Google Auctions Vs. Ebay

1 - I can do better 2 - Jury's out 3 - Pretty darn good 4 - Splendiferous 5 - Awesometastic by 15 people | Log in to rate

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HERE'S WHAT I THINK

Google Should Compete With Ebay

Everyone and their dog knows their is only one player in the online auction world. Ebay have a very unhealthy monopoly of the market, allowing them to hike up fees, kick off buyers and sellers alike, force people to use Paypal, which incidentally is owned by ebay and also charges higher fees than any other provider. These are just the tip of the iceberg as to why ebay is becoming very unpopular amongst sellers, and a few buyers!

Although other big players have dipped their toes in running online Auctions, notably amazon and yahoo, neither committed to these or provided the resources and support to offer a viable alternative. Yahoo Auctions was pulled after only a few months and although amazon auctions was ticking over with very little publicity or support from amazon it was also closed down recently.

Many people have got quite excited about the possibility of Google running their own auction site. Although nothing has officially been stated by Google, the introduction of Google Checkout last year is certainly a great foundation for google to do so. Other online auction sites suffer from not being indexed by search engines and not having a secure online payment system, unless they use paypal, which kinda defies the point of being independent if you end up giving ebay a cut of the profits by using paypal.

Quick Poll 

It would be assumed if google did launch an auction site that their fees would be cheaper than ebays

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Add to Poll 

Add your own poll answer and allow others to vote it up or down!

Ebay are Nazis

They are crap at fighting fraud, fake items proliferate on the site and good sellers get kicked off for no good reason!1 point

eBay is Recognized By The General Public

Fortunately or unfortunately, eBay is the auction company people recognize most frequently. That's hard for a new auction system to beat.1 point

Ebay Versus Google Auctions 

Google Should Compete With Ebay

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Google Auctions Now!

jivey says:

bring on google auctions...I have had enough of Ebay and thier petty BS they treat sellers like redheaded step children

Goole Auctions says:

Check out GooleAuctions.com yes Goole Auctions. It is a free site and has a worldwide reach.

Martin says:

I'm all for it!!! Kick Ebay to the curb.

Debra says:

Google Auctions in a heart beat. Both as a seller and a buyer!!!

ANNE says:

I HATE EBAY I WAS SUSPENDED FOR NO REASON AND IT JUST HAPPEN TO HAPPEN THE DAY ALL MY AUCTIONS WERE ENDING AND I HAD ALOT OF BIDS ON VERY EXPENSIVE ITEMS , ONE WAS A VALENTINO FOX FUR COAT! $1500, THEN THEY HAD THE NERVE TO CHARGE ME LISTING FEES FOR ALL MY ITEMS. I FOUGHT THEM FOR DAYS AND GOT NO WHERE!!! I HATE EBAY!! THEY ARE NOT ONLY CROOKS THEY ARE CRIMINALS. I WISH I COULD SUE THEM!

Leslie Smith says:

google auctions would be much better.

erick says:

ebay has to be owned by Dick Chenney and or Bush, the prepotency of this ebay devils is like that nasty cough you can't get rid of.

Ariel says:

I'm a powerseller on eBay and I'm really sick of their stupid policies and insane fees. Please Google, I would switch to your auction site without even think.

GoGoogle says:

Google already "ROCKS" the web! eBay is their own worst enemy. They have forgotten the basic principle of success; instead they have created a monopoly of selfishness, unappreciative actions and pure domination. Afterall, does the growth of the business world not rest on the premise of ensuring those who fund the business are teated with fairness and some sort of genorisity. Instead, eBay has took the approach to punish the hard working sellers who pay their salaries. Is something not seriously wrong with this picture? Google on the other hand has built a strong trustworthy relationship on the web. In my opinion, Google will be astonished at the money and support they will receive from the world on this endeavor. So, Google please take the step and open a auction site. The time is now!

