eBay Partners With Facebook Marketplace - If You Can't Beat Them, Join Them?
eBay has announced a new partnership with Meta that will enable eBay listings to appear on Facebook Marketplace in the US, Germany, and France, opening up opportunities for additional sales and potential ad revenue.
The move comes as part of Meta's response to the European Commission's November 2024 decision imposing a €797.72 million fine for breaching EU antitrust rules by tying its Facebook Marketplace to its social network and imposing unfair trading conditions on other online classified ads service providers.
Per Meta:
While we disagree with and continue to appeal the European Commission’s decision on Facebook Marketplace, we are working quickly and constructively to build a solution which addresses the points raised.
Today, we will launch a test in Germany, France, and the US that will enable buyers to browse listings from eBay directly on Facebook Marketplace while completing their transaction on eBay.
This could benefit people using both platforms. eBay sellers will gain exposure to Facebook’s audience while people using Marketplace will be able to discover a broader array of listings from the eBay community.
For those wondering why Meta would include the US in this trial when it is not under the jurisdiction of the EU Commission, there's an ongoing FTC case against Meta with similar antitrust and anti-competitive practice allegations and eBay specifically came up during discovery last year.
Liz Morton
Including the US platform in this trial is likely an attempt by Meta to undercut those concerns or show they are already working to address them before the case heads to trial in April 2025.
The new program starts today, with eBay deciding which listings will be included based on factors including current shopping trends and listing quality - there is nothing a seller can do to opt in or out, it is completely up to eBay.
It's also important to note the Facebook listings will simply direct buyers to the eBay site, with all communication, payment, order processes, and buyer and seller protections still handled as normal.
seller_news_team
We’re always looking for new ways to increase exposure to your listings, on and off eBay. Starting today, we’re thrilled to announce that we’re adding Facebook Marketplace to the growing roster of channels where your listings can be found.
This week kicks off our collaboration, with a pilot of select eBay listings appearing on Facebook Marketplace in the US, Germany, and France.
There's no action required on your part. Simply keep listing on eBay as usual to enjoy the benefits of broader visibility and the chance to reach a new audience of buyers through Facebook Marketplace.
The entire process, from product inquiries to payments, will continue to be securely handled through eBay. That means your transactions, order details, and seller protections will all remain unchanged.
Stay tuned for more updates as we work to expand the number of eBay listings that can appear on Facebook Marketplace, opening the door to new buyers and opportunities.
eBay also provided the following FAQs about how the Facebook Marketplace partnership will work:
What happens when an item sells on Facebook Marketplace?
When an item from eBay sells through Facebook Marketplace, buyers will be redirected to eBay to finalize their purchase, following the same process as when they buy directly from eBay.com.Additionally, these sales will be protected by eBay's Money Back Guarantee and all other applicable eBay policies and protections.
Which categories are going to be shown on Facebook Marketplace?
Listings from a variety of categories will appear on Facebook Marketplace based on factors including current shopping trends and listing quality.Do I need to do anything to enable my listings to show up on Facebook marketplace?
eBay is always looking for new ways to drive traffic to your listings. We already work with a number of partner sites to show your inventory to interested buyers.As long as your account is in good standing, your listings could appear on any of these partners, including Facebook Marketplace, based on user interest, shopping trends, and listing quality.
Will my items only be shown to local buyers?
Facebook Marketplace shows a mix of local and shipped items. That means your listings could appear to buyers outside of your local market, based on the shipping preferences that you set on eBay.
While this new program stands to benefit both Meta and eBay in different ways, with eBay's stock jumping to a 52 week high on the news, it's not as clear what the benefits or incentives for average sellers will be.
Based on these details, it appears this is yet another not really new "new" feature as eBay previously leveraged Facebook's ecommerce offerings to host live shopping events in 2021 and the eBay Facebook page also previously included a Shop section which featured items directed to eBay for checkout, until Facebook forced Shops to start using onsite checkout in 2023.
