posted on April 25, 2002 07:31:16 PM new
Palaco, I have picked up some great bargains at Carnaby and now I get to play lotto too - Are there enough hours left in the day? List auctions, buy stuff and now play lotto! *sigh* A woman's work is never done.
I'm with you and in hoping this is just the beginning of the promised campaign. Time will tell.
posted on April 26, 2002 08:33:15 AM new
Super longshot lotteries get to be a waste of time very fast. Whatever happened to the guaranteed DVD players and large screen TV weekly/giveaways? With the small number of Carnaby users those contests made sense because a person entered had a great chance to win an actual item.
posted on April 26, 2002 10:19:08 AM new
First and foremost it's buying and selling that really counts, the lotto is just an extra IMO. A fun extra, but still not the primary focus of the site. I don't think I'm far off the mark in making that statement... Just look at the site map to see the lay of the land to know this is one serious site. It was the site map that drew me in the first place - Sounds strange but I figured any company willing to put that much time and energy and detail into the workings of the site, must be looking to the future in a big way. I will be happy to eat crow if I'm wrong... BBQ'd if you don't mind.
The cow lottery is a great way to bring sellers and buyers to the site don't you think? Waste of time? Not if you win, then it was worth the time to play.
Bidsbids, I have a better shot at winning a million on the lotto at Carnaby than I do on the "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire" show.
I do play 6 numbers Keno in Vegas on the rare occasion that I get there and I've won 6/6 and I didn't get a million. C'est la vie.
posted on April 26, 2002 10:29:05 AM new
I think it's a waste of time and money. People who use auction venues are interested in buying and selling, not pretty pictures and giveaways.
Unfortunately, and in spite of all the free stuff that Carnaby offered when they started, the venue's "auction" activity is still not all that great.
I believe very stongly that the novelty of on-line auctions has worn off ... gone the way of the DoDo Bird and the Pet Rock. Those who are serious about buying and selling live at eBay even though they are treated like crap there.
There may still be opportunities for specialty sites, but anyone who is willing to spend money to create another Carnaby is either very rich or not living in the real world.
JMHO though ... the people at Carnaby are all 1st Class.
posted on April 26, 2002 10:31:38 AM new
PS ... speaking of giveaways and winning stuff, I wish I could stop "winning" stuff on AW ... the flashing lights hurt my brain
posted on April 26, 2002 12:52:44 PM new
I agree with your asessment completely Buzz. If a buyer or seller wants to buy or sell something the only real choice is eBay with the exception of specialty or niche sites. The chances of any of these small sites every geting even 5% of eBay traffic or sales is a million to one.
I also agree with all the assessments that Carnaby has a great site layout and great management, tech and sellers. If any site were to truly possess a secret marketing plan I would hope it were Carnaby. They have everything but traffic.
posted on April 26, 2002 04:12:39 PM new
It looks very interesting but a few questions come to mind in regards to Carnaby, or any other small-time/niche "auction" site.
1) Who's guaranteeing the sweepstakes?
-- Hey, it’s a $1,000,000 dollars, and I do not see any guarantees in regards to the $1,000,000 in regards to insurance.
2) If Carnaby has a $1,000,000 to spend, then why don't they use it for advertising?
-- I am sure that the sellers and buyers of Carnaby would rather have some action on their auctions. I mean, it sounds far fetched that Carnaby even has anywhere near that sum of money in revenue or advertising. So what makes it legit?
3) Does Carnaby have all the necessary licenses, certificates, and is its lottery a registered lottery within all the 50 United States and foreign countries in which it allows members to enter?
These are all serious questions that anyone should consider. This could very well be a last go scenario for Carnaby.com to become a popular venue. If that is the idea, then I have one final question. How do you get traffic to a site/store/company/venue/etc. without any advertising?
I do not mean to bash Carnaby, but it just seems very unlikely that Carnaby has $1,000,000 to give a way. I wish every site with good intentions the best of luck, but again it is unlikely that this is a real lottery.
[ edited by comptalk on Apr 26, 2002 04:15 PM ]
posted on April 26, 2002 05:51:22 PM new
comptalk, I don't know about all the legalities but I did read this on the bottom of the page linked above by Palaco.
Note: At this time, only residents of the United States and Canada (excluding New York, Florida, Puerto Rico and the Province of Quebec) are eligible to participate in our Cash Cow Program. However, Carnaby is constantly growing, and we hope to have our Cash Cow program available soon to everyone around the world!
