eBid came in 10th place in the 2019 Sellers Choice Awards. The UK-based marketplace lacks the robust sales of larger marketplaces, but fees are low and sellers approved of its stability.
In January 2019, EcommerceBytes surveyed over 13,000 online sellers and asked them to rate the marketplaces on which they had experience selling. An introduction to the Sellers Choice survey along with a summary of the overall ratings can be found here, along with links to results for each of the 11 online marketplaces included in the survey.
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Ebid.net
Year Established: 1999
Description: Auctions, fixed price and storefronts; general merchandise and collectibles
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Summary:
eBid improved its scores from last year, but that did little to improve its ranking among other marketplaces, landing in 10th place. Sellers loved that eBid has kept fees steady and doesn’t make constant changes. eBid has a membership option, and sellers may have different experiences as a result.
eBid seems to suffer from the “great-site-with-low-fees but low-sales” syndrome, though it may be better in Europe where the company is based.
One seller alluded to the virtuous cycle or network effect that eBid may be lacking in the US when they wrote, “eBid could still do with more traffic and I wish more sellers would stay and give it a chance, instead of expecting instant results and packing their bags, as there are sales to be made once you get established. After all, more variety of listings would bring in more buyers!”
We can imagine how frustrating it must be to eBid to read comments like, “I have always loved eBid, but they don’t have the traffic,…It is a shame more people don’t use it, they are great.”
One seller said they were unable to import their 6,000+ listings because eBid doesn’t have an importer, though it wasn’t known if they had tried eBid’s Ninja Lister importer.
Sellers commented positively about eBid customer service.
“eBid has not raised fees in years – traffic is not the greatest but, with no listing fee, I can list tons and wait. Excellent for collectables while I wait for the right buyer. Some items sell extremely quickly though.”
We can’t help but wonder if eBid provides an opportunity for resellers to purchase items on its site to list on more-trafficked venues; feel free to share your thoughts.
eBid received a 4.32 in Profitability; a 5.41 in Customer Service; a 5.4 in Communication; and a 5.47 in Ease of Use. It received a 4.69 from sellers when asked, “How likely are you to recommend eBid as a selling venue to a friend or colleague?”
Reader Comments:The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
Used site for a few years and always found it first rate.
Best Site for listing and a great fee structure… only problem seems to be lack of buying traffic. Will persist with my stores on here as this site is the best I have found for having an online presence, and hopefully traffic will grow as more people are drawn to the site.
Low fees and costs to set up – no brainer!
I’ve been selling on eBid since December 2014. It took a few months after I paid the $50 seller+ subscription fee, but since then I have made enough back to easily have gone well six times that number back. Between the three venues I sell on, eBid brings in the least sales due to being relatively unknown in the US. It is still a great companion site to the other two that brings in sales when the others are slow, and I still bring in far more sales that those that say eBid is a “no sale” site would have you believe. The 2% FVF is hard to beat even with limited sales. If eBid could invest in a strong marketing campaign in the US, then they could really bring this site to its full potential.
Any queries or problems are dealt with by a real person not a bot. Low fees are an attraction.
Listing on eBid is easy and the fees are extremely reasonable. They do a good job of monitoring the site and customer service is great. The only downside is they are more active in the UK (where they are based), making selling in the US a bit challenging.
I’ve been a seller with eBid for around 10 years and in that time they haven’t raised their fees nor amended their rules so that I pay extra for my postage costs nor moved their customer service to a call centre. They’re great!
Great customer service with real people handling my questions. Also cheap FVFs at 2%. Paid a one-time membership fee if $50 which was cheaper than beats jointly store subscription.
eBid seems to have a great software infrastructure with on-going improvements and good communication, but I’m not sure if any Americans buy through them.
Has always been simple for me I find. They have kept the website user friendly for myself and my husband to sell our stamps as we are not very techie.
eBid would be more profitable for me if they were more well known in the US. I am retiring after 30+ years of buying/selling antiques and collectibles and have a lot of “one of a kind” items that just have to wait until the “right” person is looking. Being a Seller + Lifetime member, I pay nothing until a sale is made so it is the perfect venue for me as I wait for the “right” person to come along. The members are very helpful with answering questions and the eBid team is quick to respond when an issue arises and very supportive of their sellers – unlike some other venues I’ve sold on.
EBid and its CS at least tries to be helpful. If there are changes or problems they consistently try to involve sellers and keep them informed. TBH I find there are so few issues when using the site it’s difficult to comment as there is little to comment on. Yes I would recommend the site to others for selling, with the proviso that they shouldn’t expect anything to happen in a hurry. It’s so laid-back and relaxed as to be almost horizontal.
