The Complete Guide to Selling Vehicle Parts on eBay Motors

Selling aftermarket vehicle parts and accessories on eBay marketplace is similar to selling any other product there. And with more and more people becoming automotive DIYers, the auto parts market has boomed on eBay. eBay Motors is a part of eBay where buyers can find vehicles, as well as compatible parts and accessories, and safely purchase them. The platform offers secure payment methods, user feedback for accountability, and a Vehicle Purchase Protection of up to $100,000 (if you’re buying a vehicle).

When selling vehicle parts, besides providing the details about the features of your auto parts and high-quality photos, you can benefit significantly from eBay’s Parts Compatibility tool. This tool allows shoppers to determine whether the part you are selling is compatible with their vehicle (even if it is a different model or make than what the part was originally made for).

eBay Motors has grown to become the top third-party online marketplace for auto parts in the world. If you are interested in selling auto parts online, then it’s time to plunge into our complete guide to selling vehicle parts on eBay. Find out more why this has become a lucrative business, how to set up and optimize your listings, how to take advantage of the Parts Compatibility tool, and more.

The Global Automotive Online Retail Market

According to a report published by GlobeNewswire, the global automotive electronic retail market is projected to reach $12 billion by 2024. The market is anticipated to grow at a CAGR of over 10% during the period between 2020 and 2025, and it is driven by growing online shopping trends. Online retail is the fastest-growing retail sector in the automotive aftermarket industry and is becoming a major revenue stream for auto parts and accessories sales.

Growing investments in eCommerce platforms, availability of a broad range of products, and the convenience of online shopping are the primary driving factors for the growth of this market. And it is not just buyers coming to eBay to sell or buy vehicle parts. Auto parts companies and car dealerships are also using eBay to increase their marketing radius and to find rare auto parts. For those managing auto parts business, the best time to use eBay in a way that enhances their marketing strategy is now.

Why Selling Auto Parts on eBay is Worth It

These are some important statistics published by eBay that show that selling auto parts (as well as vehicles) is worth it.

  • Every 1.5 second, a brake part is sold on eBay;
  • Every 2 seconds, a car or truck part is sold on eBay;
  • Every 3 seconds, an exterior part is sold on eBay;
  • Every 5 seconds, a tire or wheel part is sold on eBay;
  • Every 10 seconds, an engine component is sold on eBay;
  • Every minute, a strut or shock absorber is sold on eBay;
  • Every 3 minutes, a brake pad or brake shoe is sold on eBay.

These numbers show that eBay is an effective way for both automotive part resellers and dealers to sell parts online. An increasing number of businesses are moving their businesses to the eBay marketplaces. The two major reasons to sell vehicle parts on eBay are:

  • Huge potential for volume: The eBay marketplace counts millions of visitors each month, which is a clear indicator of the potential for volume and revenue. For example, let’s say that a million users come to eBay to search for auto parts each month. Now, let’s say that 10% of those visitors are ready to spend an average of $200 on parts. The math says – 100,000 users at $200 each means $20 million in sales. If your eBay store can get just 0.2% of these sales (which is just a tiny fraction of the market), you could be earning 40,000 per month or $480,000 in annual revenue.
  • Large customer base: There are 109.4 million monthly active visitors on eBay. Furthermore, eBay has built an enviable reputation in the auto parts niche. Because of their excellent and easy-to-use fitment system as well as competitive pricing, most auto parts shoppers habitually buy parts right here.

Essential Steps to Selling Vehicle Parts on eBay

Selling online through eBay is simple and straightforward. But if you want to increase the visibility of your online store and sell more parts for vehicles on eBay, you will need to focus on some details and understand what pushes an eBay store. It has to do a lot with how Cassini (eBay’s search functionality) works. Just like Google’s search algorithm, Cassini helps buyers find the products that are most relevant to their search. Let’s take a look at the most important factors that can impact your rating, improve conversion rates, and increase online sales.

