eBay

thebarterersdog · ‎03-19-2013

Hi everyone,

I'm curious as to what is the preference out there for sellers: auction style listings or fixed price listings and why.

I also know that store owners compared to casual sellers may have totally different perspectives on this question but would still like to see your thoughts.

thanks

Janet and Paul

tobyshitzu · ‎03-19-2013

They've just radically altered how auctions format will work with "BIN must be 30% higher", so I'd expect less use of auction

pierrelebel · ‎03-19-2013

"preference out there for sellers"

Actually, what sellers prefer is not that relevant or important. What is really important is what do buyers prefer?

On eBay, as in most online venues, we have noticed a shift over the last ten years away from auction where buyers have to wait several days to know if they have purchased an item at the price they want to pay towards the ability to purchase the item immediately at a fixed price with known shipping charges. The auction format was a great novelty back at the end of the last century and early in this millennium. The novelty is wearing off. That was then.... this is now.

There are still many buyers out there who prefer the auction format but, the overwhelming trend has been towards fixed price, whether we like it or not.

Is the trend category specific? Not really. If you take the time to check several different categories on eBay, you will quickly come to the conclusion the majority (75%-90%) of listings in ALL categories offer fixed prices and a minority (10%-25%) still use the auction format.

It should be noted that actual numbers may vary widely when eBay has a promotion going on for a specific format.

pierrelebel · ‎03-19-2013

" "BIN must be 30% higher","

When did that happen? I listed a few items at auction this morning using BIN with the extra 10% as shown in eBay's piolicies:

http://ocsnext.ebay.com/ocs/sc

pierrelebel · ‎03-19-2013

OK - I found the 30% change of policy fron Ina's message.

westernstargifts · ‎03-19-2013

I haven't read through all of the new policies yet but I did see the letter from Ina. If we list an auction without a BIN price how is eBay going to know if it has been discounted by 30%?

I prefer FP but use auctions for visibility. The FP listings get pushed to the front of search when they have had a recent sale. Auctions don't always end successfully but they bring buyers into my store. I sell far more in FP than in auctions, even during promotions.