Good (or Bad) News for eBay Sellers

You should check out their feedback policy changes, as well - combine it all, and you have sellers leaving in droves!

eBay Fees Are A Mixed Bag

I crunched some numbers on my blog -> http://www.russellheimlich.com/blog/ebay-updates-fees-with-mixed-results/

It looks like if you sell items for less than a dollar then you will be saving money assuming you used to use the gallery feature. Still, eBay is woefully behind the times which is why Amazon is surpassing them in the User to user marketplace err... market.

Thank you Russell, that is helpful. I wonder how many items on eBay go for less than a dollar.

Ebay Greed!

Ebay also just announced that there will be no more listings for under 1.00... The sellers will have to go through their stores and re-list their items at a higher price...

I see a total collapse to this Ebay... They are a company that is driven by greed...

They have changed the feedback policy so that the buyer is the only one who can leave a negative comment to the seller... This gives the buyer the edge and gives him the ammunition they need to hold over a sellers head to get them to reduce shipping charges, or say they receive an item they don't care for and want a refund, they can request that the seller refund and if they refuse, then leave negative feedback...

When a sellers feedback score goes down (as Ebay is counting on) then the sellers FEES GO UP!! This will encourage all kinds of crooks to bid and then not pay, with no recourse what so ever for the Seller...

The fees were already too high from the hike they added last year, but this whole new system takes the cake...

It's unbelieveable... Then they tried to sell it to the ebayers as a "bonus for them" Ha... LOL... What a joke...

Many stores are already going out of business on there and there will be a strike by sellers from (Feb. 18-24)... As an ebay store owner and also a purchaser myself, I will join in the effort to have the "powers that be" listen to us... We are all searching for another venue to place our goods where everyone is treated fairly... I have been a registered ebay member since 1981 and have enjoyed both being a buyer and a seller... It's not a good experience anymore...

When profit margins are already razor thing, those pennies sure add up. Not everyone has a $500 wedding dress to sell.

I've heard they are also doing away with anything selling under a dollar--but it's much bigger than even that--with the complicated new best match search and the new rules for feedback most small sometime sellers like me will be left with no one being able to find our listings and if you check out the interview with the new Big Guy on Auction Bytes---it sounds like they are about to tell the sellers what they can charge for shipping and handling---it just seems like Ebay has opened a nasty can of worms especially for the little sellers that made Ebay what it is today

eBay fee & feedback changes

eBay fee changes are an increase for me. I resent the news stories that are promoting the fee changes as decreases. Did eBay write those stories themselves?

As for the feedback changes, they are the death knell for eBay as far as this 10 year veteran is concerned. I am one of the small old timer sellers who specializes in the cool, unique, collectible, hard to find stuff, and I will be out of here in short order.

I've been hearing more and more reports of buyers leaving neutral or negative feedbacks for sellers or threatening to do so. Same people are shocked when the feedback they leave is reciprocated by the seller. Apparently many people think the feedback policy change is already in effect and don't realize it won't be until May. Then they threaten to report the seller to eBay because "seller's aren't allowed to leave neutrals or negatives anymore".

2/3's of my activity is as a buyer. I have never withheld feedback from a seller after I got the goods and was pleased with it. I have never threatened a buyer with a negative when they had an issue. I have always accepted returns from anyone dissatisfied. However the unspoken threat of receiving a possible bad feedback has probably held some nuisance buyers in check.

I truly believe that most people are good, honest folks who just want to buy or sell a widget. However there is that annoying small percentage of both buyers and sellers who can make your life miserable.

I keep track of my auction stats so I know this much. I have about a 4% NPB rate. Overall on eBay is 10%. In addition I have about a 2% PITA buyer rate, folks who cannot be pleased no matter how hard you try, or don't read or understand the auction description, or want to change my TOS, or renegotiate shipping costs post auction end etc. Only their reluctance to receive a negative has kept those people in check.

I figure anyone who sells on eBay in the future will be receiving negatives on a minimum of 6% of their transactions. In addition, if the seller doesn't immediately leave positive feedback for their buyers as soon as they pay, those sellers can expect to get negged by a lot of buyers for that as well. If the seller files NPB against a slow paying buyer they can expect a neg too. yet eBay is encouraging sellers to file such complaints.

Up until now anything less than a 98% positive feedback rating was considered pretty sketchy. What will the new "good seller" percentage be? I am betting it will fall to around 90%. How comfortable will that make buyers about shopping on eBay?

I really think eBay did not fully think through all the ramifications of these feedback changes. I do not see it as being positive for either individual sellers or for eBay as a whole.

