eBay 'Boycott' Shows Lack of Trust Between Buyers and Sellers

Some eBay (EBAY) sellers are planning to boycott the auction site in protest of changes in its fees, search system and feedback system. I don't know wheter the posts on CNN.com are representative or not, but they make several things clear. eBay has a major trust problem with buyers and sellers. The negative viral demarketing has been and will continue to be devastating for eBay's stock, which is down sharply from last fall.

Investors and speculators should pay a lot of attention to what eBay's customers are saying, because they're offering more market intelligence than any stock analyst ever could or would. The most important themes of the comments are that ratings of buyers and sellers can't be trusted, and there are a lot of dishonest sellers out there gaming the system. There also are dishonest buyers, but the sellers are frequent users and know much more about how to game the system and are more likely to than most buyers. That's why I've never bought nor sold on eBay. Another important theme is that eBay's customer service, which I've never experienced, is as bad as Paypal's, which I have. Here are some questions for businesses trading on eBay and for investors:

1. If you don't trust or like the eBay system, what are your alternatives?

2. How can you check out trading partners on eBay if you don't trust the rankings?

3. Is it better to setup an online store independent of eBay and use pay-per-click advertising on Google (GOOG), Yahoo (YHOO) and Microsoft (MSFT) search?

4. If you're an eBay seller, how do you reassure potential buyers and protect yourself from the deadbeats?

5. Under eBay's new search algorithm, high-volume sellers' will be ranked ahead of the low-volume sellers. How can the low-volume sellers beat this system, and is the system fair? (High-volume customers get preferred treatment where ever you go.)

6. Does it pay to shop the auction sites for so called bargains, or would your time be better spent buying new and getting on with business? I've always bought new rather than mess with eBay much even though I"ve been a member for a long time and sometimes search eBay to check out prices.

7. As an investor, do you want to own a company with so many vocally unhappy customers?

8. Microsoft has thrived despite millions of unhappy customers. Can eBay?

9. Will the boycott work, given that similar efforts never have?

10. Will eBay have to change its operations?

11. If so, how long will it take to make the changes, and what might they do to the company's bottom line?

12. On a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being very important, how important is this news to eBay?

Disclosure: none

Comments

[george gorski]

I was once a Canadian seller on e-bay USA with one of the highest positive feedback ratings. When I bought goods, USA sellers would claim the goods must be hung-up in Customs. Certain competing sellers on the USA side deliberately submitted negative feedback ratings until I was forced off the site by e-bay. E-bay just assumes they are right and I am wrong without checking out the details. I suspect that these dishonest sellers / buyers now dominate the Auction site.

[bleumangue]

It's always great to hear from the the "ex". It's the only frakking way anybody get's a half-ass idea of what's really happening! User 104113: you're my Gennifer Flowers of E-bay!

[oceandude]

The most ridiculous thing with Ebay's recent changes is the publicizing of "lower seller fees". This is complete deception. LISTING fees are lower but sales commissions are quite higher.

This is great for sellers who list the same overpriced crap over and over without selling. This is terrible for folks that simply want to sell inventory quickly at a fair price for buyer and seller.

[89beamer]

I was a seller on Ebay,b ut between Ebay fees, Paypal fees and shipping costs, I am out of business. Now Ebay wants to adjust your feedback rating yearly starting back to '0' each year! The scammers will be in heaven. Many scammers steal a sellers feeback making them look good. Now, they will all be at '0' again. Now with their new fee structure and added B.S. Ebay is becoming like 'Organized Crime' for the thieves!
Something along the lines of Politics! Nice up front, but always devious and scheming behind the scenes!

[rufus]

Article is a nice attempt, but what does ebay want to be...amazon? High volume, new and new/old stock? Ebay was created for individual sellers. It's intent was supposedly an online market of individuals selling unique, hard to find items. Now the focus will be volume!? This won't last regardless of the boycott. Ebay's niche is collectibles and rare items, yes an online flea market. Ebay should definitely focus on attracting more customers...their customers are sellers. They should also spend time and money smoothing out the rough spots, policing both bad sellers and buyers. Then the sellers' customers, the 'buyers', will come rushing back. As long as ebay permits fraud, only waving their finger at it, while taking a percentage of its profits, no one will have confidence in the company or the market place. Seeking Alpha: And if you're looking for someone capable of simple strategic analysis, I'm looking for a job.

