DDK - Die Deutschen Klassiker

Just curious - if it's my impression or reality ?
Go back a few years to when I last posted some stuff for sale on ebay (old motoring related) - within hours / days ... lots of views , some watchers , and sometimes even a few early bids.
Fast forwards to last week : (trying to clear out some old motoring "literature" - hand books and that type of stuff). 6 items listed last Thur evening for ten day duration (auction). As of today - 4 days later , two items with one view - rest with nothing !!
Have things changed dramatically in the last few years ? Is ebay now more of another Amazon where people just go to buy new stuff . Is there a new place to sell such desirable items as a hand book for a Fiat 600 D ??

what has anyone else found ?

Does seem to be a lot less traction for individual items on there these days.

Competition - Facebook Marketplace, Vinted etc etc etc

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In terms of the number of 'views' & people 'watching' , ebay made a significant change recently - within the past ~ 6 months - which has resulted in a large drop in the numbers that a seller sees recorded for items they have listed.

As far as sales go, there's definitely been a big drop off over the past year & items (in particular used car parts) seem to take a lot longer to sell.



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It is very, very flat these days. I very rarely get overseas buyers now, I'm afraid the 'B' word has killed off that avenue. Likewise I used to buy models from Europe and the ROW but now the costs have rocketed so it just makes them too expensive. I have also found that a lot of buyers want free postage on items that I will only send tracked and signed so they moan that the shipping cost is too expensive. Another factor is the way eBay now operate the payment system, so that you can no longer receive payments into your PayPal account, and the fees are more expensive. They are not a good company to deal with if there is a problem, there are lots of stories of them always taking the buyers side in a dispute even when it is clear the seller is not at fault. Then there are the increasing number of scammers.......

Yes, big changes in activity.
Only the last few weeks of buying an old push bike project, of the bikes I 'watched' all have been relisted by sellers bar the one I bought.

I have bought recently lots of bits for this project off ebay, all good, easy payment and sellers that respond in hours and day, not days.

I find the place very good for all parts and when allowed buyer receptive to reasonable offers, ie selling price to inc the postage.

I still like to use it, but I'm used to it now. For some reason don't like amazon, maybe due to the way it treats it's employees?

OK , thanks for the feedback - sort of what I had thought , but now have a better feeling for the why .... pity , it seemed better in the past (probably true of lots of things !!!) Not sure that there is a better alternative ? (Gum tree I have found fine for things like used vehicles , but not sure it's suitable (good) for the sort of c**P I'm trying to find homes for.)

Agree with all the above, I've been on Ebay since it started but stopped selling last year, mainly because of not accepting PayPal, but a lot more scammers and eBay always siding with the buyer. Mainly use Marketplace but that has issues with wasters etc or just advertise on car club websites / forums etc.

On the flip side, instead of taking things to the tip (sorry - ‘recycling centre’), FB Marketplace will have two peculiar fellows turn up in a Nissan Micra before you can finish typing ‘free’. Works for everything.

Jonny Hart wrote:On the flip side, instead of taking things to the tip (sorry - ‘recycling centre’), FB Marketplace will have two peculiar fellows turn up in a Nissan Micra before you can finish typing ‘free’. Works for everything.

Agreed. I had people fighting over first dibs on a fallen tree… was quoted £400 to remove it… gone within 4hrs of a Facebook post. And it was massive!

I agree with all the above but would add not to be too worried about low 'watches' or bids, there are several tools for auto-bidding at the very last second so as not to reveal your hand as it were. Fees have gone up hugely too. Having said all that I recently put some old HiFi on marketplace and after 3 months not a peep. Same item on Ebay and it went at the end of the auction for what I'd perviously asked (less fees). Final tip; always time your items to end in the evening when people are likely to have time to bid..... Happy Bidding!

I only buy the odd thing from Ebay these days and only usually from Ebay shops, who also seem to be on Amazon as well.

Generally FB marketplace is what works for me, no charges and you can figure out the quality of the seller/buyer via their profile.

Sold 3 cars within hours/hours all at asking price, sold stuff that would have been a one way ticket to the tip. Also as above if you just want it gone put it up for Free and you'll have people clamouring for it.

Having said that, I've got a whole bunch of the daughters Sylvanian Families sitting on FB Marketplace for over a year now. Anyone interested?

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i've never used facebook marletplace as always assumed it was a hotbed of fakes and charletons

hot66 wrote:i've never used facebook marletplace as always assumed it was a hotbed of fakes and charletons

It is. Which is why I use it