Hard time selling on morphmarket

[eaglereptiles]

@lizzyslizards

! I am confused what you mean by there is no Uniformity throughout my ads? What would you recommend? Adding my store name on the bottom of the ad pictures?

It could be your store name, a certain branch, a banana… anything… Just make it consistent.
Like, when I see that huge purple amethyst thingy and newspaperey table cloth, I know it’s a Gargoyle Queen ad and I’ll stop and take a look at what Kylie has posted recently.

[projectpython]

@jawramik

I also agree with others that the current state of the economy is working against you and likely all other reptile sellers right now. People just have less spending money, since they’re having to spend more on basic necessities like gas, groceries, rent, etc. So many people just have less money to spend on things they can survive without, like a new reptile. I know that I’m having to be a little more frugal now that it costs me nearly $100 just to fill my car up with gas.

This is true - and economic conditions in this country are going to get worse before they get better. If you run a reptile business, you need to keep in mind that you are selling a luxury item. I am not going to say that people won’t buy reptiles if they are not on firm financial ground - because we all know that people buy what they want to buy even if means whipping out that credit card. But as a seller, you should anticipate that sales might be weak for a while.

If you run a reptile business as your sole source of income, you probably can’t afford to throttle down your production. If you do this on the side, it might be in your best interest to do so. Personally, I made the decision to do less clutches this year and certainly the dinker projects got shelved. I also changed my rodent supplier due to the fact that the one I was buying from (big online company) raised prices by at least 50%.

The pandemic year saw record-breaking sales for many of us, myself included. But people are no longer stuck in their houses, shopping online with stimulus money. That’s over, and there is an economic reckoning on its way.

I’m not saying that businesses (reptile-related or other) can’t thrive during an economic downturn. There is plenty of evidence that those at the top of the ball python world were unaffected during the tough times of the recent past. But the reality is that the cost of living is up all across the board and only the naive think that this will not affect our industry.

[lizzyslizards]

Okay thanks, I’ll definitely start doing that! I deleted most of my ads and I’m redoing all the pictures and descriptions.

[t_h_wyman]

There no need to totally delete your ads, just jump in and edit them and upload new pictures. Lots less work

[glenniegeckos]

Hey,

I’ve been having the same issue. Most of what I’ve been able to sell has been Leopard Geckos, which is still nice. But I feel like most of my efforts and money has gone into my Gargoyles, and my Crested geckos. I keep trying to figure out what I’m missing. Maybe the picture quality isn’t great. I don’t have a fancy camera, or the money to purchase one as of yet. Also, I don’t have my logo posted on the pictures. I need to figure that out. But I don’t think that the pictures are that bad, and the animals themselves I feel like, are decently priced, maybe a bit higer for the market. But I don’t think it’s super unreasonable. I know that I would pay that price myself, so I don’t think the price is that high, but maybe? I think that the market is just f’d up right now. People aren’t browsing as much as they did during covid. If they are looking to purchase an animal, they are just going to the businesses that they are most familiar with. Because they have already built report with them. So, all of us not-well-known breeders are being sort of pushed to the side so-to-speak. I think that if you just keep trying, keep talking, keep making your presence known in this economy/market, you can eventually get there. But I don’t think that it’s going to be easy at all. I am struggling nearly every day. But I just keep going, because I know that this is what I want to do, and I won’t stop till I get there.

[gina5678]

I know this is an older thread, but the problem of selling has likely gotten worse or remained unchanged. I don’t sell but maybe try the live auctions feature that was recently added to MM. Good luck everyone. I know the value of most ball pythons compared to a few years ago has decreased drastically.

[logar]

@glenniegeckos

I know that I would pay that price myself, so I don’t think the price is that high, but maybe?

But remember, you produced these animals which does make you a bit biased to pricing. You know the work that went into making them that others don’t know. Maybe try dropping the prices 10% or so and see how that works.

Maybe I am just subconsciously saying how horrible I would be at selling reptiles

[foxreptile]

I can agree with that statement to some point.

I am terrible at letting them go… So much so that I have kept a lot back so not producing any this year as I want to make sure I can house them all

[foxreptile]

Can you send a link and maybe some of us can look and offer our assistance?

[akmorphs]

Here’s what I’ve done that has helped me stand out from competitors

• Make sure your store profile is completely filled out
• Make sure you’re searchable on social media (IG is your best friend)
• Have more than 4+ high quality photos
• Have your logo displayed on your ad photos
• Detailed listings of the pairing, sex, birthdate, weight, etc
  a. If you do allow local pick-up make sure that’s mentioned
• Use social media to spread awareness of your animals that are available
• Don’t be afraid to share to local groups
• Do a local show