So 60 days prior to the May change in policy is my cut off for selling on eBay. I don't feel comfortable selling in an environment where I can be unfairly chastised with a negative feedback without having much recourse. I've worked too hard with excellent customer service to achieve my 10 year good feedback record to allow any passing newby to chuck a rock at it.

eBay has killed itself.

eBay is THE place to go for the odd/unique/antique/one-of-a-kind/hard-to-find "IT" items. THE place. eBay is trying to do away with those kind of sales by driving away the small and sporadic sellers that fill eBay with these goods - the heads of eBay have said they want to be rid of the online flea market. Yes, many people go to eBay for mass-produced/readily-available goods, but ONLY because they started going there for the odd/unique/etc "IT" items that eBay has long marketed itself as having.

What eBay is conveniently forgetting is that the BULK of it's GOOD BUYERS are also small/sporadic sellers; drive them away you drive a lot of the buyers away (personally, I know of NO ONE that buys on eBay that hasn't also occasionally sold on eBay.)

eBay might be OK as another Amazon clone, but it won't be able to top Amazon, it will be second place at best. eBay needs to go back to being an inexpensive, fun, FAIR community of buyers and sellers specializing in odd goods that aren't easily found elsewhere.

If eBay continues to be solely profit-driven to appease it's stock-holders then eBay will soon completely cease to be.

It may be too late; smaller eBay sellers aren't sitting on their thumbs hoping eBay will come to their senses this time - eBay never came to it's senses before - so we are leaving (in droves!) and looking for venues that will be better for the small seller.

Ebay Greed Indeed

I started selling on Ebay in 2005. I wanted a business of my OWN where I would make decisions for MY business instead of CORPORATE telling me what I can and cannot do. Ebay provided the tools but it was up to all of us sellers to build our businesses and our unique customer base. Yes, without buyers there are no sellers but without sellers there is no Ebay. SELLERS pay Ebay's FEES whether or not buyers BUY!

I have maintained a 100 percent feedback up to this point and am very greatful and appreciative of my buyers. I am all about customer service. My personal opinion however is that the customer is NOT always right and I got tired of CORORATE telling me that they were and that there was NOTHING that I could do about it! A major selling point for me in joining the Ebay community was that I could have a say in letting others know which customers were NOT always right and that there WAS something that I could do about it! I could leave them appropriate feedback and BLOCK them from doing future business!

With Ebay's new feedback policy, you have corporate once again telling sellers that the buyer is always right and there is NOTHING that you can do about it! The buyer can now only receive POSITIVE feedback no matter what. Once again Pandora's box is open to buyer extortion.

The most appauling thing is that it's no longer just a "guide" to help buyers make decisions about trusting a seller. It is now a TOOL for which EBAY will take action on a seller's account and will charge the seller based on the seller's SCORE! Only POWER SELLERS are eligible for final value fee discounts but even they have to maintain a HIGH RATING! On top of that, if a seller is selling "high risk" items such as electronics, or has "5% or more of dissatisfied cutomers", or has "less than 100% feedback" that seller will be FORCED to accept PAY PAL or another "safe payment option" where "PayPal will hold payment funds until either the buyer has left positive Feedback or 21 days have passed without a claim." They are charging a TWELVE PERCENT final value fee and NOW your funds can be withheld for up to 21 days all BASED ON FEEDBACK!

Feedback also reflects whether or not the buyer LIKES a seller's SHIPPING & HANDLING fee! The last time I checked, sellers have a RIGHT to charge what ever handling fee they feel is necessary to cover the cost of packing materials, gas to the post office and time standing in line! If the buyer doesn't agree with the charge they have a CHOICE NOT TO BUY from that seller as these charges are ALWAYS POSTED to the listings! NOW if a buyer CHOOSES to buy from a seller therefore ACCEPTING the seller's terms, that buyer can turn around and NEG the seller for that! YES I believe that Ebay's NEXT thing is to DICTATE what the seller will be ALLOWED to charge for a HANDLING FEE! They pretty much ALREADY DO by allowing FEEDBACK to be left accordingly!

Ebay states that they will be "monitoring feedback abuse" and for the sellers to "report" such occurances.....WHAT A JOKE! In the meantime they allow non-paying bidders to TIE UP the seller's inventory by making the seller WAIT a MINIMUM of 8 DAYS before the seller can FILE a dispute and then ANOTHER 8 DAYS before they will REFUND THE SELLER'S FEES should the buyer not pay within that SIXTEEN DAY period!

It's all so disgusting to say the least! I am hoping that COMPETITORS will take note and that we will have some alternative avenues in the near future!

