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Newcastle, OntarioThey just updated the stats on the Auction Site Count - Ebay is down 17.73%
Auction site count
Due to the high server load on the Auction Site Count page you have been redirected to this static page
Site Number of Listings Change / % As of
eBay view charts 12,407,716 -2199926 -17.73% February 21, 2008 11:05 am
Newcastle, OntarioApparently on one of the ebay boards to help sellers is stating that a good way to keep your DSR rating up is to "offer free shipping"!
This is cute - look quick as Ebay will pull it as quickly as they can.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi … 0211766015
Hugs,
Brenda
Ciderantiques and Old Soul Bearssource: the powersellersunite.com site
12,407,716 Down -2,199,926 Down -17.73% February 21, 2008 11:05 am
Bear Paws by Roxanne
Kenosha WisconsinHi Brenda and Karen,thank you for keeping everyone updated on the boycott.It's great to have the info in one place to keep up on the events.I have also been hearing that in the future Ebay wants to end all the auction style listings.They want to become more like their competitor,and have a huge marketplace with no room for the smaller seller.(I have posted a good thread on this from the seller central discussion board on my website under ebay changes).I have also decided not to list this week,but when I do next week,I am going to try to get my customers to subscribe to my website.This way I will be able to let them know where my bears will be listed,even on ebay if they can't find me when the new search starts!LOL....Good greif it's just so crazy,but I'd rather laugh than cry over it(and I wouldn't give them the satisfaction!)I am planning to venture out more by offering my bears on Etsy and my website and would love to try bid4bears.Is it easy to use,and do you have to host your photos with html?(as I am not too knowlagable in that dept.)But I would be willing to learn.Has anyone else came up with a good plan if ebay fades out of the picture for us in the future?....Sharie
Back Road BearsHi Sharie!
I'm all for Etsy... there are currently 143 listings under 'mohair bears'.... in all price ranges. It's an extablished, reputable, professional site. The visitors to the site are looking for handmade items, appreciate what goes into handmade goods and as more and more bear artists list there we'll bring more and more collectors. Yes, for the most part I'd say you do need to bring your collectors with you but I think over time that will change.
Bear Pile http://www.bearpile.com/ is also a great selling place - more collectors seem go there than any other bear selling site (though I dont have any stats to prove that!) and I've had great luck there in the past (don't use them now because I have all I can do to keep up orders and the rest of life.)
Neither of these sites are auction sites and fees are incredibly reasonable. The payment process through them is secure and easy too which is reassuring to buyers. You can list the same items on your site or other sites for cross promotion and marketing then just remove the bear once it's sold. The auction format does present a bit more of a push for collectors to buy knowing the bear is only available for a short time and that format can also push your price above your retail if the demand is there for your work.
www.Bear-Artists-Online.com http://www.bear-artists-online.com/ is a great site for showcasing your work and building awareness of your business, directing collectors to your website or auctions as well as featuring your latest creations right on your showcase page. And as a member you are able to participate in the two annual online shows which are a huge success.
There are lots of online options.... you just have to find what works for you.
Then there are teddy bear shows like the one in Kohler and the Schaumburg, IL shows which might be close enough for you to participate in. Another great way to build a collector base!
Newcastle, OntarioHi Sharie,
Nice to have you here and by the way, I looooove your bears and cats.
I have a website, but haven't used it much - I always enjoyed watching my auctions on Ebay. However, I believe NOW is the time to start using it regularly.
I also make a few other things and opened an Etsy shop last fall. I haven't done much with it, but boy, this Ebay mess has given me LOTS of incentive.
I am also a member of Bear-Artists-Online.com, which I love. They have shows twice a year AND each member gets their own mini site which they can add bears to, anytime. I've been putting my Ebay auctions on my page for extra advertising.
I think I mentioned this earlier, but I think I will do an indepth ME PAGE on Ebay, something I have never bothered to do. I will do it just so I can put all my links on it, for free advertising.
I haven't used Bid4Bears, but I know Nancy has put a lot of work into it, and maybe this IS the time for all of us to educate our customers and try and convince them to join.
There is also Bearpile, as Daphne mentioned. I've not used it, but l here other artists have good luck with it.
