eBay Needs to Find a New Set of Tools to Motivate Sellers in 2009
1. Prohibiting check / money order as an option (coming October 2008)
Predicted Result: eBay sales will decrease. Off-site sales will increase. Net effect for sellers is only a slight decrease in sales but net effect for eBay is noticably decreased sales, especially in the collectibles category.
Details: Because buyers will no longer know which sellers are willing to accept check and money order, a buyer will have to contact each seller to inquire as to the seller’s payment policies. This will have the effect, first of all, of creating more work for the already over-worked eBay seller. And, if a seller is now going to take their valuable time to communicate with a potential buyer about payment methods it is a great opportunity for the seller to mention that eBay’s new policies prohibit payment by check or money order but that the seller has a great website (or other venue) where the same or similar product can be ordered and where checks and money orders are accepted. Sellers will have to take more time to communicate but will be rewarded with an order outside of eBay which means no eBay or Paypal fees, in essence the “no selling fee” compensates the seller for the time they take to communicate with the buyer.
2. Increase in Selling Fees for Successful Sellers (twice in 2008)
Result: Successful sellers continue to move to alternate channels.
Details: Twice in 2008, eBay has “revised” fees and claimed that these revised fees have lowered the selling fees for most of their sellers. However, the total selling fees for SUCCESSFUL eBay sellers (ie those sellers who have a good sell-through rate) have been raised both times.
Successful eBay sellers are the people who have the skills necessary to be successful elsewhere and they are finding it more difficult to remain successful on eBay. These sellers are moving their inventory where they are making more margin for significantly less effort.
For example, if we have an item with a Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price (MSRP) of $100, then we have on average a gross margin on our own website of $34, on Amazon the gross margin is $25, and on eBay the gross margin in $12. The Gross Margin is the Selling Price less the product costs (costs we pay to the manufacturer to obtain the product) and less the selling fees (including payment processing fees) we pay to Amazon or to eBay / Paypal. So to put it in a little different format:
MSRP $100 item
Gross margin – website $34
Gross margin – Amazon $25
Gross margin – eBay $12
The reason that eBay gross margin is so much lower is actually the function of two things – higher selling fees paid to eBay and lower average selling price. For an average item, the eBay buyer will not pay as much as the buyer who purchases from Amazon or directly through our website. In addition, we have to pay eBay an insertion fee per item as well as a final value fee per item which always comes out to a higher percentage than Amazon.
So, in essence, we have to sell twice as much volume on eBay to make the same money as Amazon or three times as much volume on eBay to make the same money as our website. That, in and of itself, is a problem. However, the even bigger problem is that the amount of effort to make one sale on eBay is about 9 times more than the effort through the alternate channels. Communicating with eBay buyers is so labor intensive because they require so much more hand-holding and eBay actually encourages unnecessary communication and punishes sellers who do not do so (for example, in the recent Town Hall meeting, Stephanie suggested that sellers should email every buyer personally who pays with an echeck to explain the echeck process and let the buyer know that their item will be shipped when the echeck clears).
If we adjust the gross margins based on the EFFORT we put forth to actually generate a sale and to follow through on that sale (including begging the buyer to finally pay for the item they purchased) and the after-care of the sale, our table would look like this:
MSRP $100 item (adjusted for order generation and processing time)
Gross margin – website $34
Gross margin – Amazon $25
Gross margin – eBay $1.33
Now, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to realize that we should be continuing our efforts to move off eBay. We do see eBay still playing a role, however, in our 2009 online selling strategy.
eBay is still good for two things for us – (1) cashflow and (2) selling rare items.
Whenever we have items that are not moving as quickly as we had hoped, we can turn to eBay to liquidate that product which helps to improve our cash flow. Additionally, we sometimes have rare items that we put up for auction and eBay is the place where we can get the highest value for those items. For example, we recently had some items we purchased for $78 that were very hard to get (and we only got because we purchased large amounts of “standard” product). We put one of the items up for auction on eBay and it sold for more than $300. For the average every-day sales, though, eBay is definitely NOT the venue we plan to focus on in 2009 because our margins are higher elsewhere and our efforts are considerably less elsewhere.
