How eBay sellers increase collectible prices drastically.

[zidane]

any practice that artificially raises the value or bid on an auction is shill bidding and illegal to ebay rules. if you suspect that this is the case, please report the seller.

You are right but in the case above its a BIN which a seller has a right to ask what ever they wish. In this case he's doing just that but trying to get over on ebay, not particularly us. Now if it was an actual auction type listing with the $315 built in as the shipping then he deserves to be banned. ANY violation of ebay rules should be reported but if the violation hurts ebay more than me I can live with that. I've been burned by them in the past without any help whatsoever so if an intrepid young seller finds a way to screw them so be it, I'll still call him out though

Needless to say I still use email quite often.

 

[SwedishHeat]

LOL! Reported this to eBay right away.

That's seriously messed up. eBay is such a scam anyways. They take a larger cut of your money the higher the value is. It doesn't cost eBay anymore if the item sells for $5 or $500, in one case they'll get .50 or another they get $50, either way, eBay didn't spend any extra money. Any way a seller can get out of giving eBay a larger chunk of his or her own money, the better.

It is ridiculously difficult for sellers as it is. I spend too much time answering stupid questions from buyers, you wouldn't believe the amount of people that email me asking if I combine items when it plainly states in the description that I do. When I state 'no international shipping' and people email me asking for a shipping quote to Spain or Brazil or Cyprus. Not even 'Will you please consider shipping to ________?" just a plain ol "How much does it cost?"

If those shoes are worth $300 and it costs $15 to ship them, why would you be upset with that?? You're not paying the seller anymore than fair market value.

There should be NO Final Value Fee on items sold on eBay. Just one insertion fee based on starting price.

I pad my shipping cost just to recoup my eBay and PayPal fees, it's just like any other business. Just like you pay sales tax on an item, it's an added fee, a small business isn't just going to eat the cost of doing business, that's how our economy works, the costs of doing business are added into the final purchase price.

 

[Grosby]

eBay is such a scam anyways. They take a larger cut of your money the higher the value is. It doesn't cost eBay anymore if the item sells for $5 or $500, in one case they'll get .50 or another they get $50, either way, eBay didn't spend any extra money.

While I don't like eBay's fees either, they're offering a service and their fees are reflective of the fact that they are, obviously, a business out to make a profit. To say that they should charge you 50 cents whether you sell a $10 book or a $70,000 car is plainly ludicrous. They're not some community-owned non-profit group, they're a business like any other.

 

[Gunplameister]

heres my 2 cents if its worth even that with ebay.

as someone that buys and shipps a lot of stuff i know how much shipping should be pretty much anywhere in the world, even if the item is 5cents if the shipping is out of control i wont even watch the item.

another way to make profit on ebay "i dont practice this" is to have several accts, list same item several times at high price then list one at a normal price plus lets say 50$ or so....if like me i have watch list so you see berserker for 799, 699, 599, 499... people are going to be atracted to the lower of the 4 and it doesnt matter if you only have one because as soon as it sells you close the other three as all you have lost is 50cents a listing.

anyway thanks for letting me get that out, just watch yourselves and friends dont let friends troll ebay drunk

 

[Reefer Shark]

Shill bidding and such is effed up. I completely abhor this practice. Nothing you can do about it though...

The inflated shipping doesn't bother me at all though as long as it's clearly spelled out what they're charging. Honestly, only a fool or very wealthy person just buys without fully reading and understanding the listing. If you don't like what the total cost is, don't buy it - really simple. Why folks get all bunched up about this is beyond me

I would feel bad for ebay getting burned if they weren't such greedy bastards Yes, I'm still bitter that they took all the power away from sellers. It really sucks that when a buyer doesn't pay, there's virtually nothing you can do about it. (it happens all the time too)

 

[Mesa]

That's seriously messed up. eBay is such a scam anyways. They take a larger cut of your money the higher the value is. It doesn't cost eBay anymore if the item sells for $5 or $500, in one case they'll get .50 or another they get $50, either way, eBay didn't spend any extra money. Any way a seller can get out of giving eBay a larger chunk of his or her own money, the better.

It is ridiculously difficult for sellers as it is. I spend too much time answering stupid questions from buyers, you wouldn't believe the amount of people that email me asking if I combine items when it plainly states in the description that I do. When I state 'no international shipping' and people email me asking for a shipping quote to Spain or Brazil or Cyprus. Not even 'Will you please consider shipping to ________?" just a plain ol "How much does it cost?"

