AuctionAce
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posted on September 27, 2003 07:31:39 AM
Here's a seller that is currently being discussed on another auction board.
Running about 5,000 auctions at all times with a possible 100% selling rate ( $1 start bids )
Seller has to have several employees and great auction managment software to help keep track of all those auctions.
http://tinyurl.com/ovfo
-------------- sig file ----------- The Fluffster --- a true scrounger
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horsey88
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posted on September 27, 2003 07:35:58 AM
"Seller has to have several employees and great auction managment software to help keep track of all those auctions. "
Judging by their feedbck it appears they have neither.
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paws4God
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posted on September 27, 2003 07:36:00 AM
Who would buy from someone with so many negs? I agree he must have many employees, but they evidently don't do well or he wouldn't have so many negs.
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horsey88
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posted on September 27, 2003 07:38:48 AM
"Who would buy from someone with so many negs? "
Many folks. Why ? People are basically dumb.
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Twelvepole
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posted on September 27, 2003 07:49:31 AM
Do we see the green eyed monster of jealousy here... 97.1% is NOT a bad feedback figure...
Now that is a business on eBay, would definately think there are emplyees involved...
AIN'T LIFE GRAND... 
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horsey88
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posted on September 27, 2003 07:54:20 AM
Yes and probably also some mangement software. The problem is neither of them appear to be "great".
Yes I am really jealous of their 97.1% since it pales against mine.
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paws4God
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posted on September 27, 2003 07:56:31 AM
Didn't even notice the %. That is still a lot of negs. Not jealous just amazed that he has that many negs and people still buy. Yes he has a good business but a little sloppy to not keep up with things better. He could have a GREAT business if he had better follow through and customer service.
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wendywins
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posted on September 27, 2003 08:35:05 AM
Based on feedback from this past week, over 10% of buyers are unsatisfied. I think that is high.
With a seller like this would you gamble? A 90% success rate is high but is it high enough for your dollar? I don't think I'd chance it as it appears to be a two week delivery time at least, not to mention all the other bad practices.
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Twelvepole
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posted on September 27, 2003 08:40:07 AM
I am curious exactly why kind of service you would expect from a seller that sells $1 jewlery?
It appears they are getting exactly what they paid for...
AIN'T LIFE GRAND...
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ihula
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posted on September 27, 2003 08:45:52 AM
I want to know why they're still a powerseller with 97.1% feedback - you're supposed to have at least 98% (I think it's 98%).
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paws4God
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posted on September 27, 2003 08:50:26 AM
Twelvepole=======
I don't care whether someone spends $1.00 or $1000.00 I give each the same customer service. It is sellers with lousy CS that make it hard on the good sellers. When he starts his auctions at $1 it is his problem if it sells for that, and should give them good service regardless of ending amount. However most of his go way over the $1 so he is obligated to do what he promises in his TOS.
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Twelvepole
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posted on September 27, 2003 09:02:22 AM
I do see your point, but if they continue to have the success that they have now... then it really does prove that feedback is not worth anything...
AIN'T LIFE GRAND...
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kiara
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posted on September 27, 2003 09:05:16 AM
Many of his complaints are that the jewelry was smaller than they expected yet he has the size in the description.
This is an example of someone selling lower priced jewels and of course he will attract lots of bottom feeders who will whine even though they didn't spend that much for the item. That's the down side of selling this, no matter how hard he may try.
Buyers don't seem to mind the negatives, all they want is a huge honking piece of jewelry with a fancy stone for a rock bottom price.
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fenix03
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posted on September 27, 2003 09:09:31 AM
I don't see 10% disapproval at all. I see multiple negs from the same users. My favorite is the one that states that the pohotos were purposely deceptive...all 6 of them?!?
His major seems to be sorting thru emails. Most of the negs are CS related bu with a few thousand auctions a weeks That's not so hard to imagine.
~~~ • ~~~ • ~~~ • ~~~ • ~~~
If it's really "common" sense, why do so few people actually have it?
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wendywins
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posted on September 27, 2003 09:16:12 AM
Why doesn't ebay allow feedback to be searched by Positive, Neutral, and Negative? It would make it very easy to gauge whether the seller is to blame or the cheapskates on the other end. I would think this would not be so hard to program.
