With hundreds of millions of vehicles on the road today, it only stands to reason that car parts and accessories are being sold in their billions. And eBay Motors is one such place where these types of transactions happen on a daily basis.
eBay Motors is one of the world’s most popular automotive eCommerce marketplaces. It is a place where merchants can sell aftermarket parts and accessories to consumers all over the globe.
In this article, we will take a closer look at what eBay Motors is, what makes it tick, and why automotive aftermarket retailers should consider selling their auto parts on the eCommerce platform.
What makes eBay Motors tick?
eBay Motors has been selling automotive parts and vehicles for over two decades. It launched in 2000, just after eBay moved to its newly-expanded headquarters in San Jose, California.
eBay Motors first debuted at the SEMA Show in 1999, and since then, the auction platform has had a strong connection to the automotive aftermarket sector.
The “BUILT from eBay” campaign was a past marketing promotion at the SEMA Show that included a booth with vehicles on display. This promotion showed off vehicle parts and accessories that were purchased on eBay.
The vehicles displayed in the “BUILT from eBay” section Included an array of automobiles, such as off-road vehicles, customized cars from the 60s and 70s, a Porsche, and even a 1968 Chevy G20 van. It was, and still is, one of the most clever marketing promotions in the show’s history.
Selling your car on eBay Motors
Selling your car on eBay Motors is, in fact, the main purpose of the platform. Selling auto parts and vehicle accessories is a very close second. That said, if you want to make a real profit on eBay Motors, you must be competitive in your pricing and know what you’re doing.
When listing a vehicle, eBay Motors offers an array of tools for sellers, including eBay Motors Vehicle History Reports, eBay Valet, eBay Motors Certified Program, eBay Motors Auctions, and more. All these features help make the eBay Motors experience for sellers as smooth and easy as possible.
Vehicle purchase protection will also be offered to buyers when they purchase a vehicle from eBay Motors. The vehicle protection program also helps to protect eBay Motors’ reputation and maintain high standards for the marketplace.
How much does eBay Motors generate?
From its small beginnings, eBay Motors has now sold billions of dollars in vehicles and eBay auto parts and accessories annually. It makes sales possible to every continent on Earth. The dollar volume is so high that it even supports an entire cottage industry for eBay marketplace research!
The research done in this industry provides support to both vendors and buyers in the marketplace. For example, if an eBay Motors reseller is looking for information on what car parts are selling best, they would actively search topics like “best selling car parts on eBay” or “most sold car parts on eBay.”
In the world of eBay parts & accessories sales, it’s estimated that resellers who only sell on eBay make up about $8.2 billion of the total $11.7 billion in revenue (2021). The other $3.5 billion comes from resellers who also have their own “.com” websites and/or sell on other eCommerce platforms such as Amazon or Walmart Marketplace.
What’s the state of the online automotive aftermarket sector, and how does eBay Motors fit into it?
The CAGR for parts eCommerce is projected to be just under 9% through 2025. By the end of 2022, online revenue for automotive parts eCommerce in the US will reach $38 billion. The United States auto parts industry is predicted to bring in an estimated $67 billion by 2030.
In total, that’s $19.8 billion from automotive eCommerce websites and first-party (“1P”) sellers who sell their products directly, including through Amazon FBA (“fulfilled by Amazon”).
Furthermore, it accumulates $18.3 billion in revenue from third-party marketplaces (“3P”), for example, sellers using eBay Motors or Amazon marketplaces as a platform to sell their products. This encompasses the “SEMA” specialty equipment market in addition to the OEM replacement parts market.
2020 saw a 30.6% increase in eCommerce revenue from the previous year- this growth is largely due to COVID-19. Most industries had increased eCommerce numbers during the pandemic as people stayed home more often than ever before.
Many eCommerce parts & accessories retailers are having supply chain difficulties through 2022, which adversely impacts the overall growth rate for online revenue. A significant problem in our industry at present is inventory availability—not consumer demand.
“3P” or third-party eCommerce revenue includes products sold by companies (or individuals) that sell through third-party marketplaces such as Amazon, eBay, Walmart, or Newegg. These third-party marketplaces collect a fee in exchange for listing and selling a product on their platform.
These projections show aftermarket 3P revenue growing to $18.3 billion in 2022 – up from $11.7 billion by 2021 – and $32.1 billion by 2030.