If those shoes are worth $300 and it costs $15 to ship them, why would you be upset with that?? You're not paying the seller anymore than fair market value.

There should be NO Final Value Fee on items sold on eBay. Just one insertion fee based on starting price.

I pad my shipping cost just to recoup my eBay and PayPal fees, it's just like any other business. Just like you pay sales tax on an item, it's an added fee, a small business isn't just going to eat the cost of doing business, that's how our economy works, the costs of doing business are added into the final purchase price.

Ef an A. Well said.



Edit: however, until some company can offer a service comparable to eBay, eBay has the right to charge whatever it wants.

 

[Reefer Shark]

Ef an A. Well said.

Yeah... I fully back what SwedishHeat said as well.

Man, I can't believe the amount of stupid questions I have to address as a seller.

Gotta address them in a friendly way though.. If someone's foolish enough to ask questions that are answered in my listing, then sure as sht they're stupid enough to buy, then leave negative feedback when they're unhappy with the shipping (or whatever).

 

[SwedishHeat]

While I don't like eBay's fees either, they're offering a service and their fees are reflective of the fact that they are, obviously, a business out to make a profit. To say that they should charge you 50 cents whether you sell a $10 book or a $70,000 car is plainly ludicrous. They're not some community-owned non-profit group, they're a business like any other.

Well then, it's a good thing that's not what I said. I said

There should be NO Final Value Fee on items sold on eBay. Just one insertion fee based on starting price.

Pay .10 to list a $10 book pay $15 to list a $70,000 car. eBay incurs no extra costs for either item. They're still hosting pictures, processing page views. It's not like they're going to send a security guard out to make sure delivery of the car goes smoothly.

 

[Reefer Shark]

Exactly. What you're paying for with ebay is the massive exposure they provide. The insertion fee should be good enough for the service they're providing. I wouldn't be against them even raising this a bit if they eased up on the final value fee.

What I really love is when they lower the insertion fees and advertise this like crazy, but at the same time they quietly raise the final value fee.

While I'm _____ing, I might as well mention thay really need to put a little money into improving the Paypal site. It's just a horribly slow and cumbersome experience processing orders there. To the other sellers here: Is Paypal slow and crappy for you too, or is it just me?

 

[SwedishHeat]

Gotta address them in a friendly way though.. If someone's foolish enough to ask questions that are answered in my listing, then sure as sht they're stupid enough to buy, then leave negative feedback when they're unhappy with the shipping (or whatever).

One guy just emailed me the other day, he's in Thailand and says his aunt lives in Compton, and wants to know if I'll ship it to her. I've had somebody try this before, same scam, even asked if I could ship to Compton, the guy never paid and I ended up filing for Unpaid Item, whatever. This new guy just joined eBay on Sunday, and sent me this question on Monday. I ignored it, because I just didn't want to deal with him, and plus I had my exclusion list set up, and all the buyer requirements set so people outside the US can't bid, so I figured it's safe. You can see what's coming. . .

This dork ended up winning the auction. I have no idea how, his shipping address is some business in Compton, but his location still says Thailand. I guess these people can have a shipping address in the US but post their location outside to get around buyer restrictions. He still hasn't paid, and the Unpaid Item Assistant will send out a notice tomorrow, so hopefully, this will all just go away. But, I'm going to have to be extra careful to make sure I don't get burned.

And notice through all of this. . . I'm the one who has to do the extra work, because this dork got around eBay's rules. eBay's not going to do anything to help me out, but they're sure as s__t still gonna get their cut.

Of course, I'm STILL bitter that I got burned on a deadbeat seller who never shipped my item. I filed a claim, and they found in my favor, duh, but PayPal said "There's no money in his account, so we can't give anything to you". . . . well, then hows'about you take it out of the transaction fee money I've paid you this year?!?!? I ended up getting it back because I paid with my CC through PayPal, but then PayPal sent me messages saying "We see you've initiated a chargeback, if you want to cancel this, please respond." So, if you want me to get my money back, I just ignore you. . . okay, sounds good to me.

 

[zidane]

How about they actually humanize their customer service

 

[SwedishHeat]

Exactly. What you're paying for with ebay is the massive exposure they provide. The insertion fee should be good enough for the service they're providing. I wouldn't be against them even raising this a bit if they eased up on the final value fee.

