eBay has been sending emails to sellers notifying them of major changes to Managed Payments coming in July, but has yet to post information on the Seller Announcement Board. That leaves sellers (and EcommerceBytes) piecing together the implications of the changes.
EcommerceBytes readers forwarded the new fee structure they received on May 7th, which you can read more about in EcommerceBytes Update.
One seller posted on the eBay boards an email they received a week later (May 14th) with some disappointing news – it appears eBay is backtracking on rates promised to entice early adopters into the program – read more on the EcommerceBytes Blog.
After discussing the email on the thread and what the changes may mean to them, a seller wrote, “Thank goodness we have each other here on the boards. It gets tough sometimes getting things figured out.”
Here’s the text of the email the seller shared on the board:
Convenient new features:
- Managed payments now fully supports our Global Shipping Program (GSP) so you can easily ship to international buyers.
- Convenient options to choose payout frequency – daily as funds are available, or weekly, for easier reconciliation. Switch to weekly payouts here.
- Option to pay for shipping labels by having the costs deducted from pending payouts, in addition to using a PayPal account.
- Coming soon: New comprehensive monthly financial statement summarizing your eBay payments activity. You’ll be notified once it’s ready for download from the Payments tab of Seller Hub. You will still receive a monthly invoice for fees payable to eBay.
New integrations to support the most popular bookkeeping platforms:
- New integration with GoDaddy. If you use GoDaddy for bookkeeping, you can now link your managed payments reports with GoDaddy bookkeeping services.
- Automate your sales data to QuickBooks Online, Xero, or Sage Business Accounting through OneSaas Integrations. You can easily connect your apps and set up how your sales data shows up in your accounting application. You’ll receive a lifetime 20% off exclusive eBay discount on any OneSaas subscription package, with a free 7-day trial.
We’re changing our fees starting late July:
- We’ve simplified our fees. You will pay only one final value fee, consisting of a category-based percentage of the total amount of the sale, plus a fixed fee per order. You’ll no longer pay separate payments processing fees. This change supersedes any special pricing you may have had in the past. Most sellers can still expect to see overall savings.
- We’re changing how we charge fixed fees to apply to each order, rather than each individual item in an order, saving you money when buyers purchase multiple items from you.
- In the event of a refund or cancellation, the variable portion of your final value fees will generally be returned to you, and eBay will retain only the per-order fee.
- Final value fees, and select fees associated with the order will be automatically deducted at the time of the sale, and the rest of your proceeds will be paid out directly to your bank account. You will see fewer fees on your invoice, and with all your fees in one place, your reconciliation will be easier. For more details on fees, click here.
You can find the thread on the eBay seller discussion boards.
Oddly enough, eBay did post some FAQs about the changes coming in July in a thread on the discussion boards, but it’s missing many details, including the new rates eBay will charge sellers.
fleecebay doing what they do best……. more money from the sellers
“We’re changing how we charge fixed fees to apply to each order, rather than EACH INDIVIDUAL ITEM in an order, saving you money when buyers purchase multiple items from you.”
Although it was frequently confused as “each individual item”, the fact eBay got their own absurd PER LISTING fee money-grab wrong here illustrates how ridiculous and confusing the scheme was (in typical eBay fashion).
Selling on ebay is now more complicated than the IRS tax code. Why does this have to be so convoluted? Just come out and tell everyone you want 25% of every sale in exchange for “advertising”. eBay has lost scope of what it really is. It’s an advertising platform, it’s never going to be anything else. When you are “locked in” to them having a strangehold on every part of a transaction, they will literally drain every last drop of fun and independence out of every person on their site, buyer or seller both. Seriously, should we just all quit and go work in an office tower? We are employees that don’t get any benefits. Looking a lot like uber, lyft, grubhub, etc when you boil it down. Bust your ass with a threatening corporation hanging over every transaction, and they don’t even give you health insurance or unemployment benefits when it becomes unsustainable and you have to quit. Go America.
If eBay focused 100% on making Sellers happy, ALL Sellers, they would have all the business they could ever want
By putting the focus on Buyers, to the point where it actually harms Sellers in every way imaginable, they are shooting themselves in the foot. No one can keep Buyers happy like well-motivated Sellers
If eBay took care of me, I would be building my business 24 hours a day, instead of looking for an escape
“In the event of a refund or cancellation, the variable portion of your final value fees will generally be returned to you………”
This is just another one of the many details stated within the new Managed Payments terms of service, that really needs to be addressed by eBay so that sellers can have an idea of what to expect.
“the variable portion of your final value fees will GENERALLY be returned to you………” This portion of within eBay’s terms of service; is a little unsettling.
As a seller I sure would like to know EXACTLY what types of specifc situations would my final value fees GENERALLY NOT BE RETURNED TO ME?
“what types of specifc situations would my final value fees GENERALLY NOT BE RETURNED TO ME?”
Probably when scummy buyers make false claims that your items are “Not As Described”; the favorite return claim of scammers on eBay now.