All the shadow banning threads are being closed "due to age."....LOL.

[stevemartin60]

eBay, you need to stop treating your most loyal long-term sellers with such blatant disrespect.  ALL ITEMS SHOULD BE LISTED WITH THE SAME VIEWABILITY.

If items must be "promoted" by forcing sellers to give up what little profit margin they may have left in this runaway inflationary economy, you will soon have no sellers left except your favored fraudsters, cheats, scammers, drop shippers, etc.

[sailinship]

I think you completely missed that ebay sells a lot of used, vintage and one of a kind items. Such as comic books. For those items, the one page model that amazon uses is horrible.

[sailinship]

As you say that something is here to stay, you literally mention competing platforms. Things only stay if they work, and for who. That's what the discussion is about. Ebay has always been the alternative to buying stuff brand new from corporations as a buyer, and throwing or giving stuff to goodwill, as a seller. 

If that is changing, then the discussion about how and why is valid. 

I found it very insulting how you told someone what they must do in their own business model. Re-read that and pretend someone is telling you that. Telling someone that they need to pay less for inventory, due to a increase in fees, is really off putting IMO. It's like telling someone that they have to work more hours because their taxes are going up as the politicians all get rich. Not saying that ever happens.....

[sailinship]

Yes, when you don't return, it has ended for you.

[sailinship]

"You just have to go bulk get product cheaper and plan for the expense. As a small seller I couldn't afford the promotions. Now I just do flat rate 3% on every item. I know 14% is going to ebay for every sale, so I account for it.  The more you grow, the more your costs should go down.  I'm not a fan of promoted listings honestly, but if you cant beat them....."

Probably the best comment on this thread. However, it does beg the question, will the competition grow due to these increased costs? That is also part of change. Because if you can beat them, someone will try.

[earthdreamer]

“I've never once searched for anything using "Best Match". I doubt anyone but a noob does.”

Noob here. I search by Best Match if I want to buy something for myself. I find the most relevant items show first. 

If I am searching for resale items, I will search auctions using Ending Soonest.

[sailinship]

I liked that comment. I really did. Though I may not have understood everything you were saying, I found it interesting.

"This is really the elephant in the room.  For ages upon ages numerous forms of web venues be they commerce, social media including things such as FB, Tweeter, Forums, Chat Lounges and then some have gotten by saying, "We'll do better policing our venues."  Places roll out new forms of elemental rules and conduct restrictions trying automate them in as much as possible.  Even these vary forums have a word filter list albeit old hat but if someone want work around them, they can.  Human is smarter than the algorithms meant to tame the humans and many think Artificial Intelligence is the solution.  The solution is for human beings to change their ways but there's long history of that being a pipe dream.

Just a forward crazy scenario, somebody's buys an expensive smartphone, seller sends them a smartphone been cobbled together and going to fail within a few hundred hours of usage only to be shocked when the buyer set them up from word go.

Wrong+Wrong never equals right.  Wrong + Right never equals right, Right + Wrong never equals right.

As we can plainly see there's a whole lot more opportunity for wrong than Right + Right = Right, 3:1 to be exact.

Governments keep making laws that the online world of Netizens don't obey no matter how hard any venues try preventative measures.  I mean when you see numerous time for example the actual CEO of XBox live which claims have 120 million active users make statement, "This is not a platform of free speech" that's saying 120 million mouthfuls.  Said words are not due to Microsoft suddenly becoming a pinnacle or morality, its due to pressure, global pressure of being regulated... Held accountable to what people do on their platform.

This *ALL* is the Ephalump in the room globally.  How is the InterNut reigned in to prevent the damage it's doing and that is increasingly looking like global governments are going to force it.  Every form of communications and such in modern history began unregulated only to find humanity incapable of personal responsible actions.  Mankinds a strange knut, we've rules for war as an example vs ruling it out as an option."

[sailinship]

Responsibility denotes ownership. If what you said was true, then I would never be held accountable for said item once it was paid for. However, I am. I'm not saying what you wrote is 100% wrong, but it's not 100% right either.

"Because the item ceases to be yours the moment it has been paid for. It belongs to the buyer from that point on."

