posted on April 27, 2010 06:41:30 AM new
Do the DSR scores reset at some point? The thorn in our side is the dreaded shipping price star. Will we wear that to our final resting place???
Can't figure out how they can *itch about something as clear as a ship fee when they know up front how much the "6.00 insured shipping fee" for their box is and who the carrier is. Guess it's a bid now...*itch later mentality? Can't imagine what our score would be if we charged actual shipping. Although we don't give "free" shipping, we use that flat rate that we find most buyers recognize as the "meet you part way" perk it's meant to be. We absorb the difference as part of the cost of doing business. 3 out of over 870 didn't see it that way. Will we ever shake those 3 off our record?
posted on April 27, 2010 08:32:10 AM new
That has been one of the biggest complaints I have had regarding DSR.
Bidders are faced with a decision when they place a bid. Since eBay requires sellers to state shipping costs, buyers can choose between placing a bid or not placing a bid. If they feel the shipping rate is too high, then they should not bid. This is a perfect example of speaking with or without your money.
I often wonder if buyers are complaining more about the general costs of shipping vs the sellers fees for shipping, because we ALL complain about how much it costs to ship items. I can't ship a 2 pound package to Florida from Oregon for less than $8... ouch!
I ship items of all sizes, including some very large pieces. A lampshade that measures 14" tall x 17" wide will only weigh 5 pounds after packed, but will cost over $30 to ship because of its dimensions, not its weight.
I wouldn't doubt if eBay starts placing price controls on shipping by requiring sellers to ship everything for $4.99. Sellers will have to add the extra costs to listing prices so that eBay can make more money on fees. Makes me wonder how the shipping fee DSR would work if everything was $4.99.
posted on April 27, 2010 11:23:27 AM new
the question is... is it better to start your own site, where you reap the rewards of your toil vs. continue to sell on eBay.
it is already easy enough for criminals to use eBay's current policies to commit fraud.
it is like giving keys to a car thief. all they had to do is figure out which car the keys belong to. with the new INAD policy, that key now works for every car in the lot.
posted on April 27, 2010 11:38:30 AM new
Start your own site NOW. Do not wait. It will take a minimum of six months for results, and you may not start making a significant number of sales for a year.
I'm nearly two years into this process, and while my site is thriving, SEO could be a lot better. It's a matter of persistence and time. Backlinks are all-important, and you can't start building those until you have a site to point to.
posted on April 27, 2010 12:03:39 PM new
I get high stars/ratings for the first three DSR items, and almost always lower ratings for the last one (shipping). I honestly think that sellers think they *should not* give all high stars, and by the time the get to the shipping item, they'll put it a little lower. I also think that, by the time they get around to rating the seller, they've forgotten what the shipping charges were! I don't know how we can combat that problem.
posted on April 27, 2010 12:21:09 PM new
I've considered starting my own website - but with the inconsistent range of items that I sell - I don't know if it makes sense. Is there anyone here that has a successful website or knows of one that has a mixture of antiques and collectibles? I've seen Shagmidmod's site and it looks great, but he does have a fairly narrow niche. And of course Bill and Fluffy have more specific offerings also.
posted on April 27, 2010 02:21:24 PM new
keep in mind, i don't use my site to sell from... or at least vintage items. i do get inquiries from buyers to purchase items here and there.
i have actually decided to do something different with our site recently. Because 99% of the items on our site are sold in the store, I removed all pricing from it.
i did this for a few reasons...
1) i want customers to come into our store and buy items... not cruise our website for deals. we want to interact with customers.
2) other dealers were using our site as a price guide... big mistake.
3) it saves me hours of time each month. i no longer have to update prices on the site... just delete and add a few images with captions.
I want our store site to be used more as an informational site, not a commerce site.
At the same time, I've opened a google checkout account, and am getting my ducks lined up to start our own commerce site. We have discussed selling the business, and moving in a different direction, so I want the basics set up for me to make a quicker/smoother transition to our next project and little by little moving towards that goal. If we sell, then we likely can't sell vintage for awhile (anti compete clause). If we don't sell, we may go towards e-commerce with our existing business. Either way, I want to be prepared when that time comes.
posted on April 28, 2010 08:58:02 AM newI've considered starting my own website - but with the inconsistent range of items that I sell - I don't know if it makes sense.
It doesn't have to be commercial at first. It can be purely informational, and that will be a plus as you can get backlinks from other non-profit sites, even .edu links from universities which are particularly valuable.
You could do a Kovels-type format, answering questions from readers. Even if you only add one page or write one answer a day, in six months you'll have some amazing content and you should be well-indexed.
If you have an antiques/collectibles specialty, here's a chance to show it off a bit.
Many people find that starting a blog is the easiest way to get going. And "cherishedclutter.com" is available for $11/year at GoDaddy.