Just like this "new" feature, those previous eBay Facebook Shop listings were completely controlled by eBay, there was no direct way for sellers to opt in or out - and most often those spots were used to promote "focus vertical" categories like sneakers, trading cards, luxury clothing and accessories, auto parts or refurbished electronics and household goods, excluding average sellers outside those verticals.
However, it's a good bet there is one way sellers can increase their odds of being featured in eBay's new Facebook Marketplace listings - pay per click Offsite Ads.
eBay rolled out their Offsite Ads product in 2022 initially as a way for sellers to gain favorable Google placement and has since expanded to include visibility across a variety of external locations.
Liz Morton
Since that initial rollout, eBay has struggled to get sellers on board with Offsite Ads, despite regularly running promotions to try to entice them to sign up, and inclusion or higher placement in these Facebook Marketplace listings could help goose adoption rates.
But eBay may find that sellers will be asking the same questions about this feature as they have about the Social Sharing tool - why not just simply sell directly on Facebook themselves?
Back at eBay Open in 2021, then VP Stores Tom Pinckney announced they would be adding a social media marketing incentive which would discount the final value fee to 2.5% + $0.30 per transaction when buyers buy from social media posts, but after a brief test in Australia in 2022, the social sharing incentive was dropped with no further updates or timelines for implementation ever given.
Liz Morton
Meanwhile, Etsy beat eBay to the punch, introducing their Share & Save program which offers a 4% discount on fees for qualifying sales made through links shared on social media and across the web - effectively making the commision fee 2.5%, just like eBay had promised and failed to deliver.
Liz Morton
With no fee incentives, and likely additional costs if sellers use Offsite Ads to improve their chances of being included in eBay's new partnership, sellers have very little reason not to just cross list items to Facebook themselves to access that potential customer-base and cut eBay out of the loop all together.
This partnership is just the latest move in the bizarre dance between eBay and Facebook over the last few years which has raised many questions about whether CEO Jamie Iannone realizes Meta is a direct competitor for both buyers and sellers.
Liz Morton
As @unsuckEBAY so presciently explained in 2021, continuing to funnel users to Facebook for support, engagement and live shopping seemed like a bad move, especially in light of how StockX took a big bite out of eBay's sneaker business in 2019.
That assessment has only become more true in recent years as Meta has increased efforts to poach sellers and build ecommerce tools directly into their products through Facebook Marketplace and Instagram Shopping, with direct in app checkout negating any need to direct buyers to a website or eBay store to complete purchases.
For a brief moment last year, it seemed that eBay may finally be understanding their position vis-à-vis Meta as they sought to quash subpoena demands for confidential business information in FTC suit mentioned above, acknowledging eBay "doesn't compete with Meta on social networking but does face off over the Facebook Marketplace ecommerce service."
But that lightbulb moment appears to have been short lived as eBay has continues to double down on integrating social sharing tools into Meta-owned properties, directing users to access customer support via the eBay Facebook page, and hosting Ask Us Anything and other seller engagement events on the eBay For Sellers Instagram page - not to mention inviting Meta to speak directly to eBay sellers at their annual conference last September.
Liz Morton
eBay has also been cozying up to Instagram influencers for creator curated features like a Holiday Treasures gift guide and the Things. People. Love marketing campaign.
Liz Morton
Meanwhile, longtime dedicated members continue to be neglected on eBay's own community forums - like the recent Ask Me About eBay Ads discussion debacle.
Liz Morton
You would think the CEO of an ecommerce company that has had less active buyers than in 2018 for 10 consecutive quarters and is clearly struggling to retain their seller base too would understand the last thing in the world you should want is for your customers to spend even one minute on a competitor's site - but here we are.
At least with this new partnership, eBay is doing all the work so sellers will presumably not have to spend any more time on Facebook, but rather than being an exciting or innovative new partnership, it seems like a desperate "if you can't beat 'em, join em" resignation - with maybe a little hope for squeezing in extra ad revenue on the side.