3. Glitches in listing and site functionalities along with Poor Communication and Forced Participation in Beta Tests
Result: Sellers list less because it takes too long and because they have no confidence in the eBay system (ie Best Match). Additionally, sellers forced into beta tests refuse to provide quality feedback about the eBay system and thus the system continues to function poorly.
Details: eBay has miscommunicated, either intentionally or unintentionally, so many times this year and the miscommunications have resulted in a lack of credibility. The glitches on eBay and Paypal are so numerous that it borders on ridiculous. In addition, eBay either can’t or won’t explain the Best Match system and sellers have little confidence that the system is working as intended.
4. Marketplace Research Removed September 2008 (eBay still charges the same for mid-level store but provides fewer services now)
Result: Lower average selling prices on eBay since more sellers will use auction format. Sellers move more toward alternate channels since the first place for research will now be other than eBay. Decreased buyer satisfaction when sellers cancel mid-level store subscription and cease using automation services.
Details: Until this month, eBay’s Marketplace Research was a service included in a mid-level store. There were really only two good reasons to pay $35 more a month (difference in price between basic and mid-level store) and those two reasons were Marketplace Research and automation services (leaving feedback automatically, emailing buyers automatically when item was won, paid for, and then when shipped). Without Marketplace Research, the price of the mid-level store is no longer cost-effective for many sellers.
Marketplace Research allowed sellers to view all sales that occurred in the last 60 days, for example. Basic search on eBay only allows sellers to see items that have sold in the last 2 weeks on auction or when a fixed price item ends (either because of time or because all the quantity has been purchased). eBay store inventory sales does not appear in the completed items search on eBay.
Without Marketplace Research, sellers may downgrade their store subscription thereby ending the ability to use automated tools as well. The result is that buyers are not kept as informed about their order as they were before and thus are not quite as satisfied as before.
Without Marketplace Research, many sellers will not have a good idea of the true current market value of their product. Therefore, they will be more likely to sell the item on auction, rather than fixed price, if they are going to list it on eBay. And, typically, items on auction end at a lower amount than on fixed price unless the item is very rare. Auctions, which are given preference in the Best Match because of time ending soonest and also incur less total selling expenses than selling on fixed price, have become somewhat attractive again. But auction listings will still end at lower amounts than the items on fixed price thus bringing down the overall average selling prices on eBay which is not good for any seller. Further erosion of the margins on eBay will cause more sellers to fail.
And multi-channel sellers who list on Amazon will be more likely to make Amazon their first stop for research since eBay Marketplace Research is no longer available. As an Amazon featured merchant seller, I am more likely to list an item on Amazon if I see that the listed price for the seller who owns the Buy Box is in the ballpark of what I would offer the item for and if there are only a handful of sellers who have the item in stock. My item will never make its way to eBay if I am happy with my chances on Amazon.
5. eBay’s Main Mission of Forcing Free or Significantly Reduced Shipping
Result: Decreased buyer satisfaction when sellers block buyers. Lower international sales as sellers restrict items to domestic shipping only. Decreased variety on eBay as sellers move their product to higher margin sites.
Details: There is no question that eBay is using its incredible might to force sellers to offer free or significantly reduced shipping. The number of carrots and sticks which directly relate to shipping cost is almost laughable.
Sellers are reacting but not all sellers are reacting in the way eBay would like. Many sellers are blocking potential buyers who question the shipping cost in advance of bidding as well as blocking buyers who leave feedback and whom sellers suspect might be leaving low DSRs. Sellers view buyers with great suspicion because of the extreme importance of the shipping DSR. The shipping DSR determines eligibility to sell on eBay as well as Powerseller discounts. Sellers are turning away sales from buyers whom they think might lower their DSR scores and that certainly can’t be helping buyer satisfaction.
