Wake up eBay and stop charging so much already! Reduce your fees back down to acceptable levels!

[crakka]

Just got a message from eBay that they removed my item because it had "Make an offer" in the description and this was breaching their "policies". In fact I did have the item previously listed as a "Buy it now" and forgot to proof read the description as it didn't make sense after I "sent to Auction". WEll a silly blunder it may have been, but I had a pretty wordy email from them on how doing this and that and making offers outside eBay and all is considered unfair amongst other lines that were quite presumptuous on their part, such as: "These practices are considered a way of avoiding eBay fees. Listings that try to avoid fees put sellers who pay their fees at a disadvantage. Also, they can create a poor buying experience."

What the blazes? ARe they the police? What happened to the good old easy going eBay of yesterday? and what about how much we all pay when selling now? Isn't it about time for everyone to wake up and demand a reverting back to fairness and fair fees, without the pretense of giving free listings and all that being "good compensation" for the amount you pay on final values? Come on people, you are really getting the wool pulled oer your eyes. Do the maths, look at how much more you pay over all now as opposed to when the sellers fees were 4.7% and there was no such thing as a fee on the postage as well. Even Paypal went up too. Did the value of providing a monetary highway go up, or did it get more expensive for them to run their servers? Bull! They are making squillions more now than ever, so if anything, since they get more  traffic than everyone else, they should be reducing the cost of listing and selling if anything. They are all acting like banks!

So I sent them these following words to consider. I suggest a few million more people say something before all of your rights dissapear and you are just milked for all you can bare to let go of. Seriously!

In response to:

"MC018 Your listing has been removed: Direct Sales"

I have reviewed the item that was listed as not within eBay policies. This was including the phrase "make an offer". I apologize that this was an oversight as the original listing which was a "Buy it now or best offer" type, I sent to auction without realizing that the wording breached the policies of eBay.
It is relisted as a revised version.

I do however regret that I don't agree with all of the accusations in the warning message, and further to that, I believe that eBay procures far too much in the way of "fees". The recent hike from around 5% to around %10 of the final value was a shock to many, since for high priced items, eBay makes insane profits. Also I believe that it is dishonest and money grabbing opportunism to include a fee on top of postage and freight costs, as most people realize that that service is not really a part of the purchase and do not want to pay additional fees on their postage but only what it literally costs. This means a further deferral in most cases of the additional fees to the seller, who if they are just a back yard blitz seller of their personal items, are mined for their goods value as well as their spare change too. It doesn't stop there, but since eBay has procured Paypal as well, they now receive fees three times on only ONE sale. How much do they think is really fair to sting people for simply using their handy service which runs on the smell of an oily rag, basically electronic blips and keystrokes, and who rarely enforce any breach of the law when a buyer decides to renig on their purchase.

I regret to say that I feel their is a very large imbalance of service verses costs on eBay, internationally and on the home front. It's about time people woke up to it!

regards,

An annoyed loyal seller for more than a decade.....

[crakka]

Well I'm not talking about having a store, I'm talking about getting slugged huge fees as a private seller of my own stuff.

By the way you're not very good at maths, or History.

As for the reprimand, they ought to not be so generic,and  ESPECIALLY not to treat people as VIOLATORS! That is rude and inacurate.

One more thing, I don't ask for special dispensation on anything, just fairness to everyone, and it sounds like you would prefer everyone to be a stunned mullet and take it all while going to sleep.

[crakka]

Overheads shmoverheads. Yopu can't tell me that Ebay has been generating greater overheads by double per capita then they used to, even if there's the CPI comparison. The fact is, it's all on digital. There are no printeries. The people just need a desk and computer equipment. I'm sure they're only compounding their profits while we are coughing up the fees.

And further, when the Trading post was the way to go, ads were no more than 20-$50 at the most even for thousands of dollars of goods. Ebay charges 10% just on the Goods before postage and Paypal.

eg. a $2000 spa will sling them $200 when sold. (round figures)

So GO FIGURE.

[davewil1964]

You seem to be very generic.

If you have specifics, post specifics, don't have a go at people because their situation is different to yours.

And all you are doing here is venting. eBay don't read the boards, the ACCC AND the Government have said what they are doing is legal, the situation has been extant for almost TWO years.

