7 October 2021

How To Import From eBay To Shopify (and Vice Versa)

Multi-channel sales are a great way to increase your income, but handling multiple stores can be intimidating. We’ll guide you through the integration of Shopify and eBay and how harnessing the power of these two heavyweight e-commerce platforms will benefit you.

Brett Fleiner

Reading time: 5 minutes

Shopify and eBay are two distinctly different but undeniably competitive e-commerce platforms. Most users prefer one of the two as their go-to sales channel, but what if you were to combine the power of both of these giants?

Choosing to stick to a single sales channel can be a decision that sellers live to regret. The benefits of integrating Shopify and eBay far outweigh the initial challenges of launching your multi-channel sales.

In this article, we’ll walk you through the benefits and how-to of integrating these two e-commerce powerhouses.

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Benefits of Shopify eBay integration

Broaden your base

Build your brand

While eBay brings a massive customer base with it, Shopify is an impeccable platform for building your brand.

eBay sellers who import their products to Shopify can immediately start creating a more recognizable brand that can ensure you stand out in the crowd of competitors. That’s because Shopify has an impressive array of design templates that offer varying degrees of customization. There are over 70 templates, 10 of which are free to use, and they all provide a professional and appealing appearance to your store.

A base that buys

Shopify’s branding prowess builds a customer’s loyalty to your products, with them often returning to make new purchases from a brand they trust.

On the other hand, eBay has a massive user base that is comfortable making purchases through what they deem to be a trusted marketplace. eBay is a go-to for customers who find it easier to use the platform than it would be to filter through thousands of results when searching for a product that suits their needs.

Studies show that brands on multiple channels are almost instantly more recognizable to customers than those limited to just one store. The integration of Shopify and eBay increases your brand presence and introduces your products to more customers intent of purchasing.

Effortless management

Managing your inventory, orders, and data across multiple sales channels can be a hassle, but you’ll find that this is no longer the case after integrating eBay and Shopify. Setting up real-time sync of products on both platforms means inventory management becomes a breeze.

Managing your customers and their orders also becomes decisively easier once the integration is completed. You’ll no longer have to switch back and forth between both platforms to keep everything in check.

What do I need to get started?

Before starting the whole integration process, you need accounts on both Shopify and eBay.

To register on Shopify, you’ll need:

Email address
Password
Unique store name

They’ll also prompt you for your name, address, country, as well as contact number. You don’t have to worry about paying the fee at the beginning (if you’re still unsure) because Shopify offers a 14-day trial period before the first payment.

There’s also an option where you can select ‘I’m just playing around’ to test if the platform works for you before starting to sell.

To register on eBay, you’ll need:

Email address
Password

You can also create an account using Facebook, Google, or Apple account. Once you’re done creating your account, you can start exploring the platform or check out their resources on how to get started.

Shopify plans

Shopify does not charge any additional fees for selling on eBay. You will, however, need to get started with one of Shopify’s plans before you can integrate your eBay products.

Plans are as follows:

Lite: $9/m
Basic: $29/m
Shopify: $79/m
Advanced: $299/m
Shopify Plus: starts at $2000/m

All Shopify plans come with e-commerce essentials and will enable you to build an attractive store for your products. Higher plans offer more in terms of reporting and the number of admin accounts for your store.

How to Import Shopify items to eBay

Add eBay Sales Channel

After logging in to Shopify, navigate to “Sales Channels” and click on the Add (+) option.
A list will pop up from which you should select eBay, then click the Add (+) option.
A list of permissions granted to eBay will be displayed; these are required for product syncing between eBay and Shopify to be successful.

Link eBay and Shopify:

To start linking your stores, click “Connect.”
Once prompted to give eBay access to Shopify, click “Add Sales Channel” to move forward.
A pop-up window should appear with eBay logins being required, enter your eBay ID and password for an existing account or click “Register” for a new account set up.
Once logged in, you may be asked for additional info like ownership details or contact information; fill this in as accurately as possible to avoid any restrictions on your listings.
Once you have completed the connection, you will be asked to grant permission to Shopify to access your eBay account. This step is critical to allowing you to manage eBay orders and customers from Shopify.

Complete policy configuration

Once your accounts are linked, you will be prompted to configure policies for your future eBay listings imported from Shopify.

It is important to note that eBay will offer default suggestions for some policies. These suggestions are based on eBay best practices, and it can be helpful to follow them. Customization can be made if you prefer not to stick to the defaults.

As you complete each page of policies, you can click “Continue” to advance, there are about four pages to complete, and once this is completed, you’ll be redirected to your Shopify account.

Select products to publish

With your eBay channel added to Shopify, the next step is to select the products you would like to have listed on eBay.

If you would like to have all of your products listed, select “Review and Publish All Products,” and you can work your way through some customization options for each listing. Alternatively, selecting “Choose Individual Products” will give you the option of only choosing certain products to be listed on eBay.
Once you have selected all the products you wish to export to an eBay listing, you will be asked to fine-tune each listing before publishing all chosen items to eBay.
Once you are done with fine-tuning and listing customization, you are ready to begin selling.

How to Import eBay Items to Shopify

eBay does not offer an integration directly from its platform to Shopify. There are, however, 3rd party apps that can complete this for you. If you are an eBay user looking to sell your products on Shopify, we recommend the following:

Sign up for a Shopify account.
Go to Shopify’s app store and select an app built for exporting eBay listings.
Export all eBay listings into Shopify.
Customize and Publish all imported listing on Shopify.
Moving forward, create all-new product listings within Shopify first.
Follow the steps for importing products from Shopify to eBay as outline above.

Conclusion

Integrating Shopify and eBay comes with a lot of benefits for any seller.

While the process can take some time, it is well worth it. Keep in mind that eBay offers limited options for importing and exporting listings. We recommend that you use Shopify as your primary management tool between the two sales channels.

Completing the Shopify and eBay integration will have you reaping the rewards of the combined muscle power of two of e-commerce’s most influential platforms. What are you waiting for? Get started today!