Or the sellers could do like many of the Germans did when eBay first opened there. The sellers simply charged the buyers the eBay fees. I didn’t mind if the price was right. Very few do it any more.
From a sellers point of view i am also a buyer, so i can see from both sides of the fence, If you tried to charge any fees other than shipping to a buyer, you would hear a cry afoul from every corner of the earth, but i do think as a buyer the seller should be able to at least re-coop at least the expenses incurred, on a $100 sale by the time you pay the ebay insertion fee final fee, paypal fee, and shipping you have $30.00+ just in expenses, and then if actually sell the item, usually everything considered you loose money because the buyer is not interested in anything except “Boy did I get a great deal” or the item doesnt sell at all. I listed an item that is going for around $1500 and I started it at $999 didnt even get a bid somebody could have scooped it up for between 999 and 1200 which was 300 under my cost!! Didnt even get a bid. Now i will sell off piece by piece split up the set, and still probably take a loss when the dust settles! Like i’ve said before ebay is best for buyers not sellers! I can hear the comments now " then dont sell" sometimes selling is a necessity, and not a choice!!! for whatever the reason may be. Just a post mortem on the strike, i have not noticed any great difference in at least the train sites i visit so strike or no strike i guess it really didnt make a difference or at least a noticeable one from what i can see! Human nature is to always seek out the least expensive route on anything you would be foolish not to this day and age!!!
Grrrrrrrr. I think I like Ebay less and less every day. I won’t bore you with the details, but I’m about to just close my accounts with them and tell them to p*ss off. What other auctions are around that might carry large scale stuff?
Well personally I think the only result of these new fees will be higher starting bids across the board.
My beef with evilBay is that it has become so overrun with “stores” that its almost just another online shop. The old way of selling things, namely the “flea market” idea, has long been going the way of the Dodo. There have been a growing number of “stores” who’s starting bids are dam near the prices I can get if I just go to a regular online hobbyshop. Where are the savings?
Granted there are those that will start bids at 99 cents but theres no way of controling issues like planted bids to drive the prices higher. I have learned which “stores” are more trustworthy than others. But the prime reason I am on Ebay these days is to find older out-of-production items that are long gone from mainline retail stores, my Great Trains F-40 shell being a good example. In this, I can still get great deals on weaselBay but it is very different from when I first started.
Other online auctions? I havent seen any that were anywhere near as diverse as evilBay.
For the last couple of years evilBay has quite often made MORE on the stuff I’ve sold than I did (Especially when you add in the PayPain fees). Grabbing for more is just greedy… I also sent a polite email explaining what I didn’t like about their changes in feedback, and why. – I got a very nice form letter in return that basically said “Thank you for your input, but tough $#%&, we’re gonna do what we want”.
I don’t have anything that HAS to be listed this week, or ever, really. BTW since feeBay now owns craigslist there’s one less place I visit.
Maybe America is slowly coming in tune with eBay regulations in other parts of the world. I do not have the privilege of setting a reserve price and so my starting bid must cover my costs. If I list at $0.99 and receive one bid then I must sell at that price, pure and simple. If I try to compete in a ‘world market’ then I am disadvantaged as my start list price, by necessity, is generally higher than most online discount stores offer the same item for.
EBay statistics supposedly supprt their research that denying the right to set a reserve bid price actually increases the chance of a sale by 17%. If eBay actually believed their own research statistics then why do they not abandon the idea of a reserve price in one of their major markets, the United States?
After reading the changes to the feedback system then one has to wonder at what the regulators have been smoking. The intent of the changes is to foster a better relationship between buyer and seller and yet eBay increases the number of blocked bidders a seller may list from 1000 to 5000 members names. If the intent of the changfes is to foster a better working harmony then why increase the number of buyers names on the blocked bidder list? Also the removal of feedback when a buyer does not respond to the unpaid bidder complaint process. This enables a buyer to bid on as many items as he wishes and then pick and choose which item he decides to actually pay for, seemingly without penalty. I assume that the three strikes out clause still applies although have not seen any info on this. The three day limit on buyers before being able to post negative or neutral feedback is a good thing. Many times I have seen a seller rewarded with a negative, only to see that the buyer actually meant to post a positive feedback. Posting a negative is not a mistake. The buyer or seller are reminded when posting negative or neutral that they are about to post such feedback and so it takes two conscious actions to actually post such feedback.
I have had to deal with many unscrupulous sellers in my years on eBay, both as a buyer and a seller. In 2500 transactions I have received one only negative retaliatory feedback from a seller who took exception to me posting negative feedback for the seller’s inadequate packaging on a LGB mogul. He simply wrapped brown paper around the red box. Item suffered several hundred dollars damage in shipping. Seller initially said go to hell and then 'concilliated and offered to accept the item back if I pay the return postage. This would have left me $200 out of pocket for shipping expenses with nothing to show for it.
EBay should make it easier to ban/remove buyers/sellers from being members. I had a situation whereby a seller in New Jersey, sold me several expensive LGB items. I paid for the items including surface shipping cost. The surface transit time to Australia exceeded the time limit to initiate an item not received complaint. Eight months later the seller relisted the same items, restricting sale to the United States only. I immediately informed eBay, while the listings were still active. EBay replied that the seller was a ‘power seller’ and would not engage in such an action. I again informed eBay and was once again told to basically shut up as their power sellers were respected members. When the listings finished I again informed eBay, including the names of the winning bidders and eBay’s response - exactly - not interested. They actually received two sets of listing fees and final value fees for the same items - why would they object? The seller shortly afterwards changed his eBay listing name. He still sells golfing equipment on eBay. John, if you are reading this, then I have not forgotten, the USPS is still looking into the case for mail fraud.
I avoid reserve price auctions. I find that most reserves are set quite high. If a seller has a price in mind, step up to the plate and do a “buy-it-now”.
I’ve been toying with the idea to put up an auction here. It’d be a lot cheaper than EBay, and your fees would be going to a fellow RRer to support the site, instead of some huge corporations pocketbook. Thoughts?
why havent you started it already bob, what r u waiting 4???
come on get up on it already
I just bought 2 Delton hoppers on Ebay, guess I voided the strike,…Bob, Great Idea
That’s a great idea Bob!!!
Good idea.
You’d get suppport from Carlyle. 
So let it be written!
Wow, positive reinforcement! Time to work out the bugs…
sounds like more work to me…
I’ve reg’d. Just waiting for that mysterious e-mail to arrive…Zzzzzzzzz
Breathlessly awaiting the email. 
Why England and Wales, and not Scotland? TAC, do you know any good mouthpieces? A good consigliari?
I’m with Fred never use and never will. Later RJD