[oceandude]

Ebay had a chance to be like Amazon with their acquisition of half.com but they completely screwed that up (no surprise). 4-5 years ago I used half.com all the time but now I haven't been there in quite a while.

[Tony P.]

I am a seller of antiques and collectibles; definitely low-volume, yet somewhat high dollar - $25 to $400. My answers to your questions reflect my area, not those of the mass-marketers of Commodities. Both groups, Collectibles and Commodities, *could* exist within the same venue, and be beneficial to each other, but with ebay's "one size fits all" approach, one side gets stiffled. The end result is a detriment to the marketplace, as a whole.

1. My own website is #1, followed by other small auction/store venues. None have the traffic of ebay; that is ebay's only trump card, at present.

2. I can't. I check out the buyers *after* the fact (name, address, phone #, etc). Most buyers pay immediately; the potential scam comes later, after delivery. With the new feedback system, I will be prevented from leaving a factual warning to any other sellers, if I encounter a scamming buyer.

3. Yes, the ROI is better, but the Traffic generation still falls short of what ebay provides.

4. I point potential buyers towards my 9 years' worth of Feedbacks, where they can read my customers' praises. Against deadbeats, I have no real defence. My goods have few scammers; if they buy it, they typically really want it.

5. The low-volume seller cannot beat the new system. It is geared towards the Power Sellers, which are mainly mass-listers of commodities. My items are fairly unique, so in their categories they have little competition.

6. Not applicable to my selling business. But, I suggest you do look on all the various sites, you might find that treasure you never knew existed. Spend small amounts and find reliable sellers.

7. Absolutely not. The stock may be doing just fine, but there's a fire brewing.

8. MS actually attempts to improve its products, even if they are misguided at times, by listening to their customers (some would disagree with this, but it's true). Ebay is guided 100% by profit, manipulation of their metrics, and the impression that the stock is a Growth one (they cannot afford to disappoint The Street).

9. It isn't meant to actually have an impact upon ebay's revenue; it is meant to get attention (like your article). Several smaller 'strikes' have been successful, but are overlooked/forgotten. The IS Fiasco of 2004 - sellers stopped listing and ebay recinded the category rollups. One in 2002 (2001?) ebay reversed a fee increase for Stores.

10. To stop the Bleed of seller and buyers? YES.

11. Reduce or eliminate ALL insertion fees; impliment a minimum that is category-specifis (keeps out junk); apply more English-Speaking people to true Customer Service and get rid of the Bad Sellers. The bad/scam sellers contribute heavily to ebay's bottom line, so Yes, it will affect their revenue. This piecemeal cleaning effort won't work, not effectively, and it will severely damage many good sellers. Which will lessen the attraction of buyers.

12. You mean the news of the boycott? Ebay could probably care less - Donahoe already termed the sellers just "noise". You need to consider such an attitude from a (future) CEO - just Stop and think about that level of animosity.

Donald, Thank You for the article.

[boogiebobsrecords]

Fee Increases every year, messing with search (stores vs. auctions), removal of feedback choices for sellers, threats of Paypal holding sellers funds because some robot warns the system, poor customer service from both eBay and Paypal, widely publicized hacking of account information (search any engine for "vladuz") to mention a few reasons why no-one should EVER trust either of these two websites. There are a ton of negative attitudes from both buyers and sellers all over the internet. One website you can find a lot of information at is powersellersunite.com

Thanks,
Bob @ Boogiebobs Records

[Donald E. L. Johnson]

Great comments. I think you've all help investors understand eBay's problems and challenges. Thanks.

[Bobbie BB]

You're so right on, Rufus. Good luck on the job search.

I've been given to understand they need to get rid of the stores that have small ticket items that sit in the store, month after month for a fee of $.06 per item. Their servers have run out of room. They have had to randomly take stores off for periods of time. Here’s a quote from a seller: “Ebay said it's servers were so over-loaded it couldn't keep them all running at the same time, so some were shut down on a rotating basis.”

