Ebay to drop collectables categories?
stonej
considering that the online auctioneer has a large user base that can
often be described as having a love-it/hate-it relationship with the
Web site.
Among the most common rumors currently circulating are that eBay will
transition to a full-blown e-commerce site along the lines of
Amazon.com, ditching small sellers in favor of large “Power Sellers.”
Likewise, the chatter online says that eBay is going to ditch the
collectibles, antiques and other one-off items and instead move to a
direction that encourages boxed and new items.
“I haven’t heard or read anything officially, but there is that
sentiment out there that this is the direction eBay is moving,” said
Kevin Boyd, author of eBay Business At Your Fingertips. Boyd says that
he agrees that eBay is making some changes that hint that way. But he
stresses that this is because the auction site has been struggling a
bit. “Amazon.com is kind of kicking eBay’s butt right now. [The online
retailer] is seeing 40% growth to around 8% growth right now for eBay.
That’s how I see it, but I haven’t seen anything official.”
Boyd says that some of the moves eBay has made do seem to point to big
changes, which, he said, is making it more and more difficult for some
sellers, and as he sees it is discouraging for both buyers and sellers
alike.
“There used to be a division devoted to antiques,” says Boyd, adding,
“They shut that down.” As to whether eBay is going to ditch the
collectibles Boyd can only say, “EBay is making changes that tend to
hint that way.”
However, the online auction site has been quick to respond to the
various online dialog, with representatives often joining the
discussions to reassure everyone that eBay isn’t changing the core
business model.
Usher Lieberman from eBay Inc.’s corporate communications department
says that there are some who may be “concerned that we might do away
with the category. For the record, this is absolutely untrue.
Collectibles represent a significant part of eBay’s core business and
we have absolutely no plans to eliminate the category.
“In fact, there are no changes for auction sellers in any category,”
adds Lieberman. He did stress that one change has been made, making it
easier for some sellers – notably those who do sell new merchandize
instead one-off items. “For fixed price sellers, we have further
rebalanced our fees and made it easier than ever to list multiple
quantities.”
Long time sellers on eBay are feeling somewhat turned off by eBay’s
moves. “As a business owner myself, I respect the idea that eBay has
the right to take the company in any direction that the board and
shareholders feel appropriate,” says Jeff Shrader, owner of Advanced
Guard Militaria, an online site devoted to the sale of military
antiques. As a long time eBay seller Shrader say that he finds the
moves eBay has made have created a very hostile environment in which
the sellers must operate. “If one looks at the changes individually
they do not seem to make sense, but when viewed together as a series
of carefully planned incremental steps toward ‘reinventing’ the eBay
marketplace, it appears that alienation of the small sellers is not
just an unhappy consequence of these changes; but rather was the goal
all along. If the management at eBay believes that driving away the
low-volume sellers is necessary to achieve their ends, they could not
have possibly thought of a better series of policy changes to
accomplish this.”
DanU
sale, maybe an 1889-cc Morgan in a PCGS holder. But, they will
accommodate some Chinese prick who wants to list 500 replica Trade
Dollars for 99 cents each, to further clutter up the listings.
It's no wonder I am sick of ebay. It works like government. The
slimy crooks rise to the top and get preferred treatment, and the
honest little guy gets screwed. They only worry about profits,
customer service stinks.
They do not care who lists what, so long as they list a lot of it.
There is so much garbage listed in the coins sections now, that I
cannot wade through it in order to find anything I want to bid on.
Quite sad.