LIKEY...A lot! Now here comes the bad news...

Another good note is that it appears Paypal will finally be extending confirmed addresses. Soon PowerSellers will be covered by Paypal Seller Protection policy even if the address is unconfirmed. So essentially all addresses will become confirmed.

Apparently, they have decided to alter the feedback system. They will change the way they count feedback scores, and more. This change is going from bad to worse! The results could literally put some eBayers out of business.

Now it seems that a seller can only leave a positive feedback for the buyer, but the buyer will still be able to leave any type of feedback they want (positive, neutral, negative). Something that seems totally unfair to the seller.

Now, I will be the first to admit that the feedback system is not perfect & needs a lot of work. But I feel this is a step in the wrong direction. Sure, it will fix the problem of honest buyer's having to live in fear of negative retaliatory feedback when they buy from a bad seller.

But at the same time it gives the buyer a power that can easily be abused. I can almost guarantee that they will nitpick every little detail about everything.

For all of us honest sellers out there, we will be even more vulnerable to scammers, thieves, and dishonest individuals. So now I guess if someone scams us, we will be forced to leave a positive feedback that reads:

*Complete Scam Artist, Ripped me Off, Fraud...and oh yeah I almost forget AAA++*

Sellers on blogs, websites, & more are already voicing their frustrations over the increased prices & change in the feedback system. So far it seems most sellers dislike most of the changes. Especially the fact that fees are increasing & buyers can only receive positive feedback.

If you want to see all of the details of the changes, pricing structures, & more, you can visit eBay's Announcement Page.

So in conclusion...

Free Gallery & Lower Insertion Fees....Great
New Protection & Incentives for PowerSellers...Great
Higher Final Value Fees........BAD
Change in Feedback Policy......TERRIBLE

What eBay Should Have Done:

eBay should have offered the discounts & incentives a long time ago. Gallery should have been free as well.

To recoup their costs & to keep up with inflation, they should have looked for other ways to make money, instead of raising fees to the people who pay them money (the sellers).

For example, they should have increased their ad coverage to be displayed on every page, and even in the "My eBay" section. I would much rather look at advertisements all day than pay extra money.

I love eBay. It provides us entrepreneurs with some good opportunities to make extra money. But at the same time I can't help but feel that they are making some big time mistakes. Mistakes that could really hurt the life expectancy of the company. Especially if Google ever decides to throw their hat in the auction arena.

A good saying...Don't bite the hand that feeds you. Sellers already operate on a tight margin when you add in all the fees, shipping, etc. If sellers can't make enough money on eBay, they will look for other opportunities.