posted on January 27, 2001 07:06:26 PM new
I was not sure how to start this thread but it concerns ebaY's new policy about not selling if the auction has no bidders to someone else or selling more than what was listed.
Hope that made sense,I had not given it that much thought till I had an existing customer who has bought many items from me.
He often asks if I have more of the same and buys such.Well he did this again the other day but according to ebaY I can no longer do this.
If I do it I violate ebaY's policy if I don't then I upset a good customer who has spent many thousands of dollars with me.
I could suggest that I re-list such in the quantity he wants at the price agreed too then be bids and buys them.
Sound's a rather complicated way of doing things.
In fact this is the 3rd repeat customer who has asked me to do this,or bid on an item reserve was not met,they then email me offering the reserve.
posted on January 27, 2001 07:30:49 PM new
According to what the pinkliners have been posting on the DNF - you would NOT be in violation in the circumstances you described.
Of course, because ebaY is so vague, one can NEVER know HOW something will eventually get interpreted by an ebaY employee having a bad hair day.
If you already have a relationship with a customer, either as you have described, or someone who decides to "opt in" for your customer list, or someone who saw your stuff elsewhere - there is no problem selling to them off ebaY. The sticky part comes in where an auction ends, and someone emails you AFTER the auction of something they saw on ebaY. Katy@ebaY clearly stated on the DNF board that once an auction was over, it was over, and you could do whatever you like with the item, but if the contact came directly from ebaY, you should do a BIN on it at an agreed upon price, rather than sell direct.
Of course for everything ebaY thinks up, there are "legal" (ebaY legal, not real world legal - since probably what ebaY is telling us we must do is illegal in a restraint of trade way itself - though until there is a court case.....) ways around it, such as - have EVERYTHING you list on ebaY, posted on a web page somewhere. Then if someone emails you after an auction, you email them back something like - Thanks for your inquiry about item XXX on my web page www.mystuff.com. That clearly lays out where YOU thought the inquiry came from
The one thing you really should NOT do (and I know you don't do this - that was a general you - since I am on a roll here)is email your high bidder in a reserve not met, or under bidders in your or anyone elses auction and offer them anything.
Also make sure you have an email link in every auction, or change your user ID back to your email addy, as we have had numerous "hints" that ebaY is going to block all email addy access except for seller and winning bidder, with all contact restricted to go through ebaY. we have also received hints that when the change comes, ebaY will not allow you to change your email addy back to be your user ID. All this trying to close a barn door long after the horse is gone, is way absurd, and will never work, because there are programmer much smarter than those who work at ebaY.
Sheesh - you really got me going here .... Rosalinda
TAGnotes - daily email synopsis about the Online Auction Industry http://www.topica.com/lists/tagnotes
posted on January 27, 2001 07:36:14 PM new
Bottom line is eBay only owns a small piece of what you actually list. They don't own a piece of all of your merchandise, or your life, or your soul. This is the stupidest thing they've come up with yet. Do you really think they can enforce these dumb rules? The answer is probably not.
Ebay is only a venue--right. They're only a venue *only* when it's advantageous for them to be "only a venue". Now they want to barge into your personal dealings--business contacts that you've earned through hard work.
Forget it. Sell what you want to whom you want. It's your business, your merchandise, your contacts.
[ edited by loosecannon on Jan 27, 2001 07:39 PM ]
posted on January 28, 2001 06:01:46 AM new
imabrit: I was told that the newly clarified policy on Spam and outside sales is part of a project to limit the number of unsolicited eMails that eBay community members receive (often based on their buying and selling habits) from other registered members.
Apparently, SPAM is the single highest complaint to eBay support departments. (this is what I've been told) HOWEVER, the policy and upcoming changes regarding the way we communicate with other eBay members is not designed to limit non-eBay trade between members who have ESTABLISHED RELATIONSHIPS with each other.
I think your example above would fit into the "Established Relationship" scenario. Happy Trading! *smile*
posted on January 28, 2001 06:27:50 AM new
Thank you Dottie. Glad to see someone finally has a grasp on this.
Imabrit FYI
Hello XXX, Thank you for writing in with your question. I'm happy to
address this for you. I can certainly understand you
concern in this matter, especially as a dealer in antiquities. The
section to which you are referring in the new Fee Avoidance
policy, as not allowed, reads as follows: -offering to sell the item
outside of eBay to any of your bidders or another sellers'
bidders in a Reserve Not Met listing Basically, we instituted this to
deter unscrupulous seller's from listing outrageous
reserve prices so the price won't be met and then selling the item to
the highest bidder once the auction had closed, hence
avoiding paying eBay's commission, the Final Value Fee. However, as
the policy reads, you as the seller are not allowed to
contact the bidder's on an unsuccessful Reserve Price auction and make
an offer, however, it makes no mention of when the
high bidder contacts you. So, in the scenario you provided, should the
high bidder contact you at the close of auction and
inquire on the Reserve Price, you can still transact with that person,
as you have before. I hope this information has been
helpful. Good luck to you and thank you for using eBay!
Regards,
Miller C. eBay Global Support
Hello, Thank you for writing to us regarding the scenario that you have
provided. I understand how this
policy can be confusing at times, and I will be more than happy to
explain how the fee avoidance policy is related to your
scenario. If a winner of your one of your past auctions emails you
because they are looking for a product that you might
have, and you sell it to them, then it could be considered fee
avoidance. However, depending on other circumstances
involved, it may not be. If you had never offered that product for
sale on eBay, then it would not be considered fee
avoidance. However, here is an exception. If you told the member that
you had it in an email, prior to them asking you if you
had it, then it would be considered fee avoidance. Please remember
that most fee avoidance issues will be instigate by the
seller. If the buyer asked you, as a favor, to find an item for them,
or to see if you had one to sell to them, then it would not
be fee avoidance. Their email could be considered SPAM because it was
unsolicited, but not fee avoidance. I understand
how this rule can be confusing as it is left open to interpretation.
There are so many different ways that a member can avoid
paying fees to eBay that we had to make the policy general enough to
cover all of them. However, please know that if you
do decide to sell items outside of an eBay auction, that transaction
will not be covered under our fraud and insurance
programs. I appreciate your email and can tell by your outstanding
feedback that you are an excellent member and great addition to our community.
Regards,
Nickolas SafeHarbor InvestigationsTeam
[ edited by reddeer on Jan 28, 2001 06:49 AM ]
[ edited by reddeer on Jan 28, 2001 06:53 AM ]
