eBay's Arrogant Deceptive Price Search System.
Summary: La discusión sobre el sistema de búsqueda de precios de eBay titulado "eBay's Arrogant Deceptive Price Search System" incluye múltiples participantes, como dean3298, davewil1964, repentatleisure1952, y otros. Aunque muchos respondieron, parece que el contenido de los mensajes está vacío, ya que solo se registra "None". A pesar de la participación, no hay detalles sobre las preocupaciones o aspectos discutidos. Esto deja una imagen incompleta del debate sobre la supuesta naturaleza engañosa del sistema de precios de eBay.
Oh, the sheer frustration boils over—how on earth do you even contact eBay these days? It's infuriating, isn't it? This colossal giant, bloated with arrogance, refuses to engage with the very customers who built their empire! I walked away from eBay years ago, slamming the door on their nonsense, and I swear, my blood still runs hot thinking about it. But curiosity—or maybe desperation—drew me back, only to find the same soul-crushing tricks alive and kicking.
You're hunting for a deal, sorting by price from lowest to highest, a crisp photo screaming value appears. You click, excitement building, select your quantity... and BAM! The price skyrockets to quadruple what was advertised. That "low price" wasn't for the gem in the picture at all—it was bait and the price advertised was for some pathetic, barely related trinket that no one in their right mind was searching for! This isn't just misleading; it's outright unscrupulous, slimy BS that preys on our trust and wastes our precious time. How dare they pull this sleight of hand, year after year, like we're all fools begging to be fleeced?
I couldn't stomach it any more. I poured my energy into setting up accounts with Amazon, AliExpress, and others—yes, it took grit and effort, but oh, the sweet relief! No more games, no more illusions; just straightforward shopping that respects me as a human being. And yet, here we are— why, do so many of you reading this endure it? Where's the fire in your bellies? Don't you feel the sting of being treated like disposable pawns? The world is spiralling into an uglier, more heartless place precisely because we roll over, muttering, "Oh, it could be worse!" But it doesn't have to be this way! Imagine the power if we united, shoulders locked, principles blazing. If every one of us refused to be disrespected—if we stormed out en masse, just as we'd walk away from any toxic situation in our daily lives—these corporations would crumble under the weight of their own greed. They'd beg for us back, forced to change!
Rise up, friends! Don't just scroll past—feel the rage, channel it, and let's make the world a tad less ugly together. Who's with me?
the_dutchess_of_dork
·8 months agoIt's also worth noting there are a lot of very unscrupulous buyers on ebay who rort the system to the nth degree. Two wrongs don't make a right but it's important to understand it goes both ways.
dean3298
OP8 months agoOf course. There are plenty of topics to talk about on the subject of bad behaviour!
the_dutchess_of_dork
·8 months agoHi dean3298
I really like your post. I know a lot of people are saying or thinking "first world problems" but it's not really about multi listings on festoon lights, is it? It's about the erosion of integrity, morality and ethics. It's about greed being the overriding principle many people live by. It's about unscrupulous practices.
I try to live my life by two principles: treat others as you would have them treat you and walk a mile in someone's shoes before you judge them. I admit I don't always succeed but it's what I aspire to. I guess I'm a work in progress. I find those two principles cover almost any situation you come up against.
Unfortunately, I think trying to change ebay for the better is a fruitless exercise. ebay really only pay lip service to enhancing the buying experience. They usually trot this out when they are about to introduce an unpopular policy which will probably incur an additional fee which will usually impact the vast majority of fundamentally honest sellers while for the rogue sellers it will be business as usual.
I think I dodge the worst of it because I mostly buy pre-owned items where the vast majority of sellers are fantastic.
However, I hate to tell you ... AliExpress are terrible for doing the same thing. They have both multi listings of the type you describe and also "introductory" prices where items are reduced by eye-watering percentages but when you go to your cart only one single item is at the introductory price and the rest revert to normal prices. You have been warned!
dean3298
OP8 months agoThanks for your reply, Dutchess.
The people who dismiss everything as “first world problems” are a big part of why standards are collapsing so fast. It’s such a weak argument. It’s like telling someone, “Don’t complain that your kitchen tap is running dirty water—people in some countries have to drink that every day!”
I really feel like we’re sliding backwards. Basic morals and self-respect seem to be disappearing, and most people just accept whatever they’re given. Big companies have figured out there’s far more profit in treating the majority like they’ll put up with anything, even if it means losing the smaller group who still have principles and expect to be treated decently.
