posted on February 18, 2001 02:31:36 PM new
Justglass, I checked out your site looks good! I dont sell to much glass because of the high risk in shipping. Will have to thank about it.
posted on February 18, 2001 02:48:35 PM new
Justglass I appreciated your post. And while glass isn't my thing I see a real future for niche auction sites like yours. The real hobbyists don't want to wade through thousands of unrelated listings.
Its like the difference between going to a specialty shop and a big department store.
posted on February 19, 2001 08:55:37 AM new
Thank you Reyne for your views and insight. I will have a few more questions as soon as a few more sites check in.
posted on February 20, 2001 01:11:23 AM new
I can comment here with a lot of knowledge behind me.
I just want to say that any of the smaller auction sites that consider merging with 2 or 3 others... Yikes!!!
The absolute worst case scenario.
If you cant make it on your own, at least you tried and hopefully really gave it all the honest push you good. Merger is NOT the answer... oh my my.
By merging, instead of having one bad site you'd wind up with 3 into 1 bad site.
Its like a great Baseball player.. if you are not born with the talent then you will never be a superstar. Its either there, or it is not.
What I want from an auction site.. I have finally found!! Simply the best, smart, crisp to the touch, most functional site I could of ever hoped for. Not many will listen
but those users who read this and are up&up and auction knowledgeable and can live without gimmicks and fake money and all the other strewn garbage that is offered nowadays... just go to 321gone.com for a real true breath of fresh air.. I have looked and tried endless hundreds of sites..
I am not easy to fool, but a few sites were not truthfully up front with me.. I've been to and seen them all... none comes close to 321gone.com NONE.
Good Luck, Always Be Truthful Always be Honest.... Always.
posted on February 20, 2001 05:53:23 AM new
FbNeNotes ~~ I appreciate your passion for 321Gone, This thread isn't about promotion it is about what I indicated in the 1st post. how the sites view themselves and how they basically define success. This is not for promoting one site over another.
Folks, lets keep the thread free of promotion and allow everyone to see how the various sites view themselves, define what is success in their view and decide for ourselves if numbers, verbal posts, popularity, etc make a site, or is it something else?
FbNeNotes ~~ I was passionate about Golds, I certainly made more than my share of posts so I do understand but again I would appreciate if you would speak to the initial post.
posted on February 20, 2001 09:28:36 AM new
Hello, I'm John from WebSwap. I'll talk a little about how we define success and how we have and hope to achieve it, as well as our learnings.
WebSwap started out as a site that connected buyers and sellers looking to buy, sell, or swap. We simply allowed them to post their items for sale and what they wanted. Once they decided to transact, it was in their hands (a la Ebay). What we found was that many of them were getting burned by bogus users. So we set a goal to create a totally safe enviornment for both buyers and sellers to transact on the web.
The first step in doing this was to verify both the buyer and seller through their credit cards. If people wanted to use the site, a credit card must be verified. This does eliminate some online users, but it is the safest way to verify as many people across the board.
Secondly, we needed to give people a reason to use the site. For that reason, we instituted a policy that all listing are free for 30 days, at which the user can pay to keep the listing ($0.25) or place the item in a Garage Sale where they seller gives a starting price and a final rock bottom price, and it declines over a 7 day period until someone buys it.
Thirdly, we also have a feedback system that allows users to rate other members of the community. While we feel this allows users to police each other in the community, it does not eradicate fraud and bad experiences. All it does is let everyone else know how dissatifying your experience was. So we decided to become a payment intermediary. What that meand is we take the payment from the buyer and issue the seller a check every week. We also secured an insurance policy so that each transaction was fully guaranteed from Lloyds of London for up to $300. If at any time the buyer or seller is unhappy, they will get a refund.
Improving the customer experience is what we are all about. We do show ads on the site, but the user is not overwhelmed by flashing banners, buttons and pop-ups. We only show 1 banner per page.
