posted on March 2, 2012 09:00:04 AM
The guy who sells patches and get 20%=50 dollars discount on his FVF would have to charge more for shipping,like $1.75 -$1.95 to get DC online.
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posted on March 2, 2012 09:32:15 AM
Plus he would have to buy different packaging.
The point is that these new changes are really meant to take away the discounts, which is technically a fee increase.
Based on my performance, I will be paying $40-75 extra per month to eBay. The question is whether operating my own website will net me the same sales as eBay. Obviously, eBay has the buyers there... but what happens when enough collectibles dealers leave? Where will those buyers go to find things?
I am finding myself using google more and more to find information on collectibles instead of turning to eBay. More often, I am doing an image search to find the item and then clicking on the site to gather info or values, asking prices, final auction prices at auction houses, etc.
posted on March 2, 2012 10:42:24 AM
Another issue...
Buyers who don't pay within 1 day. I have had people who buy something using BIN and then don't pay immediately. 3 days later they pay and then expect me to mail it out same day because they purchased it as a gift and need it tomorrow.
What bugs me are the people who buy something from us and then wait a week to pay. When they bought it I was here and could have shipped it right away had they paid when they bought it. Finally, they pay a week later after eBay sends them non-payment notices. I am out of town for 3 days... and they pay the day I left. So, now I am on the hook for this???
posted on March 2, 2012 11:42:23 AM
I guess it is like grading a college exam,too many TRSs so they are raising the bar.
I am not a TRS,I have seen TRS sellers leaving Ebay when they get no sales and found their items ended up on page 11 of a search.
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posted on March 2, 2012 11:51:20 AM
what happens when enough collectible sellers leave?
Shag,
many have already left and set up shop on Etsy,I see some listings for over 10,000 dollars on Etsy,now who is going to spend that kind of money on ETSY,but on Ebay,there are .
Ebay is still the best place to buy and sell.
Etsy does not get involved in squabbles ,it refers you to paypal.how long can that go on?Rubylane is a lame duck,worse than Etsy.
Ebay offers Ebay protection,and has the $$ resources .
[ edited by hwahwa on Mar 2, 2012 11:52 AM ]
posted on March 2, 2012 11:59:11 AM
Shag,
Have you looked into Yahoo shopping,not that it is a great place to sell collectibles,but it is nicely layout and not expensive,so it could save you some time.
It takes paypal and credit card.
I used to have a shop on Yahoo Shopping,but my stuff really belong on Ebay so I moved to Ebay,never look back,did six figures last year!
Ebay has all kinds of buyers,low price items,high price items,gold,silver,porcelain,metal,paper,Japaense,Chinese,French,German,Italian,Irish,Andy Warhol,MM,eventually most items do sell.
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posted on March 3, 2012 02:21:42 AM
If you are a professional seller of antiques/collectibles,Ruby Lane can work out very well.
Not the same audience as eBay, but much less drama. Best part is no FVF-
I have been doing it for several years now, and would eBay less and less; I now just do a spurt of eBay selling once a year (and with their changes, probably less than that now).
Great news! From now through May 31, eBay Top-rated sellers will get a bonus 5% discount off final value fees—along with their current 20% discount—for all listings with 1-day handling and a minimum 14-day return window with money-back option.
This offer applies to listings on eBay.com, eBay Motors Parts & Accessories and eBay Canada. Most categories are included. This Promotion starts on Thursday, March 1, 2012, at 00:00:01 PT (12:00 AM plus one second) and will end on Thursday, May 31, 2012, at 23:59:59 PT (11:59 PM plus 59 seconds). See terms and conditions for full details.
Be sure to add these services to your listings ASAP to get the maximum possible discount. Enjoy the savings!
Sincerely,
Michael Jones
Vice President,
Merchant Development
posted on March 3, 2012 08:38:40 AM
I went to Etsy to check it out because I saw it mentioned here. I signed up and purchased an item for under $50.00 that I sell on eBay for $150.00 That is how I like to start my mornings.
posted on March 4, 2012 02:35:54 AM
Ebay needs to split their business model. One ebay for professional sellers, one ebay for casual/flea market type sellers.
posted on March 4, 2012 06:04:08 AM
I like the idea of a split. Also recall the reason for all these new rules is eBay was overrun with scammers and crooks. buyers who were cheated will never go back and along the way will tell a bunch of there friends.