Sellers who offer their items to international customers are finding their DSR scores are lower because the cost to ship internationally is significantly higher and there are many problems inherent with shipping outside the U.S., all of which lower a seller’s DSR scores. The result is that many eBay sellers no longer offer items for sale internationally. Personally, we sell in many categories on eBay and we are now only offering international delivery for three different categories and by the end of the year we expect to offer international shipping in only one category on eBay. We simply cannot afford the lower DSR ratings. It is a tough trade-off. We accept international sales and jeopardize our eligibility to sell on eBay at all or cease international sales to continue to sell to U.S. destinations on eBay.
Above all, the bottom line is that there is simply no margin for our eBay sales to offer free shipping and the more eBay pressures us to do so, the more we are going to move off-site and/or the more we are going to promote our own ecommerce website where we can offer special “free shipping” promotions when it makes economic sense and at the times of our choosing.
6. Feedback System Lacks Transparency and Simply Does Not Work
Results: Lack of transparency results in good sellers being punished without knowing why. Lack of transparency also causes some sellers to erroneously block “good” buyers and more sellers restrict buyers through the Buyer Requirements. Buyers work around the blocks, though, creating very angry and frustrated sellers.
Details: Because the Detailed Seller Ratings are anonymous, sellers cannot attribute the scores to any one buyer and thus sellers sometimes block a group of buyers so as not to have a bad buyer return and leave low DSR scores again. There are some sellers who are so frightened they are behaving quite irrationally because eBay has set up a current system where it is almost impossible for sellers, especially small sellers, to succeed.
The lack of transparency also means that sellers do not know when buyers are upset and, thus, sellers face sanctions or suspensions without even knowing they are in danger. eBay does not inform sellers when an “unhappy buyer” leaves a “1” or “2” rating so a seller would not be aware that they are failing to make the buyer satisfied. The first time a seller would know a real problem exists is when eBay suspends them for having a buyer dissatisfaction rate greater than 5%. A seller knows when an unhappy buyer leaves a negative or files a paypal dispute but a seller is never informed that an unhappy buyer has left a poor DSR rating until it is too late.
In an effort to protect themselves from bidders who do not pay or who engage in feedback extortion, for example, sellers can use buyer requirements to block bidders who have too many policy violations but that system does not work. Buyers who are blocked just email sellers asking for exception to the requirements, going to great lengths to explain their transgressions or to explain how they were not at fault. And when that doesn’t work, the buyer just purchases the item with an alternate I.D. or asks a friend or neighbor to purchase and they the original customer makes the paypal payment. The frustrated buyer, who is not happy at having to “go around the system” to make the purchase, often leaves unfavorable DSR ratings for the seller.
7. Overwhelming Number of Policy Changes, Many of Which Require Listing Revisions
Result: Sellers are leaving, either in whole or in part, because it requires too much effort to stay.
Details: Because so many policy changes require listing revisions, the time investment for eBay sellers is significant. For example, there is no bulk editing tool for sellers to use to create or revise their return policy. eBay had promised a bulk editing tool but has not provided one and, at this time, has no plans to provide any way for sellers to comply with the policy other than to revise every listing one by one.
Many sellers I know are simply throwing up their hands. Their thinking is that if they have to invest time and energy into manually revising their eBay listings again and again and again, then it is in their best interest to go somewhere else. They feel that their investment of time is better spent building their business elsewhere rather than recreating their business ten times on eBay in a year. Most sellers I know are not completely abandoning eBay but rather they are preparing their other venues for the holiday season and will spend whatever time is remaining, if any, to prepare their eBay store for this holiday season.
