Any idea why ebay is giving away so much free money lately?

[Luke]

For a long time there was nothing, now it seems like there's a way to save everyday. Anybody know, or want to guess why?

[brianp-beme]

Someone in a previous thread mentioned that the end of March is the end of their fiscal year.

Brian

[vintagetoppsguy]

Originally Posted by brianp-beme

Someone in a previous thread mentioned that the end of March is the end of their fiscal year.

Brian

I don't understand that though. If they're giving 15% in eBay Bucks, but only collecting 10% FVFs (correct me if that number is wrong), it doesn't take a genius to figure that they're losing money.

[Slinger]

Maybe they just need a boost in gross revenue to hit targets for shareholders?

[D. Bergin]

Originally Posted by vintagetoppsguy

I don't understand that though. If they're giving 15% in eBay Bucks, but only collecting 10% FVFs (correct me if that number is wrong), it doesn't take a genius to figure that they're losing money.

They're also collecting 10% of shipping fees and collecting monthly store fees from sellers.

Also, it's not like they're giving away straight cash. You have to put those Ebay bucks back into the system eventually, which they get a cut of again.

A Temporary slight loss leader maybe, and an injection of short term cash for the stockholder report. I think they'll be fine.

We might not be though, when they take back their pound of flesh from sellers, when the next Ebay update comes out............whenever.

[rsdill2]

March is end of quarter so it's the end of your ebay bucks earning period. Seems like there's always good ebay bucks bonus promos at the end of a quarter. Don't count on having an ebay bucks promo again for a few weeks. They usually wait a few weeks after your ebay bucks is issued to have another bonus promo. I guess the thinking is they don't want you earning bonus bucks when you spend bucks.

But the XX% off any item is a new one for me. Not sure why they started offering it the last couple weeks. Definitely a great promo though and it's made me buy a few things I wouldn't have bought without it.

[Peter_Spaeth]

Originally Posted by vintagetoppsguy

I don't understand that though. If they're giving 15% in eBay Bucks, but only collecting 10% FVFs (correct me if that number is wrong), it doesn't take a genius to figure that they're losing money.

When you spend the ebay bucks they'll get 1.5 percent back, so the gap is smaller than that, but I am guessing they probably have determined there is a general stimulatory effect on sales with so many people looking for places to spend.

[Fballguy]

15% Coupon yesterday...10% eBay bucks today. They're dong wonders for my collection...but not my wallet.

Edit...And now another 15% coupon today as well. 10% eBay bucks on the app.

I wish there was more to choose from on Ebay right now. I'm scraping the bottom of the barrel on items.

[Peter_Spaeth]

What's the code on the coupon and is it capped?

[Jenx34]

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

When you spend the ebay bucks they'll get 1.5 percent back, so the gap is smaller than that, but I am guessing they probably have determined there is a general stimulatory effect on sales with so many people looking for places to spend.

Exactly. It's just part of their overall ad budget and strategy. They're running TV ads too, more than I remember a year or even 6 months ago. Last night, I spent $393 (before 15% discount). The threshold to max at the $50 mark was $333.33. I'm sure I'm not the only one that spent over that threshold.

The simplest answer is just advertising. This is one way they chose to do so. I hope they deem it as effective and keep doing so!

[packs]

Maybe they're able to classify the giveaways as "donations" for tax purposes.

[Peter_Spaeth]

Excellent point. Many people probably exceed the threshold and on the delta they are making their regular fee with no giveback.

[vintagetoppsguy]

Originally Posted by vintagetoppsguy

I don't understand that though. If they're giving 15% in eBay Bucks, but only collecting 10% FVFs (correct me if that number is wrong), it doesn't take a genius to figure that they're losing money.

Their stock is way down lately. I don't have the exact numbers, but maybe 10% over the last week? Who woulda thought it?

[Batpig]

The problem is they've created an environment now where people wait for these discounts to buy.

[Ronnie73]

Originally Posted by Luke

For a long time there was nothing, now it seems like there's a way to save everyday. Anybody know, or want to guess why?

Not sure why all the ebay specials but I've purchased a card from you for the last two 15% off specials. Saved me $100. I'd say it worked out for both of us. Hopefully there will be more of these specials.

