Featured Selling Guidance as a Jewelry Dealer

I'm a little at my wits end with Eboo (yes I use it but it still sucks), and want to get a really grasp on things for 2025, so I could really use some experienced expert advice. I'm not sure if this is allowed since its technically about sales.

I like being transparent, so I will be as much as possible. For a very side hobby I've done really well this year. Vide greniers have kept my profits insanely high, and I've been lucky to find roughly 1.5oz of gold for under 5 euros at various places which I've sold.

I have nearly 60 reviews all 100% positive. I offer 14 day returns, and national postage for me is 6.50, I actually pay 4.95 and then the rest is packaging because I package well. I also offer international shipping and have done that several times with good feedback. I usually have 12 listings up at any given time, all described as accurately as possible in french and english.

But month to month has been difficult. I'm getting maybe 4 views on most of my listings, 10 or 11 is high, and 2-3 watchers that never bid is how most listings go. The african trade beads usually do well for me, but right now I've got 4 and none are selling, even as a lot. I suppose christmas has something to do with it, but its been like this all year. I will have one buyer come in and sweep 4 or 5 listings and then its dead quiet for a few weeks. A couple months back, I tried investing in better quality pieces but so far thats been semi wasted money. Already tried the promotion avenue, but that gets me 1 view instead of 0. Also tried the 99 cent start bid route for a couple of pieces, no takers there either. I've watched Youtube tutorials but mostly its basic 'make sure you're pricing competitively' or not advice that is useful for antique jewelry. Right now you guys are the most appropriate voice to listen to.

Granted, this season's vide greniers were hard work to pull anything from. Everything was tosh and the stuff that wasn't was expensive.

I've got nice things. There's a nice miniature painting c1800 thats at a competitive price. I've got several old silver bits, the aforementioned trade bead necklaces, a mid victorian agate brooch, a 19th century glass cairgorm brooch etc etc. I've done well with the mid century couture costume when I can find it, but I prefer 1920 or older to sell.

I used my trip to england to buy some really gorgeous pieces that I thought would sell, but so far nada. No one seems interested, even though the same sort of thing is selling for other people at similar prices. They'll pay 100 for someone else's, but not 60 for mine. I'm confused at this point.

I've been spending more time on ebay looking at jewelry and watching what it sells for. The pieces that do REALLY well I can't get my hands on around here, which brings me to my next point.

I would be very grateful for any tips on where to actually get pieces, especially those who deal in France. Apart from going to the paris flea markets, I can't figure out where to go. I've looked up auction houses, no one seems to do online unless they're sothebys nor do they have what I'm looking for. Estate sales aren't a thing here. I have no antique shops near by. Online is great but there are zero profit margins, I can get the garnet necklace for 120 but it'll make 140 tops. Same with english listings, everyone who bids is ready to pay 'retail', and the 18-30e it would cost to ship it makes it out of bounds for me.

My next idea is to take what I have and start doing small lots. They're the only thing that actually gets traction in my shop.

Sorry for the longggg post, but I just don't know what to do. Its fun for me and keeps me buying jewelry, but as its listed as part of my business I'd like to be able to make it work for me, and looking at 1 view on a listing thats a week old is depressing.

TYVM IA! ​

 

Yes, too close to Christmas is imo a major factor.
Watchers are not bidders.... but they do show that folks are finding your items.
Have you changed your titles?
Do you talk up your items or just present a factual description...?
By the 18th of Dec , a lot of folks put their stores on hold, because the traffic slows and last minute shoppers are out on foot .

I don't follow the French economy....... but our dollar dipped to 69 cents US.......and our economy has slowed ..... slow sales follow !!!

That's all I got for now....

 

One - eBay can and will hide your items because you don't sell enough. That's in the software here in the USA and I can't imagine France is any different. If you're selling vintage and OOAK, Promotion is a waste of money. If you pay enough to get seen you're not getting paid enough to bother selling.

Another problem is the global economy. People who used to buy pretties have had to pull in their horns.

Add to that: eBay royally (scatalogical but accurate words omitted) the jewelry search about two years ago here in order to facilitate the new "authentication" for fine jewelry that no one wanted. I can't imagine they left the French software alone. It's one reason I bailed; they made listing anything torturous and what I could list couldn't be seen. It was buried in the irrelevant results. That was before AI stuck its befouled nose in.

When AI came in, I decided to stay out for good.

 

For me, this bit is the part I think is the issue. Like @evelyb30 said, eBay has an algorithm and it will hide or bury listings that are not as "desirable." Of course they do not tell us what counts against you, but some things can be observed. For example, taking a break and not selling for a bit dropped me in views massively when I came back, for the same stuff and same ratings (because why should anyone take a break! ).

For you it might be that you don't do volume. eBay likes big sellers with turn-over. So only a few listings may rate you low in the algo as a small-time seller. Then you lose sales, which I imagine is another factor, and you continue to sink.

So my suggestion is to make more listings. You've already hit the bottom of your price threshold and others are selling similar, so that's not the issue. I'm sure you probably pack in the keywords and nice descriptions too. You might also change over from auction to BIN or vice-versa for older listings just to change it up, but idk what you normally do.

I only do promo boost on a couple of lots of contemporary niche items I have a large quantity of and for which all net is profit. It does sell them, but not a fast clip. I wouldn't say the ad thing helps much but you can test it out if you like. Just make sure you look at the fee percentage, because it recommends a level of fee-to-view amount and you can adjust it.

 

What's your timing like ?

.. Sunday is widely considered to be the best day to end an auction, as Jane eBay and Joe Bidder are more likely to be sitting in front of their computers at home with time to shop. Many people also use Sunday-and to a lesser extent, Saturday—as “get things done” days, including searching and bidding on eBay.

 

I haven't sold on ebay for more than a decade. But sometimes items that show as sold, were really items that the buyer never paid for, so they were not sold at that price. Just a thought. That is why I think that immediate payment thing might be a good idea for sellers, not bidding or BIN without paying.

In the old days, yes Sunday was the best night to end an auction for me. And then BIN and make an offer came in and the whole bidding thing lost it's glamour I think. I remember sitting up till 3 am wrapping teeny tiny ceramic christmas ornies so they were just perfect to ship from Ebay. I had usually 3 items at the most for one week at a time and they sold. But I don't think that happens much unless it is very rare or desirable. I mean who thought a Martha Stewart book would sell for $500 in this day and age. Yet they did because of a tik tok person mentioned it.

I know diddly squat about what you sell, but things I thought would fly out of my shop on etsy did not because etsy too hides listings if you don't do free shipping or shipping under $6 or are not a star seller you basically are abandoned. To be a star seller there you have to make a certain amount of money within a given period, respond fast to questions, ship like there is not tomorrow, make your pictures just so, and the list goes on and on. And on a whim, they shut down your listings with no explanation and hold your money.

I would keep trying on ebay experiement maybe with different photos or backgrounds or details.

For the most part, I think many folks don't have spare money right now and I am not sure how fast any of us will feel we are better off any time soon.

Good luck.