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tomwiii
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posted on September 27, 2003 09:50:26 AM
I see he was in Creative Writing 101 too:
"Insurance is mandatory. My insurance charge is $2.00 per item. So if you buy two items, insurance would be $4.00. These are not standard USPS or UPS charges. In the fast paced world of internet auctions if a packaged gets lost, the last thing that a customer wants is the red-tape of a bureaucratic insurance company. I use a high-level private insurer. There are no forms to fill out or annoying people calling your house. I have sent out thousand of ebay items and inevitably, some are lost in transit. My customers have really appreciated the difference. Insurance is not refundable."
The Fluffy Mutual Assurance Non-Insurance Insurance Company, Inc,LTD
Ralphie loves Mr Blonde:
"Are you gonna bark all day little doggie, or are you gonna bite?"
http://members.ebay.com/aboutme/vidrat/
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tomwiii
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posted on September 27, 2003 09:51:52 AM
I love da clueless MoosePoopers:
http://tinyurl.com/ovsp
Ralphie loves Mr Blonde:
"Are you gonna bark all day little doggie, or are you gonna bite?"
http://members.ebay.com/aboutme/vidrat/
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drcomm
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posted on September 27, 2003 10:14:49 AM
Gah..what an idiot. Thanks for posting that Tom..that guy just got added to my blocked bidder list just in case.
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fluffythewondercat
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posted on September 27, 2003 11:04:10 AM
If that were 5,086 unique auctions, I would be very impressed.
However, they're not unique. I count 69 auctions for the same dolphin/CZ earrings, as presented directly from the Fluffy School of Merchandising: different pictures, different titles and different descriptions.
An eBay novice would simply put up one Dutch auction and list the quantity as 69. That would be stupid. And yet, that is quite likely the advice a newbie would get in this forum.
If he's got, say, 70 auctions for each SKU, that means he's only got about 73 unique items. That's very, very doable all by one's lonesome.
You'd have to farm out the fulfillment, though.
I notice lots of typos and formatting errors in his descriptions. It doesn't seem to matter to bidders.
Ezra, bless his soul, seems to understand what it is that eBay bidders want. I wonder why that makes some people resentful.
Our motto: Bright and shiny baubles for persons with low impulse control.
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AuctionAce
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posted on September 27, 2003 12:09:51 PM
The seller is a POWER SELLER and has the icon. Wary bidders click on the PS icon and see this :
This icon next to the member's user ID recognizes them as a qualified PowerSeller. You can feel assured that your transaction will go smoothly and that you are dealing with one who has consistently met the requirements established by eBay
The s/h seems very high on a single item but the seller encourages multiple buys
I am happy to combine as many auctions as you win over a one week period. I charge a flat fee for all combined items, which is the highest shipping and handling for any single auction.
That must generate many multiple buys as the more buys the average s/h cost per item drops ( many sellers of similar items will not do that  )
This seller has some very nice pieces that go for very high prices yet everything starts at a buck with no reserve.
-------------- sig file ----------- The Fluffster --- a true scrounger
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pandorasbox
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posted on September 27, 2003 02:37:07 PM
Here are his 30 day stats:
Number of Auctions:16,057 (All no reserve, No Dutch)
Number w/ sale: 15,830
Sell-through: 98.6%
Value of items offered: $435,000
Value of items sold:$435,154
Avg sale: $27
Avg # bids: 9
I've watched this guy before but have never taken the time to run his stats.
The point made earlier re multiple listings of identical items does apply....however, taking consideration his individual listing of ring sizes, the unique item count as regards inventory is probably well north of 70.
I learn a great deal from guys like this..as a matter of fact, adopting certain of the techniques that many Powersellers have in common, I managed to increase sales dramatically.
That having been said, the logistics of what he is doing...particualry the e-mail traffic, is pretty astounding...on average, ol ez is closing 500 auctions a day..each auction having perhaps 4-5 e-mails involving sale's close and settlement...then add on all of the questions re running auctions,"did you get my payment"..etc..resulting in a storm of traffic.
500 sales a day...$13,500 per day in sales...cost of goods, I don't know for sure..but jewelry is the right place to be...As for the feedback, I couldn't care less....The calculus of his operation far outstrips any pratical inferences from feedback.
This guy is doing something pretty remarkable and I'm grateful for the opportunity to learn.