  1. Create an eBay Seller account

To be able to sell auto parts and accessories on eBay, you should create an eBay Seller account. Those who plan to sell car parts online in larger quantities should register for a business account. Enter your details, Register, verify your account, and then click the Sell button (at the top of the page) to get redirected to a page where you can start listing your parts.

  1. Customize and configure your eBay store

Customize your eBay store to determine what your store visitors see. To access the tools for customizing and configuring your eBay store, go to the Manage My Store and find the Store Design page. You can then upload your logo, a link to subscribe to your newsletter, and a navigation bar with your product categories. You can also upload a billboard image to highlight special products or limited-time promotions as well as use the Featured Items feature to showcase some of your listings.

  • Go to the Display Settings area to change the visual appearance of your store. Choose the layout and color scheme as well as your store name and description. Find a theme that fits your taste, and the right pick colors and fonts.
  • Make your store more user-friendly by choosing from a broad range of features. Do you want to create custom pages with clickable categories or departments you have used to sort your auto parts? Do you want to add a search box for your store visitors to search through your auto parts? Do you want your items to be presented in a list of items or a grid of item names and product images (list vs. gallery view)?
  • To create special pages that are not just lists or grids of your inventory, you can use the Custom Pages tool. Custom pages can provide space to creatively highlight special items or talk about your business (for promotional purposes). These pages are typically used to create pages that include various details about your business.
  1. Create an eBay Listing

To create your first listing, visit the eBay Motors site and Sign In. Then, click on Sell in the upper-right corner of the page and hit Sell Your Item. To begin providing eBay with the details of your part, click on Start New Listing on the listing tool.

To indicate you are selling a vehicle part, click on Parts and Accessories from the category list. Then click on the vehicle type (cars, motorcycles, trucks, boats, etc.) of the part you’re selling. Choose the type of auto part you are selling – if you choose Car and Truck Parts, you can indicate your part as being a filter, engine, brake pad, etc. To save the product details of your part, click on Save and Continue, and you will be redirected to the Parts Compatibility tool.

  1. Parts Compatibility

When you list all the vehicles that your part is compatible with, buyers looking for that specific auto part will be more likely to come across your store. Click on Search Catalog and complete the fields that indicate the Make, Model, or Year of the vehicle that the part belongs to or enter the part manufacturer’s name. Browse through the search results and hit Select when you find your specific part. If you can’t find the part using this tool, you can click on Specify Part Compatibility and enter the information manually. To add the product details for your part to your listing, click on Confirm Parts Details, and a table that shows all compatible vehicles that can use that auto part will be included.

Auto part sellers who have hundreds of items for sale should consider using a software solution to list parts compatibility and avoid having to make thousands of entries manually. For example, myFitment enables you to upload compatibility (fitment data) information in bulk because it provides listings that include a detailed list of compatible vehicles for a single auto part in just one listing. This helps reduce the number of listings that you need to create and helps resolve duplicate listings. Also, keywords that describe an auto part will already exist in the title if you used the Parts Compatibility tool, and you should modify the title (if needed).

  1. Set Up Account before Your Listing Goes Live

Before you launch your first listing, you should add some important details to your eBay account, such as:

  • Phone number
  • Verify your PayPal account
  • Choose the payments methods your buyers can utilize
  • Ensure that your feedback profile is public
  • Arrange automatic payment method for seller fees
  1. Use high-quality photos

High-quality photos of your auto parts can make or break a sale. A bad product photo is enough to make potential buyers lose interest, explaining why established businesses take great care to take quality images for their eCommerce websites. Take clear photos that display your parts from every angle so your buyers can see the real condition of the auto parts you sell. To tweak the color or crop out unnecessary items in the photo background, you can use free editing software such as Photopea, Picmonkey, or Pixlr.

  1. Use “Bulk Edit” to Refresh Your Store

If you are selling thousands of products, you can save time by editing multiple items at once with eBay’s bulk editing tool. You can also use it to boost your listing. Use the tool to edit your auto part items in batches, which is considered a refresh that will notify the eBay algorithm that there’s been a change. As a result, it will boost your listing and help increase your eBay sales.