To ebay or not to ebay

Ahhhhhhhh ebay, once upon a time you were a real online auction site for Mom and Pop, regular people. Now you have become the evil greedbay, just another corporation who only cares about the almighty $$$$$

I have been a member since April 7, 2000. I have worked hard, had fun, met many nice people (and a few not so nice, but very few) I have made a few dollars selling items I no longer needed. I have spent a few dollars on interesting and useful items. I was rather happy with my 2400+ positive feedbacks. Then came the 1/29/08 email announcing the "important seller pricing changes" and "Reduced listing Fees". This was just a disguise by clever greedbay. You had to look deep to find that with the new Final Value Fees what appeared to be a decrease was actually an increase in fees for many. I gulped and tried to decide whether I could accept yet another increase in fees.

Then can the announcement "Griff on Feedback". OMG, this can't be real! This person is trying to convince us that doing away with a seller's ability to leave anything but positive feedback is a GOOD THING. (sorry Martha) As I seller I am rated twice by buyers. They can leave positive, neutral or negative feedback for any item they purchase from me. They can also, anonymously, leave Detailed Seller Ratings, what I refer to as "The Star Rating System". I have always left feedback for my buyers, appropriate feedback, and so have they for me. It seemed to work fine, I have had very few complaints from anyone. I have also left feedback for anything I have purchased. (and let me say I have no problems with anything I have purchased). Now greedbay is taking the ability for me to give appropriate feedback as a seller. This is unacceptable. This is the straw that breaks the camels back. I have only left 2 negative feedbacks in all these years. I do not like to leave negative feedback. However, when someone doesn't pay or respond to my queries why they haven't paid then it is appropriate to leave negative feedback. It is also a step you must take to recover your fees from ebay for that transaction (ebay's rules) Negative feedback sends a message to the ebay community that you should look twice before dealing with this individual. I have 100% positive feedback, so you can see I have not left retaliatory feedback.

Ebay doesn't think we will leave because they are the big guys. I don't think they care if we do leave. Someone else will fill our spot, they think. We have put up with higher fees, DSR's , a search system them is broken and many other things through the years. We complain, fuss, and then accept the changes. Maybe this time things will be different.

Maybe this time we will

***************BOYCOTT VICTORIOUSLY*********************

Ebay Greed Indeed

I started selling on Ebay in 2005. I wanted a business of my OWN where I would make decisions for MY business instead of CORPORATE telling me what I can and cannot do. Ebay provided the tools but it was up to all of us sellers to build our businesses and our unique customer base. Yes, without buyers there are no sellers but without sellers there is no Ebay. SELLERS pay Ebay's FEES whether or not buyers BUY!

I have maintained a 100 percent feedback up to this point and am very grateful and appreciative of my buyers. I am all about customer service. My personal opinion however is that the customer is NOT always right and I got tired of CORORATE telling me that they were and that there was NOTHING that I could do about it! A major selling point for me in joining the Ebay community was that I could have a say in letting others know which customers were NOT always right and that there WAS something that I could do about it! I could leave them appropriate feedback and BLOCK them from doing future business!

With Ebay's new feedback policy, you have corporate once again telling sellers that the buyer is always right and there is NOTHING that you can do about it! The buyer can now only receive POSITIVE feedback no matter what. Once again Pandora's box is open to buyer extortion.

The most appalling thing is that it's no longer just a "guide" to help buyers make decisions about trusting a seller. It is now a TOOL for which EBAY will take action on a seller's account and will charge the seller based on the seller's SCORE! Only POWER SELLERS are eligible for final value fee discounts but even they have to maintain a HIGH RATING! On top of that, if a seller is selling "high risk" items such as electronics, or has "5% or more of dissatisfied customers", or has "less than 100% feedback" that seller will be FORCED to accept PAY PAL or another "safe payment option" where "Pay Pal will hold payment funds until either the buyer has left positive Feedback or 21 days have passed without a claim." They are charging a TWELVE PERCENT final value fee and NOW your funds can be withheld for up to 21 days all BASED ON FEEDBACK!

Feedback also reflects whether or not the buyer LIKES a seller's SHIPPING & HANDLING fee! The last time I checked, sellers have a RIGHT to charge what ever handling fee they feel is necessary to cover the cost of packing materials, gas to the post office and time standing in line! If the buyer doesn't agree with the charge they have a CHOICE NOT TO BUY from that seller as these charges are ALWAYS POSTED to the listings! NOW if a buyer CHOOSES to buy from a seller therefore ACCEPTING the seller's terms, that buyer can turn around and NEG the seller for that! YES I believe that Ebay's NEXT thing is to DICTATE what the seller will be ALLOWED to charge for a HANDLING FEE! They pretty much ALREADY DO by allowing FEEDBACK to be left accordingly!

