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Wed Aug 10 2011 12:10:52

Another eBay Seller Expands to His Own Website

 By: Ina Steiner
Sponsored Link
Dear Ina,
RE: Mimi Kriele Story - This is the second "left eBay" story that has impacted my thinking. The first was about the fellow who was dealing in Japanese art prints.

I specialize in railroad historical memorabilia from across North America. At one time I had 7 retail stores. In 2004 I began migrating to eBay and closed my last store after the Christmas rush of 2004. Ebay was fantastic - until the spring of 2010. By September, they left me out to hang in the wind. I cannot tell you how frustrated & angry I was.

I had already started to build a Vendio store, but when I read the first article, I realized I had to start from scratch with a complete stand alone website. I've been building that since February and taking my time to make sure it is going to be unique to the marketplace.

This new story has just reinforced that I am making a sound business decision. I expect I will still use eBay's auction platform to help move the approx. 270,000 items in inventory, but what doesn't sell, will be posted to the website.

Thank you so very much for the great article by Mr. Corbin.
Sincerely,
Barry Stasiewicz
JusTrains Group



Comments (16) | Permalink
Readers Comments

Another eBay Seller Expands to His Own Website   Another eBay Seller Expands to His Own Website
by: Charlie W. This user has validated their user name.
       Web Site
Wed Aug 10 14:23:55 2011
This site needs a ''Like'' button! :-)

(Good luck, Barry!)
Another eBay Seller Expands to His Own Website   Another eBay Seller Expands to His Own Website
by: Gary
       
Wed Aug 10 15:50:09 2011
Your title needs to be changed. It is showing as Lionel 2010 Vol. II : Zen Cart!, The Art of E-commerce
Another eBay Seller Expands to His Own Website   Another eBay Seller Expands to His Own Website
by: Robbie
       Web Site
Wed Aug 10 15:51:25 2011
I know exactly what you mean Barry. We also left eBay and started our own online store.

But i would recommend that you also sell the other stuff at your store too.
Another eBay Seller Expands to His Own Website   Another eBay Seller Expands to His Own Website
by: Larry
       Web Site
Wed Aug 10 22:44:55 2011
This should open your eyes and wake you up. You might of helped ebay start up, but they could care less about you now. Use ebay as long as you need to establish your own website. Never put all your eggs in one basket (Ebay) they will get broken. www.txdashcovers.com
Another eBay Seller Expands to His Own Website   Another eBay Seller Expands to His Own Website
by: Digby
       Web Site
Thu Aug 11 00:48:25 2011
Yes people like Barry need to bite the bullet and move All their stuff to their own websites and alt sites like ebid.net and Bonanza.

Leaving stuff on ebay just encourages ebay to put their fees up.
Another eBay Seller Expands to His Own Website   Another eBay Seller Expands to His Own Website
by: Xander This user has validated their user name.
       
Thu Aug 11 02:33:17 2011
The truth of the matter is, there will never be another ebay. Those who were around in the early years know what it was like. Just about anything would sell and at a great price for buyer and seller alike. Back then, ebay was the price to shop, you could find anything there.  Since the economy worsened, prices have continued to climb, ebay corporate executives continued to work at making more profits for themselves and their shareholders but at the expense of the same sellers who made them millionaires.
There is still a little life in ebay and I do mean only a little so other venues are a minimum requirement and savvy sellers know they need their own site to direct customers to for the best prices.
We opened our own site through the bigcommerce platform in early 2010. Although the site is not yet enough, sales increase every month. We still use ebay some but only around 20% of what we were listing even a few months ago.
Times are rough, anyone who continues to hold onto ebay as their only sales outlet will be abandoned and left standing in the rain/ice alone.

Just a quick note- we dropped international sales via first class and Priority, now we only offer our international buyers express mail. This has gotten rid of the constant issue of ''wheres my item'' when the USPS tracking doesn't show any movement which is right after the local sort center scans the parcel.
Ebay has been and will continue to be even more of a gash in their sellers sides, one that never seems to heal because it keeps getting opened up with the constant changes.
Is there life after ebay? The statement should be more like, if you want to survive, you'd better diversify and leave ebay before they suck your product line  dry.
Another eBay Seller Expands to His Own Website   Another eBay Seller Expands to His Own Website
by: My Two Cents
       
Thu Aug 11 06:17:55 2011
Barry, Just a note to wish you all the best - each and every success off eBay is so encouraging.  eBay gave me a great set of training wheels - but I've never left an industry or job feeling more chewed up, used and abused than I have leaving eBay. Unappreciated is an understatement.
Another eBay Seller Expands to His Own Website   Another eBay Seller Expands to His Own Website
by: Happier Now
       
Thu Aug 11 06:28:49 2011
I too took my products and left. The crazy things Ebay does are not conducive to running a profitable business.

I notice more and more the bastardized pricing at Ebay. Nothing more now than a margin eroded platform in my opinion that has a moving target of rules that are not evenly enforced.

I am pleased to say my website has increased 100% every month and I have