By creating an envorinment where buyers, sellers and swappers feel safe we hope to grow an already active community. Any questions/comments?
posted on February 20, 2001 12:56:57 PM new
Hello John! Thanks for sharing your views, I do have a couple of questions however I'm going to wait till a few more sites check in.
posted on February 20, 2001 08:10:44 PM new
Hi Bill,
Thank you for inviting tbayauctions to this thread.
What do I consider a successful site?......
A successful site would have the following...
Quick and friendly customer service.
A clean site layout and format with simple navigation.
A wide variety of quality items that attract buyer interest and BIDS.
Auction management tools & free web pages for both buyer & seller.
A well balanced revenue model to include
limited banner advertising that does not
compete with sellers on the site.
No listing fees.
A fair FVF only if the item sells.
Upgraded listing options such as bold,
featured home page, featured category.
The ability & flexibility to change as the
industry can and will.
Tbayauctions has many of these and I am working very hard to add more to the list.
My small site was started as an alternative
to listing on e***. I originally started tbayauctions to sell my personal items for me only. As I found moderate success in selling my items I wanted to give other sellers the same opportunity. I have and will continue to upgrade the site for all. Slowly but surly the site is growing and moving in a positive direction. I will continue to listen to buyer and seller suggestions
to grow tbay into a successful alternative.
Thanks to all that have posted to this thread.
I wish you one and all much success.
Sincerely,
John Tillman
tbay
www.tbayauctions.com
Tampa Bay, Florida
posted on February 20, 2001 08:16:42 PM new
Greetings to all,
Thank You Bill for inviting us to join in. I would like to start by saying that you can not please all of the people all of the time. Built and they come, and free have not been a positive experience for us. We have gnawed over the thought of a specialty site. I think it is a great idea but one that entails perseverance.
#1. Verification for both sellers and buyers. It would not have to be a credit card but maybe like an address confirmation like PayPal offers. When you receive a letter at the address you claim on your registration you get a code you must log in and enter before you can sell or buy.
Most sites have verification through email address. If you give a “bogus” email address you are unable to get your temporary password to complete registration. If that verification gave complete satisfaction of the credibility of both buyer and seller, all of those problems would be solved. Our site has the ability to shut off email address’ (i.e. hot mail accounts) to prevent fraud. Yes, you can still get dead beats. One way that a seller can ensure that he/she does not get caught in the “you never sent me the item” is to send it certified or delivery confirmation and postal money orders. The cost will certainly out weigh any potential problems. The cost could be added in their auction as a personal protection. Mail fraud is a federal offense and the USPO will track these claims to the best of their ability (lol).
#2 I would start out with charging FVF's and for any and every enhancement (i.e. bold, featured category, featured front page, banner).
Enhancements, I agree, there should be a charge. Advertising can be everything.
#3 Tier Fee Program
At the moment, there are none on Xbid. I realize people have a need to complete their collections, but there should be a place for the “lower end items. I have been on sites looking for Victorian Gone with the wind lamps only to find so many versions of the lamp that it would take me hours to find a true Victorian lamp. Clutter is sheer frustration; we are working to find better ways to organize it. A place for everything and everything in it’s place. It is difficult to monitor “spamming key words”, and I do not think it can ever be totally accomplished to the point of perfection.
#4 Incentive programs for buyers.
The integrity of the site and its sellers should be the incentive for buyers.
5. Feedback.
Negative feedback should be constructive. Didn’t pay, or answer emails after so many attempts at the seller’s discretion. Profanity or deformation of character is not tolerated on our site. That feedback is deleted and the person who is responsible is emailed, concerning the feedback and is asked to post their feedback in a more respectful manner.
You can’t beat positive feedback. When you are looking for a good mechanic, electrician, plumber, etc., what is the end result after research that compels you to hire that person? Word of mouth. Need I say more?
If either buyer or seller proves fraudulence, they are terminated from the site.
