Is your buyer YOUR customer or eBay's?

[artistjillian]

I found this interesting. Things are changing. It used to be that you could sell to someone, then future sales could actually happen off-site. Many powersellers used this to set up off-eBay businesses - they would build up a customer list, then market from there, eventually enabling them to sell from their websites or whatever. Forget this in future. Times are changing. eBay is bringing in anonymous buyer email in January 2010, for instance. I didn't know some of the rules re other sites, either" "Marketplaces Weigh in on Customer Ownership Policies What do the marketplaces think about sellers marketing to customers? We asked A....., eBay, B....... and E... about their restrictions. eBay: eBay's response was to ignore the existence of off-eBay marketing, and explain the ways it allows its sellers to market their eBay listings to buyers. However, eBay has a long history of placing increasing limits on buyer-seller communication to limit off-eBay transactions (anonymous buyer email is coming in January). A...... : You need a lawyer to interpret its Terms of Use, but to the untrained eye, it could read, "don't market to buyers, but if you do, don't mention A......'s name." E... (Aunt bETSY): The clearest policy of the four: says you are not licensed to add any Etsy user information to your email or physical mail list. (I had NO idea of this one!) B....... (the ranch): The youngest of the four marketplaces limits contact information between members to avoid possible spam, but classifies follow-up snail mail to a buyer as a gray area of "solicitation."" http://www.auctionbytes.com/cab/abu/y209/m11/abu0251/s02 -- ~Jillian artist, Jillian Crider ... google me!

[drawdog5]

But we also get our buyers' e-mails and contact info from PayPal. How does that figure in? -- -Ann "So I got that goin' for me, which is nice." ~ Carl Spackler

[artistjillian]

I don't know as yet. They will possibly link that in, I'm not a small print reader. But it probably still is included - what gets me is the Aunt bETSY one - says I can't add any user information to my email or physical mail list. I know so many on there, prior to knowing them on Aunt bETSY - so, are they going to come after me for having names like yours in my address book Ann? How can I prove who I knew and when? *sigh* It's all SO complex. -- ~Jillian artist, Jillian Crider ... google me!

[drawdog5]

Yeah, it's tricky! I certainly didn't know about the bEtsy restriction. It's apples and oranges, I know, but in CA at least, art galleries are required to provide buyers' contact info to their artists. I can understand that on-line sites want to protect their users from sellers that might spam or annoy them, but as artists, it's really important for us to cultivate our customer base. -- -Ann "So I got that goin' for me, which is nice." ~ Carl Spackler

[artistjillian]

You're absolutely right Ann. I believe it is our art that attract our buyers and KEEP them - whether they buy on eBay or somewhere else. We have to let them know when we have new editions/series, etc. *sigh* -- ~Jillian artist, Jillian Crider ... google me!

[kengillam]

Ebay gets more like an old Eastern Bloc dictatorship every day! -- http://www.artyman.co.uk

[poozybear]

Interesting. I just logged onto AOL to get my email, and this was their front page story. Massucci's Take: EBay's plan to be more retailer than auctioneer is one risky bid This guy absolutely hits the nail on the head here. I agree with everything, especially closing paragraph: EBay's strengths are in the variety of old, hard-to-find collectible and discounts on new items. That's why people shop at eBay, and if the company moves too far away from that core identity, it may never rediscover its mojo. -- Kathy

[suejo0101]

Interesting article. He hits the nail on the proverbial head. I like what was said about searches - that they are basically cr@ppy! Sue -- Edited by suejo0101 at 11/16/2009 11:28 AM PST

[indooryardsales]

It's Ebay's customer. And so are you. You are buying vending service from them. Not all customers are treated equally.

[ms*patricia]

Far as I'm concerned I do just what buy.com does. I try to get my buyers to over to my website. After the ebay transaction is over and ebay gets their fees the rest is between me and the buyer 😉

[artistjillian]

Maybe it should be that like with other sites - you have a referral kick-back - a special URL so they know if the buyer came through you. Yeah, I know - dream on! -- ~Jillian artist, Jillian Crider ... google me!