eBay

saintcharlesplaceantiques · ‎10-09-2017

Hey everyone.

Has anyone else had the "best offer" option start showing up on auctions?

I typically use the "best offer" option on my BIN fixed price listings, but I've never heard of it showing up at auction before. I didn't even think it was possible to have an offer feature on an auction, but it's showing up on everything I list today. Obviously, when I list an item at auction, the minimum bid is the lowest I'll accept, so I don't even see why eBay would consider making this an option. I already get plenty of lowball offers & the last thing I need is offers below my minimum bid, and there's not even a BIN price on these listings.

I list several items a week for auction, and I didn't do anything different this time, so I'm wondering why it's showing up, or if there's something in my default settings that was somehow changed?

Is it visible on a page that's not my account?

I called eBay CS, but all they could really tell me was that it SHOULDN'T be an option, and ask me to decline any offers I recieve while the auction is running.

Anybody else running into this??

bubbleman2010 · ‎10-11-2017

The glitch took place on the 10th none before that and none after that so its just another ebay egg on the face error that they can't agree to whats the correct answer unless you believe some CS rep. half way around the world had the answer that a employee sitting with 500 feet of the person that knows the answer can't seem to find....

d-k_treasures · ‎10-11-2017

@bubbleman2010 wrote:
I cheated and looked because I was interested in how the sold item displayed. Must be on another ID zip nadda on the one posting...

I did too and didn't see anything sold.

_____________________________
"Nothing is obvious to the oblivious"

bubbleman2010 · ‎10-11-2017

2992 like items for sale in auction with mine being the only one out of 2992 in auction format with a BO. Is the price to high? Most certainly I wouldn't in a million years pay that price,but babies need shoes and milk ebay and paypal my no risk business partners have their hand out so I'm left with no choice but to past those costs onto a buyer. I deal with the hugemanatee of pricing merchandise daily,but just to many pie slice takers that never help with the pie so buyers have to pick up the tab...

stoneledge · ‎10-11-2017

@bubbleman2010 wrote:
The glitch took place on the 10th none before that and none after that so its just another ebay egg on the face error that they can't agree to whats the correct answer unless you believe some CS rep. half way around the world had the answer that a employee sitting with 500 feet of the person that knows the answer can't seem to find....

Maybe eBay is working on this new idea and activated it in a limited release to test it out. They'll take some measures and tweak it.

Typos courtesy of Lithium.

7606dennis · ‎10-11-2017

There was even an issue with BIN being attached to an auction if memory serves. I believe they ran into an issue regarding the so called, "Sticky BIN." They had intended to roll it out across the board, but it eventually it only made it to four. Frankly, I'm not sure how eBay kept from ending up in court over those four, but I suppose no one felt it worth the expense to sue of it.

The problem with the "Sticky BIN" is that it stays active after the listing has become an auction by receiving the first bid. Until the listing with a BIN option is acted upon by either a buyer or bidder it is neither an auction or fixed price listing. However, once a bid is placed, it becomes an auction which is regulated under a different set of laws than an online retail sale that a fixed price listing is. The "Sticky BIN" allowed the BIN option to stick around after the listing had officially become an auction by receiving a bid. This would open the seller up to allegations of not conducting the auction "in good faith" and violate some state's laws governing the conducting of auctions.

Basically, you can't have your cake and eat it too. You have to pick one selling method or the other. The same would apply with the Best Offer option attached to auction style listings. Once the item receives a bid it becomes an auction and are covered under statutes governing auctions. However, if the Best Offer option is used first, then the listing becomes one of a negotiated sale and you can't be carrying on the two different types of selling methods at the same time.

Another problem exists in having the negotiated selling option in an auction style listing. That is that the seller has only set a starting bid price and not a final asking price. Thus the buyer and seller are negotiating based on an asking price that is actually only meant as a minimum starting point. In an auction the bidding is expected to raise the price while in negotiated selling (haggling) the asking price is expected to come down. In the auction the competition is between the bidders while in haggling it is between the buyer and seller. Two opposing concepts.

"It is an intelligent man that is aware of his own ignorance."

lookng2015 · ‎10-11-2017

Try looking at the poster of message 139 - I see a couple of items with BO accepted.

in reply to 10-11-2017 10:11:52 AM

I have this on my auction listings as well. I like it. I hope it stays. I sold an item for more than I would have gotten by the end of the auction because the customer wanted the item now.

