posted on August 13, 2000 09:38:37 AM
I put a bid on an item at Yahoo last week.
The auction enden yesterday and I get up to find the seller had canceled my bid and relisted the it again.The bidding started at
1.00 and I put in a 10.00 bid.
What is the deal?
He has yet to answer the question I posted at his auction.
I know two other people this has happened to and both times the sellar relisted the items.
This has never happened to me at ebay.
I am not a happy camper and probably won't ever bid again if that is how they do business.
posted on August 13, 2000 12:53:34 PM
While there are alot of deadbeats on both the selling and buying side of Yahoo, Don't let this guy decide where you will buy.
There are plenty of honest merchants out there, and if you know of a merchant that isn't, do your part and leave him a bad feedback or post a note about him in the neighborhood watch.
It takes everyone who has a problem to complain in order to get results.
posted on August 14, 2000 12:39:50 PM
I'm so sorry!! Forgive me for my sins! I have done the same thing to a buyer recently!
I had a slew of items for sale, all at "first bid wins" prices. I had a bidder who bid on 10 items and 9 closed immediately. I had forgotten to put in a "buy" price on the 10th auction and did not check off "allow early close". But I promised him that the item was his at my minimum price. The next day, a second bidder came along and outbid him. Yikes! I agonized over what to do! I didn't want to cancel their bid. They had 0 feedback and I didn't want it to look that that had anything to do with me cancelling their bid. Unfortunately, Yahoo does not provide you with the email address of bidders, so I knew of no way to contact him.
Believe me, I hated doing it, but I cancelled his bid. There was not even a spot to put in any kind of explanation. I felt so terrible. That bidder never did contact me, but if they did, I would apologize to them and explain what happened.
Just wanted to give you all a glimpse at my scenario.
When something like that happens and you absolutely HAVE TO cancel someone's bid, you can:
1) Let the auction close with the second winner high, EMAIL him explaining the situation (you'll have his email address), leave him glowing feedback for being understanding, THEN cancel his bid.
OR
2) Cancel his bid before the auctions closes AND add an explanation/apology to the auction listing ("Manage", then "Edit Auction Description" if you don't have his email address (I don't know if you get the email address of a bidder you cancel while the auction is still in progress, since I've only cancelled winners who failed to pay.)
tegan,
We're sorry this has happened to you and your friends. Some sellers require bidders to have a certain amount of feedback before they're allowed to bid, so check the listings to see if that was stated in the terms of sale.
I cannot imagine why else the sellers are doing this, unless they didn't use high opening bids OR reserves, and need to get more for their items than they brought on the auction (in which case, cancelling bids and relisting is INEXCUSABLE CONDUCT on the sellers' parts ).
If the sellers refuse to honor your bids and ignore your posted questions, email and ask for explanations. If you don't get VERY SATISFACTORY answers from them, post negative feedback on the Auction for them. You can still post feedback, even after being cancelled as winners. You can also complain to Yahoo (under "Help" and "Contact Us--Let us know".
Don't lump all Yahoo sellers into one basket....the vast majority are GREAT!!!!!!!
posted on August 15, 2000 05:51:51 AM new
SaxKid - I agree with you. ALSO, check the sellers feedback, same as you do on eBay.
I have been on eBay now going on 5 years, and although I basically only sell, I have friends who are major buyers, and they have been royally done in by some eBay sellers - the point is, it isn't the auction it is the individual seller. As the buyer it is your responsibility to check your seller out.
I DO HAVE A PROBLEM with this one area of Yahoo, and that is the questions left on a given auction. For sellers like myself who run a couple of hundred auctions at a time, if the buyer doesn't directly e-mail me, I would have no idea if they have left a question on Yahoo regarding an item. I don't have the time to inspect each auction. I do put a link to my e-mail address on each post so folks can write me direct.
My son, who is in his late 30's, runs over 1,000 auctions on Yahoo, and I know he certainly doesn't have the time to check each one for questions. This is a weakness in the Yahoo system. Questions should be directed to the seller in an e-mail.