Again, Thank You Bill for inviting us to join in and to give our humble remarks. There are plenty of sites to go to if one is not happy with the one they are on. There are so many good ideas out there and it is difficult to pick which one’s will hit the mark.
posted on February 20, 2001 08:39:58 PM new
It's John here from Stuff Auctions down under in Australia. I'd like to thank Bill for inviting us to participate in this forum. I'd also like to apologize in advance if my posting sounds a little boosterish (is that a word?). The other contributions to this forum have been very informative, and I don't want to repeat many of the comments already posted. As with most other auction sites, it's our goal to run a successful business, and there are few steps in doing this:
1. Make sure your members are happy. This includes not requiring your members to jump through hoops to use your site, and delivering customer service that actually helps the members. Also, don't go overboard in providing unwanted and non-relevant services to your members. The last time I checked, most of our members used our site to buy and sell and not to sign up for the rock of the month club.
2. Don't put up unreasonably high barriers of entry for potential new members. This is a contentious issue for all of us in this industry. Many of our members would like us to require a verification process (ie. credit card details) for all new members in order to filter out the non-serious buyers. When we first started our site, our goal was to provide an accessible and equal opportunity auction service for Austrlians. Not to say that our member demographic is significantly different from say North America, but there is very large proportion of Aussie web surfers who object vigourously to the idea of submitting credit card details to an online business. However, we do require credit card details for new members who register with a free email account such as @hotmail.com and @yahoo.com. No credit card details are retained and stored in our systems.
3. Run your site sensibly. Given the current lack of optimism in the web business, there's no choice but to ensure that the costs of your operations do not go through the roof. Because it's been our mandate to run a lean and mean operation, we've avoided the pitfalls that many other sites have fallen into. Our member's are loyal to us, and there would probably be an unwelcome disruption to their auction service if we were to go out of business.
There are other things that contribute to success, such as a no listing fee policy and free image hosting. It's a double-edged sword, though, because having those can quickly turn around to bite you on your bottom. As someone mentioned earlier, image hosting can be expensive service to provide, and I'll admit that there are days when I wish we had listing fees.
I'd also like to take a moment and agree with a previous poster who wrote that sucess for new comers to this industry is in specializing in a niche. No one is going to budge the 800lb gorillas, but there are opportunities to succeed if you can deliver an auction service that meets the needs of a specific niche or community. For us, that community is Australia, while for others it may be the Nascar Fans network.
One last point I'd like to make is that I've seen too many auction sites cater exclusively to their sellers. We've been guilty of this too, and it would be questionable strategy not to help your sellers. However, buyers are just as important. I would love to hear some input on this. We have a few ideas for rewarding our buyers, but it's a lot harder to justify buyer incentive progrmas to the higher ups than it is for seller incentive programs.
posted on February 21, 2001 04:27:07 AM new
Thanks Kelli, John and John for adding to the thread and letting us have a peek at some of the trials and tribulations of your side of an auction site.
Comments from anyone?
Remember folks this is a nonpromotional thread, let's ask some interesting questions and lets not make it site specific but rather general in nature so that all the sites can answer!
posted on February 22, 2001 05:22:40 PM new
I am the C.E.O. Of an popular auction site. (I believe they do not want me to say which one here). We have been here since the very start. We believe that a good auction site should do more for the customer than just sell them products or even services. The site should have content that is helpful, interesting and entertaining. There can be never be enough of these things on any site.
That done customer service is the next most important item to a successful site. This is the hardest obsticle to climb over, infact no matter what this one will seem to be just out of reach always. Do everything you can to automate the process of helping them help themselves. Always give them a way to contact you aside from e-mail ( you don't need to put it on your front page no need to over do it ). This is crucial most sites do not do this at all even the big boys.
Last is a bargain that is what they want ask a fair price. In the end is the final selling price going to be a deal still we ask ourselves thsi before every auction. If the answer is no we put up enough items of that type to make it so another thing you will not find much of at the big auction sites anymore, " a bargain".
There are many more things but I don't want to be long winded, Maybe I will give some more insite at a later date.
posted on February 22, 2001 07:46:44 PM new
Hi UsAuctions! You may identify your site and your self if you wish, Thanks for your post and please do tell us about your site and your perception of the online auction world. You won't be breaking any rules. But please remember this thread is not promotional but an attempt to understand your side of how you define the success and how you choose to achieve that success as an auction site.
posted on February 23, 2001 12:21:14 AM new
Hello Again
Thanks for the help elecdata1. I guess I should have read a couple of posts before I left mine. To answer your question we have been online since May of 1997.
posted on February 25, 2001 11:31:43 AM new
Hello All.
