eBay's Buy It Now

[rhapsodypress]

Well, it seems we finally have a way to see just how much merchants on eBay are ripping us off. If you check the BuyItNow price on many items, you'll notice the Buy It Now price is only slightly higher than the starting price, sometimes $1-$5 more. So basically, that's what the merchant needs to make and anything we've been bidding the prices up beyond that is just "gravy" for the merchant.

Message to merchants: If you're going to start the price that close to retail, stop being cheap and just set up a storefront online. Stop using eBay as a cheap way to get our business online.

Message to eBay: I know you just have t advertise each new to death, but take the completed Buy It Now auctions off so we don't keep clicking on already dead auctions.

[WocitJC]

rhapsodypress - merchants on eBay are not ripping you off - if you don't like the price one of them is offering (either by bidding or through Buy It Now!) then bid on someone else's. Also, if you've ever sold something on ebay then you know how hard it is to realize the profit from it - I just sold 9 gameboys at about double the price they cost me - should be making about 200 bucks but you know what? I've seen very little profit so far - spending all my time on ebay, posting the auctions (costs money) and shipping the item (usually costs more than we charge - you'd think it obscene to charge 7.20 to ship something, but this morning that's how much it cost me) and waiting for money orders and cashier's checks to come through. Makes me almost want to stop doing it - even though I make money off of the auctions, I put so much effort into them.
And don't tell me that the people I sold the gameboys to are being ripped off - the ppl who bought them saved 15 to 20 bucks, MINIMUM, from what the stores would sell them for! So I don't want to hear any complaining whatsoever about ripping ppl off - I saved them money! I think you should go look up the phrase "ripped off" in a dictionary - it won't apply whatsoever to any transaction on ebay. If you think that people will pay money to list an item for auction, then sell it for what they paid - you're loco! It's called capitalism and its what drives the economy. If we couldn't make a profit, no one would do it - and you'd end up paying more in stores for the goods you buy online. SOOOOO! The next time you see a "buy it now" price online, go down to your local store (or warehouse club) and compare prices...then gladly and willing go back and pay the online seller for the goods - b/c you'll save money!

[lectric]

That buy it now option allowed me to get my DH an awsome gift at a great price!

[Amber112]

I personally have mixed feelings about the buy it now feature. As a buyer I love it!!! As a seller, I am not really sure yet how I feel about it. lol. I sell stuff on ebay and I dont "rip anyone off" I start the bidding low, and if I offer the buy it now, i dont have it to far above the starting price, becuase what is the point if no one will bid. It isnt free to list, or ship or anything else. I have on occasion, (many in fact) UNDERcharged for shipping. So I really dont think i am ripping anyone off. And no one is paying for something that they dont want, or paying any more than what they feel they should. Each bidder only bids what they think the item deserves. I have sold items and got way more than I expected, but that was only cuz the bidders felt it was worth it to them. I agree with WocitJC when they said, "if you dont like the price then dont bid on the item" because I am sure someone else will. lol. And that is what makes ebay work..........Supply and Demand.

Donna

[hinkypunk]

WocitJC--I couldn't agree with you more.

[scratch33]

I buy antiques on ebay. They're a lot cheaper than antique stores. But I've been paying extra to have the packages insured. Today I found out an item I received (and paid xtra for insurance for) wasn't insured. It arrived broken in many pieces

Ebay has a rule called 'auction nonperformance' that says an item must be described as it is said. But I'm finding out that they don't enforce it.

Let the buyer BEWARE!

[Amber112]

Originally posted by scratch33
I buy antiques on ebay. They're a lot cheaper than antique stores. But I've been paying extra to have the packages insured. Today I found out an item I received (and paid xtra for insurance for) wasn't insured. It arrived broken in many pieces

Ebay has a rule called 'auction nonperformance' that says an item must be described as it is said. But I'm finding out that they don't enforce it.

Let the buyer BEWARE!

I agree, you do have to be careful of what you buy. I havent been selling for long, but I want people to keep coming back to see what I have listed and the only way to do that is to keep them happy to begin with. Unfortunately there are some sellers that arent that way.

Donna

[shenkel]

Wow, I never knew anyone saw it that way. I am an ebay powerseller- so I post a lot of stuff. My buyitnow price is just what I would accept to get rid of the item right away. Most often I am not making any money at all (or very little), I'm just getting rid of something that I probably shouldn't have bought in the first place. I am going to think twice before using buyitnow in the future, now that I've seen what some buyers may be thinking about it.

[Amber112]

Originally posted by shenkel
Wow, I never knew anyone saw it that way. I am an ebay powerseller- so I post a lot of stuff. My buyitnow price is just what I would accept to get rid of the item right away. Most often I am not making any money at all (or very little), I'm just getting rid of something that I probably shouldn't have bought in the first place. I am going to think twice before using buyitnow in the future, now that I've seen what some buyers may be thinking about it.

I dont think that most people think that way. For the most part anyways. Some might, but the way I see it, is that there are pessimists and there are optimists. To me (and I dont mean any offense to anyone) that is a pessimist way of thinking. If someone thinks that, then they already thought that they were being ripped off before. And maybe they had a bad experience or sommething. But just because of one bad seller, doesnt mean you have to think that they are all that way cuz they arent.

Donna

[dkeppel]

Ebay goes on the law of supply and demand, which is great.
My brother in law listed his paintballgun for what he paid for it and couldn't sell it. (Of course, a person with a rating of three and sunglasses isn't going to be able to sell something for 400 dollars in the first part of Jan.)

