Ebay "auction" site

[doctor-bond]

I haven’t had too many shillbidder issues of the years tbh. But I’d say the eBay fees are causing a problem - far too steep, so people hike the prices and try to monkey around. I do this: put it on eBay to generate visibility with an inflated price that covers the fees, then on Gumtree or here with a realistic price. (Sometimes though folk like the convenience of paying via eBay and can use credit).

Auctions work where you’ve got something obviously sought after: but who has time to monitor an auction for 20 quids worth of old bike part? Chances are if you auction a cheap not rare thing, it will go for less than you want; if you set a high start price, might as well BIN …

You can search sold prices on eBay. Click the little button on the left side towards the bottom of the filter list.

 

[kingoffootball]

You can search sold prices on eBay. Click the little button on the left side towards the bottom of the filter list.

I think the intended point was not being able to see the price when a best offer has been accepted.

 

[BongoInTheCongo]

Yes, thats a good point. Hiding the actual accepted offer keeps the pot on the boil and the sold price artificially high. Great for ebay revenue, not so much for everyone else

 

[BongoInTheCongo]

I remember the early days of Ebay when fees were around 5%. What is it now 12%, or more? I rarely use it now as its just too much grief, as a buyer and a seller. I'm amazed that no one has come up with a dedicated cycling auction/best offer site. Reverb.com have done really well for musical instruments, and their fees are low.

Surely someone has the nouse to put together a reliable selling site it even an app. There's good money in it for the first to market.

 

[Guinessisgoodforyou]

Ebay is ok. The old adage applies "Caveat emptor". Care and consideration for both buyer and seller would help also.

 

[BongoInTheCongo]

I think upthread got it right, the fees for sellers are getting out of hand and the only way to mitigate that is to ask more for the item and the postage. Its only ebay who wins in this scenario.

 

[mk one]

I think upthread got it right, the fees for sellers are getting out of hand and the only way to mitigate that is to ask more for the item and the postage. Its only ebay who wins in this scenario.

The fees are good compared to other sites that also offer protection and customer service, also cheaper than they used to be. You can of course sell on sites with no buyer or seller protection and with a much smaller audience but obviously with more risk and headaches if you are scammed.

 

[earth-worm]

Not the worst but the fees+shipping for Canadians are a bit ridiculous sometimes

 

[fennec]

What is it now 12%, or more?

About 15% now
From a recent sale of mine


And I have a ton of problems with buyers who bid to guarantee a win and then never pay. They don’t understand the platform at all and that this isn’t like a storefront? Or I get people from other countries bidding on something which I’m offering no international shipping for. Even if I specify it in the description and the listing is domestic only, with only domestic shipping options, somehow a guy from India is able to bid on it and then complain when I cancel their order they never paid for.

I’m not even trying to do this for money, I’m just trying to clear out excess stuff I have around. But in selling 32 items now, 6 of those sales were “wait 5 days and cancel” because the buyer didn’t pay. 2 more were requested cancels after the auction ended. One was a fraudulent return which I lost out on anyway because eBay forced me to just take a $300 loss anyway.
It’s absurd, it’s not even worth my time. I stopped running auctions and now just list BIN with no offers.
Because there’s this weird thing where for some reason if I submit an offer to someone, it’s obligation to pay and if they accept it automatically charges my card.
But somehow others can submit offers and just not pay?

 

[Guinessisgoodforyou]

You can select the places you won't post to in your account settings. They can't bid then.