Gianni says:

Screw Ebay And Go Away Good Luck Googlr

Lee says:

Competition is good. eBay has been a monopoly too long, and their business practices are atrocious, both in dealings with other companies (Stealing Amazon execs and trade secrets, sueing start ups, Craigslist fiasco, etc) and in the way they've been treating their core base for years.

Chris says:

The time is right for Google to start its own auction site. Buyers and Sellers are ready for a change. The Google name is a trusted name and people will flock to its auction site. Go for it, Google!

richie says:

paypal is making ebay go bad to where is suck for seller because paypal is not right for seller and they are a big crook for the buyer i hate paypal it suck .

Cly says:

Ebay's fees are utterly disgusting. They have a bad reputation for many good reasons. Paypal is just as bad. Get rid of them. Go Google!!! I'd open a store with you guys any day. If Ebay weren't so greedy I wouldn't bother switching or calling for an alternative - I'd even put up with their absolutely horrific customer service if their fees were not such a slap in the face. They just don't care, they are a faceless conglomerate entity who deserve to go down!

Nochipra says:

I agree that competition is a good thing. I can keep prices down.

Treasures-By-Brenda says:

Competition is a good thing.

streetexchanger says:

definitly, ebay is a humonguous conglamorate on the web, and they know this. I am a seller on ebay and I would support any viable start-up auction site. Google would be a formidable opponent. And a serious threat to ebay dominance. Ebay's position is not healthy for a capitalist economy, on the web.

thewishpearl says:

I agree that SOMEONE should compete with ebay. Competition is healthy and I think google may just be able to give ebay a run for their money

Marc Maumus says:

Oh God...Please...give me something other than Ebay! Please!
I had not used Ebay in well over a year and boy have they
changed for the worse!

I don't make my living off of Ebay, I just tend to use it to
declutter my life every now and then.

This week I thought I'd do that and use Ebay again. Well, my
week with Ebay has been HELL!!!!!!!!!!!.... Within less than
twenty four hours of me going through the trouble of listing
about nine things, Ebay sends me a letter saying that my account
has been frozen and ALL of my listings cancelled!

After "Live Chatting" with them and relisting everything, they
did the same thing again. Both times, they claimed there was a
flag that a third party was selling on my account, when in fact
the things that got flagged were indeed listed by me.

Their answer? "Sorry. We were only doing it to protect you."
They cancelled my last auctions within hours of them being complete.
I kept asking them to explain to me what exactly it was that I
did or didn't do that caused them to think some criminal activity
was taking place on my account. They told me that was confidential.

When they admitted to WRONGLY freezing my account and WRONGLY
cancelling my listings FOR THE SECOND TIME in two weeks, all they
could offer me was..."sorry for the inconvenience". When I asked
if THEY would relay their mistake to PayPal and the bidders that
had recently purchased from me, they said that I would have to
follow up on all of those things MYSELF!...

Don't they fucking own PayPal?

Now I'm gunshy to go through the trouble of listing again. I
feel embarrased, like a bunch of sellers think I'm some shady
guy now and I would LOVE to have somewhere else to go.

I understand Ebay trying to weed out theft and identity crime, but
they've just become TOTALLY NEUROTIC, to point that they're kickking
off completely legit sellers like myself. Not ONCE but TWICE in
ONE WEEK!!!!!!!!!!

PLEASE....GOOGLE! PLEASE GIVE US SOMEWHERE ELSE TO GO!....

Marcia says:

Ebay is VERY UNFAIR to sellers and discriminates to sellers who do not sell in high volumn. They do not enforce seller's policies. I also feel Google is just as well known as Ebay.

I'm happy letting ebay ramp up their fees with no competition

peterpaan says:

there should be one niche google is not reaching the leader position ;)

alan says:

ebay is so much beter than googles take on the same thing. I think its time that google learnt their place and stopped trying to walk over everyone else!

 
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Why other auction sites fail 

There is no shortage of other auction sites, (just check the list below!) But why do they not deliver?