[JollyElm]

I'm pretty sure the ole save 15% scenarios could be just a bit of fairy dust. Virtually every time one is listed, I get gung-ho and jump all over it, but am I truly saving anything?? Dunno. I usually use sites like PSA Auction Prices Realized to get a decent idea of what I should expect to pay for certain cards I want to grab up. A week or two ago there was a discount, so I purchased a couple of Mantles (generally, all other things aside, at the cheapest/close to the cheapest prices listed for the particular grades) and, man, the pricing was nowhere near what it 'should have been.' Of course, Mantles are highly sought after, so it's just the wild west out there. The comparably graded ones I DIDN'T buy were overpriced into the ionosphere.

I guess it boils down to how much stock you put into tools like VCP, etc. If something 'should be' available for $100, yet all of the cards (and there are many) on ebay are listed for $200 and higher (and none are OBO), you gotta wonder how realistic said tools are. So we save 15% on a card that is purposefully way 'overpriced' to begin with?? The $100 price tag in this scenario doesn't reflect reality at all. If I want the card, then it's going to cost me two c-notes, not one. The whole thing is kind of funny in a way.

With the latest 15% off special, I bought these three 1961 cards:
PSA 8 #572, Brooks Robinson All Star, which was netted for about $90
PSA 8 #580, Al Kaline All Star, which was netted for about $85
PSA 7 #417, Juan Marichal RC, which was netted for about $100

The first two look real nice and are basically always listed for the 'before' price I paid for them. The Marichal is a little O/C and there's a bit of scuffing on it at the border from the printing process. The label shows it to be an early card graded by PSA. You could argue a little that I bought the slab rather than the card, but the other 7's were $200 and up, so I went for it to knock it off of my need list. Not sure how I did VCP-wise, but I think I did pretty well on the trio...but in reality, did I?? Dunno.

[Ronnie73]

Originally Posted by JollyElm

I'm pretty sure the ole save 15% scenarios could be just a bit of fairy dust. Virtually every time one is listed, I get gung-ho and jump all over it, but am I truly saving anything?? Dunno. I usually use sites like PSA Auction Prices Realized to get a decent idea of what I should expect to pay for certain cards I want to grab up. A week or two ago there was a discount, so I purchased a couple of Mantles (generally, all other things aside, at the cheapest/close to the cheapest prices listed for the particular grades) and, man, the pricing was nowhere near what it 'should have been.' Of course, Mantles are highly sought after, so it's just the wild west out there. The comparably graded ones I DIDN'T buy were overpriced into the ionosphere.

I guess it boils down to how much stock you put into tools like VCP, etc. If something 'should be' available for $100, yet all of the cards (and there are many) on ebay are listed for $200 and higher (and none are OBO), you gotta wonder how realistic said tools are. So we save 15% on a card that is purposefully way 'overpriced' to begin with?? The $100 price tag in this scenario doesn't reflect reality at all. If I want the card, then it's going to cost me two c-notes, not one. The whole thing is kind of funny in a way.

With the latest 15% off special, I bought these three 1961 cards:
PSA 8 #572, Brooks Robinson All Star, which was netted for about $90
PSA 8 #580, Al Kaline All Star, which was netted for about $85
PSA 7 #417, Juan Marichal RC, which was netted for about $100

The first two look real nice and are basically always listed for the 'before' price I paid for them. The Marichal is a little O/C and there's a bit of scuffing on it at the border from the printing process. The label shows it to be an early card graded by PSA. You could argue a little that I bought the slab rather than the card, but the other 7's were $200 and up, so I went for it to knock it off of my need list. Not sure how I did VCP-wise, but I think I did pretty well on the trio...but in reality, did I?? Dunno.

I understand questioning if you really saved anything. I have to assume mostly everyone is making smart purchases and getting a card that was fairly priced to begin with and then getting a true savings of 15% off with a max savings of $50 after that. My savings of $100 over the last two specials with Luke were carefully planned out. First, making sure it's actually a card I truly want and need, which in that case, there are usually more than just one card. Next, looking at past sale prices, how often the cards come up for sale, and determining the true populations between all the cards interested in. By doing all of that, I'm sure to get a card I need at the best price possible while the card being the most uncommon and likely the most difficult to purchase in the future if not purchased at that moment. By following these simple steps, I've never made a T206 purchase I've regretted but I've regretted not purchasing other T206's that come up and score high with my calculations but maybe at the time I can only afford one of two cards. The card I don't purchase, ends up being purchased very quickly by someone else, while other cards that didn't score as high, still sit there unsold.