CONCLUSION:
I know what eBay is trying to achieve and I can appreciate the vision they have for their site. But eBay cannot achieve their objectives by coercing sellers. In the past, eBay has used fear, threats, and intimidation to control their sellers but the days when eBay could force their will on sellers is now past. There are simply too many alternatives and the benefits of selling on eBay just aren’t what they used to be. Five years ago, eBay could say to a seller “It is my way or the highway” and a seller would conform. Today, though, that same directive is not nearly as powerful because sellers are finding the highway is full of hustling and bustling and there are some very attractive new destinations both near and far. More and more sellers are taking eBay up on their offer to “Hit the Road” if they don’t like the changes. eBay really needs to reach deep into their tool bag to find a new set of tricks that will motivate sellers in 2009 because the Big Bully routine is old and ineffective now.
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Details of the PayPal 21-Day Hold Policy for eBay Sellers
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The eBay / PayPal 21-day hold policy has received a lot of negative press in the last few months and I think most of that was due to the fact that Paypal was not forthcoming with the details. Initially, Paypal would not release details about how and when they were going to hold sellers’ money. At that time, I was told by Paypal that releasing the details would allow some people to “game the system”. I let the Paypal representative know what I thought — that when you are dealing with people’s money it is irresponsible not to be upfront with folks. Well, after several months, it looks like Paypal has changed their minds and decided to put out some specific details about the Paypal 21-day hold policy.
Below is the information about Paypal’s 21-day hold that I copied directly from the Paypal website. There is one important note that might be easily overlooked … even though neutrals are no longer reduce a seller’s feedback percentage, they are still used to calculate a seller’s dissatisfaction rate. So, any buyer who leaves a negative or neutral feedback, who leaves a “1” or “2” on any DSR rating, or who files a paypal dispute is considered to be an “unhappy buyer”. If you have more than a 5% dissatisfied buyer rate, then you become subject to Paypal holds as well as eBay listing restrictions and suspensions.
Payment Holds for eBay Items |
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eBay’s Year of Extreme Changes Causes Extreme Pain for Sellers
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It is an impossibility for eBay sellers to keep their business functioning normally at this time. It is a bit like trying to continue travelling on a major highway that is under construction with the work crews furiously working among the cars and trucks going down the road since the traffic has no place to be diverted. Every now and then, the work crews quickly throw up some concrete barriers to perform their work behind. The barriers are constructed with the foreknowledge that some cars and trucks will unexpectedly crash into the hastily erected concrete but the collateral damage is deemed to be at an acceptable level all in the name of progress.
Yet eBay is so busy making changes that they are failing to even inform their Top Seller Managers. For example, today’s Auctionbytes article makes mention of a change that was announced on an eBay community discussion board rather than through a formal announcement. I called eBay and spoke with a Top Seller Account Manager who finally, after 38 minutes of vehemently denying any policy change despite my insistence, did finally speak to someone at eBay who confirmed the changes as posted on the discussion forum. The eBay Account Rep then expressed his frustration to me about learning of the policy change from a seller rather than from the company he works for. eBay’s actions are not those of a company who is firmly in control of its future but rather it seems quite clear that the right hand at eBay is not aware of what the left hand is doing. And, as a result, sellers fear that eBay is in a panic and we are more worried than ever.
Implications of eBay’s new Paperless Payments Policy
Feedback Extortion – A Difference of Opinion
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The definition of eBay Feedback Extortion has been widely debated and there are varying opinions about what actually constitutes feedback extortion. According to the eBay website, below are some examples of what eBay says constitutes feedback extortion:
Examples of Feedback extortion
- A buyer purchases a vehicle, and along with their payment sends an email stating, “If you don’t include high performance tires and rims at no additional charge I will leave you negative Feedback.”
- A seller receives payment from a buyer and then tells the buyer, “Leave me positive Feedback or I will not ship your item.”
Examples that aren’t Feedback extortion
- A buyer pays for an item and waits several weeks for it to arrive. The buyer then emails the seller, “The item is already late, if it is not here by tomorrow I will leave you negative Feedback.”
- A buyer receives an item and decides the item is significantly not as it was described in the original listing. The buyer threatens to leave negative Feedback unless the seller allows them to return it for a refund.
