Creating a Modern Retail Marketplace Together in 2018

[alan@ebay]

Thanks for joining.

Today we’re asking sellers to read the latest blog from Bob Kupbens and submit your questions on this thread.

Before you submit your question, we would like to remind users that all posts made in The eBay Community need to be respectful of others. Please keep in mind the Community’s Rules of Engagement when you post. Non-constructive, disrespectful/harassing comments will be removed by our moderation team so that the thread can focus on a productive discussion.

This is an opportunity to connect with Bob about the direction of eBay in 2018, so please keep your comments to that topic.

Here’s how it will work: please submit your comment or question to this thread. At 11 am PST on 2/14 we will close this thread, and Bob will answer a collection of them live via video, starting 12:30 pm PST that same day.

The live video will be shown on this Community thread, so make sure to 'subscribe' to this thread and check back around 12:30 on the 14th to watch live - right here in the Community. 

Thank you for participating!

Here's today's live broadcast with Bob Kupbens & Griff

[jason_incognito]

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wrote:

We've been advised to market our "brand" on social media, such as facebook. There is the ability for us to actually SELL our items on facebook. In marketing our brand on facebook, are we free to actually make sales there, or is ebay advising us to use that platform only to direct traffic to ebay, and ignore the other features offered by the site? 

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Seems weird doesn't it? Facebook is a competitor, yet they want us trolling for buyers there and then try to entice them here.

[d-k_treasures]

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wrote:

On the seller end, you can expect simplified pricing...

We've heard that before, it translated as a big fee hike.  Are fees going up again? 

In an effort to streamline our communications and enable you to have a more predictable workflow, we will consolidate our Seller Updates into three updates over the course of this year. Because when you asked for more notice, we heard you!

We also heard that before (actually, 2 or 3 Updates per year).  That came with a promise of at least 30 days notice for any changes, that has not always been kept.  More concerning than that though, a lot of changes happen outside the Updates... like the "Group Similar Items" and "Buy Box" page that arrived on or about Black Friday without any notice whatsoever.

I’ll read them all and respond to as many as I can on Facebook Live tomorrow...

Don't do Facebook, is there some reason we can't do this on eBay?

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Especially since that Product Page or 'Buy Box' page gives incorrect information to the bidder/buyer. Like the one posted the other day where the listing is for 'local pickup only' - that page shows 'Free Shipping'. 

How could that possibly end up being a good selling OR buying experience?

[sandmansales]

A few additional questions.

1. Are fall, spring, three updates really necessary anymore? The site changes seem to be coming in at record speed.

2. Why specifically did you think it was a good idea to bury promotion banners at the bottom of the page? Please don't tell me market research shows....No other company would run a sale and then bury the very thing that alerts buyers to said sale.

3. Why specifically did you remove the watchers count from inside the listings? Please look up "Mimetic Desire" before answering. It really gives great insight into this issue.

4. Why are sponsored listings no longer showing up for some?

5. Why after 5 months and counting is listing Impressions still not working? 5 months for a tech company to not have this fixed is unheard of.

6. Are you going to address the false positives of legitimate messages vs. offiste sales attempt warnings?

7. Are you going to reverse the 'forced' best offer and let the sellers decide how they want to market their own merchandise?

I am pleased to hear the Bob Kupbens stated you would be more engaging with responses in these boards. I look forward to your answers to both of my posts.

[cleats_blowout_sports]

Could not agree more with you... especially on the promotional banner moved.

Good insite

[nawlinsron2]

"When we say you are our business partners, we mean it!"

In a partner relationship, EACH partner has some skin in the game.
Please detail ebay's portion, especially on returns and return shipping cost.
...and how does that work when a buyer keeps BOTH product and their money?

[carlmarxx]

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wrote:

Thanks for joining.

Today we’re asking sellers to read the latest blog from Bob Kupbens and submit your questions on this thread.

Before you submit your question, we would like to remind users that all posts made in The eBay Community need to be respectful of others. Please keep in mind the Community’s Rules of Engagement when you post. Non-constructive, disrespectful/harassing comments will be removed by our moderation team so that the thread can focus on a productive discussion.

This is an opportunity to connect with Bob about the direction of eBay in 2018, so please keep your comments to that topic.

Here’s how it will work: please submit your comment or question to this thread. At 11 am PST on 2/14 we will close this thread, and Bob will answer a collection of them live via video, starting 12:30 pm PST that same day.

