posted on February 12, 2001 05:43:00 AM
What's wrong with Stunning or Awesome, if indeed the item is?
Last time I used "Stunning", the auction results were stunning. I guess I should have used "Really Boring" or "Just OK" to describe it and maybe lose a couple of hundred? Naw.
OK though, I am guilty of sometimes using "good condition for it's age".
[ edited by loosecannon on Feb 12, 2001 05:46 AM ]
posted on February 12, 2001 06:50:47 AM
Laughing...
I just went back to look at that particular auction. I forgot... I used Stunning and Rare in that particular auction. It brought almost $430.00. A good price. The thing is, it was rare and stunning. The buyer was happy and probably didn't think badly about me using those words.
posted on February 12, 2001 07:05:09 AMOne of a kind
Frequently inappropriate, another overused piece of junque jargon. When all is said and done everything is one of a kind. Go figure! and why does that "here we have a blah, blah" thing irritate me so much? I guess it's somehow condescending. hmmm....
so now that we know how much these phrases irk us, I must add that I would very much like to be described as some of these tidbits! Just for a chuckle, most of these are quite fitting:
"Rare!”
"In great/good condition for it's age."
"Would be breathtaking in any decor"
"Your neighbors will be jealous".
BEAUTIFUL or SEXY
but my all time favorite is:
Antique 1960's widget!
I'm off to list some carefully worded goodies!
(edited cuz I didn't word it carefully)
chepistar here, there, and everywhere
[ edited by chepistar on Feb 12, 2001 07:07 AM ]
posted on February 12, 2001 07:22:39 AM
I also would like to know what is wrong with "scarce" or "hard to find" IF the item indeed is. I deal in many hard to find and scarce items. I ONLY will use the words if I am positive the item is indeed HTF. I find this to be a valuable tool in selling.
How else would I describe a Flint glass Bakewell and Pears circa 1840 celery vase with cut decoration? It is scarce and hard to find!
I am putting up a scarce item today - haven't seen one for sale anywhere in over 10 years and neither has any collector.
I also have a Watt Pottery item that is unique. I have spoken to the author's of both the books on this pottery and one of them is a Watt family member. I am assured this item is one of a kind. I think this info is important to to the desription.
Now, I hate to see buyer pays shipping or buyer pays s&h and then no amount is given.
I will not bid on auctions that have threats in them such as "7 days to send payment or negative feedback will be given".
A lot can and does go wrong with email and snail mail. I see so many negs where they complain that no contact has been made and it never occurs to anyone that there may be an email problem. I sometimes have problems when I contact my aol bidders. I will ask a friend to help forward my email or if that doesn't work I will ask for the bidders info. I would not just leave a neg. Too many negs are given out needlessly and without a good cause or where they can be avoided.
Case in point was a high bidder I had in Hawaii who swore he sent payment. Well, I believed him and sure enough - over 3 weeks after he sent it, it arrives at my house in a plastic post office envelope - it had gottern stuck in a machine and was damaged but the postmark clearly showed that it had been sent when my bidder said it was. I am happy that I wasn't fast on that neg. trigger. He was a good customer and he is now a repeat customer.
I guess I am more patient and trusting than some but it has worked for me. I have had only 1 non payment and that was on an inexpensive model I put up for my husband.
posted on February 12, 2001 11:21:49 AM
Saw one a couple days ago that the first line began "Do not bid on my auction if you don't plan to follow through" or something of that ilk in huge letters. Major turn off. L@@K and KEWL are turn offs too...seems like there would be something to say about the actual item rather than waste the description with those terms which people don't search for (do they??) SEXY for apparel usually equates with pretty scary and not worth a look IMO. Also for apparel, "like new or great condition - but has a tear, or a missing button, etc., etc."
posted on February 12, 2001 12:01:21 PM
I sell mostly women's clothing and it really irks me to see "sequence" or better yet "sequenced front" instead of sequins or sequined. Geez, for a while there I thought it was some sort of new geometric design on the clothing. Silly me!! However, I do admit to using the old cliche of "mint, in like new condition" when there is a button missing or some minor flaw that doesn't detract from the wearability or style of a garment. Of course, I do mention the flaw but that still means that the overall conditon of the dress, skirt, top, etc. is still in great, like-new shape. Also when I see "LQQK and GOT2C" it reminds me of chalk going down a blackboard.
posted on February 12, 2001 01:47:04 PM
The ONLY phrase I hate is when sellers put this: Payment must be received within 10 days after closing the auction.