Ebay states that they will be "monitoring feedback abuse" and for the sellers to "report" such occurrences.....WHAT A JOKE! In the meantime they allow non-paying bidders to TIE UP the seller's inventory by making the seller WAIT a MINIMUM of 8 DAYS before the seller can FILE a dispute and then ANOTHER 8 DAYS before they will REFUND THE SELLER'S FEES should the buyer not pay within that SIXTEEN DAY period!

It's all so disgusting to say the least! I am hoping that COMPETITORS will take note and that we will have some alternative avenues in the near future!

ebay - greedbay - stay away from ebay

what I had proposed to ebay many times was - charge us the listing fee (which is based upon the opening sales price) and charge us a final value fee - but if the item sells (which is when the final value fee comes into play) - deduct the listing fee. Ebay earns a percentage for the total sale price as a final value fee; they also earn a listing fee based upon the opening sales price; then PayPal the company they own gets a commission off of any money that is paid to our account from an item sold on ebay. So, in theory, ebay is triple-dipping.

I don't care how ebay does it - but they shouldn't earn more than just ONE REASONABLE SALES COMMISSION.

Feedback, Fees and the Future of eBay

Market branding is a very powerful force. EBay has spent years branding itself as an on-line auction site. It was the auction format, along with millions of small independent sellers that made eBay what it is today. Buyers go to eBay looking for bargains (not cheaply made imported junk) and unique items (discontinued / one of a kind, hand crafted, etc.).

By increasing fees, offering discounts and other perquisites only to Power Sellers, and encouraging the expansion of fixed price auctions (which aren’t really auctions at all), eBay is rapidly losing both buyers and smaller sellers. In short, Mr. Danahoe is trying to distance the company from the auction format, what he has referred to as a flea market and trying to replace it with an Amazon model. What he’s forgetting is the powerful brand that eBay has created. Buyers see eBay as an on-line auction house and short of totally blowing it up, changing the name and starting over, that’s not going to change. All he’s going to accomplish is disappointing buyers, alienating sellers and continuing to lose market share. It’s extremely interesting to note, that as fixed price auctions have increased at an accelerated rate over the last year, buyer have abandoned the site at a similar pace. As a well-known TV physiologist would say, how’s that working for you Mr. Donahoe?

Whether you agree with his methods or not, there’s no question that Mr. Donahoe’s mission it to grow the brand. The problem is, he’s lost track of the brand; the worlds largest on-line auction site. He’s has also lost site of the fact that it’s community trust that keeps eBay together. This was one of Pierre Omidyar’s founding principles and the foundation on which eBay was built. As it is now, buyers don’t trust sellers, sellers don’t trust eBay and with the advent of the new feedback system, sellers won’t trust sellers. History has shown that you’re on very shaky ground when tamper with the foundation of a mature and successful enterprise.

There is a classic business school lesson that teaches us that the railroads declined because they thought they were in the train business, when they were really in the transportation business. I submit that Mr. Donahoe perceives eBay as being in the on-line sales business, when it’s really in the on-line auction business (differentiating here between standard retail sales and auctions). (If you want a recent example, look at radio broadcast stocks over the last decade. Many of them thought they were in the radio business, when they were really in the entertainment business.)

If eBay is to recapture its market share and once again become an eCommerce leader, it needs to capitalize on its unique market niche (auctions), refocus on its core business (who thinks Skype was a good investment) and above all, regain the trust of its buyers, sellers and investors. Anything short of this will spell the eventual demise of eBay.

It’s only a matter of time before a company such as Google, or possibly Microsoft / Yahoo develops an on-line auction venue. When that happens sellers will leave in droves and eBay will be one more business that is forced to close its doors because it lost focus of its original mission.

GATES ARE WIDE OPEN MAY 1 - WACKO'S ARE DROOLING

Closing My Store

I received this threatening message from someone I have never dealt with:

From User: tjsmith9500 (1)

66.7% Positive Feedback

Member since Jul-22-01 in United States

Location : TX, United States

Activity with tjsmith9500 (last 90 days):I have bid on 0 items from tjsmith9500

Activity with tjsmith9500 (last 90 days):tjsmith9500 has bid on 0 of my items

Dear rbcatsred,

friend of mine told me about you. I have over 30 nicks on here for various things. I can't wait for may to come. 1 item a week for 6 weeks with 29 nicks equals 174 negitives for you at one time. that should just about blow your reputation you arrogant piece of white trash. good thing ebay changed the rules. your gone about mid june, later PIG.

