eBay (EBAY) sellers' strike plays into the hands of smaller competitors

I enjoyed your blog.

I'm a 10 yr ebay veteran, and have loved it. Ebay sales provided the little extras like lunches out with my daughter, little special treats, and now things for the new grandson.

If ebay continues in this direction with new feedback policy-dsr changes-higher fvf's- I will quit ebay forever, it's no longer fun and interesting, nor financially rewarding in any way whatsoever.

I'm just a small seller on eBay and I have 100% good feedback and good DSR ratings.
eBay has gone too far this time, but I don't think they care one way or the other.
On the seller strike we don't have much advertisement about it but word of mouth goes a long way. I myself have checked out a few other sites trying to find the best, not just a fly by night operation. And I know from the Seller Central forum on eBay lots of others are doing the same. Checkout the auction site Power Sellers Unite to see where the eBay Refugees are going.
I'm still a little in shock from ebay so I haven't done a lot of listing on other sites, but I'm getting their. I plan to close my store on eBay (on vacatiion right now), started another on eCrater, and will be listing at OnlineAuction.com, so far to me these two sites seem to be the best.
Free stores at eCrater, and no commisions.
OnlineAuction.com $8.00 mo. for unlimited listings etc., compared to eBay almost free.

I am boycotting this week. I didn't close my store, but put it "on vacation" so no one can see the listings. During the Boycott I have been actively moving items to other sites. I have opened a store on http://www.ecrater.com/, and will be listing auctions on http://www.onlineauction.com/, eBid and http://www.plunderhere.com to start with. There are many other alternative sites out there, some catering to niches. I will leave some things in my eBay store for a while, just to keep my fingers in the pie. If eBay ever sees the light and gets interested in people again, instead of numbers I may go back, but not as an exclusive site again.

I think this is a great opportunity for eBay small business owners to help other small businesses out there grow and thrive.

The King Lives, but the Absolute Monarchy is Over.

-- Elizabeth
A Night Owl's Treasures, inc

I am boycotting this week. I am spending the working on weaning myself off eBay, because I feel I cannot trust them as a business partner, not because they are raising their rate, rather because Ebay is shifting far away from its original roots and identity.

Ebay's new policies are more favorable to larger, retail-oriented sellers, than smaller businesses like arts & antiques dealers (the core of Ebay's original constiuency.) I have lots of examples of this, and feel their goal to be more Amazon-like is rather ill-fated - but I will move on to what I am doing this week.

1) I am dumping Ebay's Paypal. I am setting up my on merchant account so I can take credit cards online. Paypal rarely ever sticks up for sellers in disputes - and the cost and ease of integrating merchant solutions has greatly decreased.

2) I am getting my own sales website going. I put it up over Christmas and will spend this week populating it with products.

3) I am adding a new integration to my website to add products to Google's Froogle - so the items can get more exposure.

4) I am trying a few test listings over at OLA.com this week. Many Ebayer's I know are also trying it out.

.. Scott Billings at houseofart.us.

EBAYING SINCE 1999/ HAD ENOUGH/SHOULD HAVE JOINED CLASS ACTION SUIT AGAINST PAYPAL , BUT DID NOT. 99.8 FEEDBACK/OVER 1000 TRANSACTIONS/POWER SELLER 6YEARS STRAIGHT.PLEASE GOOGLE-START A SITE.GOD BLESS OUR TROOPS

Help! - Since the strike, I'm having a real hard time finding a certain item on Ebay. I don't know if anyone has heard of this item but it's called a Nintendo Wii - It's a game console. I can't find one locally so I was hoping to find one on Ebay - but it seems all the sellers have left for other pastures. Also - I'm trying to find an I-phone which I think most people have probably heard of. Again - Ebay sellers have left and it's making it really difficult for me to find one. Not sure where they went but I hope they'll be back soon. Somebody sent me a link to a place called Ecrater, but there were also a large amount of fake iphones mixed in with the real ones. Do sites like those have a way to make sure I'm not getting taken? Also, I need the sites to work with my sniper program - so if you have some ideas please post them here.

I've been a seller for 6 years. I am a silver powerseller with over 14,000 100% positive feedback. I've pulled all of my auctions and have moved to www.bidville.com. It's a great little auction site that's been around for a long time. It's very user friendly. Ebay has gone too far and has pushed many sellers over the edge. The whole thing with holding our money for 21 days and expecting us to ship items before getting payment is the final straw.

I've closed the doors to my eBay store and shut down 180 listings until they see reason. Which, given past action on managements part, probably means that I won't be going back.

I've started selling on http://www.brazenbutton.com/ which in my eCrater storefront. Others that have been very helpful with moving my stock are http://www.ola.com/
http://www.etsy.com/
I've had more help in a single day at these venues than in the 10 years I've been a member of eBay.