Sellers on eBay need to understand a few things about how eBay feedback extortion and PayPal protection works:
1. Buyers who purchase an item on eBay have a reasonable expectation that the item will be delivered intact and in the condition stated. That expectation is supported by eBay’s feedback extortion policy (buyer can return an item that is not as described and a broken / damaged arrive is not as originally described) and that expectation is also supported by the Paypal buyer protection policy. A seller can require the buyer to pay insurance, can include insurance in the cost of shipping and handling, can make insurance optional, or offer no insurance protection at all. However, no matter how a seller chooses to handle insurance, the buyer is NEVER responsible for an item that arrives damaged and a buyer that refuses the optional insurance is still entitled to have their item delivered to them intact. No exceptions.
2. Even if there is a “No Returns” Policy stated, any buyer who pays with PayPal can still get their money back if they return the item. If it is a buyer’s opinion that an item is not as described then PayPal will allow them to return the item for a full refund and eBay’s feedback extortion policy supports the buyer’s right to do so.
The policies regarding damaged items and returns are pretty clear-cut. Sellers who provide good customer service know that it is not in their long-term best interest to avoid taking responsibility for items damaged in transit or for incorrectly describing an item. And eBay sellers who would rather not provide good customer service are required to do so if they want to be allowed to continue to accept PayPal and to sell on eBay.
Beyond the clear-cut policies regarding damaged items and returns, there is a wide open space of customer service issues which are handled in a multitude of ways by different sellers. It is that wide gray area of space that is the subject of much debate. And, often there is a fine line between poor customer service by a seller and feedback extortion by a buyer. It is in this difficult area that good (calm, polite) communication can be the difference between a seller who perceives they are being extorted and a buyer who believes they are getting ripped off versus two parties to a transaction working together to resolve their differences.
Many long-term eBay buyers have had a poor track record of choosing good sellers. They have for years chosen to buy from the cheapest seller, regardless of the seller’s poor feedback from other buyers warning of problems, and then are angry and frustrated when they have a poor buying experience. And those many poor experiences taint their feelings about all sellers, even the good sellers with outstanding feedback. So, at the first hint of a problem (real or perceived), the buyer goes straight into escalation mode and begins threatening a seller with negative feedback without fully explaining the problem or giving the seller a chance to respond. Many times, the seller then sees the buyer as completely irrational and as having a complaint without merit and often times assumes a defensive stance.
What is so predictable is that when buyers fly off the handle with us and we simply do not understand their extreme anger and frustration, we pick up the phone and call them and we are able to resolve it amicably almost every time and, many times, with the buyer apologizing profusely for their outburst. When good buyers meet up with good sellers, the situation can be defused with a little work and both parties can still have a positive view of the transaction. What could have been potentially viewed as feedback extortion (from the seller’s perspective) or poor customer service (from the buyer’s perspective) is really neither of those. But poor communication from either or both parties can make it seem like there is a bigger problem when there really is none.
The real difficulty, however, occurs when a good eBay buyer comes in contact with a bad seller or when a good eBay seller interacts with a bad buyer. Prior to summer 2007, there were really no requirements that you had to be a good seller or even a marginal seller in order to offer your wares on eBay. That has changed and it has changed in a big way. With the enforcement of eBay seller requirements now and the buyer’s newly granted power to leave honest feedback without fear of retaliation, the eBay site is being cleared of many not-so-good sellers along with a few good sellers. So, eBay is making the marketplace an unwelcome site for poor performing sellers. It would seem reasonable to expect the good sellers who are welcomed on the site would be pleased that some of the competition is gone and that buyers would have a more satisfying experience and thus would be more likely to come back to the eBay marketplace in general. But, most good eBay sellers are not currently happy because (1) the number of buyers has not increased and the quality of current eBay buyers has not improved and (2) the bad buyers, who previously targeted mostly bad sellers, are now more frequently targeting the good sellers.