The Auction Chart site also gives stats on the other on-line auction sites and many of them have gained a lot of new members this week. As for stopping auctions on Ebay, nothing would surprise me now.
hugs,
Brenda
Newcastle, OntarioHi Sharie,
I just looked at the link on your website from Seller Central. Wow! I decided to copy and post it here for those who are interested as I believe it will be wiped out pretty quick when it's discovered. Hope you don't mind!
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Honest opinion on Ebay's new policies from a powerseller...
manchester698 (4657 ) View Listings | Report Feb-16-08 22:38 PST
WARNING - LOOOONG POST!!!
We've followed the discussion on Ebay's new fees and feedback policies and we have seen arguments both for and against, so here's our 2 cents...
First of all:
Who are "we"?
We're a husband wife team and we've chosen to post this with our regular seller account i.d., for the sake of transparency - so that all can see we are not lying and in the hope that readers will appreciate that our opinions are honest and are not just an anonymous rant.
OK, so let's get to the nuts an bolts of it....
Background
We've been on Ebay for 5 years and, at the time of posting, are Gold Level Powersellers (we choose not to show the Powerseller symbol on our listings as it actually helps sales, go figure).
Ebay Fee Changes
What Ebay wants to do: Ebay wants to catch up with that large river in south america in that it eventually wants to get fees down to nothing and get FVFs up to a combined 15% (i.e., combined with Paypal). The large river is winning in revenue, so Ebay will follow that model as the current management follow what the analysts at big financial firms say they must do - i.e., compete with the other guy's business model.
What ebay is actually doing: They are losing sight of what made Ebay unique. Ebay used to be the "world's flea market" - but they now see this as a dirty word - they want to be a "marketplace". However, this automatically disenfranchises a large majority of their members. Remember when Ebay was fun? Not any more. What they appear to be saying is that if you want to sell here, you've got to be a merchant - no more mom and pop operations. This is a shame as they seem to forget the original ethos of Ebay that got them to where they are today. Talking of which, ebay's share price was at $60 just 3 years ago...and then what happened? They started raising fees - and today? Share price below $30 - surely someone has to see that their business plan is not working?
What Ebay fee hikes mean for sellers
Nothing. Sellers will raise their prices to compensate for the fee increases. Those who used to sell by auction will convert to BIN, or will be hurt.
What Ebay fee hikes mean for buyers
Less choice and higher prices.
What Ebay fee hikes mean for Ebay revenues
Less choice, higher prices = lower overall sales = lower revenues.
Ebay Feedback policy changes
No more negatives from sellers
This is perhaps the most short-sighted change by Ebay. We work very hard to maintain a 100% record. But this includes being able to vet or weed-out idiots. Now that sellers can no longer leave honest appraisals of buyers means that we can no longer pre-vet buyers - we are stuck with them.
How Ebay intends to protect sellers
Ebay says that it will protect seller ratings by making the NPB easier, but this is bull - and here's why...we rang Ebay yesterday and this is what they confirmed:
Us: So Ebay will protect us from deadbeat bidders by the NPB processs?
Ebay: Yes, we will remove all feedback from those buyers
US: But doesn't the system say that if they REPLY to the NPB alert, that they can still leave negative feedback?
Ebay : Yes, if they reply to the NPB report they can still leave negative feedback.
Us: So someone can buy an item, never pay for it and as long as they say that they will through the dispute console they can leave us a negative?
Ebay: Yes
Us: So this means that there is no extra protection for us?
Ebay: Well, if you put it like that, then no, in those circumstances, we will not be able to remove the negative.
Us: But doesn't this leave the feedback process open to abuse? Anyone can buy something, not pay for it, and as long as they just reply to the NPB report, they can just leave a negative feedback report without ever paying for it?
Ebay: Yes, you could perhaps see it that way, though we hope that buyers will be more honest.
What Ebay intends to achieve by the feedback changes
Ebay's ethos appears to be that "we need to increase buyer confidence" to increase sales. They think that by introducing these changes they will stop "retaliatory" feedbacks by bad sellers and thereby weed out bad sellers. This is, in our opinion, a backwards approach. They keep spouting statistics that support his view, but if they have these statistics, then why not just weed out the bad sellers by using these statistics? One answer may be that even a bad seller provides revenue? (just an opinion)
Feedback only counts over 12 months
This is a kick in teeth for sellers like ourselves with a feedback record over 5 years - we worked very hard to keep our feedback at 100% by providing good customer service - the first 4 years is now meanngless.