Simple solution, stop the automatic renewal option of store listings every 30 days. Some sellers, myself included, put small ticket items in their stores and forget about them until if and when they sell. If I had to relist items every month, I might give up and donate it to charity after a while. But that would be a simple solution and not an excuse to generate a higher percentage of final value fees.

[melody]

Many angry eBayers launched a boycott against eBay or feebay as they would call it. You can view full details on the boycott here at WebPro News Long term eBay users are just plain fed up with eBay's greed. Since eBay started many people have been loyal customers but now eBay wants to get greedy and give their LOYAL customers less bang for their buck! The constant raising of fees and the limitations they are putting on feedback is a big slap in the face for everyone. They tend to forget who made them what they are! They are trying to run off the little people and only keep the customers who are "power sellers" who spend a fortune with them. This is wrong on so many levels! Ebay will crumble and in time just become a faint Internet memory!

So many people are turning to Craigs List. But, what most don't know is that Craigs List is owned by eBay. Sure you can list certain thing for free, but you have to list it city by city. There isn't a store option or any other options for that matter. Lets face it how long do you think it will take for eBay to make Craigs List completely overpriced as well?

There are alternatives. We at USAuctionsLive.com have seen this coming for a long time. And like many of you we too were tired of being ripped off by eBay! We decided to take it to the next level and create an auction site that allowed live auction to be enjoyable once again. The sheer thought of having to pay out a percentage of your hard earned sale is sickening! And what you want your own store but you have to pay a monthly fee PLUS pay for every listing? It's obsurd; you should be encouraged to do so by receiving a huge price break! And that is exactly what we have done. If you take a look at our store prices you will see you only pay a SMALL flat monthly fee and you can list UNLIMITED items in your store. We don't charge additional listing fees, and close of auction fees. We believe it should be affordable and our customers should actually make a profit, not give it all to us.

We want encourage people not to give up on live auctions. So, for all of you former eBayers we want to let you try our sit for free for a month a test drive if you will. List what ever you want for free and utilize all of our features and see that the auction world can still be enjoyable. just go to usauctionslive.com and insert this voucher code: 8A156D26C5D4 for all of your listings. Then sit back and see it is possible to get back in the game

[Raia]

Greedbay has been slowly commiting suicide for the last few years.

Today is my 10 year anniversary on greedbay... I have supported the on~going boycott and will continue to do so... indefinitely.

I haven't listed anything on their site in 4 months and have no intention of doing do.

I remember when greedbay was a total blast to deal on, both buying and selling! It was fun! I've met some incredible people, who have remained friends over the last decade.

Believe it or not, greedbay actually *did* used to fight fraud!
They used to suspend sellers who would shill bid... sellers who sell brand new satin nightgown sets that they buy at Target for example, remove the tags and sell them as 40's vintage... brand new Rago girdles, that are manufactured right now in NY and advertise them as "vintage"... greedbay used to enforce their own policies... those days are over...

It's *only* about the money now.

They allow the fraudulent sellers to continue, because even if those sellers continuously rip off unsuspecting buyers, greedbay still collects listing and FVF fees... greedbay couldn't care less about honest buyers or sellers....

And they should.

Many, many buyers have been ripped off and for far too long... greedbay has allowed fraud to flourish on their site, and word of mouth can make you or break you, that they have cut their own throat by driving the buyers away *themselves*.

Yes, they wrecked the site all by themselves.

They didn't/don't enforce their own rules and reg's, strictly for their own *temporary* monetary gain.

I mean, my gosh... all of the big execs started dumping their stock in the last quarter of last year!

If that's not a blatant show of what's to come for the site, I don't know what is!

I will never buy or sell on greedbay again.

They took all of the fun out of it and I can't see paying someone for the amount of abuse they dish out these days.

Thank goodness for eCrater and the other excellent venues out there!

Most sincerely,
Raia
Gurlz Gone Glam!

gurlz.ecrater.com
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[Raia]

"So many people are turning to Craigs List. But, what most don't know is that Craigs List is owned by eBay. Sure you can list certain thing for free, but you have to list it city by city. There isn't a store option or any other options for that matter. Lets face it how long do you think it will take for eBay to make Craigs List completely overpriced as well?"