What I really love is when they lower the insertion fees and advertise this like crazy, but at the same time they quietly raise the final value fee.

While I'm _____ing, I might as well mention thay really need to put a little money into improving the Paypal site. It's just a horribly slow and cumbersome experience processing orders there. To the other sellers here: Is Paypal slow and crappy for you too, or is it just me?

Yeah, just earlier this year I think the final value fee was 8.25, now it's 9. Then Paypal takes like 1% or something, so in the end, eBay gets 10% of your money. It would be more honest for them to eliminate all processing fees and just say "We're gonna take 10% off whatever the final selling price is". They either need to take their cut up front or when it's all done. They get you coming and going.

And yes, PayPal is slow. The search function is terrible. It mixes up payments and credits and payments sent to shipping services. If you're searching for a specific transaction, it's way too difficult.

As a final thought for the night, I seriously think there are some people who just troll eBay sellers and create new accounts and never pay. . . they just like being dillholes. I think I've had 1 out of 15 zero feedback bidders actually pay me. . . and then he left me neutral feedback, for no apparent reason, simply stating "not bad". I'm sorry I didn't know I had to seal your package with a kiss to receive positive feedback. And to put icing on the cake, since he bought two items, it counts as two neutral feedbacks. . . but if someone buys 4 items and leaves positive feedback, it only counts as 1. I have 47 positive feedbacks for items in the last month, but it's only counting 44.

If anybody still thinks eBay deserves their fees after reading our rants. . . you need your head examined.

 

[Gunplameister]

i agree i hate the stupid ebay fees, i sell item for 40 i get charged like 4$ then paypal takes there cut ect ect.
i flatly state sold as is no returns, and no feedback till it is left. i must have 80 items that sold this year that people just dont care to leave feedback so why should i boost their #, i work hard on what little i do sell to support my hobby habbits to have 100% and top rated seller status.

now as far as dealing with people out of the country i have sold several cell phones that ended up shipping to florida but ended up in cuba but no problems..and i have made several friends and very good private commission customers from china and japan that keep returning and dont batt a eye at paying up front from a initial sale through ebay.


o did i mention the main reason i hate ebay is about once a month i will get phone calls from them asking how the service is or to tell me in person some great opportunity's available through ebay....dont freaking call me ever ever

 

[Grosby]

Well then, it's a good thing that's not what I said. I said

Pay .10 to list a $10 book pay $15 to list a $70,000 car. eBay incurs no extra costs for either item. They're still hosting pictures, processing page views. It's not like they're going to send a security guard out to make sure delivery of the car goes smoothly.

Most people don't actually list for the prices the item is expected to get or that they desire and therefore to have a fee for the insertion price alone is obviously not sensible by anyone's judgment. A great many people begin at 99 cents, etc, even when what they're selling is a $70,000 car, because with multiple bids the proper price with a good many things is quickly reached. Not to mention that to bypass this idea of yours all one would need is simply two accounts: one to list an item at 50 cents and another to bid your minimum desired price ($200 or $40,000, the lowest you're willing to let the item go for). With that you'd only ever have to pay 5 cents in fees or whatever.

These ideas of yours as to what eBay should and shouldn't do are just terrible, I tell you. You'd make a dreadful businessman.

 

[SwedishHeat]

Most people don't actually list for the prices the item is expected to get or that they desire and therefore to have a fee for the insertion price alone is obviously not sensible by anyone's judgment. A great many people begin at 99 cents, etc, even when what they're selling is a $70,000 car, because with multiple bids the proper price with a good many things is quickly reached. Not to mention that to bypass this idea of yours all one would need is simply two accounts: one to list an item at 50 cents and another to bid your minimum desired price ($200 or $40,000, the lowest you're willing to let the item go for). With that you'd only ever have to pay 5 cents in fees or whatever.

These ideas of yours as to what eBay should and shouldn't do are just terrible, I tell you. You'd make a dreadful businessman.

"Well, that's just like, y'know. . . your opinion, man"

The market bears the true value of goods and services so if buyers of eBay's services are trying to find ways of lowering the cost, it must dictate that the true value is lower than the stated cost. Of course, when a monopoly controls that market, all these economic principles get skewed, and a black market is created, which is why there is shill bidding and secondary accounts and such.

