posted on September 25, 1999 08:44:36 PM new
I have been selling on Yahoo for less than a month now. During this time I've had over 50% of bidders ignoring my standard three emails (one to notify and two to "threaten with negative feedback).
It seems to me that bidders on Yahoo don't have the name fear of feedback that Ebay bidders do. Just recently, I received a negative comment from a bidder with a negative 3 rating who claimed he never got my three emails and the one from Yahoo notifying him that he was a winner. Oh Puhleeeese!!!
Now I'm stuck with a negative from a pathological non-payer. I really think that Yahoo needs to take more responsibillity for for blocking bidders with more than one negative in 60 days from bidding and wasting the time and money of reputable sellers. On Ebay I have a positive rating of 67+. But on Yahoo, I now have a negative 1 from this psycho! Any advice???
---
posted on September 26, 1999 07:53:25 AM new
Are there any other auction sites out there, besides Ebay, that anyone can positively reccomend? Ebay's fees really start to add up but not getting paid from Yahoo Bidders is even worse!!!
---
posted on September 26, 1999 07:54:50 AM new
Godiva:
First of all, you can transfer all of that positive feedback from eBay to Yahoo. I don't remember how to do it exactly, but I'm sure you can find out in the Seller's Guide or under some feedback option.
Second, don't sweat the negative. You are able to post a longer response to a negative on Yahoo than you ever could on eBay. State the facts that the bidder never replied to your e-mails and move on. A negative from a person with a negative rating speaks for itself.
Yahoo has a new feature for auction listings where you can specify that a bidder has to have at least "x" amount of feedback to bid on your items. I set each of my auctions according to the "kid" attraction factor. If it is a piece of pottery that I don't think the kiddies would stumble across in a million years, I set it where the bidder has to have at least a feedback of "0." If it is a Phantom Menace or other pop culture item, then they have to have at least a feedback of "2" before they can bid on the item.
Along with some of Yahoo's limitations that have been pointed out, there are positives. Yahoo servers hold your pictures so that you don't have to take up valuable web space with your photos, and, of course, the fact that there are no fees. Yahoo doesn't have the same traffic as eBay, but it is a great place to put items up for sale that didn't quite make it on eBay. One of my "success" stories is that I had a piece of software that everyone and their brother was selling on eBay. I finally got a $5 bid (which would be break-even for me - no profit) and the bidder never paid for the item. I then brought the software over to Yahoo where no one else was selling this item and it sold for over $11.
posted on September 27, 1999 10:02:04 AM new
I have had the same problem selling on Yahoo. I get around 2 out of 10 winning auctions are from Bogus buyers.
I have tried setting that rating system where it is supposed to only let people bid with ratings you specify but it does not seem to work. I set it to 1 and still get people bidding with -1 etc. Sometimes if I see someone who has won my auction that looks like they are not going to go through with the deal (bad feedback) I will go to the reserve buyer immediately if their bid is within reason. I got a letter from a childs father one time appologizing for his sons bidding on auctions and how he was getting grounded from using the computer - but who knows that could be a scam too!! I have just started with E-Bay but hate the fees!!!
posted on September 27, 1999 10:31:08 AM new
Yahoo keeps boasting about how many new auctions get listed per day. And how they are gaining on Ebay. Well, I'm beginning to think that I'd rather pay a fee & get paid by the bidder, than spend hours and hours practically begging these Yahoo Deadbeats for money!!! And Yahoo's computer system is totally messed up. They send me email notifications of auctions that have already closed! And the last writer mentioned that those settings for minimum bidder ratings don't really work.
Oh, I do have a question, though. Is the "second" highest bidder obligated to follow through with the auction? Some of them act as if it is optional!!!
posted on September 27, 1999 08:41:38 PM new
Perhaps a year ago, my deadbeats on YAHOO were out of control. I hung in there and stuck it out, left plenty of negs too.
Now its a year later...deadbeats, for me at least, have declined. I have had just 4 I think in the last 6 months. I'm not happy about it, but its better than a year ago.
posted on September 28, 1999 04:48:54 AM new
I guess I need to back up about importing your feedback from eBay to Yahoo.....according to the new eBay member agreement (effective end of October), you can be suspended from eBay for exporting your feedback to another site (section 7). It was in the old/current eBay member agreement but not as explicit as the new.
posted on September 28, 1999 09:48:47 AM new
This reply is for Godiva. It is optional for a reserve bidder
(2nd highest bidder) to buy your item. This is in the rules.
