Hi everyone, I hope your weekend was good. It has been a little over a month since ebay lowered their auction insertion fees (but raised final value fees by a whopping 3%). There has been a huge serge of powersellers leaving ebay in the past few months. I am not one of them.

I am not complaining about ebay because I still make good money there. But, I am pointing out that it is very difficult to make money on ebay since the new fee changes. I knew I would see a huge chunk of my profit taken away. I had over one thousand dollars extra go to ebay this month, because of the new fee changes.

It is so sad to see something you have watched develop for the better through the years, just turned to rubble. The new person in charge of ebay(his name is not worth mentioning) has even commented that ebay powersellers are not important. He also commented that there will be even more rule changes and price hikes in the near future. I can’t see anyone making money there if this happens. He took over early this year and has already ruined it for new users as far as I am concerned.

It can be very difficult for anyone just starting out with sales online. I don’t recommend ebay as a place to start for beginners anymore. There are so many tips and tricks you need to know about ebay that your average Joe would not make a dime for profit. You used to be able to list whatever you have on ebay and it would sell.

Now ebay has become such a cut-throat market, that you have to be buying hundreds or thousands of units wholesale in order to make any profit. Drop shipping has become almost impossible to make any money on ebay. I only suggest using drop shipping and ebay together if you are very experienced.

I have been a seller on ebay since 1998 and times do change. Just think of all the options you have available compared to a few years ago. Lots of new auction websites have made a great name for themselves in the past year or so. Ebay will not be around forever. When a product becomes as commercialized as ebay, it can only go down from there.

Ebay has already reached its peak. In fact, I think ebay has overshot their peak by a few years. I suggest trying another marketplace that has free or low listing fees if you are just starting out. You can find some great auction marketplaces in this “top 15 auction places of 2007-2008” list I made. You can find part 2 of that list here.

Thankfully, I have only helped people make money on ebay lately. I have actually helped people become ebay experts. But, I am going to start referring people just starting out away from ebay. There are too many options out there for other great auction marketplaces to pass up. I have been making more money on other auction places lately. Ebay has just become this big money sucking monster lately. Ebay used to be the only way to go if you were starting out with sales online.

There are even some great social marketplaces popping up. Look at facebook marketplace. They have become a huge success in the short few months it has been out. It is proof people are searching for other means to make money besides ebay. More social marketplaces will be popping up all over. I even heard that myspace is thinking about having a social marketplace like facebook has introduced.

Five years ago an ebay powerseller would never chance leaving ebay to make money. There just wasn’t any place that had eBay’s traffic. That’s what it is all about. If the website gets lots of traffic, the more sales you will make. Even Amazon couldn’t compete with ebay five years ago. But now, it’s a whole other story. Ebay has actually paved the way for websites like Amazon and Overstock to take over the auction marketplace world.

When it all comes down to it; Ebay has become prettier and shinier. But looks aren’t everything. Take a look at the whole package and you will notice ebay might not be worth your time and effort. Ebay is becoming too much work for the small profit you make. I am not sure if the new generation will appreciate eBay’s new policies and fee hikes.

Times always change, so we will have to wait and see what happens. But one thing is for sure. Nothing lasts forever and something better always comes along. In today’s age of people getting laid off from life long career jobs, you will notice people flocking to the best bang for your buck. The new ebay is not the best bang for your buck anymore.

Thanks for reading my blog everyone! See you tomorrow.