posted on September 30, 2000 09:59:44 AMmillicent_roberts They just recently did a change that caused this mess at Yahoo. I feel that they will get it back to normal eventually. In the meantime, they ARE adding some nice features.
posted on September 30, 2000 10:08:20 AM
Labbie, I haven't seen these new features yet. I am about to give up and go to some of the brand new sites and give those a try.
It has been my experience with Yahoo that one MUST list the MUST-HAVE price because there are so few bidders. Perhaps that is one reason it has been bad for me. And others as well.
I have no patience left for Yahoo. It's a good search engine. That's about it.
posted on September 30, 2000 01:22:58 PM
I've been cancelling auctions today. Why keep on auto-relisting when obviously there is something very wrong here. I don't intend to play anymore games. I will go to the source that gets results.
Nope. Don't or never have sold Beanie Babies so it really doens't matter. I see it as a waste of my time now.
posted on September 30, 2000 01:47:52 PM
Yeah, moonmem I know. I am such a diehard Yahoo fan.
I am not jumping ship just yet, but I'm eyeing the water and aware I may need to cut and run if this vessel continues to take on water. My sales are off by roughly 70% and there is no way I am going to sit on the sidelines through the holiday.
They got 2 weeks give or take though, so today I am investing further, busy listing tasty stuff that will hopefully bring new eyes to my listings. Basically I am giving it one last thrust and expect the result to spell it out 10 days from now, because thing will either turn around or disintegrate further. Fingers crossed - I DO YAHOO!
posted on October 1, 2000 01:49:02 PM
My Sept. sales on Yahoo were pretty bad, for whatever reason. I even resorted to selling more on Ebay. My sales were bad there too. Ebay was running SLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOWWWWWWWWWW last Sunday when my auctions were ending, and people were unable to check feedback. It made me SOOO ANGRY!!!!! I have no way of knowing for sure if my items would have had more bids had it not been for that, but I feel that the people who did win my stuff got total bargains. I should add that my stuff had NO SNIPERS and that is pretty unusual.
I still think Yahoo is better but I'm pretty frustrated all around. As for the holiday season, I don't know what to do. It seems too early to start stressing about the holidays but I already feel stressed!!!!!!!
posted on October 1, 2000 03:02:57 PM
My Sept. sales were actually better on Yahoo than on Ebay.
Aug. was very good for me on Ebay and then DIED in Sept. so I quit listing on Ebay rather than send good money after bad.
I then found Yahoo again and it really gave me a lift. The sales were not great, but when they sold, they were gone!
And then they, too, died--no sales--no views. They have picked up a bit now--and views are up as well.
I can't said which is going to be better, but I am not the only one that is having problems with my auctions, so I guess it is a bump and people will be back soon.
Guess I better get some new things up for people to bid on.
posted on October 1, 2000 03:25:03 PM
I have an encourgaing report.
I spent the weekend putting up 25 new tasty auctions under one of my id's and out of the new auctions, 6 have bids, 3 have more than 1 bid and they run for 10 days. Proves someone is still out there.
Thanks to labbie and CAgrrl for reporting ebay results have been dismal too. That's good to know. It is easy to get thinking you're missing all the action.
I am going to try to list 20-25 new items under my other id's in the next few days. Hopefully the new energy will infuse this dawg - make 'im hunt like old times, old times being a month ago LOL.
posted on October 2, 2000 04:51:24 PM
How are you Yahoo's doin'?
Is anyone seeing signs of things beginning to recover?
I am *almost* optimistic again.
Having at least a couple of sales a day and the new load of auctions I put up (about 35 new items now and all clustered in one category) are getting multiple bids, although traffic is still light.
I am also encouraged that I am getting paid via Paydirect left and right. I am thinking that once Yahoo has a bidder's credit card it is SOOOOO simple to sign on with Paydirect and so they go ahead and take the plunge.
This is great for Yahoo sellers (especially those with Paydirect logo next to their listings) because it is akin to having a Yahoo membership card and I think new buyers (from ebay - or just new to the web) are much more likely to purchase on Yahoo if they're already holding their "card" so to speak.
Anyhow, I posted I was thinking of abandoning for the holidays and am writing to retract that. Gonna stay, gonna list, gonna sell.
posted on October 2, 2000 05:18:02 PM
I've got about 30 posted at Yahoo now, some have only hrs to end and they are not progressing. Only those with high feedback progress. This is a disgusting way to treat other sellers. So I list some decent items and some throwaways. Doesn't really seem to matter.
All the good stuff is on ebay and every one have bids. But there's a risk in that; listing at 9.99 starting price. Pretty gutsy for me if I've got a lot invested, but they seem to always come thru in the final seconds.
posted on October 2, 2000 05:18:02 PM
I've got about 30 posted at Yahoo now, some have only hrs to end and they are not progressing. Only those with high feedback progress. This is a disgusting way to treat other sellers. So I list some decent items and some throwaways. Doesn't really seem to matter.
All the good stuff is on ebay and every one have bids. But there's a risk in that; listing at 9.99 starting price. Pretty gutsy for me if I've got a lot invested, but they seem to always come thru in the final seconds.
I hope!
Dupe post not intended
[ edited by millicent_roberts on Oct 2, 2000 05:19 PM ]
posted on October 2, 2000 08:22:11 PM
Someone actually closed one of my auctions today using "first bid wins" & it was an item listed under my 2nd ID which has a grand total of ONE positive feedback comment. So even low FB sellers' items are being seen, probably through "search". Keep the faith.
posted on October 2, 2000 10:09:53 PM
If it's any consolation to those with low feedback ratings whose listings are on the very last pages....