I understand Yahoo's reasoning that it would cut down on potential buyers asking the same question if they can see the answer on the auction, but I don't get that many questions, and if one posts all necessary information, there should be few question regarding an item "IF" the potential buyer actually reads the description.
You can go back to buying on eBay, and pay more for the same items, but that is rather like cutting off your nose to spite your face.
I post the same items quite often on Yahoo and eBay, and will get 3 times as much on eBay, but the fact is, eBay just isn't worth the hassle and the attitude. I'll continue to run my business like Wal-Mart, lower prices, and money made on volume, not a few "wildly run up auctions."
posted on August 15, 2000 05:24:18 PM new
He finally answered my question. He canceled my bid and relisted the item because he was not getting enough money for it.
I sell 50 items a month on ebay and have just started to explore other auction sites and this did not endear me to Yahoo in any way.
I have purchased many items on ebay and nothing like this has ever happened to me.
This was my first winning bid on Yahoo and if it had only been me this happened to I would'nt be moving on but I just had an email from yet another friend that had the same experience not once but three times.
So needless to say I for one won't be back on yahoo.
posted on August 15, 2000 06:00:22 PM new
tegan, I understand your anger and insult in this situation. We were all first time bidders at one time. That is why I never cancel a new bidder, even though I may get stuck with a "dead auction" as I await their response. I re-email this person several times (sometimes it works), before relisting and giving negative feedback. Some of my newbies have been my very best customers, and even came back to hit my PayPal banner to sign up without making a purchase. To me, it all works out in the end.
I'll have to admit, when I see "new" beside the bidder's id, I chringe and wonder how this will go.
posted on August 15, 2000 06:27:23 PM new
jwpc: I've only had one question on a Yahoo auction, but that time I did get an email from Yahoo.
The email came from Yahoo, and the question from the bidder was quoted within the message. (Bidder's email was not revealed, so the only way to answer the question is to go the auction page and answer there.) If you have all notification emails from Yahoo turned off, that's why you aren't receiving the questions.
posted on August 15, 2000 10:00:08 PM new
Tegan, If all is as you say PLEASE be a good OAI citizen, and neg the seller and report the seller to Yahoo for violation of the user agreement. If an item does not have a reserve, it has to go to the highest bidder, and it does not matter if the bid is 1 cent! -Rosalinda
TAGnotes - daily email synopsis about the Online Auction Industry
http://www.egroups.com/group/TheAuctionGuildnotes
If you and your friends that this has happened to will NEG the sellers for refusing to sell to you and report them all to Yahoo, you will be doing Yahoo Auction buyers AND sellers a big favor. This is the first time this problem has been brought up on Yahoo boards, and this dishonest practice must stop. The only way to stop it is to get rid of the people doing it, and that must be done by Yahoo.
I TOTALLY AGREE - LEAVE A negative for seller such as this, and notify Yahoo, and you might include their e-mail to you which is an admission of wrong doing......get rid of these type of people.
I've never heard of anyone doing that and as the above mentioned, I have never seen anyone speak of it on this board.
Of course there are other ways to do this seller in, but I shan't mention such.
By the way who is this person - we can all write them and let them know we are aware of their dishonest practices!
posted on August 16, 2000 09:48:00 AM new
Unfortunately, Yahoo's laziness in doing nothing to verify buyers or sellers and doing nothing to get rid of known bad buyers or sellers, is hurting the whole site. The famous scandal with the guy who sold $15,000 worth of hard drives and never delivered? Ebay and other sites, including Yahoo, were warned about him. Everyone except Yahoo kicked him off. Yahoo doesnt seem to care about safety or fraud prevention. They dont make money off their auction site. All they want are clicks and they dont care how they get them.
What can users do? If you go to the Seller Zone, a Yahoo club, you will find a group of people working hard to keep Yahoo operating as best they can. These are volunteers, buyers and sellers. Post your problem there. The folks there work together to get rid of such people.
In addition, I have prepared a detailed guide to auction success which gies information on how to avoid such sellers and tips on getting the best deals. Email [email protected] for a free copy. If everyone knew what to watch out for before they bid, scammers would have a more difficult time.
posted on August 16, 2000 11:53:28 AM new
PLEASE NEG the seller as everyone else has advised. The behavior you described is inexcusable.