- tjsmith9500

**************************

I contacted EBAY TRUST & SAFETY and they will not do anything to this person - I asked them why in the world have they even allowed him to remain on EBAY - he's been a member since 2001 - has ordered 3 items - Paid for 2 of them.

Even though they would not give me his name & address so I can report him to the legal authorities for harassment/stalking, I am a good detective and have it....I am going to pursue this matter, as I don't think anyone has the right to do this to another person.

I feel sure that I am not the first person or only person that he will do this to - sad thing is that after May 1, he can do it to anyone without any repurcussions. A buyer can purchase 1 - to 100 items in your store - never pay - you can file an unpaid claim against them, but as long as they never respond, EBAY nor PAYPAL will even put in an unpaid strike against them.....then the Seller can relist the item at their own expense.........just more money in EBAY's pocket, with no regard to the Seller.

This was the final straw that convinced me EBAY is no longer the place to be. I have enjoyed my store - met some great people and done my best to provide excellent service with the lowest shipping prices on all of ebay.

I started 2 years ago with 0 feedback, so I feel confident I will do well wherever I decide to go.

Best wishes to all of the wonderful people I have worked with over the past 2 years. Regards, Rita

Waste of Time.

I've been selling on ebay since 1998. Well, not in the last year though. Ebay is a greedy, greedy company. Forget ebay and their nickel and diming practices. The fee reduction is just a tactic to give sellers a warm and fuzzy feeling inside...that is until some jackass buyer leaves unwarranted negative feedback because the post office lost their package.

What you will make back because of this fee reduction you will just lose to paypal fees (another ebay company).

EBAY CHANGES

I have sold on Ebay for 4 years now. I made good money in the beginning but saw my profits slip each year as Ebay and the Postal Service raised fees.

In he beginning my expenses including inventory was about 30% of my total sales.

This was so promising that I quit my job as a Cement mason and sold on Ebay full time.

Well I am now a Power seller with over 15000 transactions half from repeat customers and have seen my profits slip from 30% to 5% as Ebay , Paypal and the Postal service gets nets more from my sales than I do.

I have a 99.9 Feedback score but my S&H DSR (4.5)score does not qualify me for the so-called discount because the $1.00 per listing handling charge is theonly way I can survive on Ebay.

I currently gross $10,000.00 per month in sales. Ebay gets $1200.00 per month out of that, Paypal gets Paypal gets $600.00 and the Postal service gets $1000.00. I also Pay $4000.00 per year for storage of overstock as I have to buy in volume to be able to offer a viable product. The majority of the items I sell can only be marked up 50% and the Bullion items are a NO profit loss leader with an average 10% mark up.

In otherwords I make no money. I only have cash flow.

I will know for sure within the comming days wheher I can keep this up.

It is a pitty that Ebay has abandoned its sellers in this maner.

Ebay Strike

I wish you would do another piece on Ebay AFTER you''ve done an indepth investigation. "Fee Reductions" is a cover phrase. Look deeper and you will see what is sure to cause the fall of Ebay. I've sold on Eaby for years and now I'm done. For the most part, its been a great experience and I've made a lot of friends. But these new changes were obviously thought up by idiots and heaven knows I'm already surrounded by enough of them! It will be interesting to see the fallout from the strike Feb. 18th through the 25th. There are other places to sell by auction and Im sure they are out there drooling right now thinking how this is going to benefit them. Ebay...big mistake....BIG....HUGE!

E-Bay Anti-Trust

Ebay is hurting the sellers. It's stock price has fallen on bad investments and it wants to recup its losses on higher fees. We, sellers, have to find an alternative to this E-BAY MONOPOLY.We have to contact Google to get it to do an ebay type marketplace. What is needed is true competition.

Ebay and Paypal union needs to be broken

Ebay is getting like the government. Government taxes more and more we have less to spend on growing the economy. Ebay (or Efee as I call it) keeps increasing fees so sellers list less items.

Both Ebay and the government needs to review Reganomics (another invented word) Lower taxes = more consumer spending, lower fees = more listing and more sales.

Also, Microsoft gets sued for bundling their items, What about the Ebay - Paypal bundle? I want to use google checkout but Ebay saying its "Not provoen to be safe". So Google Checkout is unsafe? No Ebay is preventing the superior Google Checkout from competing with Paypal. We need an attorney to check into this.

About Rita Buford of TX

I truly believe you and others are being victimized by Ebay, unbalanced buyers, and its pollciies. With a legal subpoena sellers can force E-bay to give you the person's name. Though, you'll need to sue e-bay. The internet is a good place for research into this matter. You can do this pro-see in your local state courts. Good Luck

It's Good Sellers That Are Striking

The changes to feedback and the linking of feedback and DSR scores to listing placement are the final straws for me.