Generally the poor performing sellers were the ones on eBay with the lowest prices. After all, these sellers had to do something to entice buyers to purchase from them, a risky seller with poor customer service. And now that there are fewer sellers offering below-wholesale pricing, the buyers who are accustomed to getting the outstanding deals are looking to extort the good sellers into lowering their prices. The extortion is not the clear-cut example eBay uses where the buyer wants extra tires and rims but rather it is less clear-cut and sometimes more subtle. Some buyers ask questions in advance about how they can get a lower-than-stated price but many buyers purchase items and then boldly demand a discount after the fact. Just this week I had a buyer tell me that he expects a discount and that I could just look at it as part of a “frequent customer discount” reward program to thank him for his 3rd purchase from me this year. Buyers frequently ask for discounts on the product price, further discounts on my already-generous posted combined shipping discount rates, upgraded shipping for free, and a whole host of strangely worded requests for free items among other things. Of course, then there are buyers who demand I take alternate payment forms and demand that I ship same day or “else face negative feedback”. Never mind that I clearly state my terms for payment and my handling time.
Unfortunately for me, most of the “requests” for price reductions, shipping upgrades, free items, and changes in the terms of service occur AFTER the buyer purchases the item. So I am unable to simply ignore these requests and I am stuck having to explain that I can’t honor their requests for free, free, and more free stuff. While I estimate that about 10% of the buyers are the ones who make requests, sometimes bordering near harassment and extortion, it is those 10% of the buyers who consume more than 80% of the time I spend answering emails and dealing with customer service issues. There is a reason why good eBay sellers are exhausted and why they feel extorted, threatened, and harassed by buyers. And while I have always had buyers ask for extra stuff, the frequency of those requests have more than doubled in the last 2 to 3 months. While I don’t have any concrete evidence that the increase is due to the new eBay policies, other than some buyers specifically telling me things like “the new rules require you to ship for free” and similar kinds of comments, I don’t believe it is a coincidence that the increase has occurred at a time when eBay is encouraging the buyer to leave unfavorable feedback when they are not happy.
Until recently, eBay had informed sellers that negative feedback would NOT be removed even in cases where there was clear-cut evidence that buyers had violated the feedback extortion policy. However, after my online interview with Griff from eBay where Griff stated that negative feedback was in fact being removed when a seller was extorted, I received an email an eBay Trust & Safety Specialist who admitted that the information being sent to sellers about non-removal of feedback was in fact being sent in error. And I have been informed by the Specialist that the information has now been changed. eBay has stated that they do not tolerate feedback extortion. But sellers and eBay don’t see eye-to-eye about the actual definition of feedback extortion, and what actually constitutes extortion. And because I sell in a number of different categories on eBay I also notice a unique phenomenon in that buyers in some specific categories are actually (as a group) more likely to extort, harass, and threaten sellers.
Given the increased resources that our company is having to devote to the bad buyers on eBay, we are finding it increasingly more difficult to provide outstanding customer service to the really good buyers. And that is where the sellers need eBay’s help. If eBay really wants to help sellers provide the best customer service possible then they will take steps to prevent buyers from taking unfair advantage of sellers.
1. eBay sellers should be able to cancel a transaction with a buyer who requests or demands a change in the terms after the fact. If eBay allowed sellers to void transactions without the consent of the buyer (unlike a mutual withdrawal where both parties agree not to complete the transaction), but not receive a final value fee credit for the transaction and also not allow the buyer to rate the transaction, then sellers would only cancel transactions for which they truly felt extorted since there would be a financial cost for the seller to do so. The seller would obviously have to feel they could possibly lose more if they complete the transaction than the amount of final value fees that they would definitely lose by voiding the transaction. eBay could limit the number of times a seller could use the “void” option each month based on a seller’s volume. Sellers would then avoid doing business with the worst offenders and would have more time to focus on taking care of the good buyers.
