Do you know anything about eBay?
By ZephyrSun
@ZephyrSun (7381)
United States
June 1, 2008 1:08pm CST
I have sold a bit of stuff this year on eBay and it really makes me crazy as to when is a good start/end time. I have had auctions end at night thinking that they would do better because everyone is home from work and whatnot but they don't do as well as my auctions that end in the day time. Have you experienced this?
Also have you noticed how it depends on the day of the month? I have put something on and it will sell for $10 and the following week I will put an item that is the same as the last one I sold and it will sell for $2.
Have you figured out any rhyme or reason to the best time to end your auction or to sell an item?
Oh, and does any sellers hate the new policy of not leaving negative feedback for a buyer? This really does bother me because if a buyer doesn't pay negative feedback can't be left and the buyer really should receive the negative feedback.
1 person likes this
5 responses
@randomosity_prevails (1110)
•
1 Jun 08
I think just about every seller hates the new ruling regarding feedback. I personally know a lot of sellers, myself included, who have decided to shift allegiances, and move to a new auction site. It is FAR to easy nowadays to have your eBay account blocked by a couple of idiot buyers.
All sellers now need to be very vigilant who they sell to. If your bidder has a history of leaving negs and neutrals for no apparent reason, cancel their bid!
Generally speaking, auctions will do better just after pay-day (ending on the start of the month). More people are around on the weekends too. I read somewhere that Sunday evening was a good time to end an auction.
@ZephyrSun (7381)
• United States
1 Jun 08
Would it be possible for you to get me the name of the site that the sellers are moving to?
@yanna1027 (248)
• United States
2 Jun 08
I spread my listings in such a way that they end on different times of the day. I have listings that end during lunch time EST to target the women at the office who might be surfing during lunch break. I also have items that ends around midnight EST to target my international buyers in Asia who might be surfing during lunch break as well.
I looked at my previous buyers location and if I noticed that I have more buyers from the East Coast, then I usually end my listings on lunch time or 8pm EST. I also have some buyers from Midwest, so I target some products for that time zone too. Though I always take note that Ebay is on PST, so you have to time it accordingly.
I don't like the idea of not being able to leave a negative feedback. What I have done so far is to acknowledge if I receive payment, ship the item within 48 hours upon receiving payment, send an email once shipment is out and follow-up after 3-4 days for shipment confirmation. That way, I have constant communication with my buyers and they will realize that I do care about their business.
1 person likes this
@ZephyrSun (7381)
• United States
2 Jun 08
Wow you sound like you have it down to a science. How long have you been selling if you don't mind me asking? I also would like to say you sound like you're a great seller. I sell and buy and I have had some issues buying in the past month, and seller wouldn't communicate, very annoying, I was starting to wonder if there were any good sellers. Thanks for the response because you had some great tips. Most of my buyers are from the East coast as well.
@desertdarlene (8910)
• United States
2 Jun 08
I know, it can be crazy how things go there. I remember there was one or two items that I listed several times on eBay and they never sold, but when I put them on Etsy, they sold fairly quickly. I used to list things every Sunday night and most of the time I was able to sell them. I've heard that listing on Wednesday or Thursday is also good, but listing on weekends is bad. I know that when I list things on Friday and Saturday, I don't seem to sell anything. I think a lot of people access eBay through their work, which is something I can't do from mine.
I also hate that new feedback policy, too. That is one of the reasons why I stopped selling there. I may sell there again, but I'm not all that enthusiastic about it anymore.
@desertdarlene (8910)
• United States
2 Jun 08
Etsy is a store where you can sell handmade items like art, jewelry, knitting artcles, supplies, etc. If you do anything handmade, you can sell it there. They are becoming really popular since eBay messed up the art category.
@ZephyrSun (7381)
• United States
2 Jun 08
What is Etsy? I have never heard about that site before, is it just like eBay?
@ZephyrSun (7381)
• United States
2 Jun 08
Thanks, although I am not crafty at all, but my mom is and is always making stuff and wants me to sell it on eBay but I wouldn't know where to being. Is Etsy easy to use? I was going to teach her how to use eBay but with the way that they have changed I didn't want her to have issues that I would have to solve for her.
1 person likes this
@Happytimes (5)
• United States
2 Jun 08
I have been on ebay for 8 years and my personal experiences have done best with 7 day auctions starting at 6pm PST Saturday and Sunday evenings. However I think it also depends on what you are selling as you should end them based upon your target audience. For example.... I wouldnt suggest selling hunting or camping items on Monday nights during football season as many potential customers probably watching Monday Night football. Same as selling items to a customer base that normally go out on Friday nights... so it actualy is important to give it some thought and evry situation is different. I do agree that the best weeks are the second and third week of the month as rent or mortgages are the focus on the first of the month.
With regards to the new feedback policy...I agree that buyers and sellers should both be able to leave feedback but problem is it is common practice for sellers to wait until the buyer has left positive feedback first. This has a big effect on the type of feedback a buyer will give a seller as they fear retaliation if they leave a neg feedback so fact is a good solution as yet to be developed. I am sure we will see yet a new policy at some point in the future.
@Happytimes (5)
• United States
2 Jun 08
To add just a few more tips...with regards to 7 day auction....I agree with you on one hand...seems like a long time but early on an experienced ebayer told me 7 day was important as you pick up many additional bidders with 7 day auctions compared to 3 or 5 day auctions. That made sense so I really never questioned it or tried a shorter auction. I guess it gets back to my earlier comment....depends on what your selling...high demand items like electronics should be better in shorter auctions as you could possible sell more items.....but items like antiques or collectibles you want maximum exposure so 7 day is ideal as no additonal cost. Many times I even paid the extra cost for a 10 day auction but over time I have learned the most important thing for me was to keep selling expenses down. I normally sell low profit items like rare coins so high selling fees will eliminate any profit potential. This is why the best advice I could give anyone selling regulary is to take advantage of promotions and discount selling fees when available. The free auction services at auctiva is a great savings as you can add additonal pics for free basically compared to ebay charging 15c for each pic after the one free pic they give. auctiva is a must for fee conscious sellers. But hey...if you sell high profit items...I guess selling fees are immaterial to a point.
@ZephyrSun (7381)
• United States
2 Jun 08
Thanks for the very good points. I have never done a 7 day auction, it just seems too long. I might try that next time.
I leave feedback usually right after payment, I don't know if that is smart or not but I figure that I am doing everything that I should be doing, communicating, shipping when I say, selling what I have in the condition that I say it is, so what could they have to complain about.
Again, thanks for great tips
@vishnueie (22)
• India
2 Jun 08
Its really crazy that things happen out of the hands. We think one but it happens one. one thing we should remember that everything is for good.ya once iwas browsing to get a digital camera i see the price varying from one website to another .The pricing depends on our luck.
