Is anyone else fed up? ebay buyers have too much time & too little money

plilippé

Member
Oct 12, 2009
339
1
does anyone else here think e bay can be addictive and a waste of time.? I mean it used to be good for finding rare things and selling things you did not have a use for anymore.... but I dont know now. CHANEL bags are extortionately priced- comparable to the boutique. And last time I sold some of my old evening dresses (all beautiful and worn once or twice tops) I got SOOOO many questions, SOOOO many watchers, but no one was bidding! In the end they sold for a pittance, by the time I paid all the fees, I wished I had just given them to charity!!!! anyone else out there thinks ebay buyers have too much time to waste and not enough cash?:yahoo:
 
plilippé;14660751 said:
does anyone else here think e bay can be addictive and a waste of time.? I mean it used to be good for finding rare things and selling things you did not have a use for anymore.... but I dont know now. CHANEL bags are extortionately priced- comparable to the boutique. And last time I sold some of my old evening dresses (all beautiful and worn once or twice tops) I got SOOOO many questions, SOOOO many watchers, but no one was bidding! In the end they sold for a pittance, by the time I paid all the fees, I wished I had just given them to charity!!!! anyone else out there thinks ebay buyers have too much time to waste and not enough cash?:yahoo:

Sometimes. However if you are going to be in the ebay game it is just the way it goes. Some things sell really well on there and others don't. You need to look at it as a business transaction whether you are the buyer or seller. Meaning do your research, and homework. This seems a bit much for the casual buyer/seller but in the end you will get more money as a seller and pay less as a seller.
 
As far as the Chanels go, yes, I have noticed that the prices have gone way up on eBay for them too and I know Chanel just raised their prices but I don't understand why that should affect eBay prices honestly. And certainly not by how much they went up, it's a little weird
 
it seems like lately the majority of questions i get are "is this the lowest you would take for it?" or "i can pay you in 3 weeks. is that ok?" so i think all the watchers are people thinking i will relist for less. drives me NUTS. and sometimes i relist for more just to spite them (like a buy it now with best offer). i took off from ebay for a long while and now i remember why.
 
Yeah a lot of the watchers are people hoping it will go for less, so if you are already at a firm price it helps to mention that it will not be listed for lower. Then stick with it.
 
I'm guilty of watching an auction to see if it will eventually get marked down. That's fine if the seller is firm on the price but that doesn't mean I'm willing to pay it. Watching it is a good way to keep an eye on it just in case.

Linda
 
linda- i totally get that and have done it myself but it's the sheer amount of people who are watching it only to see if you sell it lower. as a seller, it's pretty frustrating.
 
I personally don't understand why people think it's okay to wait days upon days to pay for an item. When I buy something on ebay, I pay for it immediately, or if I'm not at my computer, the same day. I've had buyers take 4-11 days to pay and then they point the finger at me calling me money hungry because I sent them an email at day 5 reminding them of ebay's 4 day policy and asking if everything's okay.

When I do relist event though I have 30+ watchers, I always get emails saying, well, since you're relisting, can you sell to me for lower or make exceptions for them. I don't get it...where is this sense of entitlement coming from? Why are they so special they should expect me to bend over backwards for them?

I don't mind answering questions before they bid. I don't think all buyers are like this because I've had great buyers, quick payment and in turn, I quickly ship it out. But yes, there are definitely buyers who don't take this seriously and are literally wasting my time.
 
I have listed some cute 'contemporary' shoes and sweaters this past fall. Some sold and some got watchers but did not sell even on re-list. So I took a long hard look at the unsold stuff, and decided not to relist for the third time. I felt that my prices were low enough, at 75 - 80% off retail. Also, the stuff was CUTE and still fit me, so I have decided to just, you know, wear it.

So then I got a ton of e-mails from all those watchers. Some of them kept e-mailing me like a month after listings have ended. They were all asking when I'll relist and if I'd sell these things to them at ridiculously low prices.

I was like, those new Cynthia Vincent shoes you have declined to buy for $49.99? I'm rockin' them right now.

I was cruel enough to reply to their e-mails telling them that I won't relist because I am using this stuff and lovin' it.

p-WA,
cruel Ebay person
 
I personally don't understand why people think it's okay to wait days upon days to pay for an item. When I buy something on ebay, I pay for it immediately, or if I'm not at my computer, the same day. I've had buyers take 4-11 days to pay and then they point the finger at me calling me money hungry because I sent them an email at day 5 reminding them of ebay's 4 day policy and asking if everything's okay.
I totally agree, I always pay immediately. That's because I want my item right away! lol I also never bid, I usually only do BIN auctions because I just don't have the patience (or temper) for auctions, I like to see eBay as just another online store so I only use the features that make it work that way lol
 
I don't think it is because buyers don't have enough money, y'know? I really REALLY think that some people just feel entitled to whatever they want, however they have to get it. And some other people feel it is a buyers' market, so they hope to find a seller who is desperate to get some cash.
 
I'm going to chime in here and comment on how overpriced Chanel is on Ebay. Vintage bags are harder to find, I get that, but when the price is in close competition with that of the boutique, its ridiculous. I just found myself overpaying for a vintage bag. They can do it as long as there is a demand. People will pay...
 
I totally understand buyers wanting to look for a deal. I'm mainly a seller, but have starting buying and yes, cost is a big factor in my decision making process on whether to bid or BIN or not.

I had recently listed a pair of shoes and a buyer wanted to know if she could buy them if no one else bid since I had a reserve listed as double the amount as starting bid. So I tell her the reserve price (thanks ladies of tpf for helping with that) and I told her, yeah, I can relist BIN for reserve price plus a couple of bucks to cover my relisting fee.

So she shoots back giving me this whole (long) speech about how no one will buy it for that price and I'm wasting my time, good luck, trust me I know no one will buy it, people are looking for a deal, I want it for the start price. I was a little offended...I mean, a no would have sufficed...she didn't need to convince me to sell it to her, ya know?

And I knew I couldn't wear the shoes anymore because of my injury, but honestly, I'd rather keep them than feel taken advantage of by buyers...because sometimes, it does feel like people are trying to take advantage of me.
 
I'm going to chime in here and comment on how overpriced Chanel is on Ebay. Vintage bags are harder to find, I get that, but when the price is in close competition with that of the boutique, its ridiculous. I just found myself overpaying for a vintage bag. They can do it as long as there is a demand. People will pay...
The prices really did rise a lot on eBay, in the past 2 months I've seen vintage Chanels that would normally be going for like $1100-1300 going for like $1600-1900, I don't get it
 
Sometimes. However if you are going to be in the ebay game it is just the way it goes. Some things sell really well on there and others don't. You need to look at it as a business transaction whether you are the buyer or seller. Meaning do your research, and homework. This seems a bit much for the casual buyer/seller but in the end you will get more money as a seller and pay less as a seller.

very true! - but if you are like me just selling the odd thing now and then to make room in the wardrobe, its hardly worth it any more. They have ruined it really ebay, as the best deals are from small sellers such as me. I used to get so many emails from buyers saying they bought their best things from my auctions and how much they loved the cashmere top or the little skirt etc...