How to create buyer groups

eBay attracts buyers for its wide selection and value, and for the global connection provided by the comprehensive marketplace. That connection between the buyer and seller can be hugely beneficial for engagement, but buyers would prefer to not be bombarded with unorganized, unwanted communication.

Sellers want an easy way to engage with their buyers, which can help them grow their sales. As part of that engagement, sellers often wish to reach out to past buyers and followers in order to drive more repeat purchases. To do that, and to help drive new customers to their inventory, sellers need tools that can help.

What are Buyer groups?

The unique-to-eBay Buyer groups tool helps sellers grow and scale their business. With it, you can reach new buyers and encourage previous customers to come back.

This tool is available in the special section of Seller Hub for all Store subscribers. Buyer groups let you send coded coupons and offer other discounts to specific groups of buyers:

Once selected, you can further define the group by filtering past customers by their most recent purchases (up to 1 year ago) and the item categories that they have purchased, or by filtering followers according to the length of time they have been following you and their buying status.

Examples of a buyer group:

• Buyers that bought from a your Store in the past month
• Buyers that bought in a specific category from your Store (e.g., “golf equipment”)
• Buyers that are following but have not yet bought from your Store

Benefits of using Buyer groups

Buyer groups give you more control over who receives your coded coupons. You can use them to:

• Build loyalty and encourage repeat purchases by sharing coupons with buyers who’ve previously purchased from you
• Offer specific buyer groups a private discount without lowering your items’ price
• Promote your seasonal inventory to category-specific buyer group
• Send your coded coupons both as an email and a mobile app notification
• Control your budget and protect your margins with options like minimum spend, expiration date and budget

How to create and manage Buyer groups

To get to the Buyer groups tool, go to Seller Hub > Marketing > Buyer groups.

First of all, in the Buyers group section you can always find your buyer insights — the up-to-date statistics for the year:

• Total buyers. Total number of buyers who purchased an item from you (1)
• One-time buyers. Number of new buyers who purchased one item (of any quantity) from you (2)
• Repeat buyers. Number of customers who have made no fewer than two purchases/orders in a one-year period (3)
• Total followers. Total number of users who saved you as a seller (even if they have not bought any of your items yet) (4)

To create a buyer group, you can click Get started in one of the two sections — Your previous customers (1) or Your followers (2), or use the dropdown menu under the Create buyer group button (3).

Then enter the group name, check the summary and click Save buyer group. Your new buyer group was successfully created!

In the Manage group section, you can interact with buyer groups: easily track, edit or delete them, and send coupons to selected customers.

How to send discount offers to specific buyer groups

To send Store newsletter with discount offer to the specific buyer group:

1. In Seller Hub, go to the Store tab > Store newsletter (1) and click the Create campaign button (2).

2. Choose your Campaign template: you can apply buyer groups for Coupons, Sale event, Order discount, or Volume pricing.

And then click Next. Click the Next button after each step in the email setup.

3. Select the newsletter recipients. Is it at this step, you can select a preset recipient group — Quick picks (1), or a buyer group created by you (2).

Then fill out the subject line of your email, or you can use the one provided.

4. For coupon, order discount, or Sale event templates,select the promotion:

• You can choose any active promotion to be sent out once (1)
• Or you can turn on automation (2) so that the latest promotions are sent out on your behalf (that is, you will be able to set up the newsletter even before you have created a promotion). The system will check new promotions daily. The listing shown in the newsletter will be based on Best Match

Then add a message (3) that explains the value, and eligible listings (4).

5. Schedule your newsletter. You can plan a one time email to go out on a specific date, or on a recurring schedule.

6. Launch your campaign. Select Review email to preview your newsletter before sending. Check and confirm that all information is correct by clicking the Activate button.

Also you can send coupon codes to the specific buyer group directly using Buyer groups tab functionality:

1. In the Manage group section, define a custom group of buyers to whom you want to send your coupons.

2. Choose an existing coded coupon campaign or set up a new one.

3. Add an optional custom message to send along with your coupon code.

4. Send your coupons — eligible buyers in your groups will receive your coupon codes.

Top tips: how to reach your buyers at the right time and in the right way

• Drive maximum engagement by reaching out to buyers especially during the prime selling seasons
• Consider a limited-period promotion to create a sense of urgency and protect your profit margin
• Don’t create huge time gaps. Avoid letting buyers wait for long periods to receive your promotions, if they've already demonstrated interest through browsing/buying your listings
• Discounts are delightful. Send coupons and other discount offers to buyers who’ve previously purchased from you, encouraging them to buy again, in higher quantities, and more frequently from your Store — and finally to build loyalty in the long term
• Make your discount profitable. Sharing your coupons privately with your Buyer groups will not require you to adjust the price of your listings, which are displayed publicly on eBay. It’s a win-win — your buyers enjoy great deals, and you can still close profitable sales

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