2. eBay sellers should be allowed to anonymously report buyers who ask for a change in terms after the fact. eBay would not need to investigate these individual “complaints” but if multiple sellers report the same buyer then eBay could have some type of process whereby they could help to educate the buyer about the proper procedure for buying on eBay.
The amount of time an eBay seller has to spend for each transaction on eBay is simply outrageous. And time is money, as everyone knows. eBay can help sellers improve their bottom line and provide a better buyer experience for the majority of eBay buyers. To do so, eBay will need to take steps to curb the increasingly time-consuming abuses being committed on sellers by a small number of buyers.
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Read Full Post | Make a Comment ( None so far )eBay Enters the Customer Service Race to Win the Respect of Its Sellers
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It isn’t often that I have something complimentary to say about eBay so I thought I would warn you now – I actually intend on saying something nice about eBay in this blog post.
I have to admit that these round of announcements, in which sellers were told about some major changes, was handled much more professionally and respectfully than previous announcements. While I am still digesting the message itself and will be sharing more of my thoughts from a seller’s perspective about the upcoming changes, I will say now that I much prefer this method of communication from eBay in comparison to previous announcements.
When eBay announced changes this week, they did several things:
1. Significantly more “detail” was provided this time than in the past announcements. For example, eBay announced a minimum 4.3 DSR standard for all sellers and then actually explained what sellers could expect to happen if they fall below the standard.
2. Webinars were offered to members, two webinars were scheduled the same day as the announcement
3. A special Workshop / Community Board was set up and staffed by eBay to answer real-time questions asked by concerned eBay members
4. A Town Hall Meeting was held a few days after the announcements
5. eBay employees involved in the decision-making process answered questions on the eBay sponsored blog , eBayInk Blog, as well as communicated directly with members via email and even by phone
6. The message this time was less “harsh” in terms of changes being “absolute” and restrictive. For example, for some changes occurring in October, eBay has said that they will not enforce the rules in terms of policy violation reports until after the holiday season so as not to disrupt sellers’ businesses during the busiest time of year.
7. eBay invited members of the blogging community to San Jose to learn about the changes being announced
See Randy Smythe’s blog : My Blog Utopia
In my 10+ years as an eBay seller, I have never witnessed this kind of effort by eBay to reach out to the community. Perhaps eBay has finally faced the reality of it all — they really do need us as much as we need them. And perhaps eBay experienced for the first time something unique after the January announcements — more sellers have alternatives today and more sellers than ever before overcame their reluctance to try something new. For example, in one of the small niche categories where I sell on eBay, there are only a handful of professional sellers. I saw more than a few of my competitors set up shop on Amazon shortly after I did and I expect that, across the board, the same phenomenon occurred for lots of other categories as well.
While eBay’s recent efforts are admirable, it will take time as well as more efforts like the ones this week in order to convince sellers that eBay is sincere. As someone who has personally been kicked around more than once by eBay in the past 10 years, I will need to see a consistent effort over time from eBay before I am a believer. It is not that I will ever forget the injustices or the disrespect or even the many times I have been ignored by eBay but I will acknowledge that this style of communication from eBay is a welcome change to what I have experienced in the past.
My relationship with eBay is changing. It used to be that I was forced to accept whatever changes were dictated because of my overdependence on eBay. As time passes, though, and my dependence on the auction site lessens, the balance of power is changing. eBay is going to have to work harder for my business if it wants me as a seller. And I think eBay knows that. eBay’s recent actions of reaching out to the community in an effort to more fully explain the upcoming changes is a step in the right direction.
The biggest problem for eBay right now, though, is that they have a lot of ground to make up for and so they are going to have to make bigger strides with sellers if they want to close the gap. While eBay’s largest competitor has consistently earned the gold medal award every day for customer service, eBay actually surprised everyone when it showed up to enter the race this week for the first time. The question I have is this — Will eBay just stand around and flex their big muscles until the photographers finish taking pictures, and then walk away… or will eBay actually break a sweat to go the distance against the competition?
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