You're missing the point that whether a person sells an item for $10 or $10,000 eBay incurs no extra cost. The amount of services eBay provides or the value of those services do not increase when someone buys an item for a high price. eBay provides the same level of service whether you're selling $10 books or $300 action figures.

 

[zidane]

 

[Darkmatter]

You are right but in the case above its a BIN which a seller has a right to ask what ever they wish. In this case he's doing just that but trying to get over on ebay, not particularly us. Now if it was an actual auction type listing with the $315 built in as the shipping then he deserves to be banned. ANY violation of ebay rules should be reported but if the violation hurts ebay more than me I can live with that. I've been burned by them in the past without any help whatsoever so if an intrepid young seller finds a way to screw them so be it, I'll still call him out though

Needless to say I still use email quite often.

ebay has changed their reporting system to include specific violations. report those abusing their system, including inflated shipping costs, ending auctions early because no one was bidding, and having others bid up their auctions. ebay will know when someone has relisted the same item several times.

 

[Grosby]

"Well, that's just like, y'know. . . your opinion, man"

The market bears the true value of goods and services so if buyers of eBay's services are trying to find ways of lowering the cost, it must dictate that the true value is lower than the stated cost. Of course, when a monopoly controls that market, all these economic principles get skewed, and a black market is created, which is why there is shill bidding and secondary accounts and such.

You're missing the point that whether a person sells an item for $10 or $10,000 eBay incurs no extra cost. The amount of services eBay provides or the value of those services do not increase when someone buys an item for a high price. eBay provides the same level of service whether you're selling $10 books or $300 action figures.

It's not an opinion, it's a plain reality just the same as if you hold your hand to flame it's going to burn. I don't like eBay's fees either - and sell little on there these days because of them - but that doesn't mean I lose my sense of logic and check in to fairyland. I understand perfectly where you're coming from - you want the the final value fees removed because it benefits YOU, and obviously a lot of people want more money too and so they'll give you a thumbs up for this lazy thought of yours, but you're ignoring the plain reality that eBay is a business. Like virtually all business, their fees and prices are not based solely on the actual cost and effort involved in the product you're buying but take in a concern for something called profit. For their pricing, they don't sit down and say, 'We need to work out how much this costs and charge that and maybe just a couple of pennies more for us so that we can keep going. Those men we have that are trying to find ways for us to make more money - fire them.'

On top of that, when you list on eBay you're obviously not just paying for a page to sell an item at a certain cost, that's not the end of their service. If you truly believed it was, then instead of complaining you'd sell on iOffer or any one of the other auction sites out there that give you your page and picture, etc, just the same. But no, you don't do that. Why is that? Once you can honestly answer that to yourself then you should understand a little better why your fees on eBay are what they are and how they can be what they are. That's not to say their fees are fair, just that there's a good deal more involved then what you seem willing to admit.

I'm all for less fees, and this and that, I think eBay has gotten terribly excessive over the years, but arguing to remove final value fees, especially with the logic you've put forth, is just laughable.

Not to put you down here, but I'm feeling pretty certain now that I'm arguing with someone who's what politely called a few sandwiches short of a picnic basket and so instead of wasting time going around in circles here I'm just gonna stop and say no more now.

 

[matt85]

I think its stupid......Why would you buy something just because the price has gone up...........People just ask for stupid prices and then you make them a much lower offer and they usually still take it..........Anyone paying big prices is stupid...pacience is the game ...example...lifesize predator busts and arnold t800 bust were both selling for 2000 about 3-4 months ago....the last few have sold for under 1000

 

[thenammagazine]

I think its stupid......Why would you buy something just because the price has gone up...........People just ask for stupid prices and then you make them a much lower offer and they usually still take it..........Anyone paying big prices is stupid...pacience is the game ...example...lifesize predator busts and arnold t800 bust were both selling for 2000 about 3-4 months ago....the last few have sold for under 1000

I disagree. He who waits with false hopes and fantasies of trailerpark discounts loses. You never know what'll happen and in the end might very well wind up paying considerably more than if you'd jumped on it when you first flirted with it. Look at RPD Leon. For about a year he rotted on Sideshow's GC list. Then vanished in what seemed like overnight. He then turned up for $300 on ebay and through etailers. People thought he'd go down, didn't bite and waited. For the past couple of years, he's been fetching $400+ consistently, despite the recession.