[crakka]

Finally someone who sees the reality and who's not living in denial.

[crakka]

Well done, another person that doesn't like being herded and fed garbage about pretend benefits.

Keep speaking out.

[crakka]

Don't undermine what I said. I'm making real statements about real situations. The fees have been hiking way too high ofr way too long.

I'm not just venting, I'm mad because of the way that the "Bots" as soem put it, are controlling eBay while the real people don't serve unless you put in a contact request. So you get "generic" reprimands such as what I got. Who's being generic? eBay!

So I'm being specific enough. I've just had enough and I'm speaking out against unfair policy. There are just so many of them it's hard to do one at a time.

No need for you to quash what I'm saying though. If you like to cook slowly that's your business, but dont' ask me to, without saying something about it.

[*tippy*toes*]

No-one's holding a gun to your head to stay here. Depending on what you sell, you may be better advertising in the paper or somewhere else online. What I sell doesn't sell in the paper or on Facebook, or auction houses or any other sites that I've tried. However, I do quite well here. That's why I'm willing to put up with the fees. Besides, I don't pay a cent in fees. My buyers pay them all, so it really doesn't bother me. If eBay increases their fees, I still make a hefty profit without increasing my prices.

[lane-ends]

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@*tippy*toes* wrote:

Besides, I don't pay a cent in fees. My buyers pay them all,.

---

Bottom line is all operating expenses are passed on to buyers, when buyers decide that Ebay is not a viable marketplace, thats when they stop buying, sellers will suffer, and so will Ebay. That is when Ebay have incentive to do something about it. Sellers just get buffered around in the middle, but that is selling in any market place.

Without a doubt cost of online selling and postings is rising, whilst bricks and motor prices are dropping to complete. Buyers now shop online for convenience rather than purely for bargains as they are becoming more comfortable with it. Supply and demand will even everything out as that is the way of things.

More people now are comfortable selling online so few have the advantage, when anyone can do it, it becomes competitive. There is no such thing as money for nothing. Individual sellers no longer have the value they used to, we are no longer a rare commodity. Used to require a ceratin skill level, now nearly anyone can do it.

The big issue is the level of over automation which makes sellers feel invalidated and dismissed.

[chameleon54]

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@lane-ends wrote:

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@*tippy*toes* wrote:

Besides, I don't pay a cent in fees. My buyers pay them all,.

---

Bottom line is all operating expenses are passed on to buyers, when buyers decide that Ebay is not a viable marketplace, thats when they stop buying, sellers will suffer, and so will Ebay. That is when Ebay have incentive to do something about it. Sellers just get buffered around in the middle, but that is selling in any market place.

Without a doubt cost of online selling and postings is rising, whilst bricks and motor prices are dropping to complete. Buyers now shop online for convenience rather than purely for bargains as they are becoming more comfortable with it. Supply and demand will even everything out as that is the way of things.

More people now are comfortable selling online so few have the advantage, when anyone can do it, it becomes competitive. There is no such thing as money for nothing. Individual sellers no longer have the value they used to, we are no longer a rare commodity. Used to require a ceratin skill level, now nearly anyone can do it.

The big issue is the level of over automation which makes sellers feel invalidated and dismissed.

---

I think we are aproaching this point now. Ebays half yearly reports to the U.S. stock exchange show sales are not increasing at the same level as other similar online businesses, but seller numbers are increasing , meaning sales per seller are spread more thinly. Ebay are trying to " incentivise" buyers with what many regard as their current bias towards buyers. This includes policies such as the new money back gaurantee with seller paying return postage etc. 

I know my share of the ebay buyers pie has shrunk dramatically this year. Like you I just accept this as being a minute part of a global monoliethic business in changing markets.  

[crakka]

"No-one's holding a gun to your head to stay here."

Of course not, but when there is no one standing up to monopoly and there is no competition, you don't have any other choice. The fact that they know this is convenient to them and means that they are less likely to lower fees and more likely to focus on their profits. So what is the answer?

Again we come back to standing up and saying something, demanding fairness. Otherwise you may as well be a frog in a cold saucepan of water with the flame on low.