Auction Format Dead on eBay – Long Live The Auction

Today a landmark change in listing fees for fixed price format "Buy it Now" items on the original auction Internet site eBay was announced. 

Starting September 17th eBay will charge 35 cents to list any number of the same types of fixed-price items each fixed price item listing will now run for 30 days just as store listings and continue to be included in core search. 

UPDATE: eBay special web page explaining changes here: eBay

Is this move an indicator of the death of auctions on eBay?

Lorrie Norrington, eBay's president of global marketplaces says no, but .... Continue reading “Auction Format Dead on eBay – Long Live The Auction” »

eBay Motors Fee Changes – No Insertion Fee – (Read The Catch)

eBay Motors sent me an email today....

New pricing for eBay Motors - No Insertion fee for first 4 vehicles!

HooRay, for the small guy, and for at home sellers!

No Insertion Fee on Your First 4 Vehicles...

eBay Motors is eliminating Insertion Fees on the first four vehicles you list in a 12 month period.

Starting with the fifth vehicle, the fee is $20 (50% less than it was under the old plan).

And after 12 months, you go back to "first four" pricing.

Only pay if you are successful...

If you are successful, a $125 Successful Listing Fee is charged.

Auto Dealers, not so much...

Because now instead of only paying $40 to list a car, they will now pay $20 + $125 per car sold.  This could be a good deal for dealers who don't actually sell the cars they list, but for those with the intent to sell cars, the pricing just pretty much doubled.

I am stoked for the residential eBay user who only sells a car a year or at most 4 cars. For them, the final value fee deal is a good trade off. But for small dealers (Not in the GM or Chrysler networks with discounted eBay Motors listing fees from the start) I don't think this deal is a good thing.

If you are an Auto dealer using eBay motors on a consistent basis, please chime in with a comment to let us know what you think of the new eBay motors fee structure! (Comment form is below the image...)

New pricing Announcement - eBay Motors

eBay Partner Network – Losing Affiliates Confidence

The eBay Partner Network - Formerly managed by Commission Junction seems to be faltering...

The eBay Partner Network is the internal division of eBay now placed in charge of managing affiliates for eBay.  This recent change from the Commission Junction program initially was presented as a good thing for eBay and therefore a good thing for eBay sellers. 

After recent announcements of an alteration in the payment structure for eBay affiliates and reports of discrepancies in reporting by the Partner Network to its affiliates, it now appears the switch away from Commission Junction may not be the best move for eBay or its sellers.

Many of our readers concentrate on selling physical products on eBay.

Why should eBay sellers be concerned about affiliates?

eBay is attractive to many sellers because it is a proven source of what sellers desire most... buyers. 

Many merchants have compared the flow of buyer traffic to that of the flow of water from a fire hose and many say this flow of buyer traffic becomes addictive. So much so, that some merchants find it difficult to set up other selling channels once they establish themselves on eBay.

Since eBay enjoys the reputation of being one of the best places on the Internet to find the buyer traffic merchants need to sell goods.  eBay's traffic is one of the main reasons many merchants have never explored establishing an Internet presence of their own.  Consideration should be given to the sources of that traffic and anything which may disturb the flow.

Ever wondered where the traffic comes from? Continue reading “eBay Partner Network – Losing Affiliates Confidence” »

Paypal re: IRS – A "Small Percentage" PayPal Customers Process $20,000.00 Per Year

Our friend and co- blogger Richard Brewer Hay, over at eBay Ink reported today about the move by the US Congress to require PayPal and other online payment processors to report annual gross receipts of individual online merchants in excess of $20,000.00 to the IRS.

Richard's report was partially sourced from the Wall Street Journal and also from the official PayPal blog. (See the block quote below).

In my humble opinion,

The following statement  "a small percentage of PayPal customers are effected" by this impending IRS & Online sales tax issue, says little for PayPal or eBay as a route to business success.  I mean... if the use of PayPal as a business solution to process payments from online sales, is a healthy concern, wouldnt more than a "small percentage" of PayPal users be effected by this IRS fact finding mission?

How can any online or ecommerce business stay in business if they do not process more than $20,000.00 per year in PayPal payments? What is the incentive? Continue reading “Paypal re: IRS – A "Small Percentage" PayPal Customers Process $20,000.00 Per Year” »

eBay Fees ? Amazon Fees ? Etsy Fees ? Overstock Fees ? Try eBCalc

 eBCalc the venerable online fee calculator for eBay and PayPal has been used by knowledgeable eBay sellers for years.

Many of us long standing eBay sellers are very familiar with the interface and usefulness of this nifty free program found at the following URL: http://v1.ebcalc.com/

You may not be aware that eBCalc has changed,

...at least I was surprised to see that the simple eBay & PayPal fee calculator has undergone a growth spurt.  eBCalc is now much more than a tool for eBay & PayPal and it seems we have a certain Mr. Doug Boudreau to thank. 

eBCalc is now a multi-channel fee calculator with more functionality than ever before.  Not only will eBCalc return results for eBay's many marketplaces and fee structures at the following URL: eBay Fee Calculator but it will now also help with fee calculation for many other marketplaces such as Amazon.com, Overstock.com and Etsy (among others).  Continue reading “eBay Fees ? Amazon Fees ? Etsy Fees ? Overstock Fees ? Try eBCalc” »

eBay Links Policy Revised – Stays the Same – What?

eBay... Yes EBAY listened to sellers...

I know this is a shock,  just breathe deep - Take a moment to comprehend the full meaning of the statement above...

