Ebid Long Term stability

[garyterence01]

Not that Long ago Quicksales Auction closed its site. I had several thousand items listed there (Many hours of work). How stable is Ebid and what does the long term future look like? My plan is to list several thousand items here. I would hate to have the same result as Quicksales with site closure.

[astral276]

Who can see the future?

eBid has been going longer than most comparable sites and has survived longer than many that tried the market.

Not sure what would happen to the site if Gazza fell under a bus though.

[retrogoodness]

Your listings have long term exposure here on Ebid site. The more listings you have, the better chance you have of making a sale.
Welcome to Ebid

[garyterence01]

As a Seller I love this site so let's hope the Buyers do too!

[theElench]

Who can see the future?

eBid has been going longer than most comparable sites and has survived longer than many that tried the market.

Not sure what would happen to the site if Gazza fell under a bus though.

I've just been pointing that out to another detractor on the other site who repeated the usual accusation that ebid is a waste of time. It turned out they tried ebid fifteen years ago so did admit that their evidence might be slightly out of date.

But while I agree with you and retrogoodness I can see why the OP has some doubts, I've had them myself. I've been paying a bit more attention to activity on the boards during recent months and I can only describe what I've seen as disheartening.


My first shock was realising that apart from the "Hello I'm new here and I can't get something to work" questions most of the rest of the activity is generated by 20 - 30? regulars.

Others include.

The thread where someone is almost begging for Ebid parcel tape was bumped again after being started years before and was ignored again.

The thread where there was a brief flurry of incredulity when a few people got a News Letter. Some thought they had been discontinued as they hadn't seen one for so long.

The thread where a long-standing and respected contributor asked "Can we have a sales counter". Of the pitiful twenty replies, both pro and anti the idea, one reply was a picture of a big red button with "IGNORE" written on it. Which was exactly what happened -- No reply what-so-ever.

The many threads with suggestions or reporting problems, without answers. Not a few started by the only other person I have ever seen speaking up on the other site in Ebids defence.

Is it any wonder that the few who become regular contributors content themselves telling jokes or talking about the weather or their gardens? I don't say that to disparage the contributors, is there any point talking about anything to do with the site if no-one is listening?

I have sometimes wondered if Ebid Towers is fully automated and if there is in reality any Admin. to talk to or get replies from. I also sometimes wonder how many members Ebid really has. Perhaps questions about the future of the site should be asked when it appears that neither the Management or the members are thinking of anything other than more of the same.


Someone called Mark posted recently soliciting votes for the eCommerce Survey and referred to his pride in ebids years old commitment on fees. I didn't know they had ever made one. Perhaps it would be a good time for an update, a statement of intent with some outline of what is planned (and what is not). Where we are all going and how we are going to get there. I for one would feel happier about my future here if I knew for sure that there were some plans and we're not just drifting along.

[Posbear]

Written above is a good summary.

Do you know why there are no discussion threads about the site? Because they get pulled.
There's a standard joke saying by the regulars "I see Fred Puller has been at it again".
I don't think eBid has an office, their address is a mail box.
Mark apparently lives in the USA now and Gazza has hardly made any input to the forum this year which is unusual.
I haven't listed here (or anywhere) for over a year but keep an eye on the goings on on 3 sites, this one, the big US owned one and the Belgian one, 2 out of three have outrageous costs for small sellers and one has good costs.
Most buyers will trust the biggest one because they have their money back guarantee, it's actually PayPal that provide that guarantee. PayPal will soon be removed as the main payment method on the big site because they are getting their own payment system. The Belgian site now has their own payment system. What did eBid do? They got rid of their own payment method!

If I was Mark or Gazza I would be in talks with PayPal to get them to start promoting eBid, I am sure that would be profitable for both parties at (probably) little cost to either of them.

New slogan for eBid.

"Probably the best place to sell, but definitely unheard of".



No doubt Fred (or Freda) Puller will be here soon.

[Maelbrigda]

I joined as Grandmas Attic in 2002 and have had slow but steady sales (mostly as Maelbrigda) since i became a seller. All my feedback is from ebid and apart from ydcers noone leaves feedback. I love the site and as im not a business seller I dont really bother to promote my items. I feel for the people that join as business sellers and try to make a living out of it. Mark & Gazza have been very quiet recently but support still works very well.

[FirstGreenIsGold]

Written above is a good summary.

Do you know why there are no discussion threads about the site? Because they get pulled.
There's a standard joke saying by the regulars "I see Fred Puller has been at it again".
I don't think eBid has an office, their address is a mail box.
Mark apparently lives in the USA now and Gazza has hardly made any input to the forum this year which is unusual.
I haven't listed here (or anywhere) for over a year but keep an eye on the goings on on 3 sites, this one, the big US owned one and the Belgian one, 2 out of three have outrageous costs for small sellers and one has good costs.
Most buyers will trust the biggest one because they have their money back guarantee, it's actually PayPal that provide that guarantee. PayPal will soon be removed as the main payment method on the big site because they are getting their own payment system. The Belgian site now has their own payment system. What did eBid do? They got rid of their own payment method!

If I was Mark or Gazza I would be in talks with PayPal to get them to start promoting eBid, I am sure that would be profitable for both parties at (probably) little cost to either of them.

New slogan for eBid.

"Probably the best place to sell, but definitely unheard of".



No doubt Fred (or Freda) Puller will be here soon.

I didn't know about PayPal. Thanks, Bear!

Here is a link to a CNN article that I just found

https://money.cnn.com/2018/02/01/tec...s-split-adyen/

[theElench]

When threads I've added to have vanished I've always assumed its because other members have reported them for being anti-ebid. Having posts that have been judged to be bad for the sites reputation.

Something that has always made me smile sadly as ebids reputation can't get any lower according to some. Whoever is causing threads to vanish just because they are critical isn't really doing the site any favours by covering up problems. Especially when most of the critical threads are at least partially constructive in their criticism.

Adding to what I said earlier about an updated statement from management. I have often wondered why not a single seller of any size has added their listings to the Glass Collectables category I use in the last five years. Perhaps it's not just the reputation that puts off businesses, but the uncertainty. If you are running a business and relying on the income to pay bills you won't want to put any great effort into a site unless there is some assurance of a long term future.