Mercari Newbie Store Opening FAQ: Top 10 Questions and Answers

In the wave of cross-border e-commerce, Mercari (coal stove), as a highly-anticipated C2C second-hand goods trading platform, has attracted the attention of many novice sellers. However, opening a store on Mercari for the first time may encounter various problems and challenges. For this reason, I have specially compiled the latest 10 questions and 10 answers guide for 2024 to help novice sellers smoothly start their e-commerce journey on Mercari~

Question 1: What is Mercari’s product selection strategy?

A: In the initial stage, choose light-craft products to reduce logistics costs, and avoid products with strict review and troublesome returns, such as electronic products and maternal and child products.

Question 2: How to increase sales on Mercari?

answer:

(1) Ensure product quality and provide true and detailed descriptions and high-quality pictures so that buyers can clearly understand the actual situation of the product.

(2) Optimize product titles and descriptions, add keywords and clear images, maintain price competitiveness and good seller reviews, and respond to buyers' questions and needs in a timely manner.

(3) Hold promotional activities regularly, provide coupons and discount codes to attract buyers and increase purchase conversion rate

Question 3: What is Mercari’s return policy?

A: Mercari's return policy states that buyers can return products within 3 days after receiving them if there are any problems with the product, such as if the product does not match the product description, the product is a fake/counterfeit, the product is prohibited, the product is damaged or defective when it is delivered, or the seller sent the wrong product. If the seller has clearly stated this in the product description, buyers cannot return the product for "not fitting" or "smelling".

• Inspiration: To avoid losses caused by returns, sellers should be as detailed as possible in product descriptions, add multiple pictures, and emphasize important information to reduce returns due to inaccurate product descriptions. At the same time, sellers should also pay attention to changes in Mercari's return policy so that they can adjust their sales strategies in a timely manner.

Question 4: What should we avoid in Mercari?

answer:

(1) Avoid illegal operations: Do not use improper means such as empty envelopes. Once these behaviors are discovered by the platform, they are likely to result in the account being blocked.

(2) Provide good customer service: On Mercari, the rate of account suspension due to complaints is extremely high. Therefore, how you respond to buyers’ complaints and questions is directly related to whether the account can survive, so it is crucial to provide good customer service.

Question 5: What is Mercari’s traffic algorithm?

answer:

(1) Listings that match the buyer’s search terms will be displayed first.

(2) Listings with high views, likes, and quotes are generally ranked higher.

(3) Sellers with positive reviews, fast shipping times, and responsive communication tend to have their listings prioritized.

Question 6: What should I do if the goods I sent are returned?

A: When you encounter a situation where a product is returned, here are a few ways to deal with it:

(1) Verify the address: First, you should confirm with the buyer that the shipping address they provided is correct. Once the address is confirmed, you can update this information through Mercari's Help Center.

(2) Re-delivery options:

Option 1: You can cancel the current transaction and relist the product. You can then notify the buyer to make another purchase.

Option 2: You can also choose to re-ship the item yourself, but this time not through a Mercari-partnered courier. In this case, you will need to make sure you provide the buyer with tracking information such as the courier number, and please note that Mercari will not cover the cost of this shipment.

Option Three: If you choose not to re-ship the item, you can cancel the transaction and refund the buyer.

Question 7: Who pays for shipping?

A: This is the same as Xianyu in my country. If the seller chooses to let the buyer pay for the shipping, then the shipping cost will be included in the price of the product; if the seller chooses to pay for the shipping themselves, then the cost will be deducted from the sales revenue. For goods shipped by themselves, the shipping cost is entirely the responsibility of the seller.

Question 8: How to set up Mercari payment method?

A: Log in to your Mercari account, go to the "My Income" or "Wallet" section, choose to add a new payment method, such as a bank account, debit card or credit card, enter the relevant payment information and complete the verification according to the prompts. If you do not have an overseas bank account, you can also choose to bind it to a third-party platform such as WindPayer, which has preferential withdrawal fees and makes payment and collection more convenient and quick.

Question 9: How are products priced?

A: The following factors need to be considered:

(1) Platform fees: Since Mercari charges a 12.9% commission plus a fixed fee, it is recommended to set aside approximately 15% of the cost to cover these platform fees.

(2) Market research: Refer to your competitors’ pricing and understand the price range of similar products in the market. This will help you set a competitive price.

(3) Intelligent pricing: Mercari provides an intelligent pricing function. If a product has not been sold for a long time, the system will automatically lower the price to promote sales.

(4) Setting a floor price: To avoid selling products at prices that are too low, you can set a floor pricing so that even if the smart pricing feature is activated, the product will not be sold below the floor price you set.

Question 10: What are Mercari’s anti-blocking strategies?

answer:

(1) Comply with platform rules: Carefully read and comply with all Mercari policies to avoid any violations.

(2) Social media account maintenance: After registering a social media account for related promotion, perform account maintenance, including using a fixed IP address to log in to the account, logging in to the store every day to browse and like, etc., simulating the various operations of normal users to make the account show reasonable activity.

(3) Stable account environment: Use static residential IP proxy to configure Mercari store, log in to the account with a fixed IP, and isolate the network environment between accounts. I used IPFoxy when I opened a store on Mercari. They provide clean IPs worldwide, including dynamic and static IPs, and can match a separate IP address for each of my accounts. Since then, I have rarely been blocked due to account IP association or instability issues.

After reading the above ten questions and ten answers, I believe you have a clearer understanding and preparation for opening a store on Mercari. Finally, I hope this guide can provide practical help and guidance for your Mercari store opening journey, and help you achieve brilliant results in the world of cross-border e-commerce!