ebay Up and Running Grants---with a new twist
Summary: The discussion revolves around eBay's "Up and Running" grants, specifically focusing on the grants being awarded to sellers with low feedback ratings and the emphasis on 'Lives,' a streaming feature promoted by eBay. Some participants like adamcartwright express surprise at grants being given to those with low ratings, suspecting it might be due to demographic considerations, while gurlcat cautions against assuming such reasons without evidence. my-cottage-books-and-antiques explains that the shift towards supporting 'Lives' includes financial grants, training, and equipment for sellers getting into live streaming, emphasizing strategic benefits for interested sellers. chapeau-noir and my-cottage-books-and-antiques discuss the pros and cons of applying for the grants with a focus on live streaming, noting both the opportunity for growth and personal challenges like lack of certain skills or resources.
You can apply for an ebay Up and Running Grant as of today----however, the grants are now going to focus on sellers who want to do eBay Lives (livestreaming). So, I gather if you have no desire to livestream, there is no point in applying.
respectsyoutech
·4 months agoLive selling is the future. I tried applying but never heard back.
Some of the numbers people are doing on live selling around the world pretty impressive.
I think it's good to be open to the idea.
But I don't think they will get rid of standard listings - many buyers avoid live selling IMHO.
I know I do sometimes! (when looking for something specific).
mattva
·4 months agoI'm kind of surprised Only Fans has not started up a Live Auction site. 🤣
chapeau-noir
·4 months ago"Lives" isn't going anywhere. eBay will have to tinker with formats because this one is kind of clunky, but unlike a lot of their 'innovations', this one actually has been tried and tested elsewhere.
my-cottage-books-and-antiques
OP4 months ago@chapeau-noir Yes, it's a bit surprising to find that with all the attention ebay is giving to Lives, it is still clunky to operate (for bother buyers and sellers) compared to a certain well known live streaming platform (or so I've been told, I haven't tried doing one.)
But given the emphasis on Lives, the decision to narrow the focus of the Up and Coming Grants isn't all that surprising. And if I were giving serious thought to doing Lives, I would apply because not only do you get the ten grand and some training, but as I understand it you also get some of the equipment you would want for a live studio. Also, I think for some people (myself included) just filling out the application might help me clarify my Live strategy.
chapeau-noir
·4 months agoIt's synergistic, and I see the logic. I don't think it's a great idea to narrow the focus of the grants so closely, though eBay may have the data on the ROI (for them) of these grants.
I thought about doing Live on Poshmark, but I just don't have the personality for it and am not good looking enough. Also, I'm running out of kimono, which is what I would be 'living' lol.
ccomic
·4 months agoI really don't understand the attraction of live "buying":
1. You get "seconds" to consider the item or evaluate it.
2. You never get the see the whole item. No photos to zoom up on or study
3. There is a very real chance of seller and buyer disagreement on which item was purchased when the item is titled "what's on the screen"
4. All this and the seller has had an unlimited amount of time to consider what they are selling. Only the buyer is making snap decisions
I really have to wonder about my fellow eBay buyers that there are ever ANY actual live auction purchases made. Is this really the state of society these days? eBay says they don't allow gambling, but how is this anything but a gamble when the buyer can't possibly know for sure what they are going to get?
broto_64
·4 months agoI remember a long time ago, New Coke (as in Coca Cola).
omg it was everywhere, they spent millions advertising this soda, you couldn't get away from it.
Nobody liked it (well, a few people did, but most people did not).
It was on and in your face for months on end.
After it was all over, Coca Cola pulled New Coke from the market and went back to the old Coca Cola, which is now called Coca Cola Classic (in case you ever wondered why they wouldn't just call it Coca Cola like in the old days anyway).
It was a classic move for sure.
