The eBay.com Spring Seller Update for 2018 closely matches the eBay UK seller release, but with some subtle differences as you’d expect for a different country. However it also contains some hidden surprises which may come to the UK at some point in the future.
eBay.com Fee Changes
There are also a raft of fee changes coming to eBay.com Stores, with two new Store tiers – Starter and Enterprise – to choose from. We cover this in a separate article.
From the 1st of May 2018, the yearly fee for a Basic Store subscription will increase from $19.95/month to $21.95/month. The monthly fee for a Basic Store subscription will increase from $24.95/month to $27.95/month.
If you don’t have an eBay.com store, when you exceed your 50 zero insertion fee listing allocation, the insertion fee will change from $0.30 to $0.35.
When you list an item in two or more categories, the highest final value fee will apply when your item sells.
Simplified Returns and banning restocking fees
eBay.com will only have five returns options from May 2018.
- No returns accepted
- 30-day buyer-paid returns
- 30-day free returns
- 60-day buyer-paid returns
- 60-day free returns
What might upset some US sellers are that restocking fees will no longer be a return option. UK sellers may be surprised that eBay.com supported restocking fees but it’s been a standard option for many years whereas in the UK a restocking charge is something (both on and off eBay) that is generally restricted to business to business transactions.
Sellers will still be able to offer a 14-day returns option in a couple of categories (Collectibles & Art, Cameras & Photo and Medical, Mobility & Disability Equipment), and there will also be the option to issue a partial refund for all returns where the item is returned used or damaged in select categories (including Business & Industrial, Parts & Accessories, Collectibles & Art, Cameras & Photo, Medical, Mobility & Disability Equipment, Home Improvement, Furniture, Musical Instruments & Gear, and Yard, Garden & Outdoor).
From the 1st of June 2018, when you offer free returns on eBay.com, you’ll have greater control to manage your business, and you can decide to issue partial refunds to buyers if they use or damage an item and returns it.
To retain the Top Rated Plus status, sellers on eBay.com will be required to offer a returns option for most categories.
Shop by Product page tests
As with the UK, Product based listing with the eBay catalogue are coming. Sellers will want to start using the eBay catalogue when listing, especially for the first products to be included in the programme. It makes sense to use the eBay catalogue for other listings (where it exists and product data is correct) as this will save you time in the future as categories included in Product Pages expand.
The first product to have product pages applied are: Amazon – Echo and Fire Stick; Apple – iPads, iPhones, Apple TV; Dyson – AM Cooling Fan, AM Fan Heater; AM Humidifier, Pure; Google- Chromecast, Home; Jawbone – Jambox; Nest – Thermostat; Roku – Premier/Express/1/2/3/4.
Details are much as per the UK so read our longer UK post for a breakdown of how eBay Product Pages will function.
Shipping Enhancements
eBay will make eBay Guaranteed Delivery will be available to more sellers by reducing the average number of transactions required for eligibility to 100 transactions within the previous 12 months. You will also need to maintain a late shipment rate of 3% or lower to qualify.
To enable more sellers to access the programme, from March 2018, you will no longer be required to use eBay shipping labels to participate in the eBay Guaranteed Delivery handling time option. The Guaranteed Delivery bulk editing tool will be available in Seller Hub. You can use the tool to determine which listings are not yet eligible for eBay Guaranteed Delivery and make changes to your listings.
eBay.com also announced a new streamlined and simplified eBay label purchasing and printing, shipping service and pricing comparisons will be coming in the summer.
Growth Tools
The big news here is that on eBay.com, starting in March 2018, promoted listings placements will appear on eBay’s home page.
Pricing guidance will be available on more listings and later this year, eBay will expand our enhanced pricing guidance to more listings, and a new Marketplace Insights API will be available to third-party providers and high-volume sellers.
In June 2018, new visibility into the status of buyers’ after-sale requests will be available in Seller Hub.