I have closed my store and have no listings on eBay for the first time since 2001. My feedback was excellent and I sold high quality vintage collectibles and provided excellent customer service.

The bad sellers are not leaving eBay becasue of this - they are staying.

It is the hard-working and trustworthy sellers, like me, who are fleeing becasue we will no place our businesses in the position to be blackmailed by buyers or have PayPal hold our funds for 21 days.

I have been writing on these issues on my blog including detailing the reasons for my support of the strike beginning February 18th.

http://amodernguy.wordpress.com/2008/02/11/why-i-am-joining-the-ebay-strike-boycott/

e-bay changes

I have posted a vacation notice on my e-bay store. I am looking into other options, in order to make the "vacation" permanent.

I have over 3000 items listed on my store, and far over 3000 feedbacks.

I pay between $400-$800 to e-bay for their service. This may be peanuts to them, but not to me. That is not counting what they get from my purchases, which have been substancial for the last 7 years.

I done with purchasing too.

Rita Buford is WRONG

Just thought some one should Know that the person being accusted in the following is an innocent bystander who had thier account broken into. Rita Buford has not even investigated what truely went on before she posted this information everywhere. The party she is hurting is filing papers for deafimation of character. Rita Buford has been asked by ebay to retract her comments as they are being named in the suit as well. I have taken screen shots of this page and if it continues to remain posted this site and it's editors will be named as well.

Please investigate your stories before you post them, innocent people are getting hurt for no reason.

GATES ARE WIDE OPEN MAY 1 - WACKO'S ARE DROOLING

Closing My Store

I received this threatening message from someone I have never dealt with:

From User: tjsmith9500 (1)

66.7% Positive Feedback

Member since Jul-22-01 in United States

Location : TX, United States

Activity with tjsmith9500 (last 90 days):I have bid on 0 items from tjsmith9500

Activity with tjsmith9500 (last 90 days):tjsmith9500 has bid on 0 of my items

Dear rbcatsred,

friend of mine told me about you. I have over 30 nicks on here for various things. I can't wait for may to come. 1 item a week for 6 weeks with 29 nicks equals 174 negitives for you at one time. that should just about blow your reputation you arrogant piece of white trash. good thing ebay changed the rules. your gone about mid june, later PIG.

- tjsmith9500

**************************

I contacted EBAY TRUST & SAFETY and they will not do anything to this person - I asked them why in the world have they even allowed him to remain on EBAY - he's been a member since 2001 - has ordered 3 items - Paid for 2 of them.

Even though they would not give me his name & address so I can report him to the legal authorities for harassment/stalking, I am a good detective and have it....I am going to pursue this matter, as I don't think anyone has the right to do this to another person.

I feel sure that I am not the first person or only person that he will do this to - sad thing is that after May 1, he can do it to anyone without any repurcussions. A buyer can purchase 1 - to 100 items in your store - never pay - you can file an unpaid claim against them, but as long as they never respond, EBAY nor PAYPAL will even put in an unpaid strike against them.....then the Seller can relist the item at their own expense.........just more money in EBAY's pocket, with no regard to the Seller.

This was the final straw that convinced me EBAY is no longer the place to be. I have enjoyed my store - met some great people and done my best to provide excellent service with the lowest shipping prices on all of ebay.

I started 2 years ago with 0 feedback, so I feel confident I will do well wherever I decide to go.

Best wishes to all of the wonderful people I have worked with over the past 2 years. Regards, Rita

Rita Buford is a Victim

Rita Buford is a victim. She should call law enforcement and have any person harrassing her jailed. No one should use the internet to harass anyone. A harasser, who claims to be innocent, should convince law enforcement. A harasser who claims to have 30 different nicks, should not be afraid to face law enforcement justice. To harass someone into something can be extortion. She should get a good lawyer and call the FBI fraud unit. People should be left in peace.

Bad decisions made despite good input

Ebay is a company that lies and distorts every aspect of their operation. They lie to buyers, sellers, the media and to investors. They come out with the new feedback rules stating that retaliatory negative feedback is a major issue... truth is it less than 1% of all buyer complaints. If less than 1% is a major issue, then we all have many very major issues going on. The following is a transcript of an interview with Deutsch Bank Securities and the President and Vice President of the Internet Merchants Association concerning ebay's recent changes:

http://imamerchant.org/blog/wp-content/uploads/2008/02/deutschebankpatel020608.pdf

I would call it recommended reading for anyone invested in ebay or who is trying to understand how these changes are going to play out in the days to come. It touches on every aspect of the system ebay has rolled out.

