Will you join the ebay boycott?

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HERE'S WHAT I THINK

Will you join the ebay boycott?

I already did!



On Feb. 20th, 2008 ebay plans to launch their new fee schedule and sellers are mad. ebay plans to raise Final Value Fees, put holds on PayPal payments and not allow sellers to leave negative feedback for buyers.

I abandoned my ebay store years ago because of the fees. I just felt that ebay was more work and less profit. To me ebay caterers to the high volume sellers leaving the mom and pop stores to close up shop and move elsewhere.

I can remember back in 1999 when ebay was an awesome place to find rare Pop Culture treasures. Now it's just littered with HDTVs, laptop computers, and crap. It takes a savvy buyer to weed through all the garbage.

On Feb. 18th-25th a group of dedicated sellers planned a boycott of ebay. It's well publicized on the ebay forums to join the "No Sales Pledge". Did you join in?

ebay Boycott Polls

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YOUR TURN!

Will you join the ebay boycott?

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Yes, ebay is charging way to much for fees and their new feedback policy is unfair!

Ron says:

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Desilegend says:

Yes, I will. In some way I have already did it. I'm using local websites for sales. The fee prices are crazy....

Tim Frost says:

Yes I will defintely be joining the ebay boycott. The only way to show Ebay that they cant get away with exorbitant fees is by staying away. The fact the ebay have very little by way of competition means that they can charge what they want. Come on Microsoft and Google - pull your fingers out and create something to really rival Ebay.

Tim Frost - London, UK.

virginia says:

yes ebay is out of control. i shiped a 4,000 item in which i sold on ebay and a couple days after the mail man pciked up the package i recieved a letter from the post master saying my lable come detacked from the package so informed ebay and the buyer and it took a while for the insurance claim to be approved and i had 197 good 100% feedback and a top seller and they put a hold on my hole account until i was able to pay the money back which was not until the insurance went threw. i dont have much money i live on a paycheck to -paycheck buget with three very young boys and i dont just hve that kind of money to just fork over. you think they woulld be a little consiterate since i had a 100% feedback and such a high feedback score i gave them the insurance claim # and a copy of the letter i recieved for the post master but no instead they seized my hole account i went from making 1200 a month which isnt much but it was something that helped a lot to looseing a steady 200 a month ebay sucks and sould be replaced by google thank you

yeahitsme says:

Ebay is a bunch of crooks. they steal and they steal, they get sue all the time they continue to steal. They do things illegally all the time but when we do a little policy violation they slam on us like a little bug. Lots of crooks on ebay now because ebay is stealing from them. There were attempts at doing a better job but not even close. Been a user over 10 years and power seller over 5 years and i just got off and screwed them.

michael says:

just go to http://www.icybid.com - they have a NO FEE LISTING policy. You can sell really for free...amazing! FINALLY !!!!

Alan says:

I want to, but the bottom line is the "bottom line". We need Google to step up and destroy ebay by offering a balanced sell site. I can't just quit ebay as 100% of my income comes from ebay. But I would jump on a Google sell site in a New York minute!

andy cox says:

http://www.ubid4it.org/ right
doesn't open.

Mo wonder Ebay are laughing -no one can get their act together to stop them:(

andy cox says:

I implore any other company out there to mount a serious competetive challenge to Ebay. I've been ripped off, overcharged and treated like a zombie by Ebay/Paypal.
Also, I'm calling on someone with a great sense of organization to set up another Ebay Boycott. Now that Twitter is so huge we can make a huge amount of damage to their share listings.

Angela Valianos says:

NO MORE EBAY !!! I was going to sell off some very expensive antique items to get out of a nasty relationship quickly, now I am searching elswhere to sell my stuff because I refuse to give ebay their absurred COSTLY DUES !!!! I will stick out my marriage until I find the right,fair place to make MY money off of MY stuff !!!

Gravel says:

Quick join http://www.ubid4it.org/ right now and be a rebel to the big site!

2recker says:

http://www.ubid4it.org has joined the ebay boycott

RSCRIB says:

ebay=SATAN

cindy says:

ebay is a rip off!

hp says:

I just used ebay thinking it would be the best to sell my stuff, but wtf, they charge too high and then paypal holds my money and takes a chunk to? fuck um.

CabinFeverStudios says:

Ebay is not a safe place to build a business if you are a small store owner. I closed down in May and have tried a lot of different venues until I discovered Bonanzle. I also sell on Etsy. Neither of these are auctions, but they offer a predictable fee structure and allow me the opportunity to sell online without unexpected fees popping up or Paypal holding money for nearly a month. I can't operate like that!

grafferT says:

Ebay is nothing more than a greedy dictatorship. Their new policies were constructed to destroy, to creat anger, to frustrate and to promote the failure of it's users businesses. It looks like pure stock manipulation to me or these insane new policies can be chalked up to simple ignorant management. Either could be the case...the results are the same.

