Time is now a surplus in many of our lives. Basements are getting cleaned, yard work getting done ahead of schedule, and baseball cards are being sorted. Unfortunately for many others, time is a surplus due to layoffs and lost jobs. In the past three weeks, approximately 16.5 million Americans have filed for unemployment.
One of the best ways to find some sort of income or supplemental income is selling items around the house. One platform that has become a love-hate company is eBay. I have been buying and selling on eBay since 1998, through good times and bad. All in all, I believe eBay is the best platform available to sell trading cards from a macro viewpoint. What I mean by that is eBay isn’t a good place to sell base commons, but Sportlots is a great place to move those quarter cards. Many in the hobby community speak highly of COMC, but I cannot offer an opinion as I’ve never sold on that platform.
In the past, I’ve had collectors ask me about the benefits of opening an eBay Store. That question has been posed more frequently lately than it ever has. There is not an easy answer because every seller is going to be different and many variables exist. So, hopefully this article can shine some light on your specific situation and you can decide if opening an eBay Store is worth it, and which store is best.
The first question to ask yourself is how many items do you expect to consistently list per month. If listing is going to be sporadic with a couple dozen items I would simply say avoid opening a store, however there are options as low as $5 per month that could work for you. Five store levels are available on eBay: Starter, Basic, Premium, Anchor, and Enterprise.
The lowest price store subscription is the starter. This is a great entry level option for low-volume sellers at just $4.95 per month. Here are some of the perks available for starter stores. In my opinion, this is a great option if you are a passive seller and want to list less than 100 items and essentially park them for sale and wait for sales and offers.
Next, is the Basic store subscription for $21.95 per month. This tier offers 250 fixed-price (buy it now) listings along with 250 auction listings per month before insertion fees kick in. Insertion fees are also slightly less after you reach the max free listings (see chart below). Additionally, a nice perk kicks in at this subscription level with a $25 coupon towards eBay branded suppies every quarter.
Moving up the next level is a significant increase. The basic store subscription costs $21.95 per month, while the Premium store level comes in at $59.95. Though that is a healthy increase in fees per month, the perks are also substantial. The premium subscription gives sellers 1,000 fixed price listings per month with 500 auction listings.
Once you surpass those numbers the additional price per fixed price listing is only $0.10, while it is $0.25 in the basic subscription. Also, you receive a $50 coupon per quarter to be used on eBay branded supplies. Full disclosure: this is the store level that I have been using for about two years. This level is best for higher volume sellers that are actively listing throughout the year.
Next up is the Anchor Store. Once again, this is a big jump in cost from the lower level Premium Store. The Anchor Store runs $299.95 per month, but again provides many more perks than the lower level stores. You will receive 10,000 fixed price listings and 1,000 auction listings per month. Once you surpass those listings, the insertion fees are just $0.05 for fixed price, and $0.10 for auctions. Your quarterly supplies coupon is $150. Additionally, you’ll get a $25 credit per quarter for promoted listings. This level is going to be for a seller that is nearly full-time with very high volume. I have considered this level, but the numbers (and time) just do not make it feasible for me.
Finally, the Enterprise Store takes it a step further at a cost of nearly $3,000 per month. You will receive 100,000 fixed price listings and 2,500 auction listings per month. The quarterly supplies coupon is still $150 along with a $25 credit toward promoted listings each quarter.
The above is a guide on what may suit your needs the best. What I can suggest is may sure to maximize your listings per month. So, if you only have a couple hundred items you would list, the premium store would not be a good option, but the basic subscription would fit your needs. Once you reach the levels where you receive the quarterly supplies coupon, take advantage. Also, beware that eBay does a very poor job at communicating this perk. The coupon goes live the first or second day of a new quarter and can be used at anytime during the quarter (unlike eBay Bucks where you must use them in the first 30 days of the quarter). Below is a guide where to find the coupon as it can be hard to find.
If you have any other questions about eBay Stores, please feel free to reach out as I would love to help out.