Seriously - Ideas on how ebay could win back it's buyers and sellers

[col52]

At countess's suggestion, I've posted this to hopefully get some genuine and constructive ways that ebay could do to win back the trust and support of buyers and sellers.

I think it's well known how I feel about ebay the way it is at the moment but I want this thread to be POSITIVE with good ideas - you never know, ebay might just look (or hear about) and take notice?

[*CountessA*]

1. eBay, may I suggest you do away with Hidden Bidders? Buyers continue to be confused and upset by this, suspecting shill bidding simply because of the asterisks (oh-oh-oh-OH, similarity of names, I must have been shill-bidded!), not liking to bid as readily when their fellow bidders are cloaked, eroding a sense of trust that was previously present. Please think of another way to protect buyers from fake Second Chance Offers or fake Invoices. Security should not be purchased at the expense of buyer trust.

[col52]

2. Allow a level playing field in the feedback arena, or remove the current system completely and only have a simply rating system for sellers once transaction & delivery has taken place (such as at Amazon).

[imperfect]

I think we need good sellers, the average mum and dad selling some rare or unusual treasures, books and clothing, stuff you just can’t find everyday

To do this I feel eBay need to offer a genuine promotion, maybe free listing for items starting at $9.99 and over for a week? Free photos?? 2 for 1 offers??? Free features if you list more then 5 items???

Then the buyers will come, I have noticed there aren’t many buyers on Aust EB, but they do come out the wood work when a real treasure is auctioned and the money is still there but buyers are being a bit more picky.. imo

And keep working on the search feature cos it sux IMO

[cueperkins]

Roll Back Compulsory Paypal Option and make it a 'choice' not mandatory;  allow sellers to pass on Paypal fees...!!  Provide fairer dispute resolution for Paypal Customers, and a decent customer service team for Ebay Au customers...i.e. sellers.  Provide insurance for up to $250.00 at least for consumers using BAnk deposit/money order, and verify sellers.

Roll back their user unfriendly forum changes, and install fair and reasonable moderation according to Aussie standards and culture. 

Encourage small sellers, hobbyists, collectors and mum and dad sellers to come back....i.e. lower fees or increase services.

There's more, but I'll just sit on that for a while.

[col52]

Good, keep them coming!

[Primaryaim]

They could accept that some sellers don't want to become powersellers. Their whole marketing agenda at the moment is for every seller to open a store and aspire to be a powerseller or risk higher fees and I think this is scaring away sellers who only wish to sell of their collectibles etc. 

[stemschicky]

I dont know how, but it would be good if e-bay could be more vigilant with the sellers who are ripping off buyers with their postage rates.

[Bunny]

all my ideas are allready taken, i double vote on em.
did i read somewhere that ebay in another country have a tierd system of listing fees, and total items in store for different catogories of stores?

[Al**Bear]

What they need to do is simple

Listen to your Customers

[Primaryaim]

So true Al

[*wheels*]

All users should be required to prove identity prior to registering, especially sellers.

All sellers of new items should be registered as a business and have to display ABN number and contact details on listings.

[Bellagina]

All sellers should have a verification process to go through.
Paypal as an option, not mandatory
and PLEASE! get rid of hidden bidders IDs - now buyers see shill bidding in every item, this is making ebay lose money as no one is driving up prices by bidding.

[*CountessA*]

ID verification is ESSENTIAL in my opinion. *nods in agreement with Wheels*

Great idea here, everyone. eBay, are you listening? We'd love to see eBay revitalised and fun for both buyers and sellers, as well as fair and generating more business than it is now.

[*CountessA*]

I know that these suggestions would cost eBay money... and they don't seem to be interested in outlaying more money (particularly in Australia - small market)... yet the goodwill from implementing some of these ideas would be tremendous.

I would like to see a better standard of LiveHelp. Cut-and-paste answers are not a solution, nor is an inability on the part of a LiveHelp representative to give correct information in some tricky situations. LiveHelp need to be able to act in conjunction with Trust & Safety, should be eBay experts, with the power to act quickly when reports come through of fraudulent items, problem sellers, etc.

However, to mitigate this expense somewhat (by cutting down on fraudulent seller and fraudulent item reports), eBay could heed the requests for proper ID verification, because so many problems stem from the lack of it that fixing this problem would be an enormous across-the-board boon.

