Marketplace vs Your Own Website: Which Should You Choose to Sell Online?

Introduction

Before starting your adventure as a professional seller on internet, you need to ask yourself a very important question:

Should I invest time building a website or simply create an account on Amazon, Ebay or Etsy ?

As we will see on this article there is no definitive answer. But I hope this post will help you to see through this and make the best decision.

About the author

I am Rayhan Rahim Khan, if my main activity is now creating, sharing and selling art on ElectroCroissant.Art, my venture on E-commerce started four years ago in 2021 on Ebay.

On the ebay marketplace I sold more than 600 objects, mostly old cameras or lenses.

My ebay store was awarded the title “top vendor” for the quality of its service (99,2% of positive reviews).

Although I closed my Ebay store a week ago, I still have a woocommerce store on ElectroCroissant.Art where I sell the same objects.

The marketplace

What is a marketplace ?

A marketplace is a website where you can create an account and sell your objects along with other sellers.

The main advantage of a marketplace is to give your products visibility.

Indeed, when someone wants to buy something he goes on Ebay or Amazon.

Having your products on these websites make them much easier to find.

Example of well-known marketplace:

• Ebay
• Amazon
• Etsy

Each marketplace has its own clientele:

People will expect to bid on used vintage items on ebay, buy brand new high end electronic devices on amazon, and “art” on Etsy.

You will not be able to grow your brand on a marketplace

When someone buy something from you on a marketplace, he won’t tell himself:

“I buy this on the ElectroCroissant store on ebay! He is a good seller!”

but rather simply:

“I buy this on ebay! ebay is amazing!”.

Most of the time, the customer will remember the marketplace, not you. Do not expect to build up a loyal customer base on any marketplace.

A marketplace will take 20 to 30% of your turnover

It may vary depending on your niche, but keep in mind these numbers when calculating your margin.

My experience on ebay:

ebay is taking 10% flat on every transaction.

But if I wanted to sell, I was forced to pay 10 to 15% more to Ebay to “sponsor” my ad.

Otherwise my ad would have been sent back to the 15th page, where nobody can see it.

On ebay I was also paying a subscription 24,5€ a month.

A marketplace can be unstable

You may spend more money than you earn to the marketplace, but do not expect loyalty or consideration.

An example:

In mid-2025, ebay changed its algorithm without making any announcement.

How did I know that they changed their algorithm ? I just notice that my sales dropped to 50% on ebay.

Having your own website

Create a brand image

Having your own website is essential to stand out as a serious seller and establishing your brand.

It will give you credibility and authority if your site is well done.

Having a customer base becomes possible: you will have much more freedom to express yourself and differentiate yourself from the other sellers.

Much less fees…

For my woocommerce store on my website ElectroCroissant.art, I only pay 2% to the payment processor, which is much less than the mandatory 10% of Ebay.

And for the hosting costs, you can get a decent server for 5-7€ instead of the 24,50€ paid to ebay.

…but you’ll have to attract your customers

There is no point in creating a website that no one visits.

You will have to implement a strategy to attract customers.

Different ways to attract customers:

• Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
• Ads
• Social media

An investment in time or money

Creating an attractive website takes time or costs money if you want to delegate this task.

Even if a woocommerce store can be operational in a day or so, if you want to create a strong brand identity, you’ll have to work on it.

In my case, it took me months before creating a memorable brand as ElectroCroissant.

Even today, I still take time to improve my website. It is a continual process.

The MOST IMPORTANT thing you have to understand about E-commerce

To be successful in E-commerce the most important thing is not to sell the best items or ship the object the same day.

The most important thing is marketing.

Visibility.

Attracting customers.

If you failed at being good at marketing, you won’t sell anything on the internet. Period.

The question you should ask yourself: is selling on a marketplace profitable ?

The 20 to 30% of sales fees are not an exaggeration.

And do not expect to increase your prices: you’ll have to match the prices of your competitors.

For the same type of product a marketplace user will choose the cheaper option.

There is no point in running a business that is not profitable. Calculate precisely from the start to avoid wasting time and money in a doomed enterprise.

In that case your only option is to create your own website and find profitable ways to drive customers to your store.

A marketplace can still be useful as a proof of concept

If you want to test the viability of a product, you can first sell it on a marketplace and see if it attracts buyers.

This will give you an initial idea and help you determine if you should promote the product on your website or not.