Sign the anti-ebay petition online!

I agree with everything that has been written. Please sign the online petition!

http://www.petitiononline.com/ebayfee/

Thank you.

eBay Attitude!

It's good to see all the articulate bloggers here!

I had a small store myself selling odd and/or difficult to find hardware to hobbyists, tinkerers, and inventors. I was actually just trying to find a home for good stuff that otherwise would be thrown out. Actually I don't think I made much money on the small stuff with the monthly store fee, but I felt I was doing people a service and I would make out on the bigger ticket items. Plus I was building good feedback on the small items and establishing a reputation. I was a loyal eBayer.

Then came the fiasco with my purchase of a wall oven from a newbie out of state seller. (Yup, I should have seen it coming.) Anyway, to cut to the chase, it appeared I was going to be out $375 because eBay wasn't going to do anything to help me recover from what was clearly a fraud. 100 days later the local police were able to recover the money for me. So much for eBay's touting of their "Trust and Safety" policies! (The seller was eventually suspended after three other users gave bad feedback.)

So, I closed my store, gave 400+ pounds of hardware to the local mom and pop hardware store, and sell very little now. I wonder how many others have done the same sort of thing.

eBay presents this image that everything is fine and wonderful with their system, but it doesn't take too much experience with them before you realize that there are some serious flaws. I feel their protection against unethical or fraudulent activity is worthless. I won't even mention the feedback policies! Thanks for reading!

Bas ebay seller 7993theresa

See all the detail about my bas adventure with the bad seller 7993theresa at : http://www.yveslapointe.com/theresab296/theresab296.html

Her email is : : theresab296@sbcglobal.net do not trust her

I stopped leaving feedback

I don't even click on it anymore. Saves me the headache. I opened a new user name, shipped every single item the day after payment was received and I still got a 4.5 rating for shipping speed. That just doesn't make sense to me!

eBay can't hear the call over its own deafening drumbeat !

For years when I browsed the eBay discussion boards, they were full of HOW DO I...questions, and folks trying to offer some help. And, even DEFENDING eBay rules and procedures in many instances..

Today all I seem to see in these same discussion boards are widespread criticism of recent changes to eBay policies and procedures. I seldom see any defense of anything eBay says or does, only gripes and complaints.

Is it not evident to the Power Players that the general consensus about eBay is highly unfavorable, and that the current mood among buyers and sellers is highly skeptical of managements ability to manage. These two factors alone are both negative flags to the Wall Street investors. I look to see some negative press about eBay in the next quarter, which may finally have the sound of reveille ringing in managements ears.

Facing such loud and broadening criticism, only an idiot commander would not step back, retrench, and survey the chaotic, and customer strewn battlefield with some new generals.

Buying and Selling are difficult enough, without the venue management closing the doors on random intervals at every entrance and exit.

I have just never heard it so bad out there, and the name calling has never been so perverse, including terms like fleebay, feebay to greedbay.. What's next TeaBay.. Maybe throwing in the Bay isn't such a bad thought after all..

No modification without representation could be a new mantra..

Zero Tolerance is a manufacturing specification, not a discipline!

Seller Blackmail with Ebay Feedback

Recently we purchased a relatively small item on eBay. The condition of the product was not as described by the seller and when we placed feedback we gave a neutral response merely stating that the product was not "as new" as packaging and contents were old and damaged.

Upon receiving the neutral response the seller posted a negative feedback on us.

As the majority of our transactions are purchases of major items (150k so far this year) we had to fight to get the feedback neutralized.

We paid for the item within 2 minutes of purchasing the product and provided clear delivery instructions. The seller misrepresented the product completely and it was us that was being victimized. If the new rules force the seller into giving a correct appraisal of the buyer rather than using the feedback as a blackmail tool then we are all for it. Looking back on this sellers feedback there were several mutual withdrawals so they are obviously using the system as it stands to keep their percentage up.

If the new rules enable sellers to give an accurate feedback of the buyer without the fear of reprisal then it will help protect potential buyers as the comments they read will hopefully be unhindered.

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Thanks for very interesting article. btw. I really enjoyed reading all of your posts. It’s interesting to read ideas, and observations from someone else’s point of view… makes you think more.

So please keep up the great work. Greetings.

More Con Jobs From eBay & PayPal

Let me start off by saying we run a help site for both buyers and sellers who have been ripped off by PayPal, eBay & other people at paypalterm.freehostia.com in conjunction with www.paypalsucks.com.

