eBay Briefs Sellers on Best Sellers, AI, and Holiday Shipping

eBay executive Adam Ireland published data for sellers on some of the best-selling items on the marketplace on Friday in what he called eBay’s annual holiday look-book “inspired” by the top cultural trends it’s observed in 2023.

“We’ve taken a fine-tooth comb to our 2023 archives and compiled a catalog representing the unique, stylish, desirable and even practical items on wish lists this season, bridging every passion and pursuit from Sports Superfans to Marvel-Mania,” he wrote.

eBay chose 15 areas to feature, labeling them as follows:

Super Fan
Hypebeast
Jet Setter
Trendy Tyke
Gadget Gury
Super Fan
Trendsetter
Toy Buff
Nostalgia Nut
Pop Culture Club
Gearhead
Pampered Pet
Dean’s List
Music Maven
Marvel-mania

Items skewed heavily towards eBay’s Focus Categories, including trading cards, streetwear, sneakers, luxury goods, collectibles, toys.

While it’s a bit late for sellers who want ideas on what to source to reach holiday shoppers, it could be useful if the trends hold in the New Year – Ireland wrote of the catalog, “maybe it will spark your own ideas for a few new listings and giftings.”

“Between now and mid-month is truly where we see the (retail) “rubber meet the road,” he said, and he encouraged sellers to visit eBay’s Holiday Shipping Guide, “a one-stop shop for key dates, links and questions on everything from consumer trends and packaging options, to seller protections and shipping calculators.”

“No respectable 2023 holiday ecommerce blog would be complete without mention of AI (artificial intelligence),” Ireland said, and he reminded sellers of eBay’s AI-powered image background removal tool and its generative AI-powered listing tool. Check out the full post on the eBay Seller Announcement board.

Ina Steiner

Ina Steiner is co-founder and Editor of EcommerceBytes and has been reporting on ecommerce since 1999. She's a widely cited authority on marketplace selling and is author of "Turn eBay Data Into Dollars" (McGraw-Hill 2006). Her blog was featured in the book, "Blogging Heroes" (Wiley 2008). She is a member of the Online News Association (Sep 2005 - present) and Investigative Reporters and Editors (Mar 2006 - present). Follow her on Twitter at @ecommercebytes and send news tips to ina@ecommercebytes.com. See disclosure at EcommerceBytes.com/disclosure/.