I've always gone out of my way to give my customers the best service I can. If I treated my customers the way eBay has treated thiers, not only would my Momma smack me upside the head, I'd be, rightfully, out of business.

Kat
Brazen Button

I am a powerseller with 100% feedback... I made sacrifices to maintain my feedback score... I have always left feedback when the item is paid for "unless" I feel icky about the questions or demands that are coming from the buyer.

I've always bent over backwards to please my customer and most of them are repeats, so that speaks for itself...

I feel that they have violated me by saying that I am not as honest as the buyer... I believe that I've purchased on ebay, as much as I've sold, if not more, so I can fairly state my case...

I have never used the negative feedback in any way, but I do feel that it has protected me many times from someone who would lash out before
"working out" an issue with me...

I have opted out of ebay at this time... Closed my store and moving my 540 listings to Online Auction, where the seller is "their" customer, and the buyer is "my" customer...

I do not plan to return although I will remain an active participant in the BOYCOTT... They have managed to ruin the little seller by lieing and setting them up for failure... I will gladly walk away before I allow them to tarnish a reputation I have worked hard to maintain...

BOYCOTT EBAY FOREVER...

I have registered with eCrater & Etsy and am working on a storefront for them both. I have not listed with eBay since I read the new proposed changes and don't see that I ever will again. Even if they rescind the all the new changes tomorrow I do not believe it would be for my or any other sellers benefit but in answer to falling stock prices and/or to stem the bad publicity. What I do believe is that they have a business plan (agenda) for the future and sellers such as myself are not included in it. They simply did not have the cajone's to come out and say so. Whatever concession they might possibly make because of the strike would be lost somewhere down the road when they had found another way to accomplish their goals.

I think that the strike will have a negative effect, regardless of any previous listing sales by ebay. But for any strike to have a real impact, it will have to last longer than a week. Ebay has become the wal-mart of the internet, and they aren't going to be impacted in that short of a time. And they have already said that the sellers will just come back or be replaced by other sellers. I hope they replace me. I do not intend to go back, not to list the 1st item. Yes, I need the money, yes the extra income makes my kids happy.

But there are BETTER venues than ebay. I encourage everyone to go to www.onlineacution.com for listing your items. It's not ebay, doesn't yet have the traffic, but it has the potential to be what ebay could only dream of.

An earlier post mentioned that ebay has plans that don't include small sellers, and that is my feeling also.

Certainly the outrage from the sellers is no surprise to ebay. Nobody needed a crystal ball to know that the small sellers, with their personal involvement in their stores and products, would be offended, discouraged and disillusioned.

To that end, I've spent the boycott week by setting up on eCrater, and adding to my Amazon site. And fortunately, I've been selling more on Amazon and had my first eCrater sale. So I've been almost as busy without ebay as I would be if I were selling there.

My plan is to branch out and diversify by selling on multiple sites, and hopefully be ready to leave ebay by May when the feedback changes roll out.

Not happy about it after three years of long nights, weekends and holidays spent working on my store, trying to ship super fast and please everyone. But it's just too much now with Best Match, DSR's, one-sided feedback and upcoming postal hikes to boot. I surrender.

HI, I AM AN ANTIQUE & COLLECTIBLES DEALER. I MAKE A LIVING DOING THIS. I BEEN ON EBAY FOR OVER 10 YEARS. MAINTAINED A 99.8% FEEDBACK, AND WORK HARD AT IT. EBAY WANTS TO THROW THAT ALL AWAY. I AM SICK OF ALL THE CHANGES THAT ARE AGAINST THE SELLERS. EBAY IS TOO BIG. THEY GROUP EVERYONE IN THE SAME GROUP. WITH ANTIQUES & COLLECTIBLES, THIS CAN NOT BE DONE. IT IS TOTALLY A DIFFERENT ANIMAL THAN ALL THE OTHER ITEMS SOLD ON EBAY. EBAY FORGOT, THAT IT WAS THE ANTIQUES & COLLECTIBLES THAT MADE THEM. EBAY PROFITS LAST YEAR WAS 7 BILLION DOLLARS. IN A PIE CHART, ANTIQUES & COLLECTIBLES MAKE UP ABOUT 15% OF SALES. 15% OF 7 BILLION IS A NICE NUMBER. IS THERE ANYONE OUT THERE THAT IS WILLING TO CORNER THIS MARKET ? TO START A SITE JUST FOR ANTIQUES & COLLECTIBLES, MANAGED BY ANTIQUE DEALERS, WITH ANTIQUE DEALERS AS JUDGES FOR NEGATIVE FEEDBACK, AND DISPUTES. A PANEL THAT CAN BE FAIR WITH THE WORKINGS OF THIS TYPE OF BUSINESS. INSTEAD OF BEING GROUPED IN WITH A NON-WORKING I-POD. I THINK MOST DEALERS WOULD BE MORE THAN HAPPY TO SWITCH TO A SITE THAT WOULD BE DEDICATED TO JUST ANTIQUES & COLLECTIBLES. WITH A NO LISTING FEE, AND A FLAT RATE ON THE SALE. AS IF IT WAS IN A LOCAL LIVE AUCTION. IT CAN BE CONTROLED MUCH BETTER THAN THIS OUT OF CONTROL GIANT, THAT SOON MAY FALL...

