eBay these days...

[jkarolyi]

I still go to ebay to buy things that I can't buy locally or for a reasonable price at an online or local retailer. High margin items like the expensive perfume I bought for my fiance tend to sell for WAY less on eBay.

eBay is also the ideal place to sell something when you have no idea what its true market value is. I had a space saver spare with a 9/72 date stamp which came out of a rusty Euro '73 plastic-tank 911E I had parted out. That's gold to someone who wants a correct dated spare wheel for restoring a '73 RS. But how do I price it? You never see these for sale. I would have asked for $100 on Pelican (twice the rate of any other date stamped space saver), but got $250 on eBay!

Basically, eBay is the place to get a true market value for something you need out of your possession soon or if you don't know its value. Searching completed auctions is a great way to find out the true market value for just about anything, including cars.

Have to agree with you regarding Ebay's interface and fees and the way they run auctions. Why don't they offer an option to extend bidding past the end time until 5 minutes has passed without additional bids? That's the way a real auction should work! I'd pay extra for that feature when listing...sniping kills all of the momentum you're supposed to get by auctioning. It's bad for buyers too...it really makes people mad to lose a bid by a penny which actually happened to me!

A lot of people use eBay as an advertising tool more than a true auction house due to the tremendous public exposure, but I hope Ebay maintains its place as the world's biggest flea market.

[on-ramp]

Ebay is an excellent customer acquisition tool. You have quite the selection of buyers. There are the bottom of the barrel scrapers who will never think a low price is low enough (they want it for free) and then you have the type of buyers who are willing to pay top dollar for the right item, if advertised correctly. I run a bookstore on ebay and there are quite a few collectors there. However, I also own and operate my own dot com. Their fees are certainly outrageous but it's the cost of getting a new customer. Even if you break even on a deal, it's worth it because you've gained a customer and now they know your business exists.

If you are operating an ebay-only business without another channel for selling, you are taking a big risk. Their fees overall, do end up cutting into your bottom line. For us, On ebay, on the average, the ebay/paypal fees account for 52% of net profit, whereas sales on our dot this figure is a lot lower. If you want exposure and want to build a reputation, sure, ebay is an excellent place to start. but eventually ,when you get big enough, it's wise to get away and run solo. which is the plan in this case. The issue is that of control and not having to run by ebay's rules, which seem outrageous at times.

As you also stated, a customer on a conventional e-commerce site can add multiple items to a shopping cart, create an account, and a host of other features that are not possible on ebay. it's an entirely different ball-game. On ebay, it's pay per listing (this is where the fees add up). On your own site, you can list as much as you want for a fixed price. Ebay does have stores but nobody will find it unless you run many auctions. The problem with auctions is that you need to list 30 to sell 2 . Your profit on the 2 sold better be high enough to overcome the fees for everything. Otherwise it's a losing proposition.

the biggest disadvantage on ebay, and this is a big one: Ebay doesn't allow you to create an opt-in email subscriber list for newsletters, which is a the first step in the sales process.

[on2wheels52]

I'm mostly looking for used items to buy for myself, I don't visit the site as much as I used to. There's always a few things I get stuck with at the shop I could liquidate on ebay but I'm not willing to spend my 'free' time running auctions.
Jim

[Moses]

eBay is great for flea market type stuff. Old bamboo fly rods, used electronics, etc. It's also a fantastic place to buy original art. That's a little risky, but the prices are so low you can afford a "miss" now and again.

I think eBay and Pelican are working two different markets entirely. When I'm working on my car, I generally want new parts and I want to get them in a timely fashion. Pelican gives me that. eBay is a crap shoot for car parts. I bought a "like new" rear reflector with black letters that was so rough I wouldn't put it on my car.

[LeeH]

Originally posted by Wayne at Pelican Parts
I guess for people cleaning out their garages, it still makes sense...

I think Craigslist is better than Ebay for some items. I just sold a used set of tires and some motorcycle gear. It's not an auction, but Craigslist works well with the "get it now" attitude of our country.

I've picked up a couple of cars from Craigslist, too. My favorite ad is "Moving tomorrow, must sell." Where else can someone post a classified ad for a car and have it broadcast immediately? That said, specialty cars work well on Ebay - though a lot of sellers use it more for marketing than for actual sales.

[speedracing944]

My sister was buying a minivan off E-bay and I thought to myself "There still is a sucker born every minute!" She did win the auction and bought tickets to fly to the east coast. I was pretty sceptical of the whole situation. I guess the guy selling had good feedback (100%) and has sold hundreds of cars online. He picked my sister and her husband at the airport and drove them to his shop where the car was. He even waited 3 hours due to a late flight. The deal went flawlessly and they drove the van 700 miles home.

She called me to ask if she could bring it out to my place for my inspection. I was anticipating this van to be a POS. Here she pulls into the driveway and the van was real nice looking. Not a scratch on the exterior and not a repaint either. The interior looked brand new as well with no staines or wear marks anywhere.

[speedracing944]

I was flat out shocked. She bought the van at about 70% of what they were going for in our area. I think she got a killer deal.

Speedy

[speeder]

It just depends. Ebay is not what it used to be for sellers with the constantly rising fees and restrictions, and that thins the herd of merchandise available. I am noticing a LOT less selection of the vehicles I browse this year.

Ebay used to be a fantastic place for used 911s, even with the obvious crap factor of many of them. Still, there were lots of great cars/deals which is more than I can say for any of the SoCal used Porsche lots which are all junkyards.

I've won at least 3 vehicle auctions where I did not complete the deal because when I arrived to pay for the car it was a POS. All 3 times the seller let me off w/o a hitch, ie. no $$ of mine kept or bad feedback left. They knew what they had. I bought my truck on eBay and it was exactly as represented.