Now, that said, I'm wondering why would you let one bad experience turn you off to the entire site? It doesn't make sense to me. Especially since this particular incident didn't even cost you any money. And especially since, as has been pointed out already, Yahoo is THE BEST PLACE to get fantastic prices on a wide variety of items.
Every transaction with a seller you haven't yet dealt with is a gamble to a certain degree. This is true on Ebay, Amazon, Yahoo, & any other auction site you could name. I am bummed that this happened to you on Yahoo, but it could easily happen at any other site.
I would like to point out one more thing: Many powersellers are vacating Ebay & flocking to Yahoo. I sincerely believe that more will continue to do so. If you stick by your decision to NEVER use Yahoo you might really be missing out.
posted on August 16, 2000 12:10:13 PM new
To the commenter about Yahoo questions: Whenever somebody posts a question, an email is generated to the seller with the question plus a link directly to the page where you can answer the question. If you answer, another email is generated to notify the asker of your answer.
if you do not answer the question, that question will appear in the Q&A area of the auction but ONLY for you to see. If you answer it, then anybody can see it. So if somebody asks something that you feel might spoil your ad where you would cancel and relist, don't bother; simply don't answer and nobody else can read the question.
posted on August 16, 2000 03:43:32 PM new
I am by no means a newbie. I have sold and bought items from just about every auction site for the last two years. I have bid on Yahoo items in the recent past but this is the first item I would have won if not for his canceling my bid.
I even have items listed on Yahoo (no bids yet).
I will not bid again because it may be only one time for me but I am hearing to many other people telling me the same thing happened to them.I'm not talking about anonymous postings on message boards but friends and family members who love these auction sites like I do.I am very surprised that this is the first time you are hearing about this. Loosing out to a last minute bidder is one thing this is something else.
This is the answer I got:
"Being I might have to go out of town, I
decided I had better have a reserve on this
painting, naturely I didn't want to give it away."
There are to many other auction sites out there to explore to put up with this kind of treatment.
Since he canceled my bid I don't know if I can neg him.
posted on August 16, 2000 04:53:59 PM new
hummmm more about the seller zone: it has over 700 members some of which are yahoo
personel, that's a lot of "bored wannabees" by zzyzx000's words, so what's to be believed...
posted on August 16, 2000 05:00:39 PM new
tegan: if he cancelled your bid AFTER the auction ended, you can in fact still NEG him. If your bid was cancelled before the auction ended, then unfortunately you can't.
I can understand your frustration at this type of treatment BUT there are many sellers who play the same games on ebay, maybe you just have not run into them. There are also good sellers on ebay and many of these same good sellers also sell on yahoo or would like to move to yahoo. Why? because on yahoo it would be the best price the seller can afford to let an item go and the most the bidder(s) wants to pay and no listing fees or commissions to bite into the sellers profit which in effect would raise the buyers price. It all comes down to be careful who you deal with on any auction site. Read feedback carefully, games like this are sure to show up sooner or later, and if a price seems too good....
posted on August 16, 2000 06:19:10 PM new
I screwed up my first auction listing and did the same to some hapless bidder. It happens. I felt terrible, but such is life.
Don't take it personal.
posted on August 16, 2000 07:17:41 PM new
Kimbo: all you have to do is go there...you don't have to join to read....and read the messages. I think you will find what I did, that 95% of the messages are the same sort of babble that one typically finds on IRC chat rooms. If you want to sift through all that chaff you will occasionally find a piece of wheat.
Not that this group is better...I mean this thread was started by a crybaby and there isn't much to learn from hearing that somebody got the shaft.
It's just that you might incorrectly get the idea that the Seller Zone is really an official site run by Yahoo which it is not.