In fact:
- Every 1.5 seconds, 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.
Clearly, eBay is a viable option for car part vendors and distributors who want to sell online. In fact, more and more businesses are migrating their operations to the eBay marketplace.
What are the benefits of selling car parts and accessories on eBay Motors?
There are numerous benefits to selling car parts and accessories on eBay Motors. Among the biggest such benefits, we can include the following:
- Large customer base: eBay has 109.4 million monthly active visitors, and it is especially well-known in the auto parts niche due to its excellent fitment system and competitive pricing. Many auto parts shoppers habitually buy from eBay because it is easy to find what they need.
- Huge potential for volume: Millions of people visit eBay each month, indicating the potential for high 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. That would mean 100,000 users are spending $200 each—or $20 million in sales. If your eBay store could get just 0.2% of these sales (which is only a tiny fraction of the market), you could earn$40,000 per month or $480,000 in annual revenue.
- Retailer services: eBay Motors provides retailers with a suite of tools to create professional eBay stores, manage inventory and orders, analyze trends, and promote their products. To increase reach and sales, eBay offers customer support, automated listing features, and eBay Ads.
- Subscription flexibility: eBay Motors has created subscriptions that allow sellers to pay for extras such as bulk uploading tools or discounts on eBay fees. This will enable them to choose the subscription plan that best fits their needs and budget.
- The eBay Motors app: eBay Motors also offers an app that makes it easier for retailers to sell on eBay. The eBay Motors app allows users to list and manage their stores using their mobile devices. You can get the eBay Motors app on the Google Play store.
- Different payment methods: eBay Motors accepts numerous payment methods, including eBay Payments powered by PayPal, which is quick and secure. eBay also supports Apple Pay, Google Play, Credit and Debit cards, and even eBay gift cards.
Thus, eBay Motors is an excellent platform for auto parts & accessories retailers who want access to a large customer base and the potential for high-volume sales. The marketplace also offers many services and flexible subscription plans that help make it easier for them to sell on eBay Motors.
With eBay Motors, auto parts & accessories retailers can take advantage of the eCommerce boom and make money with eBay’s automotive platform. eBay Motors provides many benefits, making it an ideal choice for sellers in this niche.
How to sell auto parts and accessories on eBay Motors
If you want to sell more parts for vehicles on eBay, you will need to focus on some details and understand what pushes an eBay store. This includes how Cassini (eBay’s search functionality) works.
Much like Google’s search algorithm, Cassini finds the products that best match a buyer’s query. The following factors are critical in impacting your rating, boosting conversion rates, and upping online sales.
Create an eBay Seller account
Those who frequently plan to sell car parts online should register for a business account. Follow these steps:
- Enter your details,
- Register.
- Verify your account.
- Click the Sell button (at the top of the page).
After that final step, you’ll be taken to the listing page, where you can begin entering information about the parts you’re selling.
Creating an eBay Listing
To get started, sign in to the eBay Motors site and click Sell in the upper-right corner of the page. Then, select Start New Listing on the listing tool to provide eBay with details about your part.
To sell a vehicle part, select Parts and Accessories from the category list. Then click on the type of vehicle (cars, motorcycles, trucks, boats, etc.) of the part you’re selling. Choose what kind of auto part you are selling – if you choose Car and Truck Parts, more specific options like filter, engine, brake pad, etc. will appear.
Parts compatibility
By including all of the vehicles that your part is compatible with, buyers will more likely find your store when they search for a specific auto part.
To do this, click on Search Catalog and complete the fields that indicate the Make, Model, or Year of the vehicle that the part belongs to. You can also enter the manufacturer’s name instead.
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.
Listing compatibility becomes a nightmare when you have hundreds of items for sale. With the right software solution, you can make entries automatically and avoid tedious manual labor.
myFitment, for example, makes it easy to upload compatibility information in bulk. This is because myFitment provides listings that come with a list of compatible vehicles for just one auto part.
By using the Parts Compatibility tool, you can reduce the number of listings you need to create as well as resolve any duplicates. Furthermore, if you use this tool correctly, keywords describing an auto part should already be in the title – but feel free to make changes if necessary.
Takeaway
eBay Motors is an eCommerce marketplace designed specifically for automotive aftermarket parts and accessories.
It allows sellers to create eBay listings that include information about the product’s compatibility with different vehicles, making it easier for buyers to find what they are looking for.