You have to remember that while you are finding out
that the winning bidder is Bogus, the 2nd highest bidder
might find the same item somewhere else and bid and
win it. They have that right and it is fair.
posted on September 29, 1999 08:59:32 AM new
Since Yahoo doesn't charge, you cannot request credit. Hence, Yahoo doesn't know about deadbeat bidders unless you write to them in each and every case and let them know.
Unfortunately too many sellers are too lazy to do that, or are paranoid about retalitatory feedback.
In every case that I have neg'd a Yahoo bidder, I have written Yahoo and gotten an excellent response.
posted on September 29, 1999 01:08:35 PM new
jet757f writes:
> I have tried setting that rating system where it is
> supposed to only let people bid with ratings you
> specify but it does not seem to work. I set it to 1
> and still get people bidding with -1 etc.
I'm afraid you misinterpreted this feature: It requires that the bidders place a credit card on file with Yahoo! if their rating is less than the number you specify, not deny them the ability to bid. As the seller, of course, you are always free to cancel any bid you choose.
posted on October 2, 1999 03:58:53 AM new
I have been finding this OUT myself...NEW to YAHOO here..with FBACK of 31...BUT 291 no NEGS OR neuts ON ebay. sEEMS none PAYS ARE MUCH WORSE OVER HERE at yahoo.....I guess they figure..NO fee no commission...then SELLER is not really out anything...WRONG..there is time and effort involved...and other BIDDERS who lose out..! I have to say YAHOO auctions have some great features....! BUT support REALLY needs TO improve...!! It is SO hard to communicate with them about anything....! I think AMAZON has the best supoort strategy..and evey one there IS so nice and helpful...AND loads OF real HUMANS to talk to about your concerns.....!
posted on October 3, 1999 09:45:36 AM new
Deadbeats are a fact of life. Just look at all the bankrupcies being filed.
At Yahoo the original Internet mindset seems more prevalent...everything is free.
As a seller you just have to grin and bear it... this is just the cost of doing business.
I've just started listing on YAHOO, mainly because I am trying to sell a Barbie doll valued at over $4000.00 The listing fees at EBAY would kill me... especially as I expect this will take a while to sell.
I've gotten one bid, by someone new. Are they a deadbeat, maybe... but its something you have to expect and then you can be pleasantly surprised when they pay.
I've sold for years via catalog ads...received checks I waited three weeks to clear only to have them bounce. This ain't new folks...
Unfortunately selling via auctions requires the seller to do more followups.... again that is the cost of doing business.
I know it is a pain but I can't see this changing anytime soon, can you????
posted on October 6, 1999 11:02:47 PM new
I get the same response on Yahoo - much more than on eBay or Amazon combined. About 20% deadbeats over the past six months. One factor is that Yahoo does nothing significant (if anything) to deadbeats. So, there's no deterrant. At least eBay and Amazon ocassionally take action. Even the e-mail questions we get from Yahoo bidders aren't the caliber of the others. Like asking on the auction page what your reserve price is!!! But, I'm making money on Yahoo, so I put up with this and the total ineptness of their systems. There is good growth there, though. Yahoo is up to over 900K items, vs eBay's 3Mil. So, it's free, there's good activity, and every sale that completes is found money.
The past two months, I've followed up my auctions more closely....10 days, 15 days...20 days, and it seems to be working. I've had a decreasing percentage of failures with this approach.
---
posted on October 16, 1999 09:52:04 AM new
Even with their DeadBeat Bidders, I find that Yahoo averages out ($$$ dollar wist $$$) to be nearly as good or better in various instances than Amazon and eBay.
Thare are no charges at Yahoo and thus you don't have to worry about appling for credit on DeadBeat auctuions.
You usually have to pay somewhere. I would rather pay with the waste of time on a DeadBeat auction than have to put out the bucks and the additional time that it takes to apply for a credit.
posted on October 16, 1999 10:06:07 AM new
I have been selling on Ebay for 3 years (with a 2,229 positive feedback rating), and Yahoo for 2 months. Ebay sales have fallen off dramatically and so-called new "improvements" have only hampered the individual sellers ability to run their own business successfully. Dead beat bidders are on the rise all over, but I have found a disturbingly large percentage on Yahoo, ranging around 75% of all my "sold" auctions. If they bother to respond at all to my emails, they only end up not sending payment. Meanwhile, I've gone through all the trouble of packing up the package and sending repeated emails requesting payment. Is there anything more annoying to the seller than to have your email ignored? Thankfully there are no fees involved on Yahoo, yet this is a horrendous waste of time and energy on the seller's part. Too many "bidders" think they are playing a "game", because let's be honest, who is going to follow through on the legality of binding bids? Payment is the bottom line, and why waste more time on deadbeats? I don't think there is a feasible way to stop this nonsense. Sorry, I have no solutions to offer, just venting!
posted on October 17, 1999 04:14:04 AM new
This is an interesting thread. I asked in here a few days ago why there were so many deadbeat SELLERS on Yahoo.
