posted on April 7, 2001 07:52:21 PM new
I have been receiving occasional comments
in response to the question, "Are You Going
Or Staying" for months. I see that the
original question was posted on January 2.
I would like to know how many can say that
they are basically out of business since
leaving Yahoo? I know that I am, as I cannot
sell my inexpensive items with a fee attached.
I sold glassware and violins on
Yahoo---an unlikely combination, but glass is
my hobby and violins are my profession. The
violins on Yahoo have gone from 6 or 7 pages
to 1 or 2 and what is being sold is just
junk. I think that these people can continue
to sell with the fee because their mark up is
so high. Anyway, I would like to honestly
hear from others.
[ edited by fiddler54 on Apr 7, 2001 07:53 PM ]
posted on April 7, 2001 08:22:14 PM new
I am still doing business at yahoo. There are fewer flaky non payers. However, I sell watches which have a higher margin, hence, I can afford the fees. Should the non paying bidders re-appear I would leave immediately since there isn't any way to recover the initial listing fee and yahoo doesn't seem to have any way to really discourage them from bidding and not paying. I have stopped listing the more affordable watches since the listing fee prevents it when there aren't enough bids on these to justify the listing fees. I am getting more international business since Jan 10., over all I have benefited from the institutiting of the fees.
[ edited by zjq on Apr 7, 2001 08:24 PM ]
posted on April 7, 2001 11:00:49 PM new
Doing quite fine, at eBay. I ate crow and returned to eBay, and sales are good. At least I know what to expect from eBay - and there are buyers and I don't have to relist a zillion times.
Most of all I don't have to worry about having auctions cancelled on a unknown, unexplained TOS. AND if eBay should, they refund for the auction.
Yahoo was a great ride, and I loved it, but when they decided to get ignorant, they did it big time and not just the fees - their whole attitude got totally unbusiness like, and fraudulent.
posted on April 8, 2001 02:03:53 AM new
I am not going out of business because of Yahoo. But, eventually, I will not be doing my business on Yahoo or even egreed.
There are so many new innovations happening constantly on the internet and there are new opportunities arising all the time.
People need to open their eyes and stop sitting here waiting for these soon to be Edsels with Napoleon complexes to work for them. There are new and better happenings all around us constantly. Pay Attention!
Once the Yahoo fools and ebay greeds lose us to these new ideas and opportunities, the writing will be on the wall for them.
As Pierre and Tim drive their $130,000 Edsels off into the sunset they will be remembered as the fools that could not see beyond their own Emperior Has New Clothes mentality.
posted on April 8, 2001 09:02:43 AM new
My husband and I were discussing just this subject yesterday. I sell low priced items for the most part, and Yahoo was great for that category when fees were low. Even when postage went up, I was still ok.
But when you add fees, paypal fees, higher postage coming, to the hassle of listing and packing...it's no longer profitable, time wise. I'm working for a minimal hourly wage combined with a lot of hassle! I cleared about 24 thou last year, as a part time job (I really teach). But that was a lot of time added to my day for the small return.
We spent the day at the Round Top fair yesterday. It's really everything the collectible magazines say it is...fascinating mix of collectibles, antiques, people from all over the country. And the weekend antiquers are paying unbelievable prices! I can buy online, pay the postage, and still get it cheaper.
Our plan, when the funny money runs out, is to just go to Round Top twice a year, put our usual reasonable mark up on things, and sell it all out at once. Believe me, the dealers will clean us out at those prices, and it's just two weekends a year compared to 24/7/12!
posted on April 8, 2001 10:11:13 AM new
Round Top is a town, population 81, east of Austin in Texas. Twice a year, they have an antiques fair. 14 miles of dealers down this country road. every house, yard, farmer's field is full of dealers. Cars lined up everywhere, cops on horses, food vendors, and dealers from all over the country. And what a selection of items! I'll never believe anything is 'rare' again-if it was ever made, you can find it there. Genuine birch bark canoes, tents full of vaseline glass, toys, a little of everything-plus wonderful old Victorian houses, fields full of bluebonnets and indian paint flowers, worth the ride just to see the scenery! But take a cart with you to carry everything you find!
First weekend in April and October-the closest place to get hotel reservations is Giddings or Austin. And get there early to get a decent parking place.
posted on April 13, 2001 03:55:33 PM new
as of today at 12:00 pm EST
Yahoo has officially put me out of business
I sell/sold adult novelty items at auctions
The vast majority of sales were on Yahoo Auctions
I never sold videos, I never used any porn or nude pictures in my adds.
