Alternatives to eBay??

[Adruzzz]

Can anyone recommend an alternative to eBay? There seems to be more and more bad buyers on there and nine times out of ten they seem to take the side of the buyer :roll:

Would love to hear from those with direct personal experience please

 

[cybernck]

I was going to start a similar topic as well. I try my hardest to sell things to forum members but if that fails - I resort to ebay. And it doesn't fail to provide me with buyers.

However, having recently sold loads of items on ebay, for about 40% of them I've had to open unpaid item cases, out of which most have been ultimately paid for but a few haven't. Also had a guy win an auction and instantly message me that he doesn't have the funds to pay for the item (reasonably fair but wtf?!). And the worst of all - someone who blatantly tried to exploit the system and get a partial refund on an item and tried 6 or 7 different ways to do it but I stuck to the rules 'till the end and they had ultimately given up.

I've not seen what your auctions are like but you should photo and describe everything the way you'd like to have it presented to you if you were a buyer (perhaps even better) and leave no room for possible bad buyers to pull a fast one on you.

Hope this helps.

 

[LikeClockwork]

Re:

It's a tricky one, is there really an effective alternative to ebay....?

Gumtree etc I suppose, but no auction style sites, and I would much rather sell on here, but then it's such a struggle to even give stuff away sometimes, I just have a session every now and then on the 'bay and hope for the best..... :facepalm:

 

[Adruzzz]

Re:

The items I mostly sell on eBay aren't bike bits, i've had a negative and a neutral within the last week or so and it's dramatically hit my sales... The negative one was from a European customer who claimed the item was faulty, they opened a case with PayPal who told them to return the goods for a full refund (no problem from me) they failed to return the goods (surprise, surprise...) and the claim was ultimately rejected; they left a negative though :evil:

The last one was from a finicky little so and so, new to the site who accused me of selling counterfeit goods :roll: When he told me he wasn't happy with the item I immediately apologised and refunded him straight away, I even told him to keep the goods and he still left bad feedback...

eBay just don't seem to take the side of the sellers anymore, we can't even leave a negative to warn others about them can we :facepalm:

An alternative would be good right now, somewhere where i could perhaps list a few bits to test the water :roll:

Feel a bit better to have gotten that off my chest

 

[LikeClockwork]

Re:

The right of the seller to leave negative feedback being withdrawn is the worst thing ebay could have ever done. Ultimately they are just a huge corporate scam.... :evil:

 

[cybernck]

Ah, selling cycling bits is indeed a bit easier, as buyers mostly tend to be genuinely OK folk and enthusiasts like ourselves.

 

[dyna-ti]

You can answer negative feedback with a little sub note.
Allows you at least to refute clearly vengeful feedback. With something like 'Attempted to use feedback to gain discount' or some such thing
Or if its a result, as you say, of him not sending it back ,then being ruled in your favour, you can contact ebay and they'll likely remove it as it appears to be nothing more than sour grapes. or not, but worth a try.

I have my own method.
"Fantastic buyer,Ultimate Comms,a King among E-bayers ,quick and Reliable"
I ask that you not use it though. A mates GF blabbed in the ebay forum and i got a nasty letter from them I pleaded ignorance and coincidence.

Unfortunately, ebay is very handy and a huge market. Our own buy/sell is a bit quiet of late and sometimes if it has to go it has to go

 

[RickTheUncivil]

Re: Re:

The right of the seller to leave negative feedback being withdrawn is the worst thing ebay could have ever done. Ultimately they are just a huge corporate scam.... :evil:

Amen sister. Most buyers are fine but when a buyer tries to screw you how can you warn other users to be cautious?

As for alternatives there are a few eg schpock seems to be growing in popularity but not really for auction. There was one I looked at a few years ago but I can't remember what it was called. Google might shed light....

 

[fagin]

I've bought a few things off Pinkbike lately, including a whole bike. Bit hit and miss, but good sized market.

Ebay is easy though, and a huge market, whatever it's faults. I do tend to buy much more than I sell though.

 

[Adruzzz]

Re: Re:

The right of the seller to leave negative feedback being withdrawn is the worst thing ebay could have ever done. Ultimately they are just a huge corporate scam.... :evil:

It's not good is it, it's gone too far the other way now :x

Ah, selling cycling bits is indeed a bit easier, as buyers mostly tend to be genuinely OK folk and enthusiasts like ourselves.

Exactly, it's making me have a serious rethink about whether I want to continue selling the things I do, or concentrate on bike bits from now on :roll:

Amen sister. Most buyers are fine but when a buyer tries to screw you how can you warn other users to be cautious?

As for alternatives there are a few eg schpock seems to be growing in popularity but not really for auction. There was one I looked at a few years ago but I can't remember what it was called. Google might shed light....

What i've done a few times is leave positive for them, but with a warning for other sellers, it probably never gets read by them though...

I have come across a couple of other places that look ok, will have to delve deeper though before I commit myself

Here's the others i've come across:

http://www.bonanza.com/

http://www.ebid.net/uk/