Ebay is continually deleting posts and threads and are busy banning ebayers who dare speak the TRUTH on their boards. If you're lucky, you may catch a few boycott threads on the last pages of Seller Central and The Front Porch, but don't expect current posts, since many of those ebayers have been suspended. The EBAY BOYCOTT is ALIVE & WELL! Check out the other countries boards and internet sites and you'll see that there are ebayers around the world who are also boycotting ebay:

USA
Australia
France
Beligium
Spain
U.K.
Canada
Germany
Italy

The Global Ebay Boycott Continues!

slimm says:

i wont list only on cheap listting days (5p) with expensive items(+£5) so its worth my while. i use to sell cheap items (£1) on ebay but the postal rate increases finished that off along with paypal added to the cost of selling fees.i would like to know how many people ceased trading on ebay in the last 12 months. Also if ebay gets fined for allowing fake or stolen goods on their site to be sold thats the same as aiding and abetting.
if they changed their policy that sellers only pay 1 listting fee and a base 2% fvf then that would even things up

scss says:

Yes, eBay has been around forever, and is now behaving like a schoolyard bully. I would not buy from eBay without the 'true' feedback options as the risk of buying from a cheat is enormous on eBay.. I rely totally on feedback.
And although I only use PayPal for 99% of my purchases, I know of many who only pay via their bank accounts, who will be affected by this. Two big players creating a no-options consortiym for customers.
But my biggest beef is taking down the ebook download facility, as I'm a HUGE shopper of convenient ebooks for my library.
I'm seriously hoping that SOME attention was drawn by eBay to just how unhappy their 'business partners' are... even the biggest can fall if they lose the support of their partners.

No way, Monkeybrain! ebay has a right to raise their fees and change the feedback policy.

sneakerpimp says:

Businesses all over the world change their policies for one reason or another, some to benefit customers, some to benefit shareholders and some to benefit themselves. When these things happen, there is always flux, and a small group will always be upset by the changes, but companies usually push through and eventually people adjust to the changes.

Powersellers will adapt and they will find ways to make money despite these changes. In the grand scheme of things, it may eventually turn out that these policy changes had very little effect on people making money once they made their own small adjustments.

ChrisSandberg says:

I'm actually not a big seller on eBay so my opinion may not matter much in this discussion, but from a buyers perspective I love eBay. I find a lot of great deals there. I understand how sellers can be upset with the way eBay has been treating them but eBay is a pretty smart business and I am sure they understand that if they alienate their sellers there will be no one left to sell to happy buyers like me. Its unlikely they will push things too far. They need to make a profit and as long as they keep the majority of their customers happy, they'll still be a success. Ebay has creating a pretty cool marketplace, and I think they have the right to charge whatever they want for access to that marketplace.

ShushiDenMaster says:

I must admit they did a big clean up with some Auctions -
but a little too far - it was like a trainie just got out of a meeting and started banning member without mercy for little mistakes. They should not have taken a zero tolorence stand - I lost my long time account, because I had Software in the Other Software Section and such - Only one Section was good enough for my item the operator said - and I was Perminatly banned.
:( - What the ?
( I was making a living here, then...nothing)

David_Morris says:

I have to admit that eBay are pricks sometimes due to the fact that they can do what they want and at one point they witheld over $5000 in my Paypal account (and before you say "Paypal isn't eBay", they're one-in-the-same company) for two months while they investigated the transaction because they had classified it as 'dubious', it still doesn't get away from the fact that eBay got to where they are today for being the best at what they do.

They are a big company and big companies like to make money, if not for themselves, then for their shareholders who placed some inherent belief in the company and bought their stocks.

They do some shitty things sometimes that does put people like myself at an inconvenience sometimes, but when you look at the reason they're doing it - protection for the buyer and seller - you see that they have a good reason and it's not just because they want to be pricks about it.

I'm with you on the fact that it's a little harder to find cute knick-knacks and such because of the enormous influx of garbage on there, but just because of that I'm not going to boycott them.

They have a great system in place that if taken away, would make the modern internet seem a little 'emptier', for want of a better word. Oh, and if you'd like to learn how you can beat roulette and take heaps of money away from online casinos, click here to be taken to my squidoo lens!

Renegade-Dream-Builder says:

Ebay is a company. Now you may not like what they are doing but it is within their right to change what ever they want when they want. That is what owning a business is all about. Those who do not change with the times go out with yesterdays trash.

safeguard4u says:

I will be saving between $50 to $100 per month with the new fees. the fvf is higher but the listing is lower and the free gallery is saving me money. I am also an ebay affiliate so I am in a position where I can make 50% to 80% of the fvf from ebay.

The no negitive feedback for deadbeat buyers sucks, but I haven't had too many problems with buyers.

davewashere says:

The feedback policy is concerning. I think the better plan would be allowing negative feedback but adding a stat that would keep track of each time a person gives negative feedback. I wouldn't want to buy from a seller who has given negative feedback on 75% of their auctions, as that's probably a sign of trouble.