One of the main reasons is that customers are a suspicious lot. Would you sign up for an account with any of them as a buyer? When it's easier to just go straight to ebay and have a choice of hundreds? Though, if Google were to join the Auction Market, many would be customers already have google accounts and would be happy to trust a google auction site.

The other big reason is that as very few people actually sell on these other sites, the range of items is very poor in comparison.

Finally, many other auction sites seem to have problems getting their sites listed, or even their items listed on search engines. So even if they do have something you want, no one is going to tell you it's there.

Featured Alternatives to Ebay 

Ebay Alternative for DVD's, CD's & Games! 

A UK Site for DVD's, CD's & Games!

Google Checkout Interview 

If google will agree to an interview about the possibility of starting an auction site, we will add it!
Meanwhile here's one of the Google Guys being interviewed about Google Checkout, which is surely the cornerstone of them opening and auction site in the near future.

AuctionBytes Interviews Google on Checkout Payment Service

Benjamin Ling, Product Lead for Google Checkout, talks to AuctionBytes.com`s Ina Steiner about the nuts and bolts of this new checkout service and what it means for online sellers.

Runtime: 4:00
1294 views
4 Comments:

powered by YouTube

Google Auctions and Adsense 

Google recently integrated a pay-per-action facility to their adsense program. Surely it won't be too much more for them to add a specific auction advert module where you could define a few parameters and have this show in your advert box?
Am I dreaming or would this be a great feature for users of their auctions and advertisers? Not forgetting potential bidders who would see their adverts everywhere!

The Google Story 

Download the ebook

The Google Story


The Google Story

"Here is the story behind one of the most remarkable Internet successes of our time. Based on scrupulous research and extraordinary access to Google, the book takes you inside the creation and growth of a company whose name is a favorite brand and a standard verb recognized around the world."

Predictions or Wishful Thinking? 

My prediction:

The_Book_Garden, at 4am on November 9, 2008 predicts:

Google Will Launch An Alternative to Ebay

Reader predictions:

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ppc4beginners, at 9am on April 28, 2009 predicts:

Wight Auction will become the Fastest Growing UK Online Auction Site for the Isle of Wight

Mike, at 1am on April 20, 2009 predicts:

Google will never be in the auction business.

HandyAndy, at 11pm on February 13, 2009 predicts:

Google will sell their company to me for a nickel! :)

lady catherine, at 1pm on January 15, 2009 predicts:

Google is in the works to create their own online auction empire............praise god for miracles

chris fox, at 2pm on January 7, 2009 predicts:

google will buy ebid my son has recently been working for them on a new technology project

 
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Any General Comments? 

So, if you want to leave some general comments, please feel free to do so!

There's more below the comments too!

Nochipra wrote...

I've sold on ebay before but stopped when they started making changes. I've thought about going back but if google did start an auction site, I'd give them a try if their rates were good.

ReplyPosted April 10, 2009

Treasures-By-Brenda wrote...

There are many options now; I think choice is great but as an eBay seller, I'm with eBay to stay.

Brenda

ReplyPosted April 08, 2009

eBid-Squid wrote...

I would so love Google auctions but in for now it's eBid.net and Google checkout for me.

ReplyPosted November 24, 2008

eBid-Squid wrote...

The only alternative auction site big enough to take on eBay is eBid.net or Google

ReplyPosted November 24, 2008

BevsPaper wrote...

Google would stand the best chance of giving eBay a run for their money. Other auction sites fail because they just don't have that "household" name recognition. That's why Google is the best candidate for the job. Google is as big of an icon as the Bay! Come on Google, the time is ripe!

ReplyPosted November 04, 2008

 
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Other news on eBay 

Compulsory free shipping for DVD's
Ebay UK have announced that as from 27th Jan 2009 all sellers of DVD's have to offer free domestic shipping, and are capping the P&P on other media items.
Online Petition to Google
Sign the online petition requesting google start an auction site now!

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