My name is Ed Orlando and I am the founder of BidVille auctions. I will
attempt to make this post brief, but after spending the past few hours
reading through these threads, it may be difficult. The rules of this board
confuse me so I apologize to the moderators if I am "promotional". It seems
as though we are allowed to bash and even defame other sites but saying
something nice can get you removed. I'm not sure I follow the logic.
In order to answer the question about what makes BidVille different from other sites, I need to discuss a certain issue first. Many of you may remember that when BidVille opened on December 6, 2000, our
name was AuXpal and we were the "PayPal Only" auction site. At that time,
the site could automatically deduct funds from the buyer's PayPal account
and transfer them to the seller's PayPal account. Thus, decreasing the
number of deadbeats and increasing seller efficiency. In order to do this,
members needed to register using their PayPal username and password.
In August 2000, my co-founder and I visited the Business Development
department at PayPal and presented our ideas for automatic payment. We were
met with great enthusiasm and were given a formal "OK" to proceed with the
project. For then next four months, we were in constant contact with PayPal
representatives regarding the progress of the site and they were fully aware
of our need to collect passwords. On Dec 5, 2000 (one day before opening and
close to $100,000 later), PayPal backed out of the deal and informed us that
we could not open the site.
We opened on schedule the next day. Hundreds if not thousands of PayPal
members received notification from PayPal that AuXpal was "fraudulent" and
to "cease doing business with AuXpal". PayPal breached our contract, then
had the audacity to make defamatory and libelous statements against us. I
cannot say much more about this situation and what has happened since.
However, as soon as I am given permission, I will sing like a bird from
every rooftop.
I hope this answers some of the questions regarding the questionable
beginnings of BidVille. We obviously had a certain niche in mind when
developing the site, but could not proceed with it. So, we picked up the
pieces, switched gears and gave birth to BidVille.
What makes BidVille stand out from the crowd now? Our goal is to combine our innovative ideas with all the best features of the other auctions into one site. Other sites have some excellent features and some terrible ones (in my opinion). We are analyzing and implementing the best features of all the sites. Our programmers (of which I am one), are working 12-16 hour days to perfect the site. Occasionally, we get
emails from sellers with ideas that are so good, we immediately drop other projects to develop the new idea. Sometimes we can do this within hours of receiving the new idea.
It takes time to build a better mousetrap, but I believe BidVille is
implementing features at an unsurpassed rate. Give a new
idea to eBay and it will sit in a committee's hand for 3 months and a
programmer's hand for 3 more. Give it to BidVille, it goes from CS to a
programmer in a matter of minutes. Combine our lack of "red tape", our
programmers' dedication to the site, and a responsive customer service staff
and this is what makes BidVille unique.
There are many good alternative auctions on the web. I invite sellers to try them all and stick with the one that feels best and puts the most money in their pocket.
There are a few other threads I want to address, such as our plan on
attracting more bidders. However, since this is so long, I will wait a day
or so and come back. I don't want anyone to die of boredom while their item
relists for the fourth time. (I would put a yellow smiley after that
comment but I don't know how.)
Best wishes.
Ed Orlando
President, BidVille Auctions.
WOW! I did put a yellow smiley and didn't even know it. Cool!
posted on February 25, 2001 02:07:25 PM new
Bill (electadata1)
Thanks for the interesting topic. I just found this thread today: I went through both pages and didn't find anything about edeal.com.
Have you invited their comments? They are one of several new auction sites that I have used. I've been quite pleased and would like to hear comments from them also. In reading through the answers from the various CEO's I'm surprised to discover auction venues that I hadn't heard about, and because these CEO's took the time to post their answers here, I'll sure give them a look-see.
