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I posted a couple of years ago how eBay had turned from an auction site to a "Buy it Now" fixed price site. In one category I checked over 90% of the listings were not auctions. This trend has continued and I've come to find something. Most anything I want to buy that isn't available locally or is very specialty oriented is not only on eBay but it is cheaper there.
My latest case in point was trying to get some food grade Diatomaceous Earth. An eBay seller had for even less than the actual manufacturers site and by a good bit. It was about $82 vs $54 with shipping. A large 50 pound bag which was shipped from out west to back east in both cases so no geographic advantage to either seller.
So I always Google and check Amazon and others but sometimes I forget to check eBay. I don't think I will anymore. Pretty much everything is there.
ET
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My ex and I were primarily sellers on FeePay in the early days prior to 9/11. The whole world turned to television to watch the tragedy of the towers and the lives that were lost. Their focus then was directed to the invasion of Iraq. As Canadian sellers we felt the backlash (fewer if any bids) by Americans because of our country (and France as well) decision not to participate in the search for "Weapons of Mass Destruction". Since everybody was watching TV sales at FeePay dropped and so did the profits. To regain the buyers the policies were altered to favour the buyers who drove the profits. The fixed price (Buy It Now) was adopted by sellers to protect their own profits from the uncertainty of fickle and fewer buyers. feepay introduced the storefronts so they could collect more from listings to offset fees collected from fewer sales.
The site changed from a friendly "community" to a more business only model to maintain the bottom line.
Does anyone else get the Feepay owned Paypal link at the bottom of this site's page?
http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-57483425-93/alibaba-close-to-$8-billion-funding-goal-report-says/
Ebay sucks. All the burden is on the seller now. Buyers have no responsibility and most are bottom feeders and jack wagons. I'm about done with Flea Bay and Fee Bay.
...ebay even docks you for the shipping.
“Some people never go crazy. What truly horrible lives they must lead"
― Charles Bukowski
The traveling and searching in stores takes too much time, and they tend not to have special items.
I live 50 miles from a big city, so Ebay is fine for me. I can in few minuttes find several offers and compare specifications and prices.
But mainly I use Ebay to buy used measuring equipment.
I often get items at 10 to 50% of normal used prices, however I do it once a year, during the summer holidays, when there are fewer buyers.
On Ebay I can buy products from the whole world, important for rare items.
I also like the fact that all is in writing, and that Ebay will solve conflicts.
If it is a fixed price item, and it does not sell, I write and give a resonable offer, like 40% reduced.
All my daily shopping I do locally.
I have bought and sold many $k worth of items on ebay's auctions and Buy It Now options.
Just today I auctioned off the last of four fairly pricey pieces of Canon photographic equipment. I initially tried selling these items on Digital Grin, a popular B&S photographic site and got nowhere.
Maybe, I got too impatient but when I saw that I wasn't getting any offers I moved my stuff to a 7 day auction on Ebay with no reserve. Bingo. Plus, I have to admit it is fun watching a bidding war as long as I am the one selling.
I first did my due diligence, found out what the same items were selling for and then let the auction market do the rest.
I do not begrudge Ebay or PayPal their fees as they provide and incredibly important service and where else can one confidently go to sell/buy just about anything from soup to nuts.
I also love ebay. Obviously, it's not everyone's bag, but suits me well.
It's difficult to believe how much I've purchased there over the past 12 years; sold a bunch, too. Much of it was new, much of it was old. A lot of it was "buy it now", and a lot of it was via (sometimes intense) bidding. You name it, I'm usually happy enough to buy it on ebay.
The list is almost too long to remember: lawn tractor, lawnmower, snowblower, wood chipper, lots of tools, three Canondale bicycles, a Marin bicycle, "chrome" covers for the rollover bars of my MINI Cooper convertible, auto floor mats, maple bed, memory foam mattresses, a sofa, carpets/rugs, meat grinder, Waring blender, Fiesta blender and toaster, Oster and Andis hair clippers and blades, beautician (my wife's profession) scissors, more jewelry for my wife than I can count, a ton of children's clothing, gift certificates, laptop batteries and power supplies, cell phones/batteries/chargers, lots of CDs/SACDs/vinyl, a bunch of turntables, phono cartidges, several Fried loudspeakers, Sansui tuners, Hammond 2A3 tube amp, Dynaco ST80 tube amp, various audio and loudspeaker components/parts, and a whole lot of vacuum tubes. For me, it's the best place to buy old tubes, bar none.