DSRs only count for 30 days
Our DSRs over ~ 9 months are 4.9,4.9,4.8 and 4.8 but now only 30 says will apply - again there is no kudos for prior service.
What Ebay wants to happen from sellers
Ebay "wants" to weed out bad sellers and improve customer service by rewarding sellers with good track records over a period of 30 days. It wants to encourage bad sellers to become good sellers by offering discounts on fees if they achieve certain levels.
What will actually happen from good sellers
We consider ourselves to be "good" sellers - we try and provide honest listings with good follow-through customer support. So, what will happen now? Well, here's the bottom line - after 5 years of feedback on Ebay, only 1 will count. We have no way to spot bad buyers as they will no longer have negatives, Ebay will not remove negatives from NPB as long as they reply to NPB reports, so negatives are unavoidable - they are a given. So, if 5 years of hard work is so easily cast aside, then why should we bust a gut to provide good customer service? Negatives are now inevitable, so customer service will go down - ironic, isn't it?
Every fixed price and store inventory must be above $1
We hadn't heard of this one until Ebay kindly phoned us and left a message to let us know. The big south american river did this by introducing an additional flat rate fee of 80c on top of their 15% - they lead, Ebay follows.
Ebay stores fees go up from 10% to 12% FVF
This raise completes Ebay's desire to get up to the large south american river's level of commission (remember Paypal is 3%, so 12% + 3% = large south american river).
So what does this mean to us?
It's just a question of common sense really. Ebay is pushing us off their site - we've already reduced our inventory from 800 to ~350 and we'll be opening some online stores. We will still keep an online presence on Ebay, but prices will go up and sales will go down as will our invoice amounts from Ebay.
The boycott
Ebay will ignore the boycott as if it didn't happen. We will close our store for that week while we re-calculate our S&H to absorb the fee increases and the USPS increases coming in May. The big shame about the boycott is that many sellers get an important income from Ebay and for some of them to feel threatened by potential negs from boycotters goes against the whole ethos of the community.
The big picture
Ebay's share price is falling, and has been for some time. Wall street analysts called for a change in leadership and a drive towards the models of other internet marketplaces, advice which Ebay has studiously followed. Unfortunately, this does not take into account the very thing that made Ebay what it is today - unique and transparent.
We give this about 6 hours before Ebay removes this commentary.
Psssst. Brenda! Are those bunnies done yet? 
Warmest bear hugs, :hug:
Aleta
Newcastle, OntarioHi Aleta,
ALMOST - I HAVE BEEN WORKING, HONEST They are almost stuffed, and then it's just finishing. I've sent you a PM with a question.
hugs,
Brenda
Ciderantiques and Old Soul BearsOhhhh Aleta . . . :doh: We'll have to unplug the computer for 2 days I think. ~ Karen
Newcastle, OntarioOkay, I'm off to finish stuffing bunnies 
hugs,
Brenda
Ciderantiques and Old Soul BearsHey Brenda, I'll continue with the Auction Listing graphs . . . . Today ~ Thursday February 21, 2008 ~
There were 11,872,000 ebay.com listings at 9:00am EST and 12,080,000 ebay.com listings at 10:00pm EST.
I just think that is so AWSOME to see that graph going down so low. :crackup:
I'm feeling kind of guilty because I went and listed a bear tonight. I won't be after this though. I found out while listing that they also raised the rate to list in The Feature Plus area from $19,95 to $24.95. I don't know who they were listening to,
Way to go to everyone that has had the courage & strength to Boycott this Greedy Company.
I have been bombarding Ebay with emails, Live Chat and messages to their Suggestion board.
Good Work Everyone.