A more liberal seller site would just attract the scum. It is sad that a venue that worked so well for so many was ruined by a few. The crooks and scum go on to new places while the honest pay the price.
I recently placed an order with LLBean they acknowledged my order right away, however it didn't ship for 4-5 more days. So this 1 day crap ebay is foisting on us, mostly sellers who make part or all of their income selling, is just so unfair!
posted on March 4, 2012 06:49:24 AM
Some one posted an article here of a professional dealer who did well selling on Ebay and eventually have to leave because prices get lower and lower to the point a professional cannot make any money and he did suggest Ebay slpit into 2 venues-professional and hobby sellers.
I dont know how many of you were around from the 1990s,Ebay launched 'Great Collectibes' and bought an antique dealer called Bakerfield?? ,it invites all the dealers around the world to sell ,and Butterfield or
Bakerfield will co-ordinate the efforts.
They finally scrapped the program as it did not work,Ebay buyers prefer to wallow in old,worn stuff called antiques and find the prices on Great Collectibles too expensive.
There are some non Ebay antique auctions around,take a look at Igavel,Aspire and Liveauctioneer which is a collection of auctions around the world .
With Aspire and Igavel,you can go and see the items in the store if you live nearby.
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[ edited by hwahwa on Mar 4, 2012 06:50 AM ]
posted on March 4, 2012 06:55:02 AM
Alldings, I agree scammers can ruin any site, but the scammers are not always the sellers. Many savy buyers have figured out how to get away with crap & Ebay has helped them. Re 1 day shipping, very few online vendors have that. Not Amazon, not Target, not Macy's, etc.
posted on March 4, 2012 08:59:35 AM
This is what I predict will happen within a year.
eBay is setting up a "return" label system so that buyers can simply print a return label. Well, guess who's going to be paying for that return shipping? eBay??? hell no. the sellers. That is what is coming, and I predict it to happen within a year.
Trust me, it isn't going to end. eBay will continue to push their seller robots even further.
posted on March 4, 2012 09:28:34 AM
In reality,most items are not returned,Barnes and Noble has a generous return policy but few buyers return their purchase,I have yet to come across a book buyer who returns his book.
The ones who are really hurting are the clothes retailers,shoppers will buy an evening gown or a cocktail dress,wear it for the ocasion and return it.
Right now,ebay pays for the return label,but it is awfully slow,and it does not pay for international return.
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posted on March 4, 2012 09:34:16 AM
I still think this one day shipping and return is aimed at sellers who use dropshippers.
They have no control over when the dropshipper ship,especially when they buy from dropshippers who sell liquidation or remanufactured electronics.
Worse,if the buyer buys multiple items coming from more than one dropshipper,now you have more than one dropshipper to deal with-when do they ship,how do they ship and where do they ship from?
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posted on March 4, 2012 09:50:34 AM
When shipping furniture, it is nearly impossible to ship it next day. We don't know if it will sell online or locally, so we don't buy boxes or crate pieces until it is sold. Ordering boxes can take a day or two. Packing can take a few hours to half a day. Then the trucking company may not be able to pick up for a few days. We take larger pieces to a crating service where the shipping truck will pick up from. This process can take a few days just to prep.
I don't know of anyone who has returned furniture, and I rarely get a request for a return... because we state no returns for collectibles. This is an industry standard.
I know photographers & set designers who will buy items for staging a set, only to return them when they are finished. We rent items out for this... and it started when we found out a photographer bought a lamp from us and then tried to return it after their production claiming it didn't work.
I have no problems accepting a return for something that was described incorrectly, is damaged, or missing something we didn't catch. It is extremely rare for this to happen, as we have a 4.96 rating on item descriptions which I think is very good for vintage items.
I like to believe most people are honest, but it is the bad apples that ruin it for everyone.
[ edited by shagmidmod on Mar 4, 2012 09:52 AM ]
posted on March 4, 2012 10:47:59 AM
I am not a top rated seller,but I have no problem selling on Ebay,I sell merchandise few sellers have,either they are in better condition or they are not easy to find,by easy to find I mean one does not find them in flea market,garage sales or local trade shows.