[debra9275]

I'd like to see eBay encourage small sellers back, I miss the variety of interesting & unique items that used to be available on eBay. I still find some bargains, but I really have to look hard to find them these days. Less Chinese listings and more Australian content is what I'd like to see, all the points above have made selling just that bit more difficult for the mum & dad sellers who made shopping on eBay fun & interesting.

[Golden Silence]

Apart from the above mentioned, I'd also like to see equality in the enforcement of listing policies. At the moment I see a huge discrepancy in what eBay will allow powersellers to get away with with regard to breaches of policy, with small sellers' listings being pulled left, right and centre for the slightest "perceived" breach.

[tellomon]

Shoot the Moon. Pie in the Sky is half way there....



I'm dissing the post--NOT the poster.....

pls: make the dreaming stop!!!!

[Fluffy*Duckee]

You used to have the right idea Ebay and that is why you were so successful in the past.  What has happened?

I want to feel safe when I sell things and I want things to be balanced. I want buyers to feel safe and like they are not being 'ripped off'.  Bring back the visibility for bidders, don't let sellers be held to ransom by the possibility of unfair negs.  Allow people to make their own choices with their payment methods.  If Paypal is so good, it should be able to stand on it's own, without force.  What has happened with the old OZ forums is a form of prohibition with no interest for the customers, both buyers and sellers in mind.  We also know prohibition doesn't work and in this case has only served to further distance your customers.

Operate like the rest of the world, you are in Australia and don't make up your own rules Ebay, listen to your customers and don't treat them like naughty children. 

Power sellers may bring in the $ because of turnover, but it is the small sellers who bring in the buyers, goodwill and atmosphere. 

Don't you get it Ebay.  We are not against you and never have been.  Some of us making our entire livings on Ebay.  We don't want see you fail, but you will if you don't listen to your customers.  

[cueperkins]

I'm dissing the post--NOT the poster.....

pls: make the dreaming stop!!!!

Which post are you dissing?  .....dare to dream tellomon !!!

[*CountessA*]

eBay may never listen - and going by the last three years or so, they probably won't - but it's certain that eBay will DEFINITELY not listen if its members say nothing. (And besides, it helps us, if we are aware of the problems, to think of ways in which to cope.)

 

[tellomon]

I'm dissing the post--NOT the poster.....

pls: make the dreaming stop!!!!

Which post are you dissing?  .....dare to dream tellomon !!!

--->Thread, not post. This one.

My dreams haunt me & do not sleep.

I limit my exposure to Social daylight here.

Sundowns are over-rated, but necessary.

 

[Numb!]

These ideas have all been discussed to the tune of thousands and thousands of posts on the U.S. boards.  Most got no response at all.  Some did get direct responses.  eBay insists that PayPal is the safest possible way to pay and get paid.  eBay insists that shilling is a minor problem when compared to scam SCOs and that hiding bidder IDs is safer for all in the long run (this was stated emphatically by eBay top brass management on threads started by them on the U.S. Trust & Safety board despite numerous examples to the contrary posted by long time boardies).  eBay has openly stated they are not interested in small sellers although they later denied making such statements. 

In recent years, everything has been geared towards the corporate level retailers.  At one point, something like 300,000  or 400,000 listings appeared overnight, yet few of them were more than placeholders with references to 'sdc'. The boards came alive, examples and screenshots were posted. eBay denied it all.  A few days later an announcement was made about a huge contract with Buy.com and their subsidiary shopping.com (sdc) and a new "Diamond" level Power Seller tier.  Funny thing was that buy.com had a dismal track record of customer satisfaction on their own site which translated quickly enough to their FB on eBay listings.  Some posters calculated their sell through rate at something like 3%.

Shortly thereafter at least one more Diamond level PSer was announced, but I can't remember who they are now.  Then came the news stories about the cell phone trinket seller who had hit 1,000,000 FB on each of 4 different IDs for a total of over 4 million FB, dwarfing the former pride of eBay, "Jay and Marie".

Huge power sellers began to leave in droves, sellers with FB in the 500,000 range who signed up not long after eBay began.  The stock prices began to fall long before the market crash.

What can eBay do to fix itself?  First, one has to realize eBay does not consider itself 'broke'.  They feel they are on track to fix the errors of the past.  They are out to abandon the 'flea market', rummage sale, garage sale, craft maker/seller image, in other words, the very image that made it what it is.