And here it is MUCH quicker to scan past the drivel while looking for something of interest.
posted on August 16, 2000 08:25:49 PM new
glass100:
Your prayers are answered. I have added you to my blacklist. Of course if you ever change your mind all you have to do is get a Yahoo email address or Hot mail etc, and create another ID. You can even verify it with somebody else's credit card. Don't mind that the names don't match. Yahoo doesn't.
posted on August 16, 2000 09:18:20 PM new
zzyxz000 said
"Not that this group is better...I mean this thread was started by a crybaby and there isn't much to learn from hearing that somebody got the shaft."
I disagree..if I had listened to two other people who told me before I bid that it had happened to them I would not have got my hopes up when I was in fact the winning bidder on this thing.
The point is I have learned and now others are aware that this is happening and can watch for it.I checked this sellers feedback today and guess what? He did it to someone else the same day as me.
zzyxz000 I'm really sory if we all bore you so.I find the kind of exchange we get on these boards interesting myself.
I was just trying to inform other people
about a problem that was arising on Yahoo.
Whinning yes, crying no.
I will admit I have on occasion had a good cry but never over an auction.
If the SAME THING had happened to you on EBAY instead of Yahoo, would you just go to a message board and say, "I will never bid on ebay again....I am not a happy camper and probably won't ever bid again if that is how they do business....So needless to say I for one won't be back on ebay....There are to many other auction sites out there to explore to put up with this kind of treatment."
OF COURSE NOT!!!! You would neg the seller and report him to ebay, then you'd tell your friends who'd had the same experience to neg THEIR sellers and report them to ebay....and then, sadder but wiser, you'd go right on bidding on ebay, wouldn't you??????
What makes Yahoo any different??? How can you possibly judge an entire auction site on the behavior of ONE seller you've had bad dealings with? If you haven't been cheated in one way or another by any sellers on ebay, you've been EXCEEDINGLY fortunate. Read this thread about bad ebay experiences posted by buyers on AW, and you'll see that bad sellers are on ALL online auctions, INCLUDING ebay:
posted on August 16, 2000 11:22:27 PM new
granee:
Don't take it so personally.I think Yahoo could be a great auction site.As I said I have posted stuff for sale on Yahoo.
I just think it stinks that this guy and others like him are putting items up with no reserve to get more bidders and then canceling the bids if they don't get enough money.
Personnally if I put a price on the item I stick with it once there is a bid, mistake or not.
If I know that many people who got caught up in this scheme how many others are out there?
As far as would I say these things againest ebay, no, in two years I have never had this happen on ebay.
I know there are bad sellers on ebay, I have not run into them thank god.
I tried yahoo because I read about what great deals you could get.
I didn't get one.
I'm sorry if you are offended by this I was just expressing my honest feelings.
posted on August 17, 2000 01:00:29 AM new
My significant other had this happen to her. The seller relisted the item for 4 times the price and it didn't sell.
When he relisted it again for the third time the price was back down to 1/4th and my SO bid again. She said, "Just let him TRY to do it again." She wound up with the item that time and he did send it. We've never seen him place another one for that low a price again.
---
I may or may not be dmercer at any auction site.
posted on August 17, 2000 07:06:06 AM new
I sell on yahoo , I have never cancled a bid, but I have had my share of bidders who do! If I put a item on and it sells for less than I wanted it to I still go through with the deal. I try to treat my bidders with respect, and I hope for repeat bussiness,
posted on August 17, 2000 09:32:18 AM new
akt: I agree with your statement" I try to treat my bidders with respect, and I hope for repeat bussiness",
unfortunately no matter where you go in life, there will be some bad apples that spoil things for the rest of us, but we cannot just stay home because of them either.
That is letting the bad ones win.
I say let the good bidders and good sellers alike win, but working with the system the best we can.
zzyzx000 and a few others have said that they find this site easier to read the messages than the yahoo club: seller zone
well I really don't understand that at all.
In some ways a threaded message board might seem to be easier to follow the subjects you want to, when the threads get to be several pages long here, I find it horrendous to stay in the right place and to try to answer
a message without scrolling all over the place and opening new windows.
In the yahoo clubs BEFORE you read any messages you can see the author and the subject from the message list. What is so hard about that?
if you don't have his email address (I don't know if you get the email address of a bidder you cancel while the auction is still in progress, since I've only cancelled winners who failed to pay.)
).