  1. List New Items on a Daily Basis

eBay’s algorithm rewards stores that offer new products and stay active on an ongoing basis. Keeping your listings fresh and up-to-date will have the algorithm favor you as a seller, which will help you boost sales. New items always show up at the top of the Time: Newly Listed option on Cassini. For those who cannot list every day, use eBay’s scheduling feature for those days that you know you won’t have time.

Another way to do this is to end some of your current listings that you’ve prepared ahead of time and schedule them for publishing later on. Before you publish them, tweak them slightly, so they’re not exactly the same as the previous listing (just edit the description slightly or change a word in the title).

How to Drive More Traffic to Your Vehicle Part Listing

  • Use the right keywords to increase store visibility

Whenever buyers come to eBay to search for something, they look for very specific items. Therefore, you need to find out what keywords they often type into eBay’s search engine to find items that you are selling. You can also conduct research to explore the most common searches related to your auto parts. When you find 3-5 keywords, be sure to use them in your page titles, custom categories, store description, image alt tags, meta tags, and so on. Remember to avoid keyword stuffing and spamming (using too many keywords and keywords that are unrelated to your items). eBay has a Search Manipulation Policy that doesn’t allow keyword spamming and will penalize you if you violate it.

  • Sell parts on eBay Internationally

eBay has excellent resources to help its sellers to offer their auto parts internationally, so it’s not as complicated as it might seem. International buyers are usually happy to pay the higher price with shipping cost (they are less price-sensitive), while you can ship anything that weighs under 4lbs for less than $25 to almost any destination. Also, you don’t need to offer Free Shipping to your international buyers. This is a great way to stand out from the competition, which is small because not many sellers on eBay Motors offer international shipping.

  • Rely on Promotions

Buyers love special offers. Use eBay’s Promotions Manager to create special offers and customized coupons to encourage consumers to spend more (e.g., they might buy an auto part and receive an offer for an auto accessory that fits their vehicle model and make). Consider offering free shipping when a buyer spends over a certain amount of money, cut prices on some categories (to help move inventory), and set minimum order-size discounts.

Use Promoted Listings to get your auto parts noticed by more people because it can help improve your placement in search. Also, users of Promoted Listings get additional tracking tools to adjust their campaigns and pay for the service only when an item sells.

  • Great Shipping Terms

Nowadays, online buyers want shipping to be cheap and fast. Auto parts buyers are generally ready to wait 3-5 days to get their part, so you shouldn’t make them wait longer than that. Set your eBay store to reflect a 1-day handling time for all orders so your online orders can be processed as quickly as possible. What this means is that you’ll need to hold your carriers accountable.

Consider offering free shipping because people actually hate paying for it. They are more likely to abandon the purchase rather than calculate the combined cost (Price + Shipping Formats) because it causes frustration. When transitioning from Paid Shipping to Free Shipping, it is common to see an increase in sales, but it doesn’t mean you’ll be making less by paying for your buyers’ shipping fees. Buyers are ready to pay more for an item that has a “Free Shipping” label.

Conclusion

If you are about to start selling auto parts and accessories on eBay Motors, you should ignore the stories about easy eBay money or impossible policies. Focus on finding the best business model that is sustainable and viable and helps improve user experience, which means avoiding crippling mistakes, increasing eBay store visibility, and increasing your feedback score. Be smart and patient and use all the tools at your disposal to make it happen.

This guide is designed to help you understand how the eBay platform works and how to start selling on eBay Motors, quickly and easily. We covered the health of the global automotive online market, the advantages of selling on eBay Motors, basic selling strategies, how to create and optimize listings, how to utilize Parts Compatibility, and more.myFitment can help you get your listings in front of eBay buyers. Our solution is designed to make adding fitment or compatibility data easier – it saves time by enabling users to add hundreds of fitment compatibilities in just a few minutes. For more information, visit our website or contact us.