I don't like the buy it now for two reasons-- It takes away the fun of the auction, and usually the buy it now price is significatly higher than the opening price.

Denise

[dianemarie]

I also have mixed feeling about eBay's buy it now feature. I lucked out twice and found N64 games with an opening bid of $2 and a buy it now of $5. (I bought them both as after Christmas surprises for my daughters.) But most of the time I find items that are priced above what I would pay for them, but maybe not so high that someone else would want it at the buy it now price, so I skip that auction. Meaning I don't even bid on the item, I just move on to something else and leave the buy it now item for someone else. So as a seller I'm not going to use it, because I want people to bid on my auctions. And I figure if I'm passing up the buy it now auctions other eBayers are too. I also agree that it takes the fun out of the whole auction experience.

[Shainie]

As a buyer, I really like the But it Now! feature. There are times I really want something, and don't want to play the game of someone outbidding me 30 seconds before the auction ends. Some sellers give a really good deal. For example - today I was looking for "The Sims Living Large" software. The ones ending soon were close to $30. I found someone selling it for $25 through Buy it Now!.

Lately when I look for thing on eBay I skip right to the buy it now items to see if I can find what I want for a reasonable asking price.

Now another way to look at it - sometimes it sucks you don't even get a chance because someone gets to it first, but that's just the way it goes.

As a seller, I also like buy it now because it's always nice to sell things quickly. You may lose some money because the bid may have went higher - but those worried about that don't have to use the feature.

IMO, I hope eBay doesn't get rid of this feature.

[Pipanella]

I'm an eBay seller, and the Buy It Now! feature was a real lifesaver at Christmas time. I could list items right up until the week before Christmas, because with the Buy It Now! my customers could buy it (NOW), pay with PayPal, and the item would be shipped the next day, and they'd have it by Christmas.

I don't use the Buy It Now! feature very often (and I probably won't use it when eBay starts charging for it), but when I do, I set my Buy It Now! price at the bare minimum that I want for the item. And sometimes it's way above the opening bid. Depending on the item, I'll start the bidding out low, because most sellers know that if you have someone bid early in your auction, they will return to it if they are outbid. Low opening bids usually means more bidders, and the more bidders you have, the better price you are likely to get for your item.

With selling, it's like this: I may lose on some items, but do very well on most. Even if I don't break even, I figure I've made a profit, because what will I do with those things if I don't sell them? They'll either stay and take up space in my house, or I will take them to the Bargain Bin. I take alot of stuff to the Bargain Bin anyway (mostly clothing), but alot of things I have are like new, because I love to shop! (Further proof that you really can't have it all, because you won't have any place to put it! LOL!!)

I agree with Amber - if you don't like the looks of an auction, then move on. Ebay is so big, if you don't like what you see, there is more to choose from, and if there isn't, there will be next week. As I said in another post about eBay, it is an auction, not a fully stocked store. And an auction is in a class by itself as a way of purchasing.

[qwho99]

As an eBay addict :-), I can appreciate what I think rhapsodypress is trying to say. eBay DOES need to be better at keeping the listings updated AND deleting the "BuyItNow" items which have already sold. I've been doing a search and seen items that I thought were new (based on the list price), only to click on them & find they were items I'd been outbid on DAYS ago! This can be rather frustrating.
I don't think rhapsodypress was trying to point a finger at ALL sellers. There are MANY really great eBayers (on both sides of the transactions). There are also more than a few stinkers out there who spoil it for others.
Try not to take it personally, guys. We eBayers (& DODers) know when someone is playing fair & we apreciate them.

Happy Bargain Hunting!
:-)

Q

[jocylien]

Well, it seems I finally have a way to see just how some eBayers think...

I myself am new to eBay... I am buying and selling in equal amounts...Bidding and selling normally(Without the buy it now) And Bidding and Trying to sell WITH the buy it now feature.

First of all let me say this... I don't even consider myself a merchant... I am a 21 year old girl who is selling on eBay to try and make a little bit of money(right now it's just barely funding what I am buying on eBay.) Second: Isn't "gravy" what eBay is all about??? Sellers try to make money, buyers try to get deals? Am I wrong? Am I way off base? I dunno...

Message to whoever wants to read my ranting: I am trying to sell things that are good deals to whomever may want to bid on my things... and might give me a tiny bit of extra money... However I imagine that EVERY seller is trying to make money (Why else would they be putting something up for auction). I also imagine that people don't bid unless they think they are getting a good deal (and if you bid on something that you could have bought for less it is your own fault, educate yourself and do research and maybe you will end up getting great deals and singing the praises of sellers,and eBay and buy it now ~who knows.) Also if you think a "merchant" is being cheap by using the buy it now feature, I think you need to get a clue. Like others have said the auction could have ended up selling for alot more. And once again If you don't want to bid on something , don't. It is just that simple. Move along (Like I should be doing instead of posting this, considering the original post was made over a month ago) ...

I really enjoy using eBay and I am trying to buy and sell and send and pay all quickly, so I can get more positive feedback. I also will probably not use the buy it now feature when they start charging. I agree eBay has it's problems, but so does every other website. There are other auction sites available if you are unhappy.

Ok ... Hope you all have a lovely day hehehe!!!

[Edited by jocylien on 01-31-2001 at 04:04 AM]