Clearing out space, hobby type seller – some big sites too expensive and do not really want the little people any more. eBid has some really big professional sellers, medium ones – and little ones like me – never felt slighted or unwanted, they are really helpful and it is a person who replies quickly to questions/queries.
Can’t believe I’ve been selling on eBid for over thirteen years now and in all that time they haven’t raised their fees ! After taking out the lifetime seller subscription I don’t pay listing fees and only a 2% fvf if I sell something. You would be hard pushed to find a better deal than that. eBid could still do with more traffic and I wish more sellers would stay and give it a chance, instead of expecting instant results and packing their bags, as there are sales to be made once you get established. After all, more variety of listings would bring in more buyers ! I get steady sales every month but would love to see eBid grow even more. I love eBid’s ethics that they treat their sellers fairly without changing rules and regulations every five minutes like some other sites. eBid support have always been very helpful with any problems. My only gripe at the moment is that communication seems to have got poor over the last two years. Newsletters have been lacking and admin participation on the forums seems scarce these days. I would still recommend everybody give eBid a try.
I have always loved eBid, but they don’t have the traffic. I think I have maybe 2 sales out of all the time I listed on there (not counting charity sales). It is a shame more people don’t use it, they are great.
I sold items on EBid for a very short period of time. Listing items there is difficult. However, the real issue with EBid is I received only a couple of sales after having items listed for a long time. Just isn’t worth it, so I stopped selling on EBid.
Started selling here a few months ago. 5 free stores. Unlimited listings, no listing fees, 2% selling fees. Sales are slow however & expect them to increase in the near future.
No sales because a lot of buyers that do not pay.
EBid is great except for no sales.
No sales from a seller in the United States.
I have never, not a single time, gotten a sale on eBid. I don’t know where their marketing money, if they have any, goes but it is not to helping the sellers. It is a waste of time and effort.
Listed multiple items on eBid never made a sale or even got a hot interest. Marketability seems to be an issue along with visibility.
EBid is a nice and friendly market place but unfortunately has no traffic.
I have an active account with listings, and so far I have made zero sales.
It has not been a viable venue for us. Almost no sales.
Can not import our listings, developers will not work on a solution. We can not import 6000+ listings.
eBid suffers from lower footfall than other sites (eBay, Amazon), this is maybe due to rock bottom listing/sellers fees. It also suffers from lower ranking on google than eBay, where eBay auctions may be higher ranked, despite not having the full Google Shopping info (ean/barcode etc.).
I have a few items listed on EBid but haven’t sold anything on this site for years. It need more advertising in the U.S.
EBid is primarily a European market that frowns on American sellers.
EBid seems to be trying, but not very hard. We are a lifetime member, but have not gotten the full value of that investment out of EBid, even after several years of membership. We get very few sales, their feedback system seems to be broken, and the site simply looks and feels primitive compared to others. We love the pricing, but it looks like you get what you pay for there.
I am building up my EBID store slowly. I have sold several items and the fees are next to nothing. I bought the seller+ option so the fees are so very low. I have many more items to list and encourage other sellers to do the same. EBID doesn’t do a lot of advertising so it goes a little slower but once people discover it, they come back. I also sell on EBAY and I get more views on EBID for some items than on EBAY now.
Encourages supernatural/magic sellers. Spells, magic charms, and oils, are common.
Only thing wrong with this site is the traffic. No traffic from outside the sellers. Have been member since 2014 & have sold 30 items. The traffic seems to be from sellers checking on your site to see what’s going on. Needs more customers.
I’ve had the same things listed on eBid as I do on Bonanza and Etsy. In 4 years of being listed on eBid, I’ve had ZERO sales. Last year, I did almost $100,000 on Etsy. EBid is a total waste of time – a total LOSER site, with NO traffic. I make more money off my own website that only draws 300 people per month.
I wish I didn’t hate this site as much as I do, but all previous experiences have been atrocious – no traffic, and no sales, no matter what the price is. Decent set-up and great support forums, but not much else. I’m always hoping they get more noticed because their low fees are enticing.
Sales are VERY slow. Site can be messy especially if you use the Q&A. Would not recommend unless using as a back-up site for sales.
Sellers Choice Awards:
We thank all readers who took the time to rate the marketplaces. If you have comments about the Sellers Choice Awards, please feel free to post them below.