Big Hugs,
Denise XXXX :hug:
Ciderantiques and Old Soul BearsHello Denise,
Thank you for the comments. The fees for Featured Plus have changed (effective Feb 20, 2008). It used to be $19.95 for everything. Now there are four price points, based on the starting price (and reserve) of your listing. Some Featured Plus listing fees will be less:
0.01 - $24.99 . . . . . . . . . is $9.95
$25.00 - $199.99 . . . . . . . is $14.95
$200.00 - $499.99 . . . . . is $19.95
+ $500.00 . . . . . . . . . is $24.95
I don't know if the first category would be used very much . . . . unless the seller had a lot of small items listed at the same time and wanted to use one listing to high-light them all.
~
Karen
Ciderantiques and Old Soul BearsHi MJ, All comments welcome. 
I went lurking on some of the UK ebay discussions boards yesterday to try and understand why so many people in N.America are upset by the changes vs. why many in the UK are not. The one thread that was started by a US seller (on a UK discussion board) in support of the boycott was shot to threads. I left one comment and ran 
It seems that the whole fee structure on UK ebay is quite different. The percentages haven't gone up as much and the possibility for a seller to get a discount in fees based on the star ratings is more generous than it is here. The final value fees have not changed as much in the UK, so people are hopeful that their monthly expenses on ebay could go down. I really don't think that is the case on ebay.ca or ebay.com. Here is the link for the UK fee structure if other people are curious.
http://web.ebay.co.uk/businesshub/index … ges_uk_fee
~ Karen.
Newcastle, OntarioHi MJ,
Thanks for posting and I think I understand what you mean! Yes, it's unfortunate that a few sellers can take advantage of buyers and their numbers are so high that their Feedback % still stays relatively high. The new system will certainly change that BUT when feedback can be applied by both parties, both buyer and seller benefit. I know ebay says they are trying to stop sellers from retaliating when they are dinged with a negative, but there are just as many buyers that sting sellers. The "my item never arrived" scam is growing problem. Paypal refunds the money and buyer gets his money back AND keeps the item AND gets to ding the seller with a negative, to which the seller cannot reply.
Ebay had a good idea with the star rating, and that would have helped, but the no-feedback for sellers has gone too far, along with their "soon to be" new auction premise of actually stating "this seller has a low rating" if you rate 4.5 or under, and being able to bury your auction at the bottom of the listings, if your stars are 4.5 or below etc.
Buyers have to be responsible for themselves. I ALWAYS email a seller with a question, before I bid on an auction. I wait for their response and judge how quickly I got an answer, if the tone was curtious etc. If I don't like the response, then I move on. It's really simple and effective.
hugs,
Brenda
Newcastle, OntarioHi all
I believe Helena posted a link to this acution earlier in this thread, but it's really interesting. It's one on the new auction styles being tested.
It's bad enough that they announce "this seller has a low rating for SHIPPING TIME", but it has come to light that not everyone sees this auction the same. Some see it as a regular auction format and others see the new style. So, what it means is that the auction lister may see it as "normal" and buyers may see the new format and "this seller has rating for shipping time"! Ebay, at least for the moment, is controlling how it's viewed - interesting! I emailed the seller and they were unaware that Ebay had picked their auction for a trial. This is how the seller felt.
User: digging4losttreasures (220)
Member since 15-Dec-06 in United States
Location : NJ, United States
Activity with digging4losttreasures (last 90 days):I have bid on 0 items from digging4losttreasures
Activity with digging4losttreasures (last 90 days):digging4losttreasures has bid on 0 of my items
Dear duffyantiques,
No I did not know nor would I EVER have given my consent and as for how I feel about it--it's disgraceful!!!
- digging4losttreasures
Here's a link to the Ebay rep that answered on one of the ebay forums, but no mention is made about how it's viewed.
sushetty@ebay.com View Listings | Report Feb-18-08 21:18 PST 20 of 390
Hi everybody,
My name is Subha and I would be happy to answer your questions on the new designs we are testing. We are testing a new design of the item page and the bidding layers and therefore the url you see ngvi.ebay.com is a valid ebay site only. We are conducting this test in US and UK for 0.25% and 2% of our users respectively.
Regarding the questions you may have on the message we display for sellers such as "this seller has low ratings for shipping time, etc", this is something we are again testing with the goal of increasing the transparency to buyers regarding detailed seller ratings (DSRs) of sellers, especially when the DSRs are low.