"If a product doesn't sell, raise the price" - Reese Palley
"If it sold FAST, it was priced too low" - also Reese Palley

7606dennis · ‎10-11-2017

@christiandrew_7 wrote:
I have this on my auction listings as well. I like it. I hope it stays. I sold an item for more than I would have gotten by the end of the auction because the customer wanted the item now.

Would you still be enthusiastic about it if you ended up facing litigation for not dealing "in good faith" when conducting an auction?

Of course, I'm curious as to what would happen if someone made an offer and while you were deciding whether to accept the offer someone placed a bid higher than the offer. Would you still be happy with the option if you realized that the item might be worth more than you thought?

Why would you consider accepting an offer for below what you set a a starting point for the bidding?

"It is an intelligent man that is aware of his own ignorance."

thatsallfolks · ‎10-11-2017

@bubbleman2010 wrote:
The glitch took place on the 10th none before that and none after that so its just another ebay egg on the face error that they can't agree to whats the correct answer unless you believe some CS rep. half way around the world had the answer that a employee sitting with 500 feet of the person that knows the answer can't seem to find....

Implementing BO in a completely different listing format is not a trivial software development task. I dot see any way that this is a glitch.

castlemagicmemories · ‎10-11-2017

@gramophone-georg wrote:
@castlemagicmemories wrote:
@dhbookds wrote:
@Anonymous

If this turns out to be a test or even "real".......I have a question....Buyer makes offer, Seller makes counteroffer..... 2nd buyer bids.......... What the heck do we do if lst buyer accepts the offer, presumably ending the listing and the 2nd buyer screams to us that it was supposed to BE AN AUCTION?????

Buyer are already ticked off when sellers cancel auctions that don't get bid high enough........this is really not going to please some of them.........
@dhbookds wrote:
@Anonymous

If this turns out to be a test or even "real".......I have a question....Buyer makes offer, Seller makes counteroffer..... 2nd buyer bids.......... What the heck do we do if lst buyer accepts the offer, presumably ending the listing and the 2nd buyer screams to us that it was supposed to BE AN AUCTION?????

Buyer are already ticked off when sellers cancel auctions that don't get bid high enough........this is really not going to please some of them.........
Point being, things need to be evaluated thoroughly for what may happen before implementation.
That's just NOT how eBay rolls. Been here long?

Thank you SO much. Actually, YES, I HAVE, and I DIDNT SAY that was how Ebay rolls. I said, things NEED to be evaluated thoroughly for what may happen BEFORE implementation.

castlemagicmemories · ‎10-11-2017

@stoneledge wrote:
@bubbleman2010 wrote:
The glitch took place on the 10th none before that and none after that so its just another ebay egg on the face error that they can't agree to whats the correct answer unless you believe some CS rep. half way around the world had the answer that a employee sitting with 500 feet of the person that knows the answer can't seem to find....
Maybe eBay is working on this new idea and activated it in a limited release to test it out. They'll take some measures and tweak it.

Advance notice of the test, if that is what it is, would make sense, less upset sellers calling in to CS for answers they don't have or don't know. A quiet announcement would do much to alleviate upset and uncertainty, people taking listings down because they think it is a glitch, only to find it pop up on new listings.

tunicaslot · ‎10-11-2017

Could be georg is unfamiliar with you being a 10 yr member on the forum as he's been gone for so long.

castlemagicmemories · ‎10-11-2017

Yes, I was going to say mine is UNINTERRUPTED and doesn't count that of another id.

I certainly hope that meets with his approval!

castlemagicmemories · ‎10-11-2017

@tunicaslot wrote:
Could be georg is unfamiliar with you being a 10 yr member on the forum as he's been gone for so long.

You know newbies!

OF COURSE, with ALL due respect to you, Georg!

tev4all · ‎10-11-2017

@lookng2015 wrote:
Try looking at the poster of message 139 - I see a couple of items with BO accepted.

christiandrew_7
Re: "Best Offer" showing up on auctions??
in reply to saintcharlesplaceantiques 10-11-2017 10:11:52 AM

I have this on my auction listings as well. I like it. I hope it stays. I sold an item for more than I would have gotten by the end of the auction because the customer wanted the item now.

Being as this disruptive innovation first appeared yesterday the 10th, I find IT hard to believe the poster you are referencing actually has accepted any BO on their Auctions. Look a little harder at the ending dates and starting formats, you might agree.