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ihula
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posted on September 27, 2003 02:44:19 PM
I'm impressed. I'm really busting my rump today trying to list enough items to make the Visa payment that's due next Saturday - I know, I won't have enough time unless everyone takes my BIN. I need another $4000.00 - anyone have any loose change around? Mind you that isn't the minimum payment, but I'm one of those people that has to pay it off every month or I can't sleep at night. I guess I bought too much inventory this month. There was some dvds that I really wanted too, but I was already maxed out on the card  .
Maybe I should run some sympathy auctions like in that other thread - the woman who couldn't make her house payment.
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replaymedia
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posted on September 27, 2003 03:32:56 PM
If I were doing $435,000 a month in sales, I don't think 3.8% non-positive feedback would deter me one bit.
And for the math people out there:
2437 negs + 2176 neuts = 4613 Non Pos.
4613 divided by 120348 total = .038 = 3.8%
which isn't bad at all. That's 96.2% happy transactions.
-------------------
Replay Media
Games of all kinds!
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ahc3
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posted on September 27, 2003 03:44:00 PM
It is pretty impressive, but it is interesting how that 98% positive feedback ratio is flexible. My guess is if he sold $2000 a month, he would be booted. While it is impressive, his feedback ratio is not Almost 3% negative is not that impressive. It certainly is not supposed to make the cut for a powerseller. One thing to remember too, that multiple negatives from the same person do NOT add to the negative % since only one of the negs will count as a unique, just like for positive.
This goes to show that people do not look at feedback that closely!
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neglus
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posted on September 27, 2003 04:15:03 PM
I have bought from this seller and was very satisfied!
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fluffythewondercat
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posted on September 27, 2003 05:13:59 PM
ahc3: eBay isn't paying much attention to the 98% percentage rule for PowerSellers. I'm right at the borderline (currently 97.9%) and I get invitations to become a PowerSeller all the time.
I'm doing considerably more than $2k a month but I can't even see Ezra's ballpark from here, not even with binoculars.
To the person who said there was much to learn from Ezra, you are so right. And it's a free education...such a deal.
Our motto: Bright and shiny baubles for persons with low impulse control.
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fluffythewondercat
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posted on September 27, 2003 05:14:50 PM
pandorasbox: May I ask what you're using to run his stats?
Thanks.
Our motto: Bright and shiny baubles for persons with low impulse control.
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kiara
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posted on September 27, 2003 05:17:48 PM
Most of the complaints seem to be for slow shipping but I have to smile when I read some of the feedback by unhappy bidders.
STERLING SILVER CROSS DESIGN PENDANT - $1NR
Paid $2.25
Neutral : it's silver
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14K GOLD TURTLE PENDANT - NO RESERVE
Paid $4.20
Complaint : very, very flimsy and cheap, outrageous S&H, came in cheap ziploc bag, too
(Sounds like some of my RL customers. They buy a cheapie ring for under $5.00 and want a beautiful velvet box for free so they can impress the recipient).
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10K WHITE GOLD DIAMOND FLOWER PENDANT- $1NR
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=11002&item=2656467794
The bidder didn't read this auction as the measurements are given.
Neutral : You should try & give measurements
Seller receives another neutral.
Neutral : A lot smaller than the picture 
pandorasbox, thanks for posting the stats. I think this seller is doing quite well. He should take out the fast shipping line though as he can't seem to keep up.
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AuctionAce
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posted on September 27, 2003 05:38:27 PM
The 98% Feedback rating requirement for Power Sellers is not really a straight 98%. It is some kind of special mathmatical formula. So even though this seller is at 97.1% rating he still qualifies for the 98% feedback requirement.
I think the fact that he starts everything at a buck [b[and[/b] allows and even encourages combining of items for up to a week is amazing. Many sellers that have very low start bids must make a substantial part of their profits on a high s/h if the items get just a few bids and not allowing combining of items prevents selling the items below what they may have paid for the items.
Closeout jewelry is an ideal business for ebay as this seller and other sellers have proven.
-------------- sig file ----------- The Fluffster --- a true scrounger
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tomwiii
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posted on September 27, 2003 05:41:36 PM
Another bozo added to my blocked bidder bonanza -- woah! last of the big whiney spenders!
Ralphie loves Mr Blonde:
"Are you gonna bark all day little doggie, or are you gonna bite?"
http://members.ebay.com/aboutme/vidrat/
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