Managed Account

[corpseheads]

Up until fairly recently I had never heard of a "managed account"  on Ebay.   I had concerns about one of my listings not having certain information like product reviews despite the fact I've sold more than anyone else. I also had concerns about competitors selling below the MAP.  I only intended to bring that up in passing but the Ebay rep went on to tell me a certain seller had a "managed account". I'm like what does that have to do with anything?  She was like, certain accounts are "selected by Ebay" and work closely with the manufacturers and are allowed special privileges such as being able to sell below a certain price(MAP).   I was like, Are you just talking in general or are you actually saying said manufacturer told Ebay that said seller could sell below the MAP despite what the manufacturer had published presumably to all other resellers????   She said, yes. Was I even suppose to know about that little secret?  I've asked other sellers and they never even heard of a "managed account".  I mean how is this even remotely fair?  Also for this particular item I've sold quite a few more than the next guy and quite possibly all other sellers combined. Actually that's a statement of fact. I can only imagine that a managed account is getting a lower wholesale price as well. Collusion?  Illegal?  Most definitely not what i'd call ethical to be lied to. Certainly scrapping the product is an option at this point.

[goodluckselling]

I do not think the CS gave you good info.  Your issues are not with eBay.  eBay does not tell sellers what they can sell an item for.  eBay would not have an idea what your MAP pricing is for an item.  At least not yet.

Your issue is with your supplier who seems to be allowing your competitor to sell below the MAP pricing structure in place for that item. 

A managed account on eBay I think has been around a long time (more than 10 years).  It used to mean you got a dedicated CS team that always took your calls and helped you through any issues in a timely manner.  Other shipping discounts as well but that benefits has been roled out to basically to sellers now.

Good Luck Selling!

[penguins_dont_fly]

They are offering the same type of service for Anchor Stores now, but Managed Accounts have been around a long time ...

Here's an article from 2014 with a quote from eBay regarding managed accounts.

http://www.ecommercebytes.com/cab/abu/y214/m05/abu0359/s03

As eBay's Ryan Moore explained, a business that plays by the rules, grows in size and quality of inventory, and observes eBay's policies can be chosen as a "Managed Account."

"We have a dedicated merchant development team that works with thousands of merchants," he explained. "This team provides guidance on short-term and long-term growth strategies, new product offerings (i.e. GSP) and account management. eBay's managed accounts are composed of sellers that bring unique, high-quality and/or vast inventory to the eBay platform. Any eBay seller can grow and be considered to become a managed account, but to become a managed seller is by invitation at eBay's discretion."

[corpseheads]

She said the manufacturer told Ebay that the particular customer could sell below their MAP. Other reps have told me Ebay takes requests from manufacturers for MAP. I've spoken with Vero about it. We both sorta arrived at the idea that a manufacturer could force removal of listings via a DMCA. Although if you actually possess the item and perhaps use your own pictures a DMCA could result in a counter claim and litigation. I'm going by what I was told. I consider the product line to be poison now and will liquidate. As unbelievable as it is to hear what she told me, if someone has been telling you they'll enforce MAP for over a year now(last April)and very little has been done you start to believe some people have preferential treatment. 

[corpseheads]

I got a coupon to open up an anchorstore yesterday.  That was after I got mad about the shipping errors and wanted to close my store which is a strong possibility as I have another.  I had one before and I most definitely wasn't managed. all i remember is Ebay managing to destroy my anchor store by putting me below standard. Under the current system I would be top rated plus. It's definitely something that's by invite. I get the impression i'm being shown the door. Really sick of this rat race.

[d-k_treasures]

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@goodluckselling wrote:

I do not think the CS gave you good info.  Your issues are not with eBay.  eBay does not tell sellers what they can sell an item for.  eBay would not have an idea what your MAP pricing is for an item.  At least not yet.

Your issue is with your supplier who seems to be allowing your competitor to sell below the MAP pricing structure in place for that item. 

A managed account on eBay I think has been around a long time (more than 10 years).  It used to mean you got a dedicated CS team that always took your calls and helped you through any issues in a timely manner.  Other shipping discounts as well but that benefits has been roled out to basically to sellers now.

Good Luck Selling!

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The only way a manufacturer would do that is a) if that product is at the end of it's life, or b) it was purchased 'first cost' and the seller has their own label on it(same exact item, only private label.

Or, the manufacturer doesn't know what is happening yet.

I doubt any manufacturer would allow anyone to sell below MAP on here, unless it's all seconds, returns, damages, etc.. After all, with a gruesome Halloween mask or prop - how would a normal buyer notice a defect or minor damage?

[corpseheads]

All the time they allow people to sell below MAP. I got the wrong masks shipped to me from ironically a mask manufacturer the other day. So I thought for a second...maybe I could sell them instead of shipping them back. I took one look on ebay and found about 10-20 listings selling the mask $14 on average below MAP. Last night I was curious about some other masks I was selling. I see all sorts of games being played and personally felt the MAP was too low. I mean if it costs me $32 the MAP should be higher than $50.00. Should be at least $60-65. Then I went over amazon and found people selling it for $43 free shipping.  I used to have the most successful listing on Ebay....USED to.