They are going for the mega shopping mall image with spaced leased to major retailers.  They want to be the biggest shopping mall destination on the web.

[Bellagina]

But numb.... doesn't amazon already do that?
And is the world big enough for / does it need another amazon?

ebay had  so much success because of its sellers being what they were- an eclectic mix of everything! People would come to get the rare, the collectable, the unusual, the bargain.
All of the above are rapidly disappearing.


And if I want to buy shopping mall stuff - I'll go to a mall. At least there I can see the quality, try it on, compare the different items and then decide if I will or won't purchase.
And I can pay however I like!

[Numb!]

What can eBay do to fix itself?

• Divest PayPal.  It was a mistake to begin with and should never have been allowed under Anti-Trust laws.
• Use the WayBack machine to return to the eBay of about 5 years ago.
• Focus on the small, independant seller.
• Return the option of paper payments.  Many buyers refuse to use electronic payments in any form.
• Level the playing field for all sellers and buyers.
• Target fraud more clearly.  Avoid blanket takedowns for shadowy reasons. Sellers should be given explicit reasons for any listings cancelled as to the violation and how to fix it.

[Numb!]

But numb.... doesn't amazon already do that?
And is the world big enough for / does it need another amazon?

I believe eBay would like nothing more than to absorb Amazon and do away with the Amazon label.

[Numb!]

One more thing:

Block China entirely from listing on the main .com site.

[*CountessA*]

Numb, everything you are saying resonates with me. Those are serious flaws, and I'd like to see eBay return to the eBay it was, rather than its vision of the future, because I believe that vision is unappealing, stifling and self-defeating.

[col52]

I also do not like the same vision, countess. I keep hoping for sanity to return.

Surely, it is out there somewhere?

[Numb!]

Surely, it is out there somewhere?

Not with the current management.


And don't call me Shirley.

[col52]

Surely, it is out there somewhere?

Not with the current management.


And don't call me Shirley.

What name would you like?

Agnes

Cecilia

Esmerelda

.......................................?

[Bellagina]

Esmerelda sounds exotic......

Keredwin?

[da_ewok]

an interesting article  http://www.webpronews.com/topnews/2009/03/19/can-ebay-win-back-sellers-by-going-old-school

Particularly the comments from the readers and the traffic lost to Amazon

[frangi]

All users should be required to prove identity prior to registering, especially sellers.

All sellers of new items should be registered as a business and have to display ABN number and contact details on listings.

Still reading, but just had to give Wheels' suggestion another deserved airing


Great points

[frangi]

One more thing:

Block China entirely from listing on the main .com site.

Yep

[frangi]

What can eBay do to fix itself?

• Divest PayPal.  It was a mistake to begin with and should never have been allowed under Anti-Trust laws.
• Use the WayBack machine to return to the eBay of about 5 years ago.
• Focus on the small, independant seller.
• Return the option of paper payments.  Many buyers refuse to use electronic payments in any form.
• Level the playing field for all sellers and buyers.
• Target fraud more clearly.  Avoid blanket takedowns for shadowy reasons. Sellers should be given explicit reasons for any listings cancelled as to the violation and how to fix it.[/[/b]li]
  
  

SUPERB POST 

[frangi]

2. Allow a level playing field in the feedback arena, or remove the current system completely and only have a simply rating system for sellers once transaction & delivery has taken place (such as at Amazon).

So logical, so sane   

[cadici]

Ebay, or a third party, should introduce an insurance scheme which covers every sale on ebay regardless of the payment method. The cost of this insurance scheme should at least be split between the parties to the transaction. Cover should be for all contingencies, non delivery, non genuine, not as described. Needless to say a reasonable and fair system of decision making needs to be introduced. This scheme would force ebay to have a detailed registration scheme and know who there buyers and sellers were.

[cueperkins]

I agree Cadici, absolutely essential...I won't join Paypal, so unless they do something to make it safe to use B/Deposit on Ebay, they can forget it......ID Verification of sellers would be another risk & safety measure that might go a long way to restoring consumer confidence. 

And....Roll back Compulsory Paypal Option...some people don't actually want to be forced to use or accept that payment method....why is that so bizarre?  It's like choosing a bank....you don't get forced to choose the bank you want to use...so I won't be forced to join a payment system who's UA flies in the face of the EFT Code.    Oh that's right, it's equal to or better than the EFT Code, according to Ebay spin doctors.  JMO.