[sailinship]

The free market is based on the concept that a seller and buyer are in a mutually agreed upon deal. Just because I sell something to someone, does not mean that I would sell it at the same price next week, or next year, to someone else. 

If someone is stepping in the middle of transactions, that provides the possibility for manipulation. I am not saying that is happening now, frankly, I don't quite understand the issue, don't have the facts, and frankly am not that concerned about international sales, but the logic I provided is sound. 

Think about selling time sensitive items, things that fluctuate due to movies (comic books), or market change (gold), and one can see how this matters. Maybe. Like I said, not sure I understand.

[sailinship]

"

It has taken me three tea breaks to catch up on this thread.

Forgotten why I wanted to get to the end in the first place...."

I'm with you, I'm just too dang stubborn not to get to the end.

[sailinship]

"

What I want to know.  What I really, really wanna know...is when were Search Results EVER randomized?  Where did this idea come from?  They have never been randomized.  Been here since 97, they were not randomized then & they haven't been randomized since.  That's an odd premise that anyone with even 1 day of IT experience would know is not how search results are presented.   I mean, I wasn't around for the first 1 1/2 years of eBay, but I was in IT for decades & results are never presented in a random order.  

As for the 'pay to play', well, right or wrong, any big site you go to is going to have the same thing.  I do have concerns about it's long term viability, but I'm certainly not surprised eBay implemented it, since it's where all of internet commerce is going. "

Thank you, we are of a like mind on this. 

[sailinship]

YEAH SCIENCE!!!!!

"

Wow not sure what help this is to people who have tight margins or cant find better sources...

But here... Lets put your theory to test that there is plenty of profit after ebay fees on an item you own for 50% of selling price...

Lets arbitrarily use a $50.00 item with a $12.00 shipping fee, 8% sales tax($4.96), and promoted at the recommended rate of 8%.

The FVF for this sale is based off the rate of 13.35% - so the FVF would be 9.04 +.30 Transaction fee = 9.34 + Promoted Listing fee of $5.35 = 14.69 Total Fees

For the sake of argument, we wont consider the idea that someone from another country bought this and you have to pay another 1.65% in fees. Or for that matter any other fees that might come into play like the 5% below standard fine, or that you purchased a listing enhancement, or that you had to pay an item listing fee, etc...

So out of the $25 profit you stood to make, you paid $14.69 in fees leaving you a net profit of $10.31...

Net profit does not account for Packing Materials, Gas and Vehicle wear and tear, Storage, Internet and Phone Service charges and device wear and tear, TAXES(about 20% of net net!), etc etc...

Net profit also does not account for YOUR TIME involved in all this, the ever-growing risk of lost, damaged or STOLEN items, and other variables...

So in this sale scenario, if you account for everything above, you'll be lucky to have made $5 for your 1hr of time with absolutely no guarantee the sale will stand...

And guess what, they WILL be asking for more VERY SOON...Happy selling everyone."

Math people, it's all right there. 

[house*of*paws]

I'm not sure to which of my posts you are referring to.  [My most recent addressed the OPs concern that it was wrong for eBay to sell undeliverable (foreign-shipped) items to liquidators to list on eBay ... using the original sellers photos and description.

You may be talking about the OPs original concern about having to pay for extra to 'promote' listings.

[sailinship]

This is exactly right. The idea that any account can just pay ebay more, to be seen more, is troubling. It caters to flash in the pan sellers putting long time sellers out of business. Or, what is known as "Crash and burn". 

I think Zamo is on to something here, and their numbers are solid.

[sailinship]

As a buyer and collector one ebay, this has become so bad that I just don't bother anymore. The searches are so highly manipulated, and the perimeters so often re-set, and the "Internation" sellers wont stay off no matter how many times I hit "U.S. only", that it just isn't fun anymore. 

Why would I pay $20+ to have a comic made in the USA, shipped from the UK? 

[sailinship]

"Excellent post!  Not everyone wants to buy from sweat shops in the Far East, to be able to afford the ever-increasing fees."

Very much a concern of mine since one of the main reasons I use ebay is to give Americans my money, for the items that they no longer need, and I want. I avoid buying new because it supports ...... Well, it supports that which I do not wish to.