HelpingYouSellIt.com

August 22, 2008

It’s not eBay, It’s eMazon

Filed under: What's Up With eBay.com — Tags: eBay fee increase, eBay news, eBay sellers, eBay wants to be Amazon, Fixed Price fee increase — trudey @ 8:05 am

We all were fearing it and holding our breath…

eBay said it was going to roll out changes for the new holiday season, and while they touted these would be great changes, I feared the worse.

Once again my inner radar panned out.

As of mid September, eBay will be no more…

It is now eMazon! And eMazon just can’t compare to the real thing.

Hopes were dashed in the quake of changes rolled out this week from the eBay upper crust.

What many had hoped to be a move to a no listing fee format, ended up being another fee increase that paled the increase of February 2008. And yes, like February, it was hidden behind the “Fee Reduction” curtain.

This time it is the Fixed Price listing taking the brunt of the fee increase with the Media; Clothing, Shoes and Apparel; and Parts and Accessories categories getting blown out of the water with a final value fee increase to 15%. Add to that PayPal fees and listing fees and you are looking at a cool 18-19% off the top.

Other Fixed Price changes include reduced exposure behind auctions in many categories including Collectibles, a listing length of up to 30 days, and the ability to list multiple quantities in one listing for a single listing fee. The later is the only real positive change, but remember you are paying an extra 7% in Final Value Fees for that small priviledge, on every one of those multiple items in that listing.

Another change that basically amounts to a lie on eBay’s part is the banning of payments by check, money order or cashier’s check. Now all payments must be online and digital.

Why is this a lie….

A few months ago, on the wake of the failed PayPal Only attempt in Austrailia, eBay swore it had no plans for a PayPal Only scheme for the US eBay.

Starting mid September, the ony payments now to be accepted on eBay are PayPal, ProPay or your own merchant account.

Since a professional merchant account is out of reach for many small and mid sized seller, plus it is extremely expensive and time consuming, it is not a viable solution. And ProPay, although they have been around since 1997, is relatively unheard of on any auction site and retail site I have experienced, making it also a non-viable solution. What does this leave? Basically a PayPal Only system.

Now here’s the funny part. I don’t see GoogleCheckout anywhere.

eBay purports the only safe companies to deal with are PayPal.com, which they own, your own merchant account, which they know you can’t afford, or ProPay. I say “purports” because that was their claim in Austrailia when they tried to force PayPal Only, saying it was the only safe payment system.

Here is where I have to question the ProPay aspect. If it is so safe that eBay trusts it, then why is their Better Business Bureau report a mile long with complaint listings and resolutions. You can check it out here.

http://utah.bbb.org/WWWRoot/Report.aspx?site=139&bbb=1166&firm=10061989

If eBay will allow a payment method as frought with problems as ProPay.com (a general search brings up numerable complaints on the web), then why not allow a solid checkout option like Google Checkout.

Possibly because Google Checkout is cheaper than PayPal, offers better customer service than PayPal, and PayPal wouldn’t be able to freeze your account if they think your sale is “risky”?

The other problem with ProPay is their fees! You pay an anual fee ranging from $34.95 to a whopping $299.95, plus a transaction charge at 3.75 percent + $.35 to 2.69% or higher +$.25. These prices are so ridiculously higher than PayPal’s, no one in their right mind would sign up for it. Again, leaving PayPal the only option.

Another Amazon-like change eBay is pushing for is levelized shipping. On Amazon, sellers agree to charge only the shipping Amazon deems appropriate based on the item. Generally, this is close to the mark on actual shipping. Any slight shortage is more than made up in the increased sales volume and qualified buyers the Amazon platform offers it’s sellers.

While currently, eBay is stating it is only limiting Shipping and Handling charges in the Media category, recent “Media” category changes have been slowly and quietly filtering into other mainstream categories. At this point everything eBay says is questionable.

What all this boils down to is eBay has an Amazon complex. They want to be just like Amazon when they grow up. The problem is there already is an Amazon. And with the high level of customer service to for Amazon sellers, Amazon’s iron clad guarantee, Amazon’s glitch free selling platform, Amazon will always beat eBay. Hands down!

If sellers have to pay Amazon prices, why not sell on Amazon and make life easier. Amazon has no listing fees, Amazon takes care of processing payments, Amazon answers your questions, Amazon delivers buyers.

All eBay is succeeding in doing is growing other auction sites and killing what was, for almost a decade, the best auciton site in the world.