I guess people have always been willing to roll over to some extent, but now that companies can track every click and complaint with computers, they’ve done the maths and realised it’s cheaper to take the low road. Thirty years ago things were very different—all you had to do was say you’d ring the TV station and you’d get a quick apology and the problem sorted. Nowadays they just look at the numbers and decide it’s not worth the effort.
springyzone
·8 months agoI am not sure things were that different 30 years ago but maybe just not as noticeable.
I can remember many years back, probably in the 1970s, my mother bought a big wardrobe set up that was assembled in the main bedroom. Middle section had a recessed mirrow/vanity.
Later, Mum noticed the mirror was slightly warped when she looked in it.
So she rang up, was fobbed off a bit but eventually someone came out and replaced it.
She asked the worker what he was going to do with the old mirror.
He looked at her a bit embarrassed and said he had to return it and it would just go to the next buyer or the next, only to be replaced if someone complained.
But for sure, it is easier now for companies to monitor things and follow the low cost options.
gutterpunkz05
·8 months agoThe search is on for a phone box, the revolution has begun!
countessalmirena
·8 months agoI don’t look at listings with variations.
eburtonlab’s suggestion of searching from highest price is a sound idea.
I’d also suggest what I do - which is to rule out unrealistically low prices from a search. Set the price range to no more than, say, 20% below the Australian RRP, and that will probably exclude most or all of those ridiculously priced listings (including the listings-with-variations/multi-listings).
eBay should indeed not permit misuse of the listings with variations… but they won’t. They’re hamstrung to an extent in that they cannot risk rocking the China eBay boat.
And that’s another reason to avoid multi-listings. Mostly they’ll be unbranded unsafe rubbish, churned out in Chinese factories without regard for Australian standards and safety.
*casey*
·9 months ago@dean3298 - "Straightforward shopping"
"eBay" and "straightforward shopping" are most definitely not words I'd use in the same sentence.
springyzone
·9 months ago😂😂😂
Ain't that the truth. Your post definitely made me laugh.
On ebay, it's not only the multi listings that might get you in, you need to double check all feedback, % level & seller location before you buy and even then, you might get caught out.
In contrast, if you buy on eg Amazon, you are looking at one item with relevant reviews and you can be confident you'll get it, and usually quickly, too.
If I were running ebay, I would have the multi listing format strictly limited to one item at one price with the drop down menu simply to offer people a different size or colour.
Some years back, I was looking at christening gowns on ebay and a multi listing that caught my eye had not just one style but about 4 or 5 different styles in the photos and different prices for all of them.
The trouble with that is a casual buyer would only see the first photo so might miss the others. Should have been 5 different ads.
But of course, we are not running ebay. I sometimes wonder who is, as they could definitely make some small improvements.
dean3298
OP8 months agoThanks for your reply.
I have been triggered by this for many years, and I am amazed that eBay still allows it. An example occurred the other day when I was looking for a set of festoon lights. I searched by lowest price and postage. The results came back neatly aligned with images of festoon lights, each listing stating that the strings ranged from 10 lights to 50 lights.
Assuming the fair price I saw was for a set of 10 lights, I clicked on the listing. The same beautiful picture appeared, the description matched exactly what I wanted, and I selected the minimum quantity. To my surprise, the price tripled!
When I scrolled down to the “spare plug” or the set of “four spare globes,” the picture and description changed, and only then did the original advertised price reappear—showing a different product that I wasn’t searching for.
This is clearly done on purpose to click‑bait the buyer. Someone might say I got what I deserved for expecting the item to be that cheap, but I was merely trying to compare a list of descriptions and photos to get a good deal. The way the search feature works… it doesn’t work; it fails to achieve its objective.
It’s saddening that so many people get screwed over, and they would rather ridicule the person who stands up to point out the problem than join them in unison.
.
springyzone
·8 months agoWhen I scrolled down to the “spare plug” or the set of “four spare globes,” the picture and description changed, and only then did the original advertised price reappear—showing a different product that I wasn’t searching for.
I know exactly what you mean and that should not be allowed. Not only is it misleading, it turns customers off and unless they double check, I think in some circumstances it is possible they could buy something in a hurry at the higher price. I seem to recall that we have had the occasional shopper who has complained about that.