Payments should be received IMMEDIATELY after auction closes, by saying after 10 days you are inviting people to bid then think if they want to buy it or not. You are giving them 10 extra days to think about it, that's why you get many dead beats.
Another stupid phrase is: Please only serious bidders.
With this message you are also inviting those unserious bidders, those with fake IDs, Bothering people is a natural, is a human thing, and bad guys know now where it will hurt you.
posted on February 12, 2001 02:49:16 PM
while i agree with some of the posts in this thread i have to dissagree with some of them.
1)seems ebay has gone down the tubes in a hand basket.and telling people we will post neg.and pos.feedback scares away some of the problematic bidders.
2)we state we ship all of the posted ways given.but it is impossable for us to know the amount of shipping until we know a zip code and final auction amount.UNLESS its very lightweight.
3)rare is in fact used very loosely but is needed on some items.
4)i think alot of the posters have never sold online or they are unaware of all the problems that come with selling. our terms get changed to accomadate all the changes from unknowlegeable bidders.it is unfortunate you all have these problems with sellers terms but they didnt think them up on their own.problems have brought the terms you all seem to disslike.
posted on February 12, 2001 09:30:51 PM
I hate the term L@@K! what does that mean? Also some people here complain about alot of things that are necessary.............like stating that negative feedback will be left........or.......people with negative feedback..dont bid! You get frustrated with all these morons who do what they want and ignore TOS and anything remotely ethical.I also hate people who cant spell.
posted on February 12, 2001 09:50:29 PM
"Money order only" (Not convenient for me, plus they generally aren't free. You can hold my personal check for bank clearance if you feel you should -- just give me the option!)
"Payment due in 10 days (or worse - 7 days!)" (I'll mail my payment immediately, but have no control over the post office delivering it to you promptly!)
Terms that are longer than the description itself! Sure, some terms are necessary (the shipping amount, what forms of payment are accepted, etc.), but don't threaten me.
Auctions that request/require the use of a third party management system where you have to go to a website, enter your shipping information to get your total, etc. Blech! I'll bid if it's something I *have* to have, but eBay's a big place, and chances are, there's another seller with the same widget listed!
posted on February 12, 2001 11:23:40 PM
"no checks - don't even ask"
(okey dokey - won't even bid!)
"I am out of town ______ to _____"
)allrighty...greeeeaaaat. I get a 48 hour window of opportunity to ask you any questions, and find out about your non-existant shipping terms.)
"I cancel bids of...user feedback"
(pick a feedback newness, neg ratio whatever...smells like curmudgeon spirit!)
"Not in picture...."
(Thanks for not adding that item to the shot that could be the whole reason I bid in the first place!!!! How hard is it to scan?)
posted on February 13, 2001 10:56:52 AM
Any auctions with the dreaded click here to view this item. (hosted by Myitem.com) gets an automatic click on my browser's back button.
posted on February 13, 2001 12:53:58 PM
1) "Subject to availability" -- this is not on some optional extra component of the widget, but the sole widget itself. Won't touch an auction with that phrase in it.
2) "L@@K" or "LQQK" -- invitation to keep looking. Looks like hype. Hype rings warning bells, or in the case of titles, allows me to skim faster.
3) "Email me for a picture" -- Okay, I understand webspace may be limited or come with a price, but still.... I'm I being too tough here?
4) Any phrase tipping me off that I might have to leave personal information with a third party.
5) "A must have for any serious ____ collector." Not really that irritating, but it still looks like silly hype: if I'm a serious, I will know what is a must have.
6) "Shipping cost is the responsibility of the buyer" but is not listed -- I understand when it is an unusual (large, fragile, oddly shaped) item, but not when it is a simple/light item or is an item the seller seems to sell fairly frequently.
----
What's being done in the name of direct marketing nowadays is crazy.
The above are all just my opinions, except where I cite facts as such.