I've tried several times to buy items at Yahoo. The only time it worked was last summer, when a couple of college students did keep in touch. We conducted good deals. I sent money, they sent items.
This year has been a different story.
At this very moment, I have been trying, unsuccessfully, for nearly two weeks to ask a seller what the shipping and handling of his item would be.
Yahoo SELLERS way more often spurn buyers than either Ebay or Amazon.
I've been buying online for years. This last year, just at Ebay, I've done some 500 transactions. The seller situation there has deteriorated too, especially with respect to S&H abuse. Which, of course, is why I'm anxious not to bid until I've settled this matter with the seller.
Yahoo gives no chance for me to email seller. There's no contact info. Everything depends on seller being alert enough to read his own auction and notice someone has been hanging around for two weeks trying to find out enough info to bid.
This seller isn't the only one who's disappeared on me. He's just the most recent.
I think too many sellers don't take Yahoo seriously because they're just throwing leftovers in there. If a sucker comes along, fine. If not, they've lost nothing, they've got the item for sale at Ebay too.
It's a two edged sword, being free.
Nobody takes it as seriously as if they'd invested something.
posted on October 17, 1999 04:15:26 AM new
BTW, dixiebee, if Ebay catches you transferring your Ebay feedback to Yahoo, they can NARU you from Ebay. Check the new User Agreement.
posted on October 18, 1999 05:28:08 AM new
Yep, I saw that when I read the new user agreement. The wording was much more vague in the old user agreement, which was in effect at the time of my transfer of feedback. If it happens, I will just take my lumps and move on.
posted on October 18, 1999 04:10:31 PM new
edfan - "Yahoo gives no chance for me to email seller. There's no contact info. Everything depends on seller being alert enough to read his own auction and notice someone has been hanging around for two weeks trying to find out enough info to bid."
If you have a question, click the Ask A Question tab and type in your question. An e-mail will be sent to the seller informing them that a question has been asked. It is then up to the seller to answer.
posted on October 19, 1999 10:37:45 AM new
I too have had a few deadbeats with Yahoo but no more than at Ebay. I usually get 1 or 2 every other month at Ebay. I just started using Yahoo & most people there are great traders but I already had 2 deadbeats.
I think they float around from Ebay to Yahoo. I bet, you get the same people who think its really funny to not follow up with your bidding.
I just relist the items & post a neg feedback. I don't think Yahoo really cares since they are FREE. If you guys think Ebay doesn't respond fast enough, YAHOO never responds.
I had a mail fraud issue recently with a Yahoo bidder & Yahoo told me to report it to the PO & Police. Nothing they can do. Never even bothered to check this with the bidder.
posted on October 20, 1999 02:38:06 AM new
SirPaladin, I'm afraid I've "been there, done that" about ... I guess it's eight times now, in two weeks. Seller allowed the item to end without bids, then relisted immediately. It's running toward the end of the second listing week (that I've seen) with my old questions disappearing and the five new ones sitting there, ignored, the entire time.
He doesn't feel like answering questions about shipping and handling. I've seen many sellers complain about buyers bidding first and asking questions later. This one apparently likes the idea.
At this point, I don't think it matters any more. I'd be too nervous to bid with such a seller.
posted on October 20, 1999 07:14:06 AM new
The question mechanism on Yahoo is frustrating. I have my settings set to send me an email when a bidder asks a question. I NEVER have gotten an email! Yet, when I check my auction, there are the questions...annoying for both parties ! I now check for questions on a daily basis.
posted on October 20, 1999 01:09:46 PM new
Has anyone seen the Indy Racing Car up for auction at Yahoo Auctions? It is featured on their home page. The bidding has gone up and down several times, with bogus bidders sending the car's price to as much as $450 million dollars one time. The question and answer tab in the auction reveals some of the frustration that sellers have in selling at Yahoo!