Melody,

It's always great to see all of the alternative ecommerce sites available and that you're out promoting yours, however please get your facts on craigslist straight.

You may educate yourself here:
www.craigslist.org/abo...

Have a nice day!

[Propandwardrobe]

Open Letter to eBay and to All It May Concern,


For over decade, I have found eBay to be a happy, enjoyable, and reasonably safe place to do business; first through a friend, then as a Buyer myself and, eventually, as a Seller.

As you will see from my feedback record, I have bought and sold on eBay with equal care and consideration—often encouraging my friends and colleagues to take the plunge themselves and experience firsthand the premiere shopping frontier of the internet.

Actually, I did not become an eBay Seller right away. It took several years of becoming a model Buyer and building an impeccable record of positive purchasing before I finally leapt over to the other side of the eBay fence.



After hundreds of happy purchases and encountering only a few unsatisfactory Sellers in all that time, I decided to sell a few items from my family’s estate. I was surprised at how easy selling on eBay was and regretted that I had waited so long.

As much as I had learned as a Buyer, my real education began as an online Seller. I quickly realized how important it was to provide accurate, detailed descriptions and photographs for every item I offered to the public. As I would later admonish lazy or careless Sellers: “You are the eyes and conscience of each and every bidder who cannot see and hold the item themselves. You must have the integrity to point out the flaws as well as the features. Also, always remember the Buyer holds the disadvantage until they receive the item, so handle any dissatisfaction accordingly. EBay Selling is not supposed to be “Trick or Treat,” it is supposed to be “Happy Birthday.”

Wise words, perhaps, but the truth is; buying or selling any item sight unseen is often a “crap shoot.” As a Buyer, I have purchased more than a few items that didn’t make the translation from digital image to reality as well as I had expected. But then, other items greatly exceeded my expectation and were a bargain beyond belief. Just like any retail store, not every item is going to work out.

Ultimately, however, I learned the quality of any transaction does not rest with the item being bought or sold; it rests with both the Buyer and the Seller. No transaction is a good one if either party feels betrayed or exploited—period. To that end, I have never had a unhappy Buyer myself although I have had to give a refund or two to ensure it.

As my Selling experience progressed and positive Buyer comments were added to my feedback record, I began to reach out to other Sellers, offering advice and tips to help them better sell their own items. I would gently advise this person that a hat size is determined by the inside circumference not width and length or respectfully inform that person that the coat they were selling was vintage 40’s not 50’s. I once notified an art dealer that the lithograph they were offering was not of Laurel & Hardy but of Burgess Meredith & Zero Mostel.

Each time the other Seller would reply in surprise and appreciation that I had taken the time to point out their error, and gratefully acknowledge my kindness and consideration. I would merely remind them that, for me, eBay was a kind of family; one of the last few places where people could act in good faith, where Buyers and Sellers could be held accountable for each and every transaction, and where Buyers and Sellers could easily examine the other’s feedback record and decide to do business accordingly.

Most importantly, eBay was a wonderful magic carpet ride to finding or offering rare and remarkable treasures from all over the world. Items that had been sitting in a dark corner of an attic in Savanna, Georgia or recently plucked from a flea market in Europe. Unique and precious items that could never have been discovered by most of us accept through the wondrous and exciting porthole of eBay.

Certainly eBay has its flaws; every enterprise does. For all of the honest and forthright Buyers and Sellers online, there are indeed a few dishonest or unscrupulous participants. That’s to be expected—and those who violated eBay’s terms of service would soon be conspicuous by their negative feedback record or worse, banished. And should a Buyer or Seller be unfairly extorted with a negative comment, you could read between the lines of the respective feedback comments and easily determine who was at fault. It did not take a rocket scientist to figure out the intrinsic advantages to the eBay feedback system.

That all changed on May 21, when you altered this paramount dynamic for your own purposes; when you silenced the Seller in every future transaction and absolved Buyers of any accountability except paying, when you betrayed the loyal and dedicated trust of the very instruments who were responsible for your initial success; your small Sellers.