Everyone knows how much and how fervent our opposition was to the "new links policy" from eBay, announced last May.  Here are a few of our articles regarding the links policy changes proposed...

It seems the Trading Assistant Journal was not the only voice making vehement objections to the removal of links from our eBay listings and "me" pages.  And eBay has listened!  The announcement from John McDonald yesterday is a significant victory for eBay sellers and believers in social media marketing everywhere. 

Thank You eBay! and Thanks Mr. McDonald!

***A Message from John McDonald – Links Policy News for Sellers***July 31, 2008 | 10:40AM PST/PT

Hello everyone…Back in May, I announced a number of important policy changes for sellers. One of the policies I mentioned was an update to our Links Policy which governs the types of links that can be included in a listing. Our Links Policy is intended to increase safety and preserve the buying experience.

After my announcement, we received questions and concerns from sellers about this change. At eBay Live!, our staff made it clear we would be going back to reconsider some aspects of the policy around how third-party links would be treated.

As promised, we’ve been reviewing all the different types of situations that our sellers have brought to our attention, and we’ve been meeting with additional stakeholders to understand how our policy update would impact them. After this additional research and discussion, we’ve decided to leave our Links Policy as is. There will be no Links Policy updates at this time.
I want to thank our sellers for your support and patience around this matter.

Zippi Networks – eBay Consignment – Late to the Party

Zippi- Networks Affiliate, MLM or Franchise, what's the difference?

eBay Live 2008 held many surprises... low attendance, minimal exhibitors and a subdued atmosphere...

Not what anyone who has attended any prior eBay Live would ever expect.

One of the biggest surprises (to those in the know), was the presence on the eBay Live 2008 solutions floor of yet another eBay based consignment franchise opportunity (Or Affiliate/MLM - Call it what you will). 

Past eBay Live events had been virtually packed with eBay drop stores and mobile consignment business opportunities / franchises.  Yet since the recent and severe decline of eBay drop stores like Quick Drop and Snappy, it was a little odd to see a new franchise trying to sell the same style of business opportunity.

For those who are not yet acquainted with the history of eBay consignment franchises, please read this post: eBay Franchise Drop Stores.

Zippi Networks is a publicly traded company, Zippi[TM] Networks, Inc. (Pink Sheets:ZPNW) and has a very clean flashy website. The content on the site is eerily similar to what other eBay based business opportunities have offered, without the actual overhead of a retail store. 

Clutter into Cash - Sound Familiar? Continue reading “Zippi Networks – eBay Consignment – Late to the Party” »

eBay Wins in Court – Happy Day San Jose, Sorry Tiffany & Co.

EBAY Wins a Case!

Wow, eBay Wins in court, must be a happy day in San Jose!  Today, eBay won a critical ruling in the case of Tiffany & Co. vs eBay Inc. The Court ruled eBay was not responsible for the sale of fake Tiffany on the site.

I tend to agree, eBay is thousands of sellers and each seller is responsible for the items they offer. While eBay should do more to prevent the fraudulent sale of counterfeit goods and knock offs, it can not be ultimately responsible.  The real responsibility falls upon the seller who offered the merchandise on the site should bear the legal responsibility for same.

Congrats - eBay! Continue reading “eBay Wins in Court – Happy Day San Jose, Sorry Tiffany & Co.” »

eBay Trust & Safety & Live Help Fails Miserably – Cornerstone Commercial Supply Update

This is a follow up to: Communication Should Be Open And Live Help Communication at eBay

Cornerstone Supply

First off, if you have not already done so, please read the first two articles about Cornerstone Supply's eBay seller account mystery block by following the links above...

OK, back now?  I have been sipping some coffee, waiting patiently... Good Coffee

Now that you are "up to speed" on what has transpired previously with our client Cornerstone Commercial Supply... I must apologize, because our last article left you the reader hanging, with Cornerstone blocked from listing on eBay and eBay not returning calls or emails for over 10 days...

Lets end this cliff hanger!

Continue reading “eBay Trust & Safety & Live Help Fails Miserably – Cornerstone Commercial Supply Update” »

Perfume to Sell? Not on eBay

No Perfume on eBay (Photo Courtesy LVMH Lowe)

EBay Inc. lost an appeals court bid to halt a ruling that ordered it to stop online sales of LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton perfumes. This ruling prevents eBay, or anyone selling on eBay Worldwide from listing any perfume from these manufacturers unless they are an authorized dealer. 

This ruling even goes so far as to prevent consumers from selling perfume received as gifts.

A Paris appeals court upheld a 50,000-euro ($80,000) fine for each day that EBay allowed the sales to continue, LVMH said.

The order was part of a 40-million-euro verdict last week over claims that San Jose-based EBay didn't do enough to block the sale of fake goods

My opinion on this....

The ruling shows the World that eBay is not the only entity to make a few bad decisions.  Preventing knock offs and couterfit products from flooding the market is not eBay's job.  eBay does not sell anything listed on their venue. All these things have been argued in court before...

The point I am so confused about is how does a single sale from an end user/consumer effect the bottom line of any of these brands?

In my book, if a perfume or purse or anything is valuable enough for someone to sell on eBay, or to even think they should sell it on eBay if they did not want it as a gift, then this perceived value really increases the brand value.  It would be a simple matter for eBay to restrict the quantity sold for a single seller ID to X amount of units per year. 

Why in the World would French legal officials see it as piracy to sell a gift purchase of a single bottle of perfume?