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Auctionbytes-Update, Number 98 - July 13, 2003 - ISSN 1528-6703     Previous Story | Contents
	Letters from Readers By Ina Steiner AuctionBytes.com July 13, 2003
A reader responds last issue's "Dear Nick" column, wherein Nick wrote, "Tricky Nick Tip: I've brought packages to the post office one day later than the postage-label date, and they've gone through. The customer only sees the date printed on the label, and he blames any delays on the Post Office. I don't recommend this practice, and all post offices are different, so use caution." This should be called "Illegal Nick Tip". The postal service considers a postmark to be a legally binding mark. Sending anything out with a postmark from an earlier date than when it was actually mailed is a violation of federal law, last I checked. At our post office, there is even a huge sign reminding bulk mailers that anything brought in after 4PM MUST have the next day's postmark on it. Rather than telling people how they can get the post office blamed for their own slowness, Nick should be telling them how to manage their time and stil obey the law. I will agree on one point-I don't recommend the practice, either. Fred ******** Ina, As a seller on ebay for over 3 years, I hate the new auction page. These are the reasons. #1 The Page is too wide. Ebay has the item listed on the left and the item number on the right. Unlike before, when the auction number was UNDER the item title. Like 1000's of sellers I print off the first page of the auction for my records. Because the page is so wide on the screen, it does not display the auction number without scrolling left & right to view it all. Therefor, when printing the page, the auction number does now print. Many times a buyer will send me a money order with nothing but their name and address and the auction number. This will become a Large Problem. Are we as sellers forced to handwritten the auction numbers on the paperwork? #2 There is entirely too much blank air space on the right and left of the top. #3 As a Buyer, I find it very hard to read and way too cluttered. Slower to download. #4 After you auction closes ... why on earth do you need the ..... "Hello "Your Name" & the Dumb Detailed Instructions on why we should contact our buyer ..... Good heavens .... If you are a seller, and need to be told Why we should contact our buyer ... You better stop selling and get back to school. Just a few of my thoughts on the new auction page. I hate it and find it bizarre. Wonder how many bidders will have problems with all the senseless jargon and lose interest? Shareholders need to know ....... Why the "brains" at ebay spend shareholders potential profit $$$ money paying programmers to totally change and butcher something that millions of people have been comfortable with !!!!!!! This was not just a "minor" adjustment .... It was a total destruction! My 9 year old grandson could have laid out the auction page better. Thanks for letting me bend your ear. Maybe you could take a survey??? Coco Hi Coco, Great idea, here's the URL for an informal survey about the new change: http://tinyurl.com/gsrk Ina ******** Hi, One of your items in Update 97 referred to searching closed auctions. I have been looking for the way to do this and I haven't been able to find it. Could you explain in an upcoming issue (or to me, now) how that's done? Rich Hi Rich, Great question! When you do a search on eBay, the default is all current auctions. Look at the results page, and on the left hand side, you'll see some further search options. One is for completed auctions. Example: Search for coca-cola calendars. When the results come back, look to the left and click on "completed items." (Check the auction end times to make sure you've done it correctly.) Ina ******** Hi there: Very pleased with your newsletters & newsflashes! Re: are ebayer's getting a square deal: NO I contacted Squeare Trade on a seller who had them listed on his site. He sold an item as vintage estate jewelry when it was actually brand new! I emailed him about my displeasure and received a poor response which meant no recourse or refund. I contacted Square Trade for assistance and 5 days later got an email saying they contacted the seller who told them we resolved the situation amicably!!!!!!!!! I emailed Square Trade back asking why they didn't confirm this "amicable" conclusion with me first & they said, in essence, they are too busy and the $$$ amount wasn't worth it! Moe ******** Hi, I am a subscriber to your newsletter and enjoy it very much. I encountered a serious problem on ebay yesterday which other sellers should be aware of. I have been a seller on ebay for over 3 years and was close to being a powerseller. Yesterday I received a very frightening email from ebay saying that my 2003 entrepreneur kit was in violation of their policy and they ended the listing along with all of my other 147 listings with no phone call, no response, and no emails. I recently purchased the kit from a reputable company with resale rights and even was given the auction ad to use on ebay. My listing was ended and then I went onto ebay and found 94 listings from many different sellers selling the same item, using the same ad, and selling the same item for 5.00 rather than 10.00 as we were supposed to. This really needs to be addressed at ebay live and other forums. I have become convinced that ebay police are being used in the information and ebay user tools categories. What do we as sellers do? I took the listing off my database and had to spend time to relist my other 145 items and then had to pay higher fees because I had listed the items when ebay was running a special discount on dutch auctions. I have now decided to start my own Web site and only use ebay as a back end sales tool. What do you think? You can post this under an anonymous name - I feel sellers should be forewarned. .R. I get many, many letters from people who have ALL their auctions cancelled because of one violation. And often, they aren't even sure what policy they violated. It appears from the letters I get that eBay enforces rules inconsistently. I welcome advice from readers on what to do when facing this situation. From what I've seen, sellers simply do what R. has done - relist the items that are not problematic, and look for ways to diversify. ******** Hi Ina; Great eBay Live blog! Makes us feel like we are really there (maybe next year). Sure would like to hear more about the buyers sourcing workshop that was sold out. Maybe you can have a special report from one of the attendees? Thanks for all of your hard work. Randy Hi Randy, The eBay class was called "Online Power Buying" and was presented by Asad Haroon of Liquidation.com and moderated by Pat Hughes. Asad posted the slides on the Liquidation.com Web site at http://www.liquidation.com/about/ppt/index_frame.htm. Hope to see you at next year's event in New Orleans! Ina ****************** If you agree or disagree with other readers, feel free to jump into the forums and speak your mind. That's what the forums are there for: http://www.auctionbytes.com/forum/phpBB/index.php