eBay: where it still wins
eBay lost the "sell anything new" race to Amazon years ago. But it still owns categories Amazon is weak in, and often costs less to sell on.
Use it as a low-risk place to test demand and move inventory Amazon buyers ignore.
Fastest path: one prompt, end to end
🤖 AI prompt — paste into ChatGPT / Claude
You are a marketplace strategist. Use MY facts only; never invent fees or demand.
What I sell: [product], condition mix: [new / used / refurbished / parts]
Where I sell now: [Amazon / Shopify / nowhere], rough monthly units: [#]
Goal: [test demand / clear overstock / add a steady channel]
Do this:
1. Decide if eBay fits MY product. eBay over-indexes on used, refurbished, collectibles, and parts + accessories (auto, electronics, hobby). If my items are one of those, say strong fit and why; if they are commodity new goods, say Amazon is likely better and why.
2. Recommend auction vs fixed-price ("Buy It Now") for MY case: auction for scarce/collectible/uncertain-value items, fixed price for repeatable stock.
3. Compare eBay's current selling fees to Amazon's for my category. Open ebay.com/sellercenter and read the live final-value-fee schedule; if you cannot browse, say so and tell me to confirm from eBay Seller Center, do not guess a percentage.
4. Give me a small, cheap first test (how many listings, which format, what to measure over 2 weeks).
If a fact is missing, ask.
Output: fit verdict + auction-vs-fixed call + fee comparison + a 2-week test plan.
Or do it in 4 steps
- Match your product to eBay's strengths. eBay dominates used, refurbished, collectibles, and parts + accessories. Buyers actively hunt there for the exact used camera lens or discontinued auto part Amazon buries. If that's your inventory, eBay is a natural fit. If you sell commodity new goods, it's usually the weaker channel.
- Pick the format on purpose. Use auctions when value is uncertain or the item is scarce (collectibles, one-offs), and let bidders find the price. Use fixed-price "Buy It Now" for anything you restock, so it behaves like a normal store listing.
- Check the fees for your category, today. eBay's final-value fees vary by category and are often lower than Amazon's referral fees. But rates change, so verify the current schedule before you price, rather than trusting a number you remember.
- Test before you commit inventory. Listing is cheap and low-commitment, so put up a small batch. Measure watchers, views, and sell-through over two weeks. Only then decide whether eBay earns a permanent slot in your channel mix.
Worked example (labeled): a seller with 30 refurbished DSLR lenses lists 10 as auctions and 10 as fixed-price over two weeks.
The auctions surface true market value on the scarce lenses. The fixed-price ones sell steadily to buyers searching exact models. Total fees come in under what Amazon would have charged, and the test cost almost nothing.
A seller of generic new phone chargers runs the same test and sees thin demand, correctly reading eBay as the wrong channel for commodity new goods.
eBay wins on used, refurbished, collectibles, and parts. Test a small batch, compare live fees, and keep it only if the category is genuinely its strength.