eBay

fultonfalcon · ‎03-31-2019

Lol,,, got burned, ... and so now I'll not do that again... I was selling some vintage golf balls signed by A.Palmer and other golf greats. Most of these collector balls list at around $12- $14 so I started 5 of them for .99 and went on about my business. I saw I had a bid Yah! AND then nothing.... so on the last day I went to look... there were 272 such balls for sale and my sale ad came up at #260 even though I had a bid. Potential buyers had to get a shovel to find my sale ad... well it didn't happen....so at the end of the day I sold $60 worth of collector golf balls for .99 and then had to add insult to injury by paying out over $4 in shipping. ROFLMAO When I lose I go all out. It isn't important, I won't die from it, but some times you have to learn lessons the hard way. I've learned that some coins you can still list for .99 and stimulate bidding, but not much else. Things just seem to be going this way...the days of interested bidders is on the slide. I'm not blaming eBay, I might blame China, I might blame history teachers that fail to instill a value in our heritage, I might blame old age, and I might blame Trump (for what I don't know, but everyone seems to enjoy blaming him for everything). I might blame all kinds of things, but the blame has to lie with me.....I am just too tiny to get any kind of position with my listings that anyone will see. So, *shrug* I'll not try that again. OH,, and DON'T suggest I not sell collector items.... I've seen how regular merchandise is going.. You list it..eBay puts your competitor's (China) ad in YOUR LISTING and you don't get the sale. I don't want any part of that scam. I can sell at auction, I have good items, I just have to be patient and put the starting price at a number I can accept without crying. LOL I love it. It was not so long ago we heard bidders griping about sniping.....oh how I long for those days again.

fashunu4eeuh · ‎03-31-2019

Love your humor!

Impressed you are sending the item. Sometimes i’ve seen a seller back out of the deal rather than fire-sale a good item, even tho to do so can earn a seller a defect.

yuzuha · ‎03-31-2019

@slippinjimmy wrote:
@tsme35 wrote:
Auctions are dead now thanks to ebay,
It's sellers that killed Auctions not eBay!

I'd say it's more buyers not being stupid. Why would anyone want to wait seven days to find out if they won something when they could just go ahead and buy it from somewhere else and have it in their hands before the auction even ended?

Auctions are great for things that are very rare and/or have high demand. For common stuff? No way.

tsme35 · ‎03-31-2019

Those are the only auctions I run, rare or unusual color, maybe one that there isn't any listed. These sellers are listing regular lures that can be bought at anytime starting at $.01 and sell for a buck or 2, so my buy it now's won't sell. I've dropped alot of inventory just because it won't sell

kittykat.949 · ‎04-01-2019

Honestly---Mostly all of us that have been around for awhile have done the same thing---LIVE & LEARN

donker55 · ‎04-01-2019

I've said it many times, if you put an item out for auction, be willing to accept what you show as the starting bid. I start a few things at .99 and know that is probably all I'll get, but I hope something else will catch their
eye!

femmefan1946 · ‎04-01-2019

@fultonfalcon

I was selling some vintage golf balls ... Most of these collector balls list at around $12- $14 so I started 5 of them for .99 ....

I assume you paid less than 99 c each for them? Including your eBay listing fees?

And that you made allowances for your FVF on selling and on shipping? As well as your Paypal fees?

Other costs are your time and packaging. I reckon my time at the local miniumum wage-- of 18 c a minute.

With those numbers you know where to open your auctions while covering your costs.

there were 272 such balls for sale and my sale ad came up at #260 even though I had a bid. ...

Which Searches did you use?

Best Match is the default and probably the most used, but many Search on Lowest Price +Shipping or on Nearest Location. Some even Search on Highest Price +Shipping to bypass the dreck and counterfeits.

I sold $60 worth of collector golf balls for .99

A mistake you are adult enough to admit. Good for you. So many blame others.

And actually a thing is only worth what someone will pay for it.

You sold 99 c worth of golf balls for 99c.

Your winning bidder may have had a much higher bid, which you cannot see. The problem is not the winning bidder, it is the lack of an underbidder.

The reasons why auctions are dying on eBay is spelled out by others. Only about 15% of listings are now auctions, and most of those have a Buy It Now price.

and then had to add insult to injury by paying out over $4 in shipping.

Free Shipping should never be used with Auctions. or with items that must ship parcel rate.

The cost of parcel shipping varies not only with weight and dimensions, but also with destination.

More important, Free Shipping means the cost of shipping is included in the asking price for the item.

Which is cheaper ? A $10 item with $5 shipping or a $15item with Free Shipping.

In passing.

If you have more balls to list, consider including golf-mad Japan in the places you will ship to. You can use GSP and limit destinations, but Japan is probably the safest destination on the planet, because of an excellent postal system and a culture of strictly honest behaviour.

gardeltango · ‎04-01-2019

I only wish the stuff I was selling got as many bids as the stuff I try to bid on! 😛

But in all seriousness I always look to see how many of any particular item is listed. If there are none or asking prices are up there then I'll list it at a more reasonable competitive price.

I happen to have a dealer space at an antique so if the item is saturated or the prices are too cheap, I'll put it in my dealer space. I've found that people are willing to pay a little more if it means being able to take it home with them. 😊