BABYKITTY says:

The feedback change stinks! It's all in the buyer's court now and as a seller you just have to take it. Am looking at other places to try. Ebay just got to big for its collective britches and could care less about all the little guys that built it into the giant it is today. It needs to remember that the little guys CAN build someone else up into giant status!

http://basic2proinfo.com

ferrari says:

nah.....

says:

It's called market forces, etc. So I guess Ebay doesn't need the you guys anymore :-( But that's life, business life anyway!

4x4ever says:

It's a free economy - they are free to do whatever the hell they want.

And we, on the other hand are free not to like it and also do whatever the hell we want. Like boycott them for example. Or cancel our accounts. Or cream them on squidoo or any blog known to men.

KelleyEidem says:

I really do understand how it can make you mad when your middleman jacks up his rates. It sucks.

There's little need to boycott. Just take your business elsewhere where the fees are better.

Google doubled and tripled their prices on me a couple years ago. But a 300% increase times zero is what they got from me because I left lickety-split. I really didn't need them after all.

Thank goodness for squidoo. Sweet!

Squidoo costs me nothing. And I get to put up a PICTURE of what I am selling. (Look over there to your left where it says "The Doctor Who Cures Cancer." hehe The blurb up there in the blue area where the printo is too small to read is from Dr. Robert Atkins. He wrote that it's "A must read for anyone interested in the battle against cancer and AIDS.")

I'm in heaven. It's priceless.

Kelley Eidem

ocdgirl2000 says:

yeah they have a right to raise their fees since that is the method they are choosing to eliminate sellers! I mean, what part of "we don't want you here anymore" do you not understand? Ebay is phasing out of the auction business and they want you (and me) to leave! DUHHHHH I am smart enough to not risk whatever I have left of my good feedback ratings to be able to import them elsewhere. The BEST thing you can do to "get even" since that is what most ebay sellers seem to want, is to buy stock or at least list a few things on Amazon!hahahahahaah!!

Soren says:

Boycotting ebay is stupid. Even though eBay is the biggest online auction site, there are others. If you do not like the fees and policies, then go somewhere else.

Mentor Walter says:

This is free enterprise as we want it. There is freedom for anyone to start a competitor and beat ebay at their own game!

The way to fight is to provide a better alternative.

Getalife says:

ocdgirl2000 is pretty close to the money!

I work for a high volume powerseller that trades on eBay, and we have been let in on a few things by the Business Seller Team at eBay that they are going to role out on a trial basis. I cannot tell you exactley what they plan to do, as its all hush hush, but in the next 6-8 months, some categories that have high volume seller in will see a huge difference. They have a masterplan going forward, obviously based on the Amazon Merchant model, that they want to implement, as they want some of their pie back that Amazon has taken from eBay's plate..

Oh and i love the changes...who else can do what eBay does on such a huge scale...two words...market...&...cornered!

Getalife says:

Grow up...good honest sellers have nothing to worry about!

nadjaiskeniskie says:

eBay can charge/change what they want - it just means I have to be a bit more selective with what products I put on their site.

ocdgirl2000 says:

Ebay is phasing out of the auction business and has it's sights on high volume sales of online marketing products. They have grown past what they once were, and are tired of the bickering sellers and buyers. All that behavior is "beneath them" they have "graduated" to the "next level"(besides they don't want to pay more employees to do this!). They aim to direct "certified provider services" to the masses of online store owners who think that ebay has a monopoly on the conglomerated search engines for the retail market.The members of ebay who swallow this "wave of the future" will be allowed to remain in ebay's good graces so long as they purchase the required software and training and allow ebay to have a percentage of all their earnings.If they fail to follow or purchase these EXPENSIVE marketing plans they will be left to fend for themselves, and will be open to attack by the buyers who now have free reign of ebay's new shopping mall.Now that the "detailed" seller ratings are tied to the seller's status as a seller, the buyer will be the one who knocks the sellers off the food chain and they will have no one left to complain about.They will THEN have accountable store owners who sell at retail prices and are protected by ebay's marketing structure, which, of course, they paid dearly for!This is happening as we speak, take a look at the purpose driven activities of the Conference that is being held in Disneyworld ina few weeks. The speakers and class descriptions say it all. The verbiage is repetitive in theme and it almost reads like a book on ...well I won't say it, but when you continuously here the same themes being repeated, it's similar to some propaganda..Yes they do have a right, and yes they will do whatever they want. They always have and they always will. How do you think they got where they are now?

Do-Doodle says:

No way. I may not be happy with everything that eBay.co.uk does, but who else can do what they do.

I'm stickin with eBay . . . and maybe folks will tell me when something better comes along.

If you don't like eBay then maybe it's time for you to move on and find something different. You don't have a great deal of choice . . . but the decision is yours.

Be seeing you.

 
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