On the actual page that you play lotto, it does say the million is insured and every cent will be given away if it is won. I don't recall if it says who the insurer is or not.
As far as other legalities I have no clue but if they would be so detailed in all other areas, it would seem odd to slip up in this area.
Advertising, yes! That's the ticket for sure and the one we are all waiting for.
posted on April 26, 2002 07:28:36 PM new
I hope someone hits the million dollar jackpot. That would be a big advertising coup.
Most lotto players know the odds of hitting the big one are very, very high and soon the thrill of maybe winning becomes ho-hum.
Nice try though. It's more than the other third tier sites are doing.
posted on April 27, 2002 12:44:03 AM new
Sound familar?
"Tying promotional sweepstakes to Carnaby's auction site is a natural fit - it's a valuable and fun way for internet users to learn about Carnaby," said Rick Antunes, Chairman & CEO of Carnaby. "Our goal is to have the majority of auction participants call Carnaby their home. We expect to achieve this by focusing on building a community and by helping them be successful, as we believe that it is the support and loyalty of the community that will in turn make Carnaby a success."
The Carnaby Cash Cow program offers Carnaby members the opportunity to earn points and valuable Carnaby Dollars every time they browse, list or bid on items throughout the site. The points earned are converted into sweepstakes entries giving them the chance of winning great prizes, while the Carnaby Dollars can be used as discounts at participating merchants. Members can keep track of their points and Carnaby Dollars earned through an innovative and patent-pending "real-time" tracking system that appears on top of every page.
Starting today, the prizes for the Carnaby Cash Cow Sweepstakes Giveaway are as follows:
*Grand Prize: Disney Dream Family Vacation - A family of 4 will enjoy 4 days at Walt Disney World and a 3 day Bahamas Cruise on the Disney Wonder Cruise Ship or $5,000 in cold hard cash!
*Weekly Prizes: One winner every week will receive a Kodak Digital Camera or a DVD player from Panasonic.
*Monthly Prizes: One winner every month will take home a 52" Panasonic Big Screen TV with 3-D stereo sound or $1,000 Cash!
Carnaby has plans to introduce an even bigger Cash Cow Sweepstakes giveaway by offering an annual prize of $12 million, a $1 million prize every month, a daily prize of $10,000, and 25 $1,000 prizes every week.
The introduction of the Cash Cow Sweepstakes by Carnaby was prompted by the popularity of sweepstakes among Internet users, with over 100 million American adults participating in a Sweepstake last year alone. Those sweepstakes participants, when compared to the general population, tilt favorably in terms of credit card usage, household income, and internet access, making it the perfect target market for Carnaby.
Carnaby's management believes that as new members become involved in the auction excitement of finding deals, bidding and outbidding one another while earning points and Carnaby Dollars, they will be encouraged and motivated to visit the site on a daily basis, thus creating site "stickiness" and a strong loyalty to the Carnaby community.
posted on April 29, 2002 10:39:28 AM new
Listing fees are free according to the email I got from support. Maybe the wording is in anticipation of future fees???
posted on April 29, 2002 01:08:17 PM new
RB I just don't understand your complaint. Why would you want to tie numbers of listings to fees? If there are 25 million listings and no sales, would you be happy with fees?
What they have said is that they will give at least 30 days notice which is plenty good enough for me. That's enough time for me to make a decision. How much time do you need?
Best
[ edited by bestattic on Apr 29, 2002 01:09 PM ]
posted on April 29, 2002 02:47:35 PM new
bestattic ...
It's not a complaint, but it's a good question. I suggest you ask the Carnaby Team why they are making a connection between the number of listings and when they intend to start charging fees ... I don't get it either. This is their justification method, not mine
posted on April 29, 2002 02:57:15 PM new
I guess mine was a two-part question. The list fees question always get answered but the removal of the sign saying that listing fees now apply...
(NEW listing fees will apply)
Why in the world don't they get rid of that stupid note? I'm going to bug them till they answer.
posted on April 29, 2002 03:30:09 PM new
RB - I have been at Carnaby for quite some time and I don't remember them ever saying that fees were dependent on listings. Discussions about sell thru rates comes to mind, - can't remember the details, it was some time ago.
I'm going to bug them till they answer.
Please keep us updated - lmao - not at you, but at your tenacity. I admire that in a person.
posted on April 29, 2002 05:17:49 PM new
In my opinion these new auction sites are a waste of my time and believe me i have invested the time and money in auction-cow bidville auction-addict and now bay9 and none of them has yielded a sale. Ebay is raping sellers with fees but what choice do we have ? that is where the action is.
