cashinyourcloset
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posted on March 25, 2008 11:15:29 AM
Merrie, let us know how it goes. I'll be rooting for you.
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merrie
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posted on March 25, 2008 11:39:31 AM
Thanks cash, I will let you know how it works out. Nothing ventured, nothing gained!!
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merrie
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posted on March 28, 2008 09:18:16 AM
Update: Told you guys I would let you know how my 99 cent auctions were going, still a few days to go. Listed 2 things that usually sell for between $22 - $15.00. Thought that would be enough of a gamble. One item has a bid of 98 cents (starting bid) the other, nothing.
The funny thing is I had 3 of the item that has a bid on it in my store and all 3 items sold after I had listed the 98 cent item for between $18 and $20. Will let you know how this ends.
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cashinyourcloset
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posted on March 28, 2008 10:08:50 AM
How many views, and how many watchers?
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merrie
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posted on March 28, 2008 10:41:02 AM
One the one bid on: 14 views, 0 watchers; on the other one 14 views, 3 watchers.
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MAH645
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posted on March 30, 2008 09:14:57 AM
So far I'm getting more sales in my store than anything else. They are bidding on some of the 99 cent and penny stuff but its still slow.
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pmelcher
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posted on March 30, 2008 12:00:15 PM
So far I have given a few things away for the 99 cents and made some O.K. money on other 99 cent listings that went 'above and beyond'. It is a bit of a gamble but it at least makes the game a little more interesting.
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merrie
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posted on March 30, 2008 03:58:21 PM
At this point, I have to think YUCK is right.
I am not concerned about my few auctions. It was an experiment, but when I look in the category that I list heavily in, I see items listed there for 99 cents that retail for $50- several hundred dollars and usually sell on Ebay for $35 - close to retail or over depending on the demand. I think that this gives a really bad impression and lets people assign that value to these items.
I think this is a really, really bad thing. For sellers and Ebay. If one buyer can get it for 99 cents, why not me?? I'll wait until the next 99 cent auction comes around. I'm not going to pay more than the last guy.
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otteropp
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posted on March 30, 2008 04:24:11 PM
I absolutely agree.
I was happy that we are going away for 4 days tomorrow morning so I had not planned to have any auctions running and when I heard about the 99cents deal..I was happy to not list.
I checked the main China category I usually list in and it breaks my heart to see some of the items listed at 99 cents but I had posted earlier about it being a great week to buy but I have not had time! Maybe in the middle of the night before I leave tomorrow!!
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merrie
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posted on March 30, 2008 04:32:26 PM
otteropp: you've got it. I bid on a few items that I collect and if I "win" them for the low bid I put in, it will be a shock. In some way even if I "win," I lose, since it puts such a low value on items that I cherish and usually command a much higher price.
What a shame!!
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otteropp
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posted on March 30, 2008 04:37:31 PM
Merrie,
If I remember correctly we sell the same type of items..Collectibles and China and I was at an auction in our City two weeks ago and watched SIX Nippon Hand-Painted plates sell for $2.00! I gasped.....very loudly!
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deichen
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posted on March 30, 2008 04:48:56 PM
And out of this .99 that some will end at the seller will most likely pay paypal fees, not to mention the trouble of shipping etc... No thank you. Oh, and you might not get perfect 5's for your feedback as well, your bottom line is a loss.
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otteropp
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posted on March 30, 2008 04:52:03 PM
Deichen:
Agreed 100%. I was just cruising the categories again and it is rather depressing although I am sure it is enticing for some Buyers.
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deichen
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posted on March 30, 2008 04:53:36 PM
SIX Nippon Hand-Painted plates sell for $2.00!
Packing this would not have been fun, it was probably paid for thru paypal. And if they underestimated the shipping (I just can't seem to get it right with the larger, heavier items), then they lost big time! Probably already did, even if the plates were free!
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pmelcher
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posted on March 30, 2008 04:55:02 PM
I am finding out that it was not a good idea, as you are saying. I have 'sold' several nice things for .99 and will probably lose a few more for that. Oddly enough several things did not sell, even for .99, those I will probably just toss in the trash, no need to pay FVF on the shipping for those and lose more money. It was an experiment, gone bad.
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merrie
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posted on March 30, 2008 05:18:08 PM
otteropp: you are right about the categories. I know some of these can take a hit, but 99 cents?? I cannot understand how anyone can survive selling with this strategy. I also bid on one of my secret addictions, vintage dolls. If I "win" them for the puny price I bid it will make my head spin and devalue many items I own.
pmelcher: If the items have /had value, I would not toss them. I have found that if I list something for a reasonable price, not a crumby 99 cents, many times they get more attention. People treat these items differently. They command respect.
This promo has just devalued a lot of items.I understand why some manufacturers do not want their items sold on "EBAY" if their trademarked name brand could be sold for so little, it hurts everyone. This is really not good for the economy. A sale is one thing, but just giving items away to save a few cents on listing is lunacy. (IMHO)
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pixiamom
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posted on March 30, 2008 05:43:06 PM
I sure didn't take part in the promo, but I don't know when I've had as much fun buying on eBay. I bid on around 300 items and I've won about 50% of them with opening bid. There are a few large MIA sellers who reappeared for the promo. It's fun to see their cards again.
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deichen
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posted on March 30, 2008 08:15:12 PM
I guess I should go bid on some stuff but I would probably feel "guilty" if I got them for a steal.
