Sounds of eBid between a rock and a hard place. The site has been operating almost twenty years. The strategy of targeting only the UK with an advertising campaign, would probably have worked best in their first five to seven years.
How long would it take for a UK only advertising campaign to produce healthy revenue? Years.... 5, 10, or even more?
There are quite a few Americans who have been here in the range of 10 years. Would it be fair to ask them to sit by an additional 10 years, as eBid builds up its revenue coffers? I do not think so.
If eBid were to divert some/all of the revenue now being wasted on Google Shopping, there would probably be enough advertising revenue to launch a multi- national (at least 3) pilot advertising campaign.
Thank you Jan.
Looks, like I started something
ladies and gentleman what happend to my thread?
Like I originally said in MY thread that google shopping is absolutely useless! eBid needs to get there head out of there arse!
wake up people... as I also said, FM radio is cheap and cheerful to advertise with, What I think its going to take would be to start demanding, either they advertise and use google (not google shopping) or refund my 45 dollars plus interest!
as I also said my MY thread I have been on eBid for over 4 years WITHOUT a single sale!! its laughable but not really
Unless eBid shows up on a "regular google search" NOT GOOGLE SHOPPING there will be zero progress. On another note/hmmmm I belong to several audio forums none of them pay google to show up but when you google something of audio interest, there site some up, something is NOT right!!!
Lawrence
Last edited by sidthelamp; 13th September 2017 at 07:24 PM.
http://uk.ebid.net/stores/under pressure
MY ATTITUDE IS A RESULT OF YOUR ACTIONS!!!
IF YOU DONT LIKE IT BLAME YOURSELF.
Hi everyone,
I am a US seller than bought a $50 membership to eBid after the site was hailed in the USA as better than you know who. I now feel like I was conned by eBid. No sales period, and my items are priced below wholesale to get buyers. I even bought their $2.50 listing exposures. Nothing. I have views, no sales or offers.
Now I find that eBid actually has almost zero presence in the US. No one here has ever heard of it. I tell other sellers I am also on eBid and they say, "Who?".
I notice that eBid advertises the amount of items available and other stats, but NOWHERE can I find what kind of revenue they are making from their sellers. They don't seem to publicize that like the other sites, is that because hardly anything sells here and sellers are not making a lot of good sales?
I feel like eBid gave me the bait and switch routine and now that they have my money, tough luck for me and other US sellers who were tricked into this site. And yes, we feel like we were tricked. If it was a US site, we have legal recourse, but it is overseas so the money is gone.
I want my money back. That will never happen I know, buyer beware, but I am curious. Any US sellers here making ANY sales worth a darn? How are you doing it? I run my other e site and everything finally sells there, and all I am doing here is deleting each item that sells on the other site. I've stopped adding new items, seems like a waste of time, energy and hope.
Are US sellers being tricked into paying for this site, with eBid knowing full well we won't make any sales? The shipping across the pond inhibits most sales from UK buyers, even highly collectible things sit here with no bids, sales or offers.
I am a disabled woman who is recovering from internal gangrene that should have killed me. I have a year and a half recovery. I used what little money I had to open the eBid store, as the other E site is not what it used to be when I was on it before. Items sell on the other E site, but it's slow and sometimes you nearly give them away. I had hoped eBid would help me bring in some much needed money, and so far, it has stolen my time, my money, and my faith in sites like this. They should tell US sellers that sales are slow OR give us a much cheaper sign up to get us here. I am so saddened by all of this.
We need a good auction platform site again like one used to be before they decided to be like the A site. There is nothing for us in the US but the 2 big ones, so sad.
Thanks for listening.
Barbara
Morning All,
Barbara, I am a US seller and have made sales over the 3 years I have been a member. but it takes work. When you first got on the "bay", you didn't start out selling a lot of items, you had to build up feedback and a rep, no one wants to buy from a "newbie". It is the same thing on ebid, you have to work to make your sales, you have to advertise that you are on this site and have a store. Sure the bay will block all links you try to send in their messages, but if you have a list of buyers, you will have their actual email address and can send them a quick note to advertise your new location. The $50.00 you paid to be a lifetime member is peanuts compared to what you pay on bay and the hoops you have to jump through.