What I dont understand is how someone can afford to list a 2.00 item and incur listing and FV fees and if paid by credit card or paypal additional fees.
Between Ebay raping us and paypal et al cutting into gross margins, what is left for the seller?
posted on April 29, 2002 05:35:30 PM new
Let me try a magic trick .....
Nope ... both eBay and all of the third tier sites are still there. I tried to turn them all into toads. ( Some believe that Meg Whitman is already a toad though )
posted on April 30, 2002 05:59:22 AM new
I looked up this morning and saw a dimview sky, so I figured what the heck. Here's a couple of comments made by the Carnaby Team approximately one year ago on AW (emphaisis added by me):
As far as insertion fees, we do plan to introduce them when they can be justified by both our traffic and sell-through ratio. At that time, we expect the market to have changed, and will need to review and adjust the rates accordingly.
At this time we do not have a date marked on the calendar where Carnaby plans to implement listing fees. We are more concerned with building a relationship with our charter members, ensuring that the site's features are performing up to par and implementing a successful marketing program. In our opinion, it takes two parallel campaigns and a lot of patience for an upstart auction site to succeed - we must gain the confidence of our sellers AND generate enough traffic to make them successful.
We must first be convinced that our marketing program - once it's in full swing - is drawing the traffic and sell-through ratio that justifies a review and implementation of listing fees. When these conditions are met, we'll review and establish our fees with advanced warning to our membership.
And particularily interesting:
We will not be satisfied with a sell-through rate of less than 30% in our first year, and will do whatever it takes to achieve it
I recall reading on the Carnaby Formums that the decision as to when to implement fees was primarily dependent on the number of lists and not so much dependent on the sell-through rate.
Does anyone have a good idea of what their sell-through rate is after their first year?
posted on April 30, 2002 08:44:43 AM new
Thanks for that informative post Buzz. I really liked the part with this in it ....
We will not be satisfied with a sell-through rate of less than 30% in our first year, and will do whatever it takes to achieve it
A 1.5% - 2.5% sell-through rate was more likely the result. And with a FVF on items sold that many other sites do not charge.
It must take a certain amount of bravado to jump into the online auction game ( not meaning the tiny sites with inexpensive or free software either ). What happens after a year passes and the site is sound in all computer related aspects but the marketing has totally failed to draw any kind of a sell-through rate? Go another year? Then another?
posted on April 30, 2002 09:45:21 AM new
bidbids ...
I'm not sure if "bravado" is the word I would use, nor am I sure that stockholders would be satisfied with a "Well, we didn't make any money this year boys, but we sure showed a lot of bravado."
It's even more financially confusing when you consider that Carnaby's biggest success has been their giveaways and internet fun and games on their venue ... none of which true auction buyers and sellers are really looking for.
Personally, I think it was bad idea to start with. I think the Carnaby Team and it's members are some of the best people in the world, but they will never grow to more than a small community ... certainly not one that comes even close to a 30% sell through rate. That was a totally unrealistic forecast and shows, to me, a total lack of any idea of the on line auction business.
I don't profess to know any more than these folks do, particularily about setting up and running a profitable (or even break-even) auction venue on line, but I do "sense" that the novelty *has* worn off.
Maybe it's time for a new Pet Rock or Hula Hoop to amuse the masses
posted on April 30, 2002 10:04:58 AM new
I agree the novelty of the online auction has greatly faded away. Even eBay sees the writing on the wall and is moving to a mostly fixed priced items setup.
The new sites keep coming out off the conveyor belt though.
The latest bravado-encrusted site is of course AuctionCow with its secret marketing plan to bring bidders not sellers to the site. If the plan is as unstable as the website it could be a long drawn out death of the another online auction site.
>>"Even eBay sees the writing on the wall and is moving to a mostly fixed priced items setup.">>
I'm not sure if fixed price items are the future. If what we are experiencing means anything. We are getting less BINs lately (maybe 1 or 2 per week) and more people are bidding.
posted on April 30, 2002 02:03:16 PM new
With Half.com becoming eBay Express Buys and becoming totally integrated into the site seems like a move to fixed prices to me. Half does have 100 million plus compared to eBay's 7+ million. Already the eBay search engine has a "search Half.com for related items" function. That's just the very begining of the integration too.
