Alternate sites

[rosscd57]

I was just taking a look at the eBay site - it has changed drastically since I looked at it a couple of years ago. I asked a few questions on their forums and people seem quite happy and are apparently selling. I think I may put a few items on and see what happens. It is no eBay but it is cheap enough.

Anyone have any recent experience?

[pierrelebel]

"Boy i made a lot of mistakes back then. "

We all did. 😞

Yes, I remember stating auctions at $0.99 because eBay told us it was a great way to create more interest in our listings!

Yes, I sold a mint Bluenose (catalogue value $300; fair market value about $110/$120 at the time) for $35.00.  Sure, there was lots of "interest", lots of bids, so what?  The stamp sold for only one third of fair market value.

Lesson learned.

[bb_cool_stuff]

Yes, I remember starting auctions at $0.99 because eBay told us it was agreat way to create more interset in our listings !

I remember that also, course that was before i discovered the forums & completed listings.

I remember starting autographed pucks of Maurice Richard & Jacques Plante at .99 & they both sold for just over three dollars. Of couse my feedback was very low at the time so some buyers probably did not want to take the chance.

You're right, lesson learned. My mistake, no one to blame but myself.

This is why we probably we have compassion for Newbies. We have been there.

[i*m-still-here]

Etsy is a much easier site for me as a buyer.

In spite of the fact that they don't have DSRs and FB is well in the background, the service is on the whole superior.

Shipping is faster and shipping costs are rarely an issue.

There is no GSP.

It does not have international exposure the way ebay does, but France and the UK are well represented there.

It has a lot going for it but the sales are probably slower.................... easier with less stress though.

(Still....... look at the sales for the seller I posted and they don't look at all bad to me.  He has followers so that means repeat buyers he's built up over time.)

I see sellers post the same items on both sites all the time.

To me it looks like sellers are testing the waters.

I don't know if it's a good thing or not but I do know it's a common practice.

I like both sites............. and I doubt that eBay much cares about Etsy.

They seem to be concentrating on electronics and the like which you'll never see there.

They are quite particular and it seems to working.

Nice homey little place to shop.

[pierrelebel]

According to their website, Etsy had total gross merchandise sale volume a shade under $900 million on 2012

http://www.etsy.com/press/ 

eBay $175 billion

http://files.shareholder.com/downloads/ebay/753398457x0x628825/e8f7de32-e10a-4442-addb-3fad813d0e58/... 

[femmefan1946]

On the third hand, etsy is a specialty site- they think they support crafters/artists and vintage collectibles. (But if you can find a now closed site called regretsy.com, you may learn different. Certainly you will have a laugh.)

I wonder if it is possible to list the same item on all three sites - if a sale was made one would have to pull the others off right away. A bit dangerous perhaps - anyone out there ever tried it?

Yes, I know matrimonially a seller who has basically the same listings on eBay, his own site, ZoS (specialty), in his retail shop, on DelCampe Auctions, and on Bonanza.

The trick is being very organized. Every item has a stocknumber and that stocknumber is included in every listing. The person pulling items for sale is required to record those stocknumbers in a daily ledger and taking down sold listings is the end of day duty of a specific staff member. And she has a backup in case she needs a sick day.

Fortunately, the shop and eBay are the ones with the most sales, and the other sites don't have feedback worth being concerned about.

Does eBay dislike the practice? Too bad.

[tobyshitzu]

That 175b is a lot more then just ebay GMV.  Then compare to just the limited catagories etsy competes in and its conceivable they can be a big competitor.  Ebay art and anitques is just a billion and change gmv.  etsy would compete with parts of numerous other categories, but its more like ebay is only a few times bigger if you have items that can go on etsy

I dont think ebid is ever going anywhere, unless rakuten or alibaba buy them.  Rakuten with a $13b market cap and now starting to rebrand the sites they bought in numerous countries and alibaba that is already as big or bigger then ebay are the potential ones to knock ebay and amazon off