You have not been on ebid long enough to actually give the site or your store a chance. Nothing happens over night, you have to work every day to build something you are proud of and the better you do that job, the buyers will find you. Complaining that you aren't making sales is part of the challenge of getting on a new site, you have to work, let your buyers know you have changed, just like we all did and do.
Give ebid a chance before you start complaining of no sales and all the work you have put into your listings as a waste of time. Not one thing you do in your lifetime is a waste of time or effort. Every one of us that are selling on ebid started out "with no sales".
Good luck with your listing, I hope that the buyers will find you, but give us a chance and yourself a chance. eBid is becoming known in the US and it is because the sellers, themselves are doing the work of mouth to mouth advertising.
All, have a good day, the sun is shinning.
Jan
I'm going to reiterate what Jan/shortstuff01 has said...
1) You do need to set up your stores so that you can organize your items into shops (with related sub-categories) containing items that will appeal to the ranges of interests for various types of customers who browse your listings. You've already paid the one-time fee for those storefronts, so do take advantage of them. Someone who happens across one of your listings may not be motivated to buy that specific piece, but will often look at other, related items listed in a store.
2) Stock your stores. I personally find this obvious task the most challenging, but it is necessary. Just like other venues, the more items you have, the more potential you have for eyes to alight on your listings. Again, they may come across an item they don't buy, but be intrigued enough to browse your other listings. Try to maintain more than 100 listings. Unlike other venues, it costs Seller+ vendors like you nothing to relist however many unsold items and keep them in your shops here. Be sure to provide info for the "ISBN/UPC/EAN/MPN (Barcode)" field (if not an item that has a code, then type "EXEMPT" in that field).
3) Once you have your stores set up and stocked, put links to the stores in your signature here, in your signatures in discussion groups and social media, on your website/blog/etc., on any business card or stationery, and include on any packing slips or invoices both here and for items you ship from sales elsewhere (even if some sites do not allow putting links in their communications, you can always print out a slip of paper to put in the box when shipping).
4) If you do decide to contact previous and current customers (you can find their email addresses on the payment verification emails you received from Paypal or similar processor), avoid trouble by contacting no more than one time per sale, a week or so afterward as a follow-up: e.g., "Thank you for your purchase of X. I hope you were pleased with the item. I have other listings at https://www.ebid.net/us/stores/Gems-from-rocks2dust [linking to your own store name]. Please let me know if you have had any issues with your purchase. Thank you again."
And as Jan said, it takes time to build up repeat customers both here and on other venues, even moreso when they have to go to a new site. I've made very many sales on other sites, but the fees have more than wiped out any profits there, and they seem to want more and more. Were it not that selling gives me a way to buffer my wallet against my own collecting habit, it would make more financial sense to throw my items out the window. Finally, and as I get more used to it, I'm finding ebid.net easier and less stressful to list and maintain than elsewhere. Now, I really should go and take some pictures and list a few things while I still have daylight. I wish you well - please don't get discouraged
Last edited by rocks2dust; 6th May 2018 at 06:17 PM.
- r2d
My ebid.net stores:
>> Gemstones
>> Fossils, Minerals and Gemstone Rough
>> Jewels and Gadgets
Ebid's name is not well known, either in the US or the UK. Unfortunately the bay has managed to get itself into pole position so that, like Hoover and Biro and Photoshop, it's become almost a generic word, they get mentioned even in random discussions on TV.
Every time you send out a parcel to one of your buyers on the bay, it's an opportunity to include your flyer that says you hope the customer will be happy, asks for feedback and gives your contact details, INCLUDING MENTIONING THAT YOU SELL ON EBID.NET. I feel that providing a piece of paper with such info is more likely to be kept around than yet another email -- most folk have zillions of those and don't refer back to them.
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