ebay is disgusting, just disgusting

[bbsports]

I'm sorry what happened to you on e-bay. In the long run, perhaps this could be a blessing. I sold T206 cards on e-bay since 1997. On May 1st of last year, e-bay decided to get on board the greedy train & raise their store costs. Also they decided to charge a flat rate of 9% + the cost of using their store. Since I closed my store, I'm finding other ways of selling. Doing private sales, doing card shows in the area, sending cards to auction houses, & at times doing some selling on this site. Nobody should be at the mercy of any company, especially e-bay.

[JollyElm]

Hey John,
Hit the B/S/T section here and list some of your stuff. There seems to be a good amount of cards being moved daily and (for the most part) the people here are a good lot. I've personally bought a few things recently. Good luck.

[EvilKing00]

That sucks! Try the bts here and some auction houses

[bobbyw8469]

Originally Posted by JollyElm

Hey John,
Hit the B/S/T section here and list some of your stuff. There seems to be a good amount of cards being moved daily and (for the most part) the people here are a good lot. I've personally bought a few things recently. Good luck.

I have found the B/S/T board here VERY hard to sell on, unless you are willing to give the item away. I wish that wasn't the case. Sorry Ebay gave you the heave-ho.

[scooter729]

Originally Posted by bobbyw8469

I have found the B/S/T board here VERY hard to sell on, unless you are willing to give the item away. I wish that wasn't the case. Sorry Ebay gave you the heave-ho.

With all due respect, we've never done a transaction, but the only reason I remember your posts is because you're always complaining about how your cards always sell for so low and you're having to give everything away. It's like crying wolf after a while - maybe your expectations are a bit high.

I (like many others) have had a lot of success here on the BST. I don't know what you're selling, but I bet if you try pricing items in line with VCP recent sales that you'd have a good track record here on the BST.

[bobbyw8469]

Originally Posted by scooter729

With all due respect, we've never done a transaction, but the only reason I remember your posts is because you're always complaining about how your cards always sell for so low and you're having to give everything away. It's like crying wolf after a while - maybe your expectations are a bit high.

I (like many others) have had a lot of success here on the BST. I don't know what you're selling, but I bet if you try pricing items in line with VCP recent sales that you'd have a good track record here on the BST.

I price my cards BELOW VCP average and they still wont budge here. One time I tried to sell a Sandy Koufax rookie card. The guy offered my $300 for it. A card shop out of Kansas has the card on their BUY list. They were paying $350. I told the gentleman that I already had an offer of $350 for the card. He proceeded to give me a hard time, and basically made me feel like an idiot for not selling the card to him for $50 less than what I was already offered because he was a "collector"! He basically said "Shame on me for not wanting to help out a "collector". Don't get me wrong, I have had some great transactions on the BST board (the few that I have had). Unfortunately, it is incidents like the Koufax card that stick out in my mind because they are just so absurd.

PS - and don't think it is just an isolated incident. I have had private messages confirming the difficulties some have had selling cards on here. I might try again in the future. Not right now. Ebay is still king for getting rid of cards for me.

[glchen]

Originally Posted by scooter729

With all due respect, we've never done a transaction, but the only reason I remember your posts is because you're always complaining about how your cards always sell for so low and you're having to give everything away. It's like crying wolf after a while - maybe your expectations are a bit high.

I (like many others) have had a lot of success here on the BST. I don't know what you're selling, but I bet if you try pricing items in line with VCP recent sales that you'd have a good track record here on the BST.

BST is useful for selling a few cards here and there. However, if you have hundreds of cards in your inventory that you are looking to sell, BST is really not viable, and you need to use ebay, which will still usually get you higher prices. Bobby's not the only one who has said that ebay gets higher prices. Here's another story: Link. I'm not saying that BST doesn't have it's advantages. Obviously, there are no fees, so you save 10% there. However, if you have a lot of inventory, ebay is still the best bet even with all of its hassles.

Regarding Bobby's issues selling on ebay, just in my opinion, I think it is because he sells a lot of stuff starting at 99 cents via auction. I've done it before when I started selling on ebay, and personally, I think it's seller suicide. The card market is big with so many different cards out there from so many sets, that unless you have a big name HOFer, the market will typically be thin for your card. There might be 50 - 100 people who are interested in your card, but if they are not looking at your ebay auction the week you are listing it, you are screwed. Only the big time dealers and consignors who regularly list at 99 cent auctions get the views necessary to be able to generate proper market values for these cards. If you are a small time dealer who just lists auctions every now and then, you are not going to get the views necessary to get good prices on your cards. You might get lucky every now and then if the right people are looking at your auctions, but if not, you are dead meat, which I think has happened too many times to Bobby. Frankly, I think it's better to just list as BIN's based upon VCP/past sales (or auctions w/ the same start price as your BIN price), and that will get you prices that you want. If you really need to move inventory that's not selling or need to raise cash, then do the 99 cent auction, but just prepared to get killed on them.

[ibuysportsephemera]

I am knocking wood as I type this but I have had very few bad transactions as a seller on ebay. I am a Top Rated Power Seller for more than 15 years with 2 stores, a mid level store for sports memorabilia and a basic store for general ephemera. I typically sell paper items or publications. The few problems that I have had seem to be on the very rare occasion I sell a card. Maybe it is a card problem more than an eBay problem?

Jeff

[rjackson44]

Net 54 rocks

[jtradingcards]

Originally Posted by bbsports

I'm sorry what happened to you on e-bay. In the long run, perhaps this could be a blessing. I sold T206 cards on e-bay since 1997. On May 1st of last year, e-bay decided to get on board the greedy train & raise their store costs. Also they decided to charge a flat rate of 9% + the cost of using their store. Since I closed my store, I'm finding other ways of selling. Doing private sales, doing card shows in the area, sending cards to auction houses, & at times doing some selling on this site. Nobody should be at the mercy of any company, especially e-bay.

How much does an auction house charge?

[alanu]

The feedback ratings don't really make sense either

The 3 star rating are described such as "neither reasonable or unreasonable", a 3 star rating shouldn't count against the seller.

The shipping one really bothers me

5 stars "Very reasonable"

4 stars "Reasonable"

Why should the seller have to offer "Very Reasonable" shipping charges which implies free or below cost, especially since they include the charges in the final value fee calculation.

[bobbyw8469]

Originally Posted by jtradingcards

How much does an auction house charge?

Some don't charge anything. I know Bill Goodwin doesn't charge seller's commission. He charges the buyer's commission however.