But as countess said, ebay is not about to stop it any time soon. Chinese sellers probably make up a big part of their market and often it is Chinese sellers who are the biggest offenders.
If you are looking for something like lights or elctrical items, steer clear of any seller in China. You're likely to get stuff that has not passed any Australian standards ar all and could be dangerous. And to add insult to injury, if they did cause a fire, your insurance won't cover you if you're using things that are not up to standard.
To be honest, ebay just isn't the place to buy a lot of items, even from Australian sellers.
dean3298
OP8 months agoThanks for your message.
If only more people felt the way we do about these bad practices, it would stop immediately, but nobody stands on principles these days—they just roll over and take it. It doesn’t seem to bother them, and they don’t understand that the world is such a difficult place simply because people ignore their power to say no and simply accept what’s presented to them. (Unless it’s related to a ball game, then they throw their remote control at the TV in anger!) But for some strange reason, they enable and support the bad behaviour.
Another thing that annoys me is that eBay, by default, always puts “search via highest price” first. I think of these actions in terms of how we would be received if we treated our friends and family this way—it would be considered manipulation, and we wouldn’t keep those relationships for long. Yet we tolerate it from these large corporations. There seems to be no integrity these days.
You also mention substandard products from China. I would have thought our over‑paid, “caring” government would ban the import of such goods!?
All of this adds up to the face that we’ve collectively surrendered our willingness to demand better standards and accountability.
I miss the good old ebay when it was in it's infancy. It was fun and uncomplicated and you found what you wanted at a good price. Kind of like facebook and youtube they start off fun and simple to use then... well it doesn't need further explaining!
springyzone
·8 months agoYou also mention substandard products from China. I would have thought our over‑paid, “caring” government would ban the import of such goods!?
I think technically, it does. If a company tried to import a lot of these goods, the goods would or should have to be up to standard.
Even then, things slip through.
Not sure where you live but I am in suburban Melb and a while back, a new store (Pandamart) opened. People queued for hours to get in. Not me, but I went with my daughter to look a couple of weeks later. Don't bother, it's a bunnings worth of cheap junk.
But on the news I saw that several items were seized as they were not up to standard.
When you buy direct off a seller in China though, it's a private sale and it could easily slip through without customs or anyone else worrying about it.
Technically, the seller is considered to be responsible for the ad and ebay advises that anything sold has to conform to standards.
But it's a bit like warranty, a seller can say anything online.
And they are in China, untouchable if anything does go wrong.
Yes, ebay was fun in the old days but you have to remember it was mainly mum & dad sellers of second hand stuff from around the house. And Australian sellers at that.
Practically no one bought stuff from overseas sellers as there was no paypal back then.
Fast forward to today and most sellers are professional sellers with stores etc and Chinese sellers are common.
eburtonlab
·9 months agoInstead of searching "Price plus shipping: lowest first", try searching "Price plus shipping: highest first" instead.
If there are many results, use a price range to limit to a reasonable number around your price target. Then jump to the end of the results and scroll up instead of down.
You will find that the results will sort by the highest-priced variation within your range rather than the lowest. In most cases, it is the highest-priced variation you are interested in.
sandypebbles
·9 months agoNot me
Rather than throw a tantrum, I avoid such issues by knowing the basics of how the site works
I also don't look at multi-listings and complain about multi-listings
The time it took you to post your rant here, you could have read the buying basics 5 times over
springyzone
·9 months agoThat sounds like those multi listings that have about 8 items, vaguely related, and all different prices.
Yes, I agree, they are annoying.
More so actually if you scroll through the ads without opening. I did that once, thinking some cake decorating thing I wanted was available on ebay for X amount, so I didn't buy one at the market that day. Then on returning home, found it was some cheap junky type item that was the low price in the ebay ad and the item I was interested in was much dearer.
The thing is though, that usually whatever it is I am looking for on ebay isn't a multi listing with the drop down menu. It is just a single item.
So I am not usually having the trouble you are having.
I'd say it depends so much on what categories you are looking in.
repentatleisure1952
·9 months ago"soul crushing"?
"wastes our precious time"?
Jeepers how do you react to real problems?
I'm with davewill.
domino-710
·9 months agoBut is wasn't a bad read over first coffee. 🤣
davewil1964
·9 months agoNot me, I know how eBay works and adjust accordingly.