Thanks again.
posted on February 25, 2001 02:13:46 PM new
I would like to thank Ed of Bidville and the people from the other sites for telling use what plan's they have for the future. I am a Bidville cheerleader but after reading this thread I see their are also others that are doing their best to improve. I like customer service with real people and one that dont take 2 weeks to get back to you. When something is wrong I need it looked at before my auction is over. Thanks again for the information and happy selling to all.
posted on February 25, 2001 03:20:41 PM new
FYI - I do bid on and buy the $.05 and $.10 cards to complete my sets. I could care less about the feedback. I also buy those same cards of my children's favorite players. Then if they trade/rip/destroy those cards I am not out a whole lot. With these cheaper cards they can learn how to handle cards and then move on to bigger and better things. It's cheaper to buy cards for 5 boys on the auctions and get the players they want than buy boxes and boxes and have cards nobody cares about.
posted on February 25, 2001 04:04:55 PM new
Hello EddyoDoc! Thanks for the background info, I sure that your frustration makes you abit gunshy in view of your past problem. I wish you the best for the future. Do come back and let us know how you plan on achieving your goal and how you define success for your site. There will be other non site specific questions in the very near future, just waiting for a few more sites to check in!
ClinMar ~~ I emailed over 100+ auction sites, some indicated that they would like to be involved, some just posted and others either indicated that they weren't interested or never answered. I am sure that in time a few more will post and I do hope that Edeal will as well. But my role as the originator of this thread is not to push the envelope of trying to be a pain to any of the sites but rather to invite and treat all as equal.
ForShoppin ~~ I understand your post and I would certainly like for all who have an issue involving cards of all kinds to take it to another thread Period. This thread is about auction sites and how they see themselves progressing and what they define as success. I both buy and sell cards. I do understand everyones passion about it, but please keep posts within the originating post.
Folks if we start delving into subjects not related to the originating post this thread will turn into a circus, do we really want that? The sites will just pass us by and not respond to our quesitons. I keep reading posts on AW and other sites that complain that the sites don't pay attention, nor do they respond. This is a wonderful time and place for this to happen. Lets all stay within the confines of the originating post and see how this develops.
posted on February 26, 2001 08:34:45 PM new
I suppose that the sites that are going to post have posted.
I would first like to thank all the site owners for posting to this thread, it takes guts to put yourself out there for the masses to ask questions of you. So I'll start off by asking the following questions:
1. Where do you see the small auctions sites in 12 months. Considering the perception that some users seem to feel that there is no need for small auction sites.
2. Do you feel that in the future there will be mergers between small auction sites.
3. One of the complaints that some users give is the problem with oversea transactions. How should auction sites protect users on both sides of the issue.
4. What would you as the owner look for when choosing a site to bid and sell on. Please be non-promotional.
I sure that there will be other questions posed by others, lets all remember to make the questions non-site specific and give the sites a chance to be part of this process.
Bill (elecdata1 here and everywhere else)
[ edited by elecdata1 on Feb 26, 2001 10:28 PM ]
posted on February 26, 2001 10:42:33 PM new
Hello again, Bill, and everybody else participating in this thread.
I see that you have posted a few more interesting questions and as you requested in your email, I am happy to give you my views. I will answer them in the order that you have asked.
1. Where do you see the small auctions sites in 12 months. Considering the perception that some users seem to feel that there is no need for small auction sites.
First of all, some of the "small" auction sites just might not be so small in 12 months! While I admit that I cannot see into the future, I do feel that there are some very innovative owners and managers on the playing field and I am confident that you will see the coming of age of more than a few auction sites.
As for the folks that feel that there is no need for any other auction sites... Although I can't speak for them, I am pretty sure that none of them can see into the future either. Time will tell the story and if those of us that manage the alternative auction sites keep our noses to the ground and keep pounding the pavement, then time just may tell a very successful tale in 12 months.
2. Do you feel that in the future there will be mergers between small auction sites.
As I stated in my first post, I am a fan of mergers. You see it all the time, two companies that have much to offer each other join forces. It's a beautiful thing in the business world. Online auction sites are no different; if two auction sites can pool their resources and the end product benefits both the community of users and the company, then there is no reason why this shouldn't happen.