If they do have the same item,they are either asking more or not in as good condition as mine or both.
Of course there are some similar ones and the sellers ask for less,but they are sold fast and I dont worry about letting mine sit on the shelf,as it only cost me 60 cents to keep them in my store for a year,sooner or later most items do sell,thats the depth of ebay venue,more and more buyers are piling in to look for interesting items on Ebay.
I cannot think of any venue avaialble to us these days which can match Ebay,we are doomed to stay on Ebay!
I dont need the 20% discount, I sell enough to pay my Ebay store fee and the final value fee,I dont offer return and I dont have to promise same day shipping,altho most of my items are shipped same or next day .
Dont let every twist and turn of Ebay events bother you,soon you will be the worry wort with grey hair.
Time is better spent finding interesting items to sell and learning how to take better pictures!
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posted on March 4, 2012 12:55:50 PM
Here is an example of what hwahwa is writing about. Apparently this seller marches to their own beat ....
"Please make payment within 10 days of purchase. I do ship frequently and will make an effort to have your item on its way no longer than 5 days. I usually e-mail you to tell you that your item has been shipped.
Shipping Charges are estimates. When Item is sold, the item is wrapped, boxed, weighed and measured, the actual shipping charge is then applied. Please delay payment until invoice is sent to insure accurate shipping charge.I do charge $1 extra for packaging and handling."
This seller has 2600+ feedback, all positive and DSRs of 5.0, 5.0, 5.0 4.9.
posted on March 4, 2012 01:02:43 PM
Bill, I would never buy from anyone with those terms, especially "shipping costs are estimates." Go figure is right!
posted on March 5, 2012 05:20:24 AM
Bill K's example sounds ok to me the seller is up front about how they conduct business so buyers know what to expect. I guess there business plan is to walk around or over eBay's hoops rather than try to jumpt through them.
posted on March 5, 2012 09:58:59 AM
Sorry I am late to the conversation. In order to be successful on ebay you really need to change with their platform. I do not like the constant changes anymore than any one else, and in order to make the grade you have to do things that make you less profit.
shagmidmod - If you are still planning to sell on eBay you should make sure your registration info is private for your http://occupyebay.org/ web-site. ebay can view your domain name registration info and connect that info to your ebay registered info and perhaps, and I am not saying they will but perhaps suspend your ebay account, so consider this if you are going to continue to sell at eBay. This usually cost more money then the 7.00 you paid for the domain name.
I just wanted to mention that a lot more sellers will also be included in the TRS program, because they have lowered to qualification levels, so although they are demanding more from it's TRS they are also giving the 20% discount to those who can meet the 1 day tracking, and 14 return policies.
I also wanted to mention that if you purchase the shipping label right from the eBay platform they do not charge for DC and the actual rate is also is a bit cheaper than at the PO. If you print the shipping label at Paypal the DC is only .19 cents. Purchasing the shipping label from ebay or Paypal will automatically put the tracking number in place for you.
[ edited by thegolfingdolphin on Mar 5, 2012 10:04 AM ]
posted on March 5, 2012 01:07:14 PM
I will have to shut down my store completely two weeks in advance IF I want to go on vacation. I got bit last time when I just "Hid" my listings, folks still found my listings through other saved searches and bookmarks. It clearly stated that I was on vacation and I had it flagged through eBay. My last one week vacation cost me the 20% discount for 3 months because I got nailed on shipping time. Now this 1 day shipping rule……I guess it’s back to 6 day work weeks since the Post Office is open on Saturdays and that counts as a shipping day…..I thought I left that long behind me.
posted on March 5, 2012 01:22:22 PM
(1) printing shipping label on Ebay vs Paypal-
who said DC is free on Ebay?
I know I paid $1.64 for 3 ounces and DC on Ebay,does that mean I am getting free DC?
(2)Does Ebay really expect TRS to ship in one day or just upload tracking information in one day?
Like Shag pointed out,some items need more time,like furniture?And I dont even know if there is online tracking and shipping label if the item is shipped by truck?
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posted on March 5, 2012 01:24:43 PM
GGAR,
Making your store items invisible is not good enough if you are away for a long time,you have to not allow anyone to place order .
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