It contains some interesting info that may settle some long-time bets here at AW. Like whether sellers are allowed to contact underbidders.
One particular eye opener is that apparently it is a violation of eBay's rules to contact a seller about purchasing an item outside of eBay.
For example, "I missed the end of the auction, do you have any more of these for sale?" can get you into hot water with eBay.
From eBay's pages: "If you received an email from another user with an offer to purchase an item outside of eBay's listing format, please report to eBay by sending the email with full headers to [email protected]."
Right, like a seller will turn in a potential customer for contacting him in this way. Duh!
There's some interesting stuff in these pages, including what-if "the seller is saying there's an extra fee, not mentioned in the auction." eBay's pre-filled response is, "There may be a valid reason why the seller is charging an extra fee. We suggest you contact the seller and ask them about the additional fee." eBay then requests the item number. So, it's okay to charge a hidden fee, but eBay is taking names anyway?
posted on December 4, 2000 07:43:53 PM
Funny, I JUST read an email from a would be bidder ten minutes after auction ended. It read..."dang, I missed your auction. Do you have another like it?"
Now, one could interpret that in different ways.
Such as...."dang, blah, blah, will you be posting another?"
OR
"dang, yadda-yadda, will you sell me one off ebay"?
I read it as "dang, I hoped to sneak in and snipe your acution but forgot and am really hoping your going to list another one....
posted on December 4, 2000 08:09:20 PM
Yes, I knew when I made the post above that it would lead to splitting hairs. Does the customer simply want more info, or is he suggesting he might buy, does he want me to offer it first, etc.? Geminstpector, I don't mean that you are splitting hairs. My example was lousy but apropos.
Two things. First, let's take a what-if scenario: My auction just ended and a few minutes later I get an email: "I just missed the end of the auction. Do you still want to sell it?"
Now what percentage of sellers do you think would say, "Yes it is, just send your payment to ...," and what percentage of sellers do you think would say, "Yes, it is, I will put it up for auction again tomorrow and maybe you might win it 10 days from now?" If it walks like a duck, etc.
Second, in the past eBay has publicly winked at occurances like this. HOW MANY TIMES have I seen eBay support reps state, "There's nothing we can do about it, we don't care, don't even bother sending us any money." Many, many times.
It is telling that eBay is even addressing this non-issue. And that they are extending the definition of "commercial" (SPAM) email to include a "want to buy" email sent from a customer to a seller who indeed does wish to sell the item. This is NOT SPAM and calling it so is petty nickle-and-diming.
posted on December 5, 2000 04:46:09 AM
I agree with you 100% twinsoft. Another example for you. The other day I missed an acution on a widget. I emailed the guy and asked if he would be listing it again. The item did not have any bids with his first auction so he emailed that I may purchase them for the opening bid price.
As it turns out I found out that this size widget will not fit my needs so I did not buy it. But if it had, do I INSIST that the guy re-list the item so he can pay ebay the 25 cent listing fee, not to mention the 13 cent FVF?
I am sure a percentage of off-ebay transactions are going to happen and even though it does seem petty for ebay to be so stringent, they are just trying to protect their kingdom (does a frothing, snapping doberman come to mind?)
Oh, by the way, I just got a you've been Out-bid notice and it says: Safety Tip: Now that you're no longer the high bidder, you may be contacted by the seller or another person to buy a similar or identical item outside of eBay. This type of transaction is against eBay rules and is not covered by services that protect buyers such as feedback, insurance, and dispute resolution. For your own protection, please do not participate.
I'm pretty sure this is rather new. I don't remember seeing it before.
posted on December 5, 2000 05:19:45 AM
eBay's rule on reporting the buyer who attempts to buy "off ebay" is stupid - eBay "assumes" that their site is the only place a buyer could find your ad for the widget. I know I run duplicate auctions on eBay and Yahoo, plus often the item is on our web site too - so there is no way one can know for sure where the customer first saw the item OR at what point of seeing it they decided to contact the seller.
Perhaps they first saw it on eBay, but then went to the web site or Yahoo -
No seller in their right mind is going to turn in a buyer, and I don't believe eBay is dumb enough to eliminate a buyer, as bad as they need bidders.
posted on December 5, 2000 05:31:25 AM
Excellent observation jwpc. Again, I have an example. I was doing a universal search for a type of light that I use for business as well as hobbies. I saw that the item is sold on ebay and yahoo by the same company who also has a web site. I was not in need of the lamp itself as I already have two, but I did need replacement bulbs which are not listed on either auction site. I simply called the 800# listed on both auctions and placed my order.
Granted I did not order the exact thing that was listed on Ebay, but what if I did?
Companies list their 800# for customer service but get plenty of off-auction orders I'm sure.