3. One of the complaints that some users give is the problem with overseas transactions. How should auction sites protect users on both sides of the issue.
I'm not exactly sure what you mean by protecting the users from overseas transactions, but I will give my views on site involvement. We as site operators provide a service that allows almost anybody to go into business for themselves. That is the beauty of the online auction. Personally, I feel that the members of the community should have the freedom to take full control over their business, meaning I do not believe in an overwhelming presence of the site provider during the actual auction transactions. This is not to say that action shouldn't be taken by the site when there is obvious wrong doings, I am simply saying that the buyers and sellers should be the ones to facilitate their deals.
However, as a site operator, I feel that it is our responsibility to make sure that the appropriate information is provided to the buyers and sellers so that they are knowledgeable enough to facilitate these deals. By that I mean that the sites should provide information pertaining to escrow services, payment services, shipping, etc.
4. What would you as the owner look for when choosing a site to bid and sell on.
I've never been known to be one to beat around the bush! When DutchBid was first conceived we had a great handful of sellers who gave us a shot. While I was grateful that these folks were forming the core of DutchBid, I was a little upset with a few of them and let them know it.
When our site was about a month old I surfed through the few hundred listings that were there. I had a PayPal account that was burning a hole in my computer screen and was excited to do some shopping and kick the bidding off. After ten minutes of surfing around I noticed that there was either nothing that I wanted or if I did find something of interest it was way overpriced.
That night I sent an email out to all of our members. I can't remember exactly what it said, but the basis of the email was one simple question... Would you buy what you are selling?
I tried to be both franc and gentle at the same time, but as they say, you can take the boy out of Boston, but you can't take the Boston out of the boy and sometimes I come off a little brash! Needless to say, a few of my core members were angered with my email and as far as I know, never returned to the site. However, I also did receive many warm replies. One particular member said that she uses that question every time she posts now... Would I buy what I'm selling.
So, to answer your question of what I look for when I am bidding, it's simple. I look for items that first of all peak my interest. Then I look for reasonable pricing. If the item has an opening bid of three dollars more than I could pay at my local Walmart, I'm not going to bid on it.
As for what kind of site to I look to bid on... the site is irrelevant. It's the seller that I am doing business with.
Whew, that was a long post! Hopefully, I won't get flamed too much for my long winded stories, but I always shoot straight and have learned that it always works best to just tell it like it is!
Please do not hesitate to contact me again if their is ever a thread that you would like me to participate in.
posted on February 27, 2001 10:33:11 AM new
Hi Bill,
Answers imbedded below:
<b>1. Where do you see the small auctions sites in 12 months. Considering the perception that some users seem to feel that there is no need for small auction sites. </b>
<p>I think you will see the dissapearance of many of them. Their advertising pockets are just not deep enough to keep them afloat. I think the stronger ones who develop a following will continue to grow, and you will surely see mergers such as 2 similar sites using the better of the 2 technologies and creating one stronger site out of the two.
<b>2. Do you feel that in the future there will be mergers between small auction sites.</b><p>Yes
<b>3. One of the complaints that some users give is the problem with oversea transactions. How should auction sites protect users on both sides of the issue.</b><p>There is only so much you can do to protect both buyers and sellers. Offering escrow, third party payment services, insurance...and hope for the best. There are car alarms, but yet cars still get stolen. You can create the best of scenerios, yet someone will outsmart it.
<b>4. What would you as the owner look for when choosing a site to bid and sell on. Please be non-promotional. </b><p>A few things. 1) Variety of merchandise. If I don't see something I want today, but see there is a nice array of stuff to look through, I will come back. However, if the merchandise is limited, chances are, I won't come back. 2) Feedback system so I can look to see what other people have experienced with the seller. 3) If I have a question or cannot find something and email for assistance, how quickly does customer service help me? Are they friendly? The way people are addressed can make a world of difference to me. First impressions are lasting.
posted on February 27, 2001 11:14:08 AM new
Hi, I have been lurking, and I am sure most here know me as a cheerleader for the site I list at. In fairness, I will not name the site here.