There are legitimate steals on eBay from time to time, but you have to be quick with the "buy it now" button when they happen. Last fall I lost out on a 2005 truck that was *exactly* what I want, (and not very common), for ~$6k under market value. While I was on the phone with the bank, someone else hit BIN button and I'm still crying over it. I could have flipped it for the $6g the next day if I decided I couldn't afford it. And BTW, it was showroom perfect w/ 50k miles of factory warrantee left. (Diesel).

[Tervuren]

I sued to browse/buy on ebay a lot years ago. Now, its not really auctions anymore on items I'm looking at. Things priced at 99 cents with S/H costs exceeding the real price of the item. Ebay now has huge portions of listings with no real "auction" to them, with starting bigs and buy it nows being the same for all practical purposes.

Everynow and then I'll glance at 924's, 944's(mainly tofind at paint color/wheel combinations I like) replica's, other makes, and search for Fuchs wheels, but thats about it.

[Joeaksa]

I buy and sell a lot of airplane parts there and its still a good place for that. It has really changed and there are a lot of screwballs there.

Personally I am pissed at Fleabay after their last rate change while trying to make Meg more millions and am looking for alternatives. CL has been good and used it more and more. Gunlist.com has been excellent for sporting type stuff.

[the]

It's really made the purchase of stolen and counterfeit goods so much more convenient.

[jkarolyi]

>It's really made the purchase of stolen and counterfeit goods so much more convenient.

Much less so than a local flea market. When I had a laptop stolen out of my car I searched on eBay for it for a few months after. It had a scratch on the screen which is easy to identify. It didn't show up there unfortunately, but if it did, I would have nailed the guy! If I were a criminal I'd be nervous about selling stolen stuff on eBay.

[89911]

They are the only real game out there. Good and bad. I've had very poor luck with Craigslist. Because of its no fee ad placement, many throw there stuff on it with no real intent to follow through with the sale. I looked for a used mountain bike and a large screen TV on CL and I would say out of 10 inquiries, 25% replied back. And that may of been a week or so later. Never completed a deal. I guess if your looking for a nude massage it works out. I've found Ebay to be good as long as your interest in buying or selling focuses on a particular group. When selling Porsche items, I've had great success because I feel like they are similar in interest and all around honest people. When I venture into more main stream interest, (TV monitors, Mp3 players), then I run into the problems of those trying to make a quick buck. All in all, Ebay has worked for me.

[tabs]

I used to buy and sell Art and other assorted collector items and did quite well.

I still use their search engine for mainly Spoons and selected Artists that I try and collect. I never go and look through the lists anymore.

I really should get busy and start to clean out the stuff that I no longer want to get the money out of it and move on. But am very wary of all the BS buyers and fees E-bay imposes. However I can't think of another alternative to sell Grandmas old stuff where U can get fair market value.

[nota]

i GOT MY 944 on Craigslist
from a fool , he broke a starter wire and sold cheap
as he a afraid to fix it, and too broke to go to a shop
also got two volvo's there

E-bay has got me two boats
one local I looked at before bidding [ last second snipe ]
30ft sloop made in holand [contest]
I got for the price of the new diesel in it
and a hobie cat in ohio that I leave to get sunday
thats my main problem with e-bay
the good deal are far far away
or get sniped away from you

see you guys in a week or so
me and my 300sd hit the road in the morning

[HardDrive]

I purchased my 82 911 off E-bay, and it went very smoothly. I purchased it from an individual, and the way he went on and on about the car, you could tell he loved it.

I have only been ripped off once, and paypal buyers protection refunded my money. Otherwise, I have 40 transaction that have been 100% perfect.

Just got my wife a pair of Tiffany earrings from a guy in Louisiana. I paid $699. Took them into the Tiffanys in Seattle and asked them if they were real. They were authentic, an older style from about 5 years ago. They sold for $3000 at the time! Score.

I'm very selective about my sellers. Anything less than 99%, and I am less likely to buy.

My rating? 100%

[RANDY P]

Ebay is only really useful for anyone looking for rare items, and are willing to pay.

As of operating online - I would assume that due to skinny margins, iffy vendors (fraud) and limited communication that would make Ebay not nearly as competitive as an established online company (like Pelican)

On the subject on buying a car - I'm sure there are success stories, but why? I would be deathly afraid of someone selling something well below market value and going through the hassle of selling it online. Between the fees and all the horror stories as well as sheer hassle, only the truly price driven would actually risk it - Especially a big ticket item like a car.

Like I said, I'm sure there are success stories, but I'm doubly sure there are outright horror stories.

An antique, a great place to sell. A readlily available item (like a newer car) - beware.

rjp

[tabs]

SO U WERE IN LAS VEGAS AND DIDN'T CALL TO GO OUT FOR A BUFFET>>U DOG>>>

[Stutzdriver]

I bought my sons 944 from a local seller who did not sell the car on eBay. I contacted him after the car closed and bought it for about $1000 under his eBay price.

My wife has sold postcards and paper collectables on eBay since 1996 with great sucess, she recently sold a book found at a local book sale for over $500.00 and this is not an unusual situation. she knows her items and describes them well and fairly, she has many repeat or referal buyers. She has bee burned only once and then it was only $15.00. She is not, however happy wioth the fee increases and some of their heavy handed policies. She DOES NOT take PayPal and avoids that hastle ns fee structure.

[VINMAN]

I only use Ebay for old collectbile stuff and junk like that. (what Ebay was originally devised for).
Other than that, I'm turned of by it since it has basically become an "online store" for new products.