Oh, I am not dc9a320 anywhere except AW. Any others are not me.
Is eBay is changing from a world bazaar into a bizarre world?
posted on February 13, 2001 01:51:25 PM
I hate listings that take three paragraphs to explain that they are not sure what something is worth, that they have a lot of items to list etc etc and NOTHING about the item thats listed.....ie...last night I found a book listed that I was interested in. When I looked at the listing it explained in great detail how they did not know what the book was worth, that they had an attic full of books to list in the future and that they were sure this was a great book to have , NOTHING about the book listed, the shape it was in, copyright or ANYTHING and the picture was terrible. Needless to say, if they can't take a minute to write a decent description, I don't feel like taking a minute to play guessing games. There....I feel better...
posted on February 13, 2001 01:59:12 PM
Don't know if this will work, have never posted a picture here, I think this link will work.
Hope I don't hurt anyone's feelings, but this picture was posted with the infamous phrase: "Sorry about the picture, haven't figured out my scanner yet". And the picture was 4X as big as the one I'm linking this to.
http://home1.gte.net/floresnw/wto/whatsthis.jpg
I saved it because I thought it was pretty funny. Not to be mean.
posted on February 13, 2001 02:01:44 PM
I just can't get wrapped around the axle over what I read in auctions. If the lister gets you riled up they have accomplished something - you have remembered that particular auction, be it good or bad. I believe it also depends what you are selling as to what phrases are acceptable in that community be they good or bad.
There is one line though that I really didn't like and wouldn't bid on this person's auction if she were the last seller on earth.
"If your payment is not in my hands within 7 days, I will leave negative feedback."
Excuuuse me.
[ edited by llama_lady on Feb 13, 2001 02:02 PM ]
posted on February 13, 2001 02:51:07 PM
I do like to use adjectives in my descriptions and sometimes stunning, etc. just seem to fit.
I waste no space on TOS and have less than a handful of slow payers or deadbeats in over 400 auctions.
I like an auction that is brief and to the point
but:
I had a nice older art book that I was excited about putting up. I checked open and closed auctions and much to my dismay there were a whole bunch of them listed and just finished and a few closed with bids under $5,
most with none at all.
since they all had very brief descriptions-"just the facts" and only 1, at the most, 2 pics, I decided to do an experiment. Instead of tossing the sucker, I wrote up a very elaborate description with 7 pics showing some wonderful art work and so on.
I had a bid within hours and it closed at triple what the others that sold did.
Now, I won't waste my time on low priced items with this strategy.......but I definitely will use it all the time on good stuff.
cariad
posted on February 13, 2001 03:16:34 PMWelcome to XYZ Antiques , from deep in the Heart of the beautiful ABC valley . Here at XYZ we bring you only the best widgets . satisfaction is our motto, etc. etc. Please sign our guest book ; if you don't see it here , visit our web site for g@rge@us items for every possiible taste.( Click me) Visit our web site , read our ME page (click here)..
And in huge red eye-piercing fonts [b]L@@k at out terms of service . Only serious bidders please; we LOVE our bidders , but one bad apple , too many DEADBEATS , binding contract ,etc. etc. So we reserve the right to cancel bids at our discretion. If you don't contact us we'll relist your item , report you to safe Harbor and leave appropriate negative feedback.
Call this toll free number ...or this one beteween 2-4pm Tuesdays through Thursdays,
or this one weekends and holidays .
We're pet-lovers , here's Snuffy , Snuffy says hello ![/b]
Followed by numerous gifs and clipart of flowing angels , flowing drapery , flowing water , flowing Victorian script...and FINALLY....Nice blue vace. A must for any varse collection. Buyer pays shiping. No checks! I dont accipt Paypal or credit cards. Thank you for looking
Followed (sometimes) by EBAY POWER SELLER logo !
posted on February 13, 2001 03:54:33 PM
WOW!(one of my favorites) uglimouse, That covers it wonderfully but...........usually that big power sellers logo is right at the top!!
posted on February 13, 2001 04:32:10 PM
I except PayPal (Yes? Or everything but?)
Mens 0r Womans 2 peice suite (headboard & dresser?)
clothes with strips (did you put them through a shredder?)
here, there, and everywhere 