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otteropp
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posted on March 30, 2008 09:22:11 PM
Quote "SIX Nippon Hand-Painted plates sell for $2.00!
Packing this would not have been fun, it was probably paid for thru paypal. And if they underestimated the shipping (I just can't seem to get it right with the larger, heavier items), then they lost big time! Probably already did, even if the plates were free!"
These were not on EBay they were at a REAL Auction House in our City.
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merrie
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posted on March 31, 2008 06:35:02 AM
My 2 experimental items are sitting at starting bids of 98 and 99 cents. I have bid on 7 items for only a dollar or 2, I am still high bidder on 4 items for a total bid of $3.94!!
Pitiful!!
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deichen
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posted on March 31, 2008 07:07:04 AM
Merrie,
I hope you get some last minute bids that will make you happy you listed. Sometimes the anticipation can drive me crazy.
Otteropp,
Well the bid was still too low for the plates, but at least they didn't have to ship them.
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neglus
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posted on March 31, 2008 08:33:40 AM
merrie - I am sorry the experiment hasn't worked for you. Perhaps try it when there aren't so MANY under $1 listings out there. If the search is still "best match" (there were reports on the Search Board over the weekend that Search was at least temporarily defaulting to "newly listed" , then perhaps you can expect more action in the final hours.
I didn't participate in the listing sale. I thought that maybe this special would kill my regular priced listings but decided to keep on listing in my usual way during the sale. I have found that my sales are not that different from "usual". This may change this week though as the cheapies come to the top of Search.
I guess eBay got the desired number of listings for end of quarter reporting and probably the conversion rate will be higher than it has been trending so far this quarter (if conversion is NOT higher than eBay is in deeper doo-doo than I thought)...but the Average Sale Price is bound to be lower. So, they have virtually no income from listing fees and reduced FVF because of lower ASP - was this worth it for anyone except buyers?
-------------------------------------
http://stores.ebay.com/Moody-Mommys-Marvelous-Postcards?refid=store
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merrie
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posted on March 31, 2008 09:37:14 AM
neglus: My listings are not finished yet, so who knows. I am not concerned about losing money on these 2 items, it was an experiment. I am concerned about long term repercussions when buyers see that they were able to purchase quality items at such a discount.
If I "win" the items that I only bid a few dollars for that normally sell for between $50 and $200 I will have really mixed emotions since I will have gotten a great deal today but it has damaged the marketplace going forward.
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cashinyourcloset
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posted on March 31, 2008 10:20:17 AM
Merrie,
I'm afraid that in many of the categories you sell in, the damage is already done, no matter what happens this week. I used to sell a fair amount of higher-end carnival glass for a gentleman. You could watch the prices going down every month. I think it's a matter of demographics: people interested in carnival glass are dying off, they've already completed their collection, or they're no longer interested. New blood just isn't coming in for many of the categories.
Most young adults want what their friends have, not something special. Aspirational items are one more handbag that Paris Hilton carries, not unique items with character.
Almost without exception, when someone brought me a silver service to sell, it was with the comment that they offered it to their daughter, and she didn't want it.
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merrie
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posted on March 31, 2008 11:54:03 AM
I don't sell vintage glass. I sell art glass, new, high end. I have a 75% sell through rate when I price it, starting bid, at 40% below retail. Many times it sells for more than retail because some of the items are discontinued and hard to find.
I am not talking about my category as being damaged. Few items were priced below $1 for this sale in this category. I am talking about some of the items I bid on. One example is vintage dolls. I am still high bidder at $1.25, no reserve, for a doll that can sell for up to $300.
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shagmidmod
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posted on March 31, 2008 08:55:28 PM
1 cent listings are great for items that can be sold in 3 day auctions like high demand electronics like ipods, cell phones, x-box, etc.
perfect example - look at items like the new ipod (retail $199). sellers can list 1 day auctions at 1 cent openings and sell it between $179 and $210 b/c they are high demand items.
These things don't take much time to attract hundreds if not thousands of viewers during its short life and will on average get the seller within 10% of the lowest retail price when the auction ends. There is perhaps 1/1000th of a percent of selling for half of its normal price and just as likely to get 1.5 times the lowest retail price.
The only other uses for a 1 cent auction are auctions with reserves and auctions for a box of air with shipping and handling charges added to a Priority Box.
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ggardenour
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posted on March 31, 2008 11:12:15 PM
I cut back on my listings i mean way back. Sales have tanked. My other sites are out producing ebay. The up side I have .99 bids on a bunch of stuff I won one for .99 that would normally cost me $40 so there is an upside. Stock up I guess
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merrie
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posted on April 2, 2008 09:00:34 AM
As promised, here are my final results on 2 items listed for under a dollar that normally sell for between $14.50- $22.00 or so.
1- $5.99, 2- 9.36. Better than .99 and more than I paid for them, but considerably less than they generally go for.
It was an interesting experiment. Some of my bids are still going. I did "win" a doll for 99 cents.
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cashinyourcloset
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posted on April 2, 2008 10:30:36 AM
Well Merrie, I wish that the experiment had gone better for you. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.
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merrie
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posted on April 2, 2008 10:33:47 AM
cash: it was not a total loss, learned something and moved 2 items. Didn't lose money, but didn't hit the lottery, either!!
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