I have been a seller on eBay for almost 11 years with 100% feedback which I have earned! Mind you not a big one but in the early days I certainly helped eBay as well as made some $$. I have enjoyed it tremendously, but I am ready to leave altho I will not cut off my nose-. I will list a few things from time to time until I get established on a new site. Things have gone askew there. I have spent the past several days scrutinizing other sites and will be joining Onlineauction.com in a couple of days. They have many many new people signing up and the fees are great. If you read the posts you can tell they are going above and beyond to help and satisfy new people.

ANYONE HOLDING EBAY STOCK
(OR BUYING AND SELLING ON eBAY)
MAY BE GUILTY OF SUPPORTING AN
ON-GOING CRIMINAL ENTERPRIZE!!!!

Everyone suspects that
eBay may be the World's Largest Fence
Of Stolen, Forged & Knock Off Merchandise!!.

I Think It's time for the FBI, Treasury Dept and
The US Attorney General to Begin An Investigation
Into This Company's Employees (And It's Major Stockholders!! )

Operating as a
Purveyor of Stolen Goods
Normally results in Quick & Fast Arrests!!

I think the recent decision to make
the Feedback System "One-Sided"
may be the Final Nail in the eBay Coffin!!

In order for eBay employees to mediate
the up-coming new Feedback Complaints...
They may have to act as a "Law Enforcement Agency",
"Court Of Law", "Judge" and "Jury"....Are These Acts Illegal??..

Why do eBay The eBay and Paypal Employees
That render the daily complaint decisions between
Buyers and Sellers operate under incomplete False Names??

Do They know that the decisions
They are making may be against the Law??...

eBay may be in deep trouble
as the legitimate brick and mortar
Major Retailers like Sears, Target,
and Walmart demand that eBay be held
accountable for selling merchandise that
may have been stolen from Their Stores!!

One Side Feedback May Test The
Laws Of Equity and Equal Protection!!!

The proposed Paypal 21 Day Funds Holding Period
Will Not Work...It May Be Against Banking Regulations..
And What Seller in Their Right Mind is going to ship a product
Before They Receive Payment (and may never ever get paid)???

Dishonest Buyers Worldwide
will have a Field Day...While Legimate
Sellers may continue to Boycott and Go Elsewhere!!

Unless the new proposed one-sided
feedback decision is reversed Immediately
(or the feedback system is totally removed)...The
decline and fall of eBay may only take a Short Time!!

In My mind...
eBay Stockholders, Employees
Buyers & Sellers may be un-knowingly
(or knowingly) Conspiring to Support an
ongoing International Criminal Enterprise!

Conspiracy Is
A "Serious" Crime!!

This comment
has been made by...
A Retired Private Detective...
& An eBay User of almost 10 Years!!!!

http://www.ioffer.com/info/parody_feepay

I've been selling on Ebay a couple of years now, have reached powerseller status and have 1 neg from a wacho (who are now going to come out of the woodwork in droves). 625 positves.

Anyways I've had the feeling for sometime that for some reason stores have been a problem for Ebay. I'm wondering if this isn't an effort to once and for all clear house in an attempt to return to their core of auction selling.

Well if that is the case, I will sadly oblige. I am participating in the protest this week with my store on vacation and using this time to activley seek out viable alternative sites to sell my wares. I'm not going to act in haste and destroy what I have built over the years but will slowly and carefully untie the strings. And one cool winter evening turn off the lights, close the door one last time and move on.

As someone else said earlier...I surrender, Ebay..you win. So long old friend.
(Google, please, where are you in all of this!?!)

A complete boycott, it what it takes. There are other alturnative's. I dont know know of any retail store that will sell you an Item of new or used and let you hold your money for 21 days and come back to the store to pay up. NOT!!! Credit card companies do not hold up payment. If you think about it, what kind of money earnings would that get for holding millions of dollars per day for 21 days. You think that are not going to make intrest on it.. Bull honkey!! Ebay will go out of business All accounts of mine are closed forever.