My feedback (almost 500) has my listings close to the top of every category they're in, and when I checked page views on auctions I had closing tonight, there were as few as 0 hits (as in NO VIEWS AT ALL on some of them).
The analysts are predicting a slow-down in retail sales. I hope they don't mean before Christmas.
Has anyone looked at the ridiculous prices the Post Office is getting on some of their "undeliverable merchandise" auctions??? Just goes to prove that ANY seller can find someone willing to pay retail (and up, and up more) when they're featured on ebay's home page. And I thought the days of "mindless, won't let anyone outbid me, got to have it at any cost" bidding were over. It seems they're alive and well....if you're the USPS.
Do people think they're contributing to a CHARITY???
posted on October 3, 2000 04:22:17 PM
1st time to leave a message. I thought it was me, that I wasnt selling anything, that I didn't leave a good enough discription, but apparentally everyone is having this problem. I,m new at all this. I sold a few things at e-bay, but wanted to try on yahoo. maybe things will pick up. I guess I,ll just keep on relisting.
posted on October 3, 2000 04:45:03 PMhippieoh Welcome! There are many helpful and friendly folks here to lean on and learn from. Yahoo is definitely a different animal from Ebay. It is really a joy though!
First bid wins can really spoil you! Woohoo for Yahoooooo!
posted on October 3, 2000 05:43:31 PM
FINALLY! THE REAL ANSWER!!
After numerous replies to canned e-mails begging for an answer to my question, I got this response:
Hello,
Thank you for your email.
Auctions are sorted based upon a formula effected by the sellers
rating,
sell-through rate, and the number of bids on the auction. As these
three factors are improved, the auction placement will improve.
Regards,
Yahoo! Auctions Customer Care
I still don't agree with it, but at least we know it wasn't a mistake...hence it's not going to be fixed.
posted on October 3, 2000 05:46:40 PM
Oh fiddle! I guess I won't be in the front of the list very often with my 1st bid wins thing. Not very many multiple bids there! LOL
posted on October 3, 2000 08:29:57 PM
Labbie- I was just thinking the same exact thing that you posted!
Thanks auctionee for posting that email. I was completely befuddled before.
I feel a little overwhelmed thinking about the way they've done things. On the one hand it seems great to me that they've rewarded good sellers with good placement. On the other hand, they're totally shortchanging newbie sellers who WOULD be good sellers if given the chance. How is a newbie seller supposed to achieve a good sell through under the new system? Their items will be buried at the bottom with little chance of being seen by anyone. If the item can't even be seen, it won't be bought, and the seller's sell through percent will go to he**.
I guess the answer is, the newbie seller must PAY to feature. In other words, Yahoo won't get a huge amount of new Ebay converts because if people have to pay to sell they will probably just stick with paying Ebay. *sigh*
posted on October 3, 2000 09:05:59 PM
Well I don't think they have their formula figured correctly. Why is a seller with a 20 feedback on page 6 while a seller with over 200 feedback is on page 15? There is also a feedback of 1 on page 13!
posted on October 3, 2000 09:38:46 PM
I think this is a TERRIBLE mistake on Yahoo's part---and I'm one of the high feedback sellers with listings close to the top (don't know about that "sell-through rate" though, and my "first bid wins" strategy sure won't get me anywhere). I have no reason to complain about the placement of my auctions.
Still, I'm complaining.
MY unfeatured auctions are no more "worthy" of good listing placement than those of anyone else, INCLUDING new sellers with no feedback and no "sell-through rate".
The jumbled listings are HURTING EVERYONE'S SALES because they're chaotic, disturbing and unorganized, and they eliminate last-minute bids and impulse buys.
SURELY Yahoo realizes that ebay sellers are coming over to look for "greener pasture", and they're not going to even TRY Yahoo if their auctions are stuck at the BOTTOM for their entire duration. And they're NOT going to "feature" right off the bat, either---they'll want to get a "feel" for Yahoo with a few test auctions first (at which time they'll be unsuccessful, give up, and go right back to ebay).
This was such a truly BAD idea. Why didn't they ASK us what we thought before making the change?????????????????????????
The feedback is only one part of the formula. For example, if that seller had only listed that 1 item, then his feedback would be 100%, and his sell through rate would also be at 100%...and if he has 1 bid on an item he has listed now, he's doing at least 100% better than 99% of the sellers on Yahoo!
Now that is just an example and is not to say they have the formula figured correctly...after all, they obviously still don't have the formula for the auction allowances figured correctly yet...because in spite of everything they have said, that is still 100% feedback based. Wether or not that is the formula they are using, or if they have it figured correctly what I find important is the fact that it was not a glitch, it was done intentionally, I do not see where it does anyone any good (I mean even the "powersellers" don't sell everything everyone is looking for), and they obviously have no plans of changing it. And if they don't, I can see Yahoo going the way of Amazon real quickly.
Hmmmmmmmm, I wonder if Yahoo hired someone from Amazon to run Yahoo Auctions...
posted on October 4, 2000 09:45:16 AM
Seems to be picking up. Miraculous considering.
I do think that we are going to wake up one morning and find the stuff in ending order again. This week, I hope. We need to get some momentum going into Christmas. This is not the time to stubbornly stick to something 100% of users hate.
