Sending offers

[jbbowers12012]

Hello Everyone,  Please bear with me, this may sound a bit silly.  I like to "send offers" & do get lucky with a sale ocassionally.  The question that I have is - When eBay tells me that a listing is "send offer" eligible but the item has no watchers - Where does my offer go?  Who sees it?  Thank You. (J.B.)

[thekulamoa]

From what I understand, it's based off of things other than just who's watching the item. I've been sent offers by a sellers when I've had an item in my cart for a while, or even just when I've viewed an item. Who knows what metric eBay bases this off exactly, but it can generally be thought of as people who have shown some interest in the item.

[hartungcards]

Don't waste your time sending offers to a listing with no watchers.  If nobody is interested enough to watch it, they're not going to be interested in buying it, unless you decide to give it away for free, and any other offer is more than likely to be considered an unwanted annoyance.  This is just eBay's latest canard to make sellers think they've got more interest in their stuff than they do in reality.  It's just sad.

[luckythewinner · Accepted solution]

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@jbbowers12012 wrote:

Hello Everyone,  Please bear with me, this may sound a bit silly.  I like to "send offers" & do get lucky with a sale ocassionally.  The question that I have is - When eBay tells me that a listing is "send offer" eligible but the item has no watchers - Where does my offer go?  Who sees it?  Thank You. (J.B.)

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When you send offers, you are sending offers to "interested buyers", not to "watchers".

eBay has a rather complicated definition of "interested buyers", which may change over time but is currently reported to consider

• watchers
• repeat visitors
• items added to carts
• the volume of unsolicited offers a buyer has received
• whether you have sent the buyer an offer for that item before
• whether the buyer has opted out of unsolicited offers

So in your case, it is probably a buyer who has either viewed your item multiple times, or has added your item to his cart.

[farmalljr]

Several things can trigger an "offer" to be allowed to be sent. A buyer has to have looked the the item (clicked the listing) or put it in their cart, besides watching the item. I've even been sent offers on items I have searched, but never clicked the listing. I think the bigger sellers who have auto offer activated, get those offers sent. 

Savvy buyers know these triggers too. That's why sometimes if you look at a listing, it may say X buyers already have this in their cart. Not only is it a way to make potential buyers pull the trigger on the sale, but it's also a way you can know that other savvy buyers are waiting for an offer. 

[lux.ra_14]

The offer will go to someone who viewed your item or showed "interest" in some way. Could be a casual browser, a comparison shopper, or just another seller checking the competition.

Chances are, the person will consider the offer to be unwanted spam and won't buy your item. People hate  spam, but eBay loves it. The e-mails can be turned off, but most people don't bother doing it. Instead, they get annoyed at eBay for intrusive marketing. 

[jbbowers12012]

Thank You.  Makes Sense.  (J.B.)

[jbbowers12012]

Thank You!

[jbbowers12012]

Thank You So Much!!  (J.B.)

[buyselljack2016]

The other buyers..................   or one other buyer................... or two other buyers...............  have this item in their cart is something that baffles me.  I can look at my OOS listing and have that pop up.

If I have sold an item and am now OOS , does the item "remain" in someone's cart?

In the past I have seen times that eBay was showing that I could "send offers" on dozens of my listings. Lately it just says "2 listings for offers". Strange.

I don't send offers, but have noted that change.

[luckythewinner]

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@hartungcards wrote:

Don't waste your time sending offers to a listing with no watchers.  If nobody is interested enough to watch it, they're not going to be interested in buying it, unless you decide to give it away for free, and any other offer is more than likely to be considered an unwanted annoyance. 

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If a buyer passed over your item because he thought the price was too high, IMHO sending an offer of 10% - 20% off can absolutely spur a sale. That has happened for me as both a seller and as a buyer.

[lasdac8]

there no more sending offers. I don't have it anymore. Why?

[winterpalace25]

It seems they loosened up their criteria a couple of months ago. It used to be pretty tight and I had a lot of success with it.

Now, I get offers for most items I check for price comparison, which I find irritating. And as a seller, the suggested offer eligibles have increased significantly, and most are not watchers. eBay is so desperate for sales and their cut that they are suggesting buyers who glanced at our listings. I am now very careful about who I send offers to from the list.

[jbbowers12012]

Still available here in N.J. - Just sent a few.  (J.B.)