Ebay was telling everyone they are lowering fees, they sent out tons of emails to sellers that day. But what they really did was increase their commission fees at a rate 60% from the previous rates from 5.75 to 8.75%. Now between ebay and paypal they are stealing about 13-15% of the gross from sellers. ebay filed to mention this 60% increase in their email sent to sellers, the only way they found out was by going to ebay's website and going to the seller fee page.

eBay's way of thinking is just this. They constantly try to find ways of trying to screw over the seller and making their lives more difficult. We've havent seen one bit of new technology geared toward helping sellers its all been for buyers and this new feedback BS is exactly that BS. eBay's position and this is why they kiss the buyers ass, is the fact that the buyer creates the commission and fees for the seller when they place a bid for an item, so if we kiss the buyers ass it will increase bids and increase ebay's greedy ass pockets. The seller cant do anything about it because for most people selling on eBay its part or whole of their livelihood, trying to make an honest living. So now we are putting sellers under more pressure. Less problems for us.

This new policy makes one thing perfectly clear. That now buyers are going to have even more power to threaten sellers with feedback extortion if their demands arent met. Thats the real truth. Now buyers know they will not be punished or warned for their actions they do onto sellers. Sellers cant warn other sellers about deadbeats, buyers who threaten them, file false chargebacks, etc. Thats the rule truth and thats whats going to happen. There should be a change in that policy only and only if the seller can prove these facts with documentation. But sellers already know that eBay does nothing about it to punish bad buyers for their actions.

EBay removes all indications of any fraud that happens on their website to con people into thinking that eBay and PayPal are safe. The most recent fraud analysis conducted by a companion of the FTC shows both PayPal and eBay the top places in 2007 to commit fraud. in 2006 42% of all fraud online was from auction origins. And who's the king of auctions, you guessed it. The reason why fraud happens is because of the simple fact PayPal and eBay do nothing about it, they dont care! One person commits fraud they tell another person, go ahead try it and then they get away with it and that number grows. If PayPal and eBay really did anything about preventing fraud, they wouldnt be in the top 3 places where online fraud happens. They invite it!

BUYER SCAMMING SELLERS

As a seller since 1998; i have had numerous/too many to mention buyers scam me ; stating item not as described. . AND ASKING FOR MONEY!!

SELLERS WILL NOT LEAVE FEEDBACK

Sellers will NEVER LEAVE FEEDBACK AGAIN. . as they have nothing to gain . . the seller should simply wait for the buyer. . and THEN "IN PROTEST" To having No Feedback Voice. . NEVER, EVER, EVER LEAVE FEEBACK . . .THAT IS THE WAY TO DEAL WITH THE JERKS MAKING POLICY AND STOPPING SELLERS FROM COMMENTING. "DON'T!!!!!!!!!! REGARDLESS IF A BUYER IS GREAT OR BAD. . JUST SAY NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ebay in Oz

Hi. As of yesterday (10/April), all Australian ebayers were told that as from June, we would only be able to buy and sell through paypal, unless we were prepared to collect the goods in person and pay COD. There is a mass riot going on over in Oz right now with droves of longterm customers (I've been buying and selling since 2002) defecting to alternative online shopping venues.

This monopolisation of currency movement is in addition to all manner of draconian fee increases and dictatorial behaviour. Ebay UK has confirmed they are planning to introduce similar measures in June 2008. You chaps are probably next.

Welcome to the revolution.

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I will bookmark your article for future use. It was very interesting. Thank you.

Have a nice day! ;)

Another Outrageous Change

In addition to the absurd 3% hike in the final value fee and the elimination of negative feedback for bad buyers, most people may be unaware that the reserve price fee will is also no longer being refunded.

I frequently sell used high-end photo equipment and often use the reserve. I noticed that on my eBay statement that the fees were not being refunded, so I looked on the website for information about possible changes. I couldn't find any, so I called customer service and was told that eBay sent out sellers an email back in January. I told her I had never received it and asked if I could have the reserve fees refunded since I listed my items with the assumption that they would be refunded as they always have. I was transferred to billing where I explained the situation again. This time I was told that eBay doesn't send mass emails to users and that the announcement was posted on the message board. So I looked again at the message board. No direct mention of it. I was told it was under an announcement by Bill Cobb on Jan. 29, so I clicked that and still didn't see any reference to a change in the reserve refund. I had to click several links before I finally found an well-hidden FAQ list which made brief mention that reserve fees will no longer be refunded.

This is obviously an attempt to hide a change which could cost sellers a lot of money as it has myself. It is absolutely unethical business practice. Apparently ethics have flown out the window and have given way to corporate greed. The best way to punish eBay for this is to vote with our feet. They need to learn a hard lesson that just because they are the biggest, doesn't mean that they can continue to get away with this kind of greedy behavior.