Also, does the Bid$afe lock turn bidders off? I was just thinking that maybe they see the little lock next to a listing and skip over it because they think they can only buy that item with a CC.... Maybe I shouldn't put something as a Bid$afe auction unless it is over $10 or so. Any recommendations?
 

I think you've asked a good question. Pictures in general help items sell for higher prices but if an item is only worth $2.00, if you didn't get it for free and put any appreciable effort -- even ten minutes writing the discription (about $1.65 worth of time @ $10/hr) you'll lose money. A picture is going to cost you at least another $1.00 and possibly as much as $2.25 depending on how you get it and where you host it.

On nice items, pictures make great sense but, considering time, it is very hard to make money on a single item that sells for $2.00 if you have $3.75 in time and effort invested.

Now if you've got 20, 50, or 100 of that same item and can sell them all for $2.00 each, pictures and a nice presentation makes good sense. For a single item, though, write a quick description and forget the picture. You might even consider bundling the item with other similar items in an auction lot or do something with it besides list it, (offer it as a bonus item in another auction). Of course, it might be worth the investment if your only goal is to sell it to maybe get a positive rating.

On the bidsafe question, I've not seen any studies that say that people think you have to have a credit card to buy them. Still, if that worries you, state in your auction description in addition to the AU check list that appears in the auction. Say in both places all acceptable forms of payment.

FYI, The only auction type that requires a credit card is the First Bid Wins auctions.

BTW: Anyone with a credit card can become a bidsafe member. While it does give you the ability to use your credit card to make purchases -- I really do like that myself -- it is also our "FREE user verification" program.

As far as not using BidSafe on items valued under $10.00, I would say that the benefits to a seller outweight the negatives because the cost of doing so is only 35 cents. You'll find that it really cuts the amount of time it takes in the end of auction routine. Streamlining that process with BidSafe more than makes up for the minimal cost incurred.

Still, Magik, you'd be right if you think we really do encourage higher value auctions for BidSafe ... so you have my blessing if you don't want to use BidSafe for items $10 or under.

Pat

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Neomax
[email protected]

As far as Bidsafe, I like the idea of it, especially knowing that the money is already set aside and no need to worry about bounced checks or lost money orders. Do you have any percentage of how many closed Bidsafe auctions were actually won by Bidsafe buyers? It seems to be a good idea to run auctions that way just in case someone wants to use Bidsafe and their CC, but if I don't, what is the chance I will miss out on a buyer? Also, say a person wins multiple Bidsafe auctions (from the same seller) and they are a Bidsafe member. Are all the auctions charged separately or do they get combined into one charge? Just wondering for the purpose of combining multiple wins into one shipment and giving them break on postage....

Of course, this is all pie-in-the-sky wishful thinking that someday I will be one of the big fish that I see talking on the boards about how they sell hundreds of items every week. I am lucky to get motivated enough to post 10 or so in a weekend... *sigh*
 

Being a BidSafe seller accomplishes two things. First and foremost, being registered under bidsafe, either the Gold seller program or the free buyer program, is really our form of user verification.

Second, as a BidSafe seller, you're able to tap into the other sevices -- bulk shipping insurance (instead of 85 cents a package) acceptance of credit cards and the "BidSafe" icon by your name.

FYI, at least a simple majority of the BidSafe auctions are bought by folks using traditional methods of payment (check.mo.etc.) ... that is at least my experience.

Frankly, for me, letting AU do the collection and accounting makes my selling experience more pleasant and less time consuming but then its hard to make anybody do anything. (I've spent more time trying to figure out what item a person bought with a check that came out of the blue -- three hours -- than I have with all my Bidsafe sales.)

Personally, I don't think you'll miss out on a buyer at all and there are some, like me,who actually search BidSafe auctions for stuff because it really is much simplier and easy for buyers as well. (No envelope, no trip to the PO, but especially no long, long waits for checks to clear. Typically the transaction is over and complete in ten days tops, including shipping.)

Some folks have even used BidSafe as an escrow service for items sold on other sites, although that is not really what we intend. (for items under $100, its typically less expensive to do so is why.)

We do have the shipping issue handled as well. Let me set the stage.

You've sold one person three $10.00 items and each carries with it a $3.25 shipping charge. You can ship all three items for the $3.25 charge.

The way the system works, it will charge the bidder's credit card a total of $9.75 for shipping, meaning the bidder is due a $6.50 rebate.

The question is how to get that rebate back to them.

What you would do is, when filling out the shipping confirmation, charge the bidder zero shipping for the first item -- they get the $3.25 credit -- Charge zero shipping for the second item (again earning them a credit) and then post the $3.25 shipping on the third and last item on the list. (The last item to close)

AU then converts the 'zero' shipping charges into a debit we owe the bidder. We call this debit "BidBucks" We also tack on another 30 cent credit (1 percent rebate on the $30 in merchandise bought) just for doing business with you on our site.

The bidder will be able to redeem their bidbucks through our system once the transaction is complete. Because the total due them is over $5.00 and none of that credit is on the "last item purchased" they should be able to redeem $6.70 through their BidBuck account. The BidBuck credit, BTW, is handled as a credit charge to their credit card and as much as we'd like to see them use it to buy more stuff, it is handled as a simple chargeback. Still, the bidder will have to request the redemption of their bidbucks.

The other alternative, of course, is for you to collect all the shipping funds and handle the rebate yourself, presumably with a check to the bidder.

Frankly, it is your choice which way to go on rebating the shipping. In general I recommend going through the BidBucks method because we have a record of that part of the transaction.

That simply makes it harder for "one of those" buyers to come back, post a negative saying you didn't rebate the money and otherwise make trouble for you. If the record of the rebate is on our site, we know precisely what happened, simplifying our investigation of the situation.

However, a cancelled check works too ... although it would take longer to resolve an issue if one arose.

Pat

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Neomax
[email protected]