For reasonable prices. The bidding is often uneven, sometimes a good deal comes your way, other times a senseless bidding war. But, always a lot of fun ;-)
.
Hey, I have an early 70's Raleigh Pro, too. It is retired, was cleaned, and is hanging in the garage next to the retired Masi Gran Corsa that I wore out after the Raleigh. I bought my Raleigh used and the first Saturday ride I rode it on was the first time I didn't get dropped by the pack on the run up Sheriff's Hill. That was with the Santa Cruz Cycling Club in 1980. Currently riding a Merlin Extralight but not quite the epic rides like back then.
What may seem a like senseless bid to you in most cases reflects differences in people's maximum willingness to pay for an item, mixed with risk aversion, a premium to avoid letting the item get away from them at the last second. I, personally, don't experience any regrets by bidding early and placing my maximum valuation on an item as the upper bound and then going to bed.
Observe, before you think
I do not like to gamble either. Same thing..risk/reward excitment over money.
Forget it.
*
So it is easier to say i do not haggle at all.
My prior car I walked in said iwant it sell it to me. period.
My current car it was posted on the website $850. internet discount so I said i found you via the internet so i want the discount.
Money is not some godlike shit to me.
I do not get MY panties in a bunch to cheat the other person out of a few nickels.
When i bought new stereo stuff. i expect the dealer to make a profit.
I have no issue with that.
Some folks think it is their duty to whine for every penny they can claw off the price, and are proud they did. F* that.
That is well said!
Elizabeth, I like your style. I like a good deal as much as he next guy but if I see that an item I am looking for is reasonably prices then I go for it. Can't stand trying to nickel and dime someone out of an already fair price. I have a strong sense of ethics, thanks to my Dad and my religion and that has served me well when doing business and my relationship with the buyer/seller.
That said, I have no problem negotiating high ticket items such as cars and audio toys but that is probably to be expected by both parties. I have no problem saying "no" if my price range is too off
the mark but haggling over a few bucks is not my style either.
It is patently obvious that eBay doesn't need sellers, it needs buyers. Every single change in the last 5 years has been to the advantage of the buyer. You can't get a negative feedback as a buyer, and the requirements for sellers continually favor the large commercial seller.
What really sucks is that eBay started out as a place where anybody could buy and sell what they wanted, easily and cheaply. The millions of small to moderate sized sellers built eBay into a multi-billion dollar company. Now, however, because there is no such thing as too big or too rich, they are saying "thanks for making us what we are, now get the Hell out!" One more example of something that was ruined by becoming successful.
They're definitely buyer friendly and anti-seller.
When I first started with Ebay in 2004 that was not the case.
Now, I get weekly emails with new "seller requirements".
I think it sucks that a seller cannot leave a Neg FB for a non-paying buyer. Ive had several sales where the high bidder did not pay, and other bidders who bid slightly less probably would have paid.
Also, Ebay has no right to charge a percentage of shipping cost like they do.
> > Also, Ebay has no right to charge a percentage of shipping cost like they do. < <
Maybe if people didn't set low prices with inflated shipping costs they wouldn't have. It's all about folks trying to game the system to avoid paying their fees.
When they discover the center of the universe, a lot of people will be disappointed to discover they are not it. ~ Bernard Bailey
So you think Amerkia was built on gratitude?
I hear ya, it's for the buyer. I sold an old radio for about $100 with shipping and the fees they charged me totaled about 14%! Horrible.
ET
What do you use DE for?
Fleas and other insect control as it is non-toxic and for internal consumption. See link. There are many other sites like this one as well.
ET
The powers that be at eBay are making a run at Amazon. I live in a small town and I much prefer to shop localy, but if it's not available in town, I'd rather buy it online than drive into the city.
Edits: 08/03/12
I too prefer to shop locally for many reasons. I do however live in Podunk and there isn't much. The biggest store in town is Dollar General and they only have crap. I have to drive 25 miles one way for a grocery store or large retailers. Not much specialty wise out my way either, that requires an additional 50 miles to get near the DC area.
ET
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