The live video will be shown on this Community thread, so make sure to 'subscribe' to this thread and check back around 12:30 on the 14th to watch live - right here in the Community. 

Thank you for participating!

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Alan   Bob Kupbens  has  a very poor history  of responces back  to question's  On His Bob's blog!   That is fact !  

[hioctane62]

alan@ebay Will there still be a weekly chat tomorrow?

[chrysylys]

Restore integrity in the site as a whole. 

Be more proactive in eliminating fraud by both buyers and sellers while being less quick to punish either side for honest mistakes.

Eliminate most forms of dropshipping.  Mandate that sellers MUST have direct control of each and every item they list, even if shipped from a remote location.

Revamp MultiVariations.

Re-work seller limits so that NO SELLER can list a high dollar jewelry or tech item without a proven track record.  Something needs to be done on the buyer side of this also.

Get the site back to where both buyers and sellers feel comfortable here and feel assured deals will go well.

[alan@ebay]

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wrote:

alan@ebay Will there still be a weekly chat tomorrow?

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@Yes, there will. General Topics @ 1 pm at the usual place. Thanks, @hioctane62

[mg152]

Please eBay needs to limit brand new sellers to items under $100 until they have at least 25 successful transactions. I know I said 10 yesterday but since then more noobs have lost their macs/iPhones & iPads & gotten no money through the fake Paypal emails.

[dtexley3]

Please explain in detail the business logic in disabling the "request invoice" if one or more of the items being purchased are on sale or has free shipping, or is not flagged as "seller allows combined shipping".   

The restrictions on when a buyer can request an invoice are far too tight and there are multiple reports of lost sales because of it.

The only response I've ever gotten is that it reduces the frequency of unpaid items.  However, the bulk of UPI instances currently are on auctions, not BINs.  Being able to negociate a package deal with combined shipping through the invoice system is a win for the buyer, the seller and eBay!

Please don't tell me to setup shipping discounts.  They don't always work appropriately.  How do you apply a shipping discount when 2 of the items are in flat rate boxes?  Or once combined the shipping box is large and/or heavy and it's better for the customer if it ships FedEx Ground rather than USPS.  We need the invoice to document that the shipping method was updated and agreed to.

[sharingtheland]

I'm going to repeat just one thing someone else already said.  

Do not let a brand new guest account buyer destroy a seller, with a perfect or near-perfect record, who has been here for years.

No idea how you adjust those bots but there must be some consideration given to length of "partnership" with no problems. 

[annindallas]

Alan,

One more question for Bob: 

What is ebay doing about security? Will that improve?

Is that inhouse? Do you contract now, or are there any indications that ebay might improve security with an outside company?

I won't bore you with why im asking. I could go on and on......

I am doubly concerned when I reviewed the ads ebay placed on indeed for programmers. $16-$18 an hour isn't going to buy much..........and who vets these people? I was shocked to read that an IT engineer with a master's degree tops out at 120K at ebay.

Why aren't programmers and security considered valuable?

When ebay declares itself a technology company, not a selling venue, does that mean you're harvesting information to sell to others?

Where is the public information where I can learn exactly what ebay is doing with my 10%?

[carlmarxx]

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wrote:

Alan,

One more question for Bob: 

What is ebay doing about security? Will that improve?

Is that inhouse? Do you contract now, or are there any indications that ebay might improve security with an outside company?

I won't bore you with why im asking. I could go on and on......

I am doubly concerned when I reviewed the ads ebay placed on indeed for programmers. $16-$18 an hour isn't going to buy much..........and who vets these people? I was shocked to read that an IT engineer with a master's degree tops out at 120K at ebay.

Why aren't programmers and security considered valuable?

When ebay declares itself a technology company, not a selling venue, does that mean you're harvesting information to sell to others?

Where is the public information where I can learn exactly what ebay is doing with my 10%?

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Go to ebay's UA Purchase Section  Ebay Claim's they are A Venue  ! That is a hosting site for people to seller their stuff!  They Don't claimed to be a Controled market place Or even a Technology Company  isn even stated .  

[theheadphonecompany]

That type of response (from eBay about a bad buyer) was copied from Amazon. There bots were designed (backed up by overseas CS agents) to "clear cases" as quick as possible .. that being the only criteria.

Since sellers are always at fault - its an easy piece of code to write - since the outcome is %100 the same each and every time - there are no variables.

eBay "should be" different from them - but seems to ape them 24/7

Your money is their partner ... not you (or me)