Ebay Live reminds me of New Coke
meme6253
·4 months agoLIVE seems to be the trend they are pushing.
dhbookds
·4 months agoIt's the newest toy on the block........remember when everyone was wandering around with a phone playing whatever it was? People are buying on it.......and we can only hope it does, as they tout, bring new buyers to ebay. They would be(were) highly criticized for NOT having it........an old, staid company with no imagination....whether it's on the down surge by now may be questionable.
my-cottage-books-and-antiques
OP4 months agoI know I sound like the proverbial broken record , but this is just further evidence that eBay is very serious when they say, as the eBay exec said today, that live streaming is the future of e-commerce. While he did not go so far as to say goodbye to so-called static selling, he made it very, very clear that eBay is now going to very heavily push the live streaming. Whether this will help or harm or do little one way or another for static sellers, I cannot say, but sellers really need to be aware of eBay's emphasis at this point. Remember when it seemed eBay could do nothing but talk about sneakers? Well now eBay's focus is live streaming, and it is here for the foreseeable future, maybe for a very long time, or maybe simply till the next shiny thing catches eBay's eye. So, whether you're a fan of live streaming or not, it is here and it ain't going away anytime soon.
gurlcat
·4 months agoThey sure do have a bad habit of goofy eggs-to-basket ratio calculating.
toomuchstuffagain35
·4 months agoWell, I sure do remember when they were all over NFTs like white on rice.
12345jamesstamps
·4 months agoI took a look at those who got grants last year..plus I entered just for fun.
I wonder how sellers are chosen...where artificial intelligence can actually answer the questions in such a form without the seller actually doing any work in answering the questions put forward.
While I looked at the winners last year...almost the majority had a rather terrible negative feedback ratio...some who didn't have a lot of sales but a lot of negative feedbacks.
And I also looked into what some of the past winners sold and such and found a lot that were actually drop-shipping and easy to spot.
Can't really say who gets picked...friends of ?
And with the eBay live into it now...guess winners would be mostly those who sell trading cards or coins.
And I would guess a grant gets a 1099k at the end of the year since it is a gift...
toomuchstuffagain35
·4 months agoOh yeah, they'd have to pay taxes on it.
adamcartwright
·4 months ago@12345jamesstamps
Wait -- eBay awarded grants to sellers with low FB ratings?
You really can't make this stuff up.
turtles-trading-post
·4 months agoHow did they get picked? Can we say "Woke Demographics"? I noticed that sellers who won a few years back actually were out of business. Their seller links no longer worked!
I applied the past two years. I used to write multi-million dollar proposals for the pharma industry so I can convey my thoughts well. Crickets!
Then I looked at what I proposed to buy.. realizing that $10k is not a lot of money in my world, so I went out and bought it all! I now have top notch rolling shelving improved to fit my inventory. I have a new L shaped work station and a scanning station across from it with a standing height input station.
The only things I proposed that I haven't done is hire help and hire a programmer to create some programs for me. Now I'm playing with AI to create some of the program helpers I need.
gurlcat
·4 months ago@turtles-trading-post We can say anything, doesn't make it the truth. Neither does guessing or assuming. What you're doing there is saying more about yourself than whoever you're talking about.
chapeau-noir
·4 months agoWe can say 'woke demographics' all we want - but I'm not sure what it means.
mattva
·4 months agoHI BILLY MAYS HERE FOR eBay Live! 👋 Are you tired of boring old listings and missing out on the best steals in the digital universe? Well, hold onto your seats, because we’re tearing up the rulebook and bringing the ultimate shopping blowout right to your screen!
Get ready to experience the thrill of the auction block like never before:
The Action: Watch your favorite sellers showcase top-tier gear, collectibles, and rare finds in real-time.
The Deals: Why pay retail when you can name your price? Snag jaw-dropping discounts and exclusive drops live!
The Energy: Chat directly with the community, interact with top hosts, and bid on the fly with the tap of a button.
But wait, there’s more! Download the eBay Mobile App right now, tap over to the Live tab, and jump into the next high-energy stream. Don't wait, don't hesitate—start winning today! 💥📦
Glorified infomercials, that's all eBay live is. I didn't like them then and I don't like them now.
RIP Billy Mays
gurlcat
·4 months ago@mattva I read that in Billy Mays' voice.
frugalmarketplace
·4 months agoEBay live is trash.
They seriously need to get rid of it…..
selsa84
·4 months agoHopefully they won't neglect the actual listed listings to boost the live auctions. But they probably will
meme6253
·4 months agoIf it makes them money they will keep it going for as long as it does that.
selsa84
·4 months agoSeems like they want to focus more on the ebay live auctions these days.
selsa84
·4 months agoI just wish I could removed the ebay live scrolling list from my home page on mobile. Ebay constantly bombards me with live auctions on items I have never purchased before and wouldn't purchase on ebay.
meme6253
·4 months agoThe ads for live are overwhelming to say the least.