Revealed: how eBay sellers fix auctions

Times Online UK ^ | Jan.28, 2007

[Osage Orange]

There's a reason for that. eBAY takes a cut on the listing price and the selling price....As of right now they don't take a cut on the S&H.

You always need to look at total price....then decide if it's a good deal or not.

[Osage Orange]

LOL!!

Well...I guess it depends on the value of what you are bidding on.

Maybe I wasn't clear in my post.

My apologies....

[Osage Orange]

...which is against eBay rules.

Actually...you are incorrect.

The following is from eBAY:

Second Chance Offer

A seller can make an offer to a non-winning bidder when either the winning bidder has failed to pay for an item or the seller has a duplicate of the item.

[Minutemen]

I used to have a program that would provide me with the capability of sniping
You don't need a "program" on your drive in order to snipe. Use an online snipe service. It's cheap and you dont have to have your 'puter online to do the sniping.

[Fresh Wind]

Kindest person I have dealt with was an elderly gentleman who I purchased a GwtW lamp from, when he was geting it ready to ship, he knocked it off the table and it broke. He was so sorry and sent repeated aplogies. He also refunded my money right away.

I did that once-dropped the item as I was getting ready to pack it. It was damaged, but not fatally, so I offered it to the buyer at a much reduced price or a full refund. He took the reduced price and gave me a positive. I make it a policy to offer a money back guarantee on everything I sell. I've only had to give about 4 refunds, but I'm convinced the standing offer gets me more bids. You have to wonder about the "as is-no refunds" sellers. I can't think of a better way to chase away bidders!

[ReignOfError]

Kindest person I have dealt with was an elderly gentleman who I purchased a GwtW lamp from, when he was geting it ready to ship, he knocked it off the table and it broke. He was so sorry and sent repeated aplogies. He also refunded my money right away.

My best eBay experience was when I bought "The Story of Star Wars" on 8-track tape. It's basically an abridged version of the movie, and I almost wore the grooves of my LP version when I was a kid. It was in its original shrink-wrap, going for about five bucks, and I figured any Star Wars collectible had to be worth at least that.

When I opened the package, the 8-track inside was the "Close Encounters" soundtrack. When I e-mailed the sender, he said "oops. Keep it, and I'll send the right one out." It arrived in a few days. So I got two primo '70s artifacts for the price of one.

[WoofDog123]

they can but it greatly increases their ebay fees to do so in many cases.

[WoofDog123]

yeah shipping as a profit-center for sellers is a big issue with some sellers, in cases often as absurd as you note.

[Osage Orange]

So....??

No apology, no comment. Nothing?

LOL!

[TexasRepublic]

eBay is going to lose some business by masking bidder ID's on items selling above $200.00. I am one of them. I bid against other "regulars" within my field of collecting interest and like to see who I'm up against. Although I don't know them by their real names, I sure know their preferences. If I see certain bidders going after an item, I know I might as well hang it up and not get my hopes up about that particular item, because some of those folks' pockets are bottomless. I wrote to eBay to voice my displease with their new policy. Here is their stupid reply:

Thank you for writing eBay in regard to a policy protecting the identity of the bidders on an item.

I am sorry to learn about the issue and would like to apologize for the late response. eBay welcomes comments from members of our Community, and we appreciate your suggestions. This type of communication helps us improve our services and meet your needs.

However, our company policy doesn't allow us to accept suggestions unless we specifically request them. We hope that you understand that this policy can avoid future misunderstandings if new products, services, and features developed internally by eBay employees seem similar or even identical to a member's idea.

[Fresh Wind]

Here's a little gem I received from eBay after I reported a fraudulent auction that had ended without a bid:

"In order for us to dedicate resources to preventing this type of situation in a timely manner, reports directed to this area that do not relate to current listings that may be fraudulent (including reports of listing violations and reports about items that may be prohibited) will not be forwarded to another department or answered."

In other words, they won't act against a crooked dealer unless you happen to catch them while a fraudulent auction is in progress.

[Redcloak]

I decide beforehand who much I'm willing to spend on an item. Subtract shipping and there's my maximum bid. If a dishonest seller wants to shill the price up beyond that, he'll lose the sale and pay eBay a commission on the money he shifted from his left pocket to his right.

[Texas_shutterbug]

I use Esnipes. I put in my top bid, and that's that. I don't have to worry about getting into a bidding war. My bid is placed at the last minute, and either I get the object or I don't.

I rarely use eBay, but it's the only way to go for me.

[bk1000]

I've had really good luck on eBay. Bought a guitar that I love and got a deal on it. I was really nervous until it arrived.Been happy with a few other things but once bought a really cheap watch for way more than it was worth. I look at that not so much as an overpriced watch, but a relatively cheap lesson in reality. I think most on eBay just want to sell their stuff straight up and buy other stuff hassle free. As another poster says, caveat emptor.