Strong Growth Means Now is the Time to Sell on eBay

eBay posted record Q4 2016 results, with its delivered Growth Merchandise Volume (GMV) reaching $22.3 billion worldwide (regional revenue figures are not released). Revenue for the quarter was up $2.4 billion, representing a 3.1% increase across the world as well, to round off a successful year for the ecommerce company. It represents a positive change compared to a year ago, where GMV remained flat and the business reported modest year-over-year growth. Strong growth means that there’s no better time to begin selling on eBay than now.

Use eBay to Grow Your Online Presence
eBay can be used successfully to expand your business’ online presence. It allows you to reach new consumers through a high traffic channel and hopefully turn them into customers. In the UK alone eBay experienced 1.1 billion visits in Q2 2016, significantly boosting exposure to your company and its products. Through discovering your products this can lead to them taking an interest in your business, visiting your actual website and taking business away from competitors.  

Opening an eBay store, rather than being an individual seller, adds credibility with a more professional image. It allows access to eBay’s Business Resource Centre, where business cards, sales templates and more can be downloaded. A unique URL is provided too, so you can easily share and grow your online presence. Make the most of eBay Store’s email marketing tool to keep in touch and retain customers.   

How to Sell Successfully
Anyone can sell on eBay, and it can be incorporated into your business strategy if you regularly sell many items online. Positive news for eBay means now is the time to start selling through the ecommerce site and there are many ways to do so successfully:
 

• Detail the product: The more details you include about what’s being sold, the more buyers will trust it. Include plenty of photos and as accurate description as possible.
• List in the correct category: Your products need to be seen by the right potential consumers, so ensure they are featured in the correct categories for maximum exposure.  
• Sell yourself: You also need them to trust you as a seller, so fill in the About Me page, include a photograph. This will create greater credibility which will encourage buyers.   
• Start low: Work out the lowest possible price you can sell the product for and set this as the starting price. Lower prices attract more bids and interest, pushing it up quicker than beginning with a higher price.  
• Respond quickly: Answering bidders’ queries quickly also provides them with more confidence in you and the product. After a successful transaction message the buyer too, and they may provide more positive feedback.
• Ship efficiently: It is important buyers receive items on time and in great condition, so use our eBay delivery services to ensure this and keep buyers happy.
• Review the competition: See what they’re doing differently that works, whether it can be used in your eBay sales and how to differentiate to make the most of any gaps in the market.

If you follow these steps then there’s no reason why you won’t be able to become a successful eBay seller in 2017, especially if the ecommerce site continues to build on its strong growth from the previous two quarters.
However, if you are still struggling to sell or reach the intended price, you can pay extra to promote your listings. You only pay the ad rate you wish (between 1 and 20% of the final sale price) to boost its visibility, on either domestic or international markets. Listings on eBay can now be promoted in ten new categories as well, including books, music, DVDs and movies, retail and services and more. 

      
New Initiatives Working
In Q4 2016 eBay had 167 million active consumers worldwide, up 3% YoY. This wasn’t just down to attracting new consumers to shop with eBay sellers; the firm has been retaining and re-activating consumers thanks to its positive changes such as launching its ticket exchange platform StubHub on Apple TV, expanding and integrating the eBay Marketplace platform to Gumtree in the UK and seeing user reviews reach all-time highs for its mobile platform.

Increasing focus on direct sales rather than auctions, and TV advertising again to target new markets, have proven effective too. Mobile and tablet traffic is more important than ever for online retailers nowadays, so eBay has continued to develop its free apps and push them as well.

So, if you’re an online retailer then now is the time to begin expanding to sell your products through eBay. Follow the tips above and use the range of business delivery services from Whistl to ensure your eBay store is successful.

Image courtesy of iStock.