[Primaryaim]

Cadici, you are perfectly correct with your suggestion however, I believe 'paypal only' was never about safety for buyers, they already had that with an eBay protection scheme.

It was about making more money by forcing buyers and sellers to use paypal so ebay got two bites of the profit cherry from every seller (seller's fees and paypal fees) plus a little extra profit from the extra fee payable on the post cost component of the buyer's payment.

[cadici]

The stupid reality is that if ebay wetre to introduce a "gaurantee" scheme it would increase the amount of trade on ebay thereby increasing their take and their profits, how to work out the mind of the beast?

[Primaryaim]

True, and then we could all get back to making money.

[Bellagina]

Trouble is cadici, ebay doesn't want small sellers here anymore- they want to become another amazon. So they are doing absolutely nothing to try to help small sellers.

[*r3830*]

In addition to many of the excellent ideas previously mentioned.....

Could the search method be returned to what it was before the recent changes

Could the changes to Paypal witholding sellers funds as if it were a bank be reversed.

Could the present / revised /updated user terms and conditions be reduced from 23+ pages of avoidance to say, a three page 'easy speak' document

And, could Ebay perhaps reinstate itself as a 'venue' - as it claims itself to be?

Perhaps these things would also assist with buyer / seller confidence.

[*CountessA*]

r3830, sorry - the topic somehow veered way off course, so I've split the other stream of discussion into a separate thread.

You mentioned the search method: eBay have heard loud and clear from its members that the new search is a silly one, slower, giving bad results, ineffective, tiresome, etc. I don't know why eBay chose to go ahead with it - it's certainly detrimental to buyers finding what they want to buy.

The User terms and conditions - well, this has been a bugbear for years. In fact, there was a case ("Evagora vs eBay") in which eBay's lack of clarity with its user agreement worked to its detriment. I agree that the bits and pieces pertinent to the user agreement are far too scattered.

[*r3830*]

Countess,

Thankyou for the advice. As I recall, the old RT used to run like a sine wave - variations to the left, right and centre of the thread topic. In attempting to maintain a strict topic..... well, I don't think I'd care to swap responsibilities with you. 

[cueperkins]

The User terms and conditions - well, this has been a bugbear for years. In fact, there was a case ("Evagora vs eBay") in which eBay's lack of clarity with its user agreement worked to its detriment. I agree that the bits and pieces pertinent to the user agreement are far too scattered.

That particular case was heard in a Melbourne Consumer Affairs tribunal, and Ebay lost on the basis that the tribunal considered them a 'Service Provider', not a venue, and this was held to be the case even if no money changed hands.  It also found that Ebay could not have an expectation that the consumer would have adequate skill or expertise to negotiate or understand the user agreement with its many twists and turns.  (My language not theirs...LOL). The case is part of public record - V-CAT database.

Interestingly, Victoria has Unfair Consumer Contract laws, whereas NSW and various other States do not.   So you're more protected as a consumer in Melbourne at this stage, if you are being held to any such consumer contract unfairly.

After a National conference on consumer protection in August last year, it was agreed that all states would implement unfair consumer contract laws in keeping with the Federal Treasury E-Commerce Guidelines.  This was to counter ALL unfair user agreements generally associated with online e-commerce.  This may not have an immediate affect to user agreements online but it will have an impact on how successfully an entity like Ebay can hide behind their user agreement if tested in the real world.

[*CountessA*]

r3830, it can be a very sea-sickness-inducing task...!

In general, we let topics meander quite a bit, but when there's a consistent "new topic" appearing to divert the original, the decision may be taken to split the topic since the second topic justifies itself as a new thread.

This morning I wanted a very quick look for some Italian games, and every time I wanted to add another parameter to the search, the search results reloaded. I know it's been mentioned before - but it was particularly annoying this morning as one parameter change in the middle "hung" the results for over a minute.

Aaaagh! If eBay don't want to change the entire search function, could they at least change this one little thing?

[saint_phoebe]

r3830, sorry - the topic somehow veered way off course, so I've split the other stream of discussion into a separate thread....

Hi Countess, I can't find the other thread. Can you tell me what the title is please?

[saint_phoebe]

It's ok, I found it, thanks :-)