Hopefully, this auction will finally alert the management at Yahoo! that the sellers are having extraordinary problems with bogus bidders at the site.
At the least, it's great entertainment to watch this auction yo-yo in price.
posted on October 22, 1999 04:02:16 AM new
I finally did manage to email the seller who never answered questions on his auction. After finally getting an answer, I can see why he makes himself invisible. His shipping and handling moved his price to within $12 of retail direct from the manufacturer. It also turns out he has a bit of problem explaining how he acquires these items and what relationship he has with the factory or other normal distribution channels.
I ordered from the manufacturer instead. It makes no sense to buy a product from a guy so hard to find, I have no idea who he is, never mind the deadly prospect of trying to find him after I've sent the money.
As time goes on, I find I'm less willing to risk these person-to-person sales. Too much has gone wrong too often. At the moment, I'm particularly annoyed by S&H abuse. Overall, I now think these informal sales need a hefty dose of user verification before they can advance past the nickel and dime stage.
My name is Troy Wolverton and I am a reporter at CNET News.com. I am working on a story about Yahoo's auctions and want to talk with some of you who sell on Yahoo.
I'm interested in finding out about your experiences on Yahoo; i.e., on what percentage of your auctions is the reserve met or a minimum bid actually placed; on what percentage is the transaction completed successfully -- they receive your item and you receive their money; what percentage do you actually re-list with Yahoo because they didn't meet those criteria; and how your experiences on Yahoo compare with your expereinces on eBay.
Please email me at [email protected]. I'm trying to put a story together today, so if you would like to talk with me about your experiences, please contact me right away.
posted on November 6, 1999 04:10:05 AM new
Hey, I am new to all of this stuff. I have been doing ok on eBay but have tried to sell a few items on Yahoo. So far, so good. I have to admit, though, that I am guilty of being a deadbeat buyer (once). Because I was using a differend email account than I normally use, I forgot to check it for a couple of weeks. I had won an auction and I simply forgot about it. Well, it learned a valuable lesson. I won't do that again. Guilt is not a nice feeling. I feel strongly that the only way this feedback stuff can work is if everyone is honest. I just wanted you guys to know that sometimes mistakes are made and not everyone is truly a deadbeat. By the way, what is NARU? Told you I am new to this.
posted on November 6, 1999 11:06:10 AM new
Hi Jdamm: NARU stands for a no longer registered user on ebay.
Sometimes they may unregister themselves or it can be a case of
suspension, it's not told even though ebay is supposed to be an OPEN community. On Yahoo a user sometimes has an (E) next to their name instead of (new) or a fb number. I believe this stands for
eliminated or the same as naru.
I had a purchase just arrive yesterday from a naru seller on ebay with a good fb record and I could not leave a positive fb for them because of their naru status and I wonder what happened to them, but I sure was glad to get my purchase. Luckilly only about
$3 was a stake.
posted on November 6, 1999 01:50:34 PM new
Hello my name is Frank I sell on yahoo and e-day and yes I get deadbeats from both of the sites. I have sold like 100 or more auctions on yahoo in the last month and have had about 12 confirmed non payers. But with nice auction reminder e-mails with everything spelled out about reporting with neg feedback and how that will end there bidding on the auction site I have goten 8 of them to send there money. I have had better luck with this on yahoo than e-bay.
As far as to talk about sellers and buyers not being able to get in touch with each other to ask and answer questions well thats just nuts. I get e-mails all the time when buyers post questions to a auction and I answer them right away. If you run into someone not answering your questions well they won't do it if you had there direct e-mail anyway right think about it. I like the way yahoo does this , I get the letter click on the link go right to the site and answer and I'm at the site so I can see all the information to answer in a timely maner HAHA you guys wouldn't belive some of the questions you get with no infornation so if just had e-mail you have to send a note back asking what auction they are talking about because you have 100's going on.
To address the question about shipping the seller should have that information posted clearly in the auction so there is no question how much its going to cost you when you bid. I list shipping fees in US,Canada, and anyother place in the world three fees cover it all ! If your sellers aren't doing this well I would wonder and move on to a seller that does!
I love the automatic repost of up to 5 times so if something doesn't sell it will repost for me. If the auction doesn't sell well I drop the price and relist keep doing this till it hits the (can't live without it deal price) and it sells
most of the time everything sells by the second posting anyway . i price my stuff right not greedy.
Ok hope I hit on most of the questions here sorry if to long
Take care
Frank
yantazoo