Let me know if you have any other specific questions,
- Subha
Ciderantiques and Old Soul BearsAuction Graph ~ Friday February 22, 2008 ~ update
Approximately 12,350,000 listings at 8:00am and 2,500,000 at 9:00pm EST. Numbers seem to have gone back up.
Ciderantiques and Old Soul BearsAuction Graph ~ February 23, 2008 ~ update, 10:00pm EST
Analysts are saying that one possible reason for the increase in listings is due in part to unsold items being re-listed . (re-listing allows the seller to get the same rate as the discount rate). Ebay has a 45% "Sell through rate" which means less then half of the items on the site sell the first time they are listed.
Ciderantiques and Old Soul BearsHi everyone,
A thread on Seller Central called "ebay admits technical issue with DSRs" points out that some buyers can only click 1, 2 or 3 and do not have the option to click 4 or 5 when selecting star ratings (because those options do not appear on their screen). This is due to browser setting and the size of the computer screen.
Here is a portion of the dialog with PS live Help:
Helen L.
Yes, I am. I apologize, I am speaking with a technician about this now
Helen L.
The technician is saying that they have had some reports of this, but it is based on the settings of the browser. If you change the firefox settings to 1024 x 768 then the box is far enough over that they can leave the feedback
Helen L.
They said they are working on getting this corrected, however, in the mean time, they can only recommend that you adjust the resolution to see if that will help
antiquem
You all don't seem to understand this issue is affecting every seller the average user/buyer will not know how to change browsers / or resolution nor will they care to. It is not their problem it is your problem and it is negatively affecting sellers
Helen L.
I understand your concerns. However, if they can't leave the feedback at all, then it doesn't affect you at all. it isn't like they are only allowed to leave negative feedback
Helen L.
We do have technicians that are working on this
Helen L.
They are researching it, trying to find a solution for it
antiquem
A casual buyer will not realize that they should or could leave 5 stars they really don't know I just got of the phone with a GF and she just bought 6 items this week and didn't have a clue as to the ramifications
Helen L.
If you would like to send in screenshots of the issue, you are more than welcome to. The technicians said that would help me
antiquem
which means that there are sellers all over the place that are getting there stars dinged because of your coding not for any other reason. THIS IS NOT ACCEPTABLE
Helen L.
I understand, however, we are working on this
Bears-a-Bruin!I haven't been able to follow the boycott news this week because of computer problems (groan), so I'm just catching up now. And out of interest I've also been working out what the new fees will mean to me, selling a bear on eBay:
I listed my last bear on ebay.com with starting price of $40 and a gallery photo. He sold around $140 (about £70, very pleased!). This cost me $5.50 (£2.80) in total eBay fees.
If I listed him again on ebay.com, with the new fees, it would cost me $6.10 (£3.60).
If I listed him on ebay.co.uk with the new fees, it would be $9.25 (£4.70)!
This doesn't include the $5.00 or so that paypal took off me.
So a) the US site is cheaper for me to list on, and b) I'm torn between disliking eBay for these changes (especially feedback) and wanting the exposure that the site can give. Sigh.
Not that I have bears to sell at the moment, so it's academic really!!!! LOL
Ciderantiques and Old Soul BearsAuction/Listings Graph ~ February 24, 2008 ~ update
Maybe it's trying to make a teddy bear since the 21st. Looks like a left ear to me
Matilda Huggington-bearehttp://www.auctionbytes.com/cab/abn/y07/m11/i19/s01
After reading all the info here I popped onto the ebay discussion boards and had a read there. Then some how I found this site when I googled for something else.
It is an independent trade publication for online merchants. They have written quite alot about ebays new policies that has everyone up in arms.
Just thought some of you may be interested.
Wendy
has anyone thought of this place?
http://www.blackwellsliveauction.com/bl … omepage.ba
it looks like fun.
Newcastle, OntarioHi Wendy,
Thanks so much for your post. The more people that become informed the better. The boycott has been extended for those that can afford to, and I'm certainly in. We understand that some people really need to sell, and that's fine. ALmost everyone on the boycott board I belong to is already starting to sell at alternative sites. The ones people are switching to are www.onlineauction.com, www.ioffer.com, www.ecrater.com and www.ewaey.com. These are auction sites and Etsy is being recommended for Artsits.
hugs,
Brenda