After posting my “Feedback = Seller Silence,” statement last week, I received numerous comments from other Sellers who also felt deeply betrayed by eBay. In her email to me, Judy Zewin, who suffered back and neck injuries and relies solely on her eBay sales, said poignantly, “I have never felt so helpless, I use to love selling on Ebay. It is my only income to raise my son. I have emailed eBay over and over and have also called them, but they just don’t care, and it’s so sad…”

My reply to Judy, who is proudly featured on eBay’s Seller Central, echoes the sentiment of millions of Sellers like her and myself; “I want you to know you are not alone in your feelings. I also feel betrayed. I loved buying and selling special treasures on eBay. That joy has abruptly been taken away from me along with my belief that eBay cared about the little people who sold...”

For the record, I have taken the time to read the numerous bulletins written by various eBay executives substantiating your new feedback policy. As a former media specialist, I must respectfully say I have rarely read such nonsensical, convoluted, corporate tripe. Quite honestly, I wonder if any of you have ever personally sold a single item on eBay.

You may disguise your new feedback system as a “huge investment in transforming the way Feedback works” and insist that it will “restore trust and transparency and improve the buying experience,” but nothing could be further from the truth. It does quite the opposite and any experienced eBayer knows this. Please stop insulting our intelligence with this propaganda—it’s truly offensive.

Your new feedback system is a symptom of a vicious and debilitating disease that plagues our great country today: corporate greed. Your new feedback policy is not remotely intended to protect the eBay Seller or enhance the selling experience. Any seasoned eBayer can clearly see that it is intended to increase eBay transactions by eliminating negative feedback to unscrupulous Buyers and to prevent Sellers from being able to identify these same risky and potentially harmful purchasing predators.

Perhaps some of you eBay executives, in your infinite prosperity, have not noticed how America’s economic crisis has affected many citizens who do not have your advantages. While corporate executives recalculate their profit margins, millions of people all over the country are losing their jobs, being forced from their homes, unable to provide for their families properly or even to obtain basic health care.

It should not surprise you to know that some of these unfortunate people are Sellers on eBay. They are not “Power Sellers,” mind you; they are merely small, noncommercial, unprofessional people who are trying to augment their already meager incomes. Those like the distressed lady who wrote me, simply trying to make ends meet.

And so, during what is likely the darkest hour for millions of Americans economically, eBay has cheerfully added insult to injury—and called it a “bold change.” Actually, many of us find this change quite cowardly; your having never openly consulted the eBay membership who would be most adversely affected but, rather, a singular group of PowerSellers who probably could care less.

My grandfather, who was a rancher and entrepreneur and employed hundreds of people during his lifetime, once told me: “Capitalism without a conscience is merely despotism for profit.” All of you eBay executives should gravely consider this as you proceed to reap the financial benefits of enlarging your “Power Seller” base on eBay and gradually eliminating the small, private Seller who was once your primary revenue-provider.

Additionally, every Buyer on eBay must consider whether they will be an instrument of this injustice. With each purchase, they will have to consider whether they themselves would want to be a “silent seller,” unable to share equitably in the eBay prerogatives.

Meg Whitman, one of eBay’s original visionaries maintained that, “EBay is a company that's in the business of connecting people, not selling them things.” Apparently, you all have forgotten that—or perhaps decided it was no longer a tenet of your greater purpose for eBay. Because, with a simple swipe of your policy pen, you have disconnected millions of Buyers and Sellers from each other; replacing a once primarily caring and trusting trade atmosphere with one of future angst, indifference, extortion, and distrust.

I am told the very first item ever sold on eBay was not a commercial product. It was not even a rare collectable. It was simply a broken laser pointer. It sold for $14.83—and the buyer knew that it was broken when he bid on it.

I don’t believe that was a random accident. I believe it was intended to remind eBay of its humble roots and that one person’s junk is another’s treasure. Think of it; eBay’s first sold item was a tool that was intended for but now unable to point the way. How ironic.

Of course, the direction doesn’t need pointing for Sellers who cannot prevail against your new feedback system. They will not be able to endure a double standard that deprives them of their rightful voice and accurate standing in any eBay transaction, a system that makes them second class citizens on eBay and renders them defenseless against dishonest or unscrupulous Buyers.

These people will now have to seek another internet selling venue; a place where every transaction is an equal opportunity between Buyer and Seller.

A place that was once eBay.


Yours most earnestly,

PropandWardrobe (760)