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Post by sunsetpainter on Jan 30, 2017 4:05:25 GMT
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Post by chapeaunoir on Jan 30, 2017 5:19:28 GMT
Some good comments for once (not the same old whining) - I think the decline in auctions was inevitable - it was a fad for most things. Auctions in most cases end pretty low, and when I hear people all happy that their item had a bidding war and it's not an unusual collectible, book or rare piece of clothing, I can usually find several other examples of it ending higher with a simple FP format.
Also, used merchandise is, by last figures released by eBay, only 19% of the product line.
I think auctions are still a great way to go for some items and it's something special that ebay has, and its unfortunate that the site has had such poor leadership that can't seem to capitalise on this, even if it's just for certain price points and categories.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 30, 2017 5:46:00 GMT
I think it was a fad, too. They also worked better when the market wasn't flooded.
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Post by unknown on Jan 30, 2017 9:10:06 GMT
They were good till the chinese invastion and the search engine that couldn't search.
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Post by thekloset on Jan 30, 2017 11:47:10 GMT
i think our culture has just changed--everyone wants it N-O-W. there is no such thing as patience these days. we've become an instant society.
i'm sure ebay didnt help themselves in the matter either, but i think the format just lived out its usefulness.
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Post by jellybeanscloset412 on Jan 30, 2017 14:11:41 GMT
Very depressing. It makes me sad because Ebay HAS lost what made it special.
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Post by Desire on Jan 30, 2017 14:33:05 GMT
i think our culture has just changed--everyone wants it N-O-W. there is no such thing as patience these days. we've become an instant society. i'm sure ebay didnt help themselves in the matter either, but i think the format just lived out its usefulness.
That's so true. That's why I have Amazon Prime - I always "need" something N-O-W
Another place that ships quick and order arrives in two days is drugstore.com - I stopped ordering from CVS because orders would take more than a week to arrive, often over 10 days. Very annoying.
Auction specials were never for 1 or 3 days, always 5 or 7 - no one wants to bid and wait 7 days to see if they won. By then they are off to something else and often forget all about it.
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Post by unknown on Jan 30, 2017 14:49:00 GMT
Another thing that didn't help is the required 30% for a BIN.
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kritter
Mod Squad
When we lose sight of how we treat animals, we tend to lose sight of our humanity
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Post by kritter on Jan 30, 2017 17:13:23 GMT
i think our culture has just changed--everyone wants it N-O-W. there is no such thing as patience these days. we've become an instant society. i'm sure ebay didnt help themselves in the matter either, but i think the format just lived out its usefulness. I am one of those that doesn't want to mess with auctions especially when I see something I would buy on the first day of a 7 day auction. By the end of 7 days, I have either found it somewhere else or don't want/need it anymore. |
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Post by jellybeanscloset412 on Jan 30, 2017 20:55:35 GMT
Another thing is to consider is that way back when there were not 5,000 of one item listed. It used to be maybe 10 auctions of something. That made it exciting. Now theres a billion of everything so it's boring.
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Post by chapeaunoir on Jan 30, 2017 21:16:20 GMT
Another thing is to consider is that way back when there were not 5,000 of one item listed. It used to be maybe 10 auctions of something. That made it exciting. Now theres a billion of everything so it's boring. So true! Also, it was all new and shiny. Etailing has grown up and people keep forgetting that auctions were hot 15 years ago lol - things do change. If you can get an chico's shirt on fixed price, and there are several of what you want, why why why fiddle around for 7 days for an auction and have to watch it? WHY? Etailing is trying to replicate the actual experience of being able to purchase the item immediately from your local store, but a much wider variety of items. Another factor someone mentioned are the listing sales, and makes the good point that the site becomes routinely flooded with the same old relists that people save up for the listing sales. I notice this as a buyer. Too much stuff, too many desperate sellers selling the same stuff. |
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Post by chapeaunoir on Jan 30, 2017 21:19:16 GMT
This is not to say that auctions should be abolished - in fact, I think eBay can make much of auctions by having them for collectibles, etc., with various starting price points, including a fixed penny rate for smalls like Jeremy's stamps, in the small media section.
It can be done, but I don't think eBay is capable of rejigging auctions - they don't have the talent.
It would be a real shame if they just let auctions go and I sincerely hope they never do.
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Post by sunsetpainter on Jan 30, 2017 21:24:49 GMT
I rarely do auctions anymore unless I have something I think may be a woo-hoo, but not sure and don't know what to price it at. Usually doesn't work out and I end up dropping the price drastically on a fixed price listing.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 31, 2017 1:20:46 GMT
Auctions are old fashioned but I find that they work well if you are selling things in lots. If I sell a lot of something, it will be unique. Say, a 10 piece lot of costume jewelry. It can flop or it can go sky high. I do get bidders and mostly I do well.
Other than that, there's nothing unique enough that I have for auctions.
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Post by chapeaunoir on Jan 31, 2017 2:45:54 GMT
i think our culture has just changed--everyone wants it N-O-W. there is no such thing as patience these days. we've become an instant society. i'm sure ebay didnt help themselves in the matter either, but i think the format just lived out its usefulness. I am one of those that doesn't want to mess with auctions especially when I see something I would buy on the first day of a 7 day auction. By the end of 7 days, I have either found it somewhere else or don't want/need it anymore. That's exactly it - unless it's a HTF item, there's simply no reason to waste time on an auction. When eBay was young and etailing was young, it was fun. It's still an excellent format for the unusual or highly desired. I don't think our demands have gotten unreasonable for wanting something now, I just think eTailing grew up, there are more choices, and we're simply exercising reasonable buyer behaviour. The only good 95% of auctions are to me is to search the ending soon ones so I can pick up a bunch of ridiculously cheap stuff to flip. |
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