I sold toys and lotions and honeymoon kits etc etc all relatively tame, most of or at least many of my items you could find at Spencers Gifts at any mall.
I did well enough that I did not need a regular job *shrugs*
I guess its back to waitressing.........
http://www.lovepotions.net
posted on April 13, 2001 06:16:57 PM new
As of 9am Pacific Time today, my business is in SERIOUS trouble because of Yahoo. Yahoo was the LAST place I thought would dump adult products. It must to nice to be able to run a company on morals and not have to worry about revenue...
posted on April 13, 2001 07:24:20 PM new
Let's just say I was never in business because of Yahoo. I wish Yahoo would start promoting auctions and get sales pumped up, but let's face it, Yahoo is a portal, no one will really see them as an auction site.
posted on April 14, 2001 04:42:56 PM new
I am in Biz with yahoo, right now I am not re-listing because I have to go out of state for my fathers second triple bypass surgery. Hit me hard but am trying to accomadate my winners and take care of my parents.
I am basically very happy with yahoo's new system, I went from 8% to 25 % +++++ in sales per ratio since they started fee's. Their are sellers that are used to selling in several sites at a time before the fee's were instated. These are sellers who are the Salt of auctions and are doing better then ever. They are dropping other sites to concentrate in Yahoo.
Dont even ask about how I came up with my selling status, has to do with LESS DEADBEATS too.
posted on April 14, 2001 10:50:57 PM new
Tell me anotherone, rollanotherone....
Bidding is slower than ever on Yahoo right now. I'm not just speaking from personal experience either. I have been watching many other sellers as well. Some sellers I know who had high sell through rates are getting few if any bids lately.
The entire site is in a steady state of decline. Listings are down and bids are down (at least in the categories that I am following and selling in)...
posted on April 26, 2001 02:15:52 AM new
The only edge yahoo had on ebay was no fees, It's really simple, and true. That was the only way they could compete, but now its gone. Excite went through same thing. Ebay will always be the best place for selling more sales are worth the final fee. Atleast you can re-list with ebay for free. And we all know ebay sees so much more traffic. The only reason they inserted fees as they told it was to improve the listings and non paying bidders, WRONG it was to start making money cause they really thought they had something. What does charging more to list more expensive items, or charging multiple listing fees for a dutch auction, have anything to do with improve listings. NOTHING.
posted on April 27, 2001 06:15:28 PM new
No offense intended, but anyone who is going out of business because of Yahoo's fees had a flawed business model to begin with.
Yahoo was able to provide free listings because lots of people were foolishly willing to pay thousands of times earnings for e-commerce stock such as Yahoo. That is no longer true. And there are consequences of that. One is that Yahoo has to actually start trying to make some real money. As far as auctions are concerned, they have gone about that in a very foolish manner. But basing a business plan on the idea that Yahoo (or any one company) is always going to make good business decisions obviously has its pitfalls.
Perhaps there just isn't a viable market online for some items. But the fact that Yahoo is no longer willing to subsidise those markets to make them profitable is just part of the market process.
That said, I have been shocked to find that my sales on Yahoo have actually increased since the fees were started. And I am no Yahoo cheerleader. I certainly didn't expext this. I really can't explain it, and I know that it's not the case for most people, but, so far, I'm making more money on Yahoo than I was before fees. In fact, my Yahoo sales are now about equal to my Ebay sales, and my Yahoo fees are about 1/4 of my Ebay fees.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
All rights reserved. All wrongs reversed.
posted on April 28, 2001 09:25:31 PM new
I have no complaints on Yahoo or E-Bay! Yahoo has actually been doing better with instant purchases and actually having bidders! Many items I have listed have gone on IP!
Not like the old First/Only bid wins if you got a bid! It was run like a classified and not an auction!
There is no brick and mortar store, auction or Internet service that can leave merchandise sit for free forever as Yahoo was doing!
I do not believe you will go to an auction house and see the same items up for auction today in their inventory six months from now as you did on the "OLD YAHOO"!
To me Free also means FREEloaders! Yahoo and many of the other sites had and still have that!
I myself am glad to see the thousands of adds gone that were relisted every two days for over a year in my main category!
Used to have 4000+ daily and now about 700+ and now receiveing more bids and higher prices then before!