I do have a question though. Now I know that not all of the sites that have responded here are FREE TO LIST, TOTALLY FREE, or promise to REMAIN FREE FOREVER.
But some sites have promised this or at the very least implied this to attract sellers in the wake of the Yahoo exodus. I have seen many comments to the effect of "WE HAVE HEARD THAT BEFORE" I think that there should be some consideration given to this issue in a thread like this.
So my question is two part.
First: Is there any real possibility that an auction site can provide free listing with no FVF's for the foreseeable future, if not forever?
Second: To the sites that have stated or implied that they intend to remain free, could you share a little of you revenue plans with us? obviously it takes money to operate, and I would not want you to divulge any business secrets. However, I feel it would lend to the confidence issue if sellers had an idea that a site was not just waiting for business to build to the point where such fees could be initiated, ala Yahoo.
OK, now I have thought of a third question, and this may even go to everyone, not just auctions sites.
If fees are inevitable, I have heard a lot about listing fees Vs FvF's. But is there a feasibility for a transaction fee instead? I mean a small set fee based upon a successful transaction rather then a percentage of either start or final price.
I would also be interested in seeing how other sellers feel about this too.
Thank you all for your informative posts. I am sure we are all working to make the auctions profitable for everyone. ...JIM
I spell bad and type worse!...OK?
[ edited by jimhhow on Feb 27, 2001 11:17 AM ]
posted on February 27, 2001 12:48:44 PM new
Greetings again,
Jamie from Pootah here again.
1. Where do you see the small auctions sites in 12 months. Considering the perception that some users seem to feel that there is no need for small auction sites.
I think that depends. As I'm certain I've said before, the problem with dot com companies (ie, internet companies as a whole) is that they spend money like... well.. dot com companies. I am of the very strong opinion that those sites which have sunk vast ammounts of money into their website to begin with, are going to be in some very serious trouble if they don't emerge dominant.
Without sounding promotional (adopt an unexcited, "matter-of-fact" tone if reading this aloud ), we're covering the costs of running our auction site by selling things on our auction site. We've had to decline to offer free image hosting, simply because it would introduce an element of risk into our business by introducing a huge bandwidth overhead. That would mean that if we didn't emerge dominant and make big bucks from advertising, we'd have to resort to fees once money ran low. To us, that would be unacceptable.
2. Do you feel that in the future there will be mergers between small auction sites.
Mergers? I would hope not. I think there should be team work, which we are negotiating with a couple of smaller "niche sites" to develop a stable network where user information, feedback, and possibly items are even shared across the network (ala FairMarket, only without the corporate decision-making).
Bringing us back to the money issue, mergers mean more money being spent, and more risk. This in turn means the possibility of the website having to resort to introducing/raising fees. Not so bad for business people, but disastrous to sellers and buyers (just look at the crisis Yahoo! started).
3. One of the complaints that some users give is the problem with oversea transactions. How should auction sites protect users on both sides of the issue.
I think I would agree with DutchBid on this one. In my opinion, if you start trying to protect too many users from every possible way of getting burned, it only burdens the honest users - and judging by the ammount of bogus deals that I've seen even on eBay and Yahoo!, compulsory safeguards don't eliminate bogus users by any means.
4. What would you as the owner look for when choosing a site to bid and sell on. Please be non-promotional.
At the risk of sounding like a broken record: In the huge ammount I have learnt in the 7 weeks or so that we've been live, I would look very carefully at how they're spending money. It only takes a small ammount of business math and some experience with internet bandwidth costs to estimate that Yahoo!'s auctions were probably running at a loss, offset by the extra traffic drawn to the overall Yahoo! site.
When Yahoo! start running out of money (as any business would), they started looking for ways to cut costs or boost revenue. The immediate way? Slap a fee on the 500,000+ items on Yahoo! Auctions - instant revenue.
So I would be checking very carefully at how they are spending money, and how they're making money. If they have plenty advertisements and their rate-card is high (or they use a fee system and still have plenty of listings), well then some healthy spending here and there is great. But I'd be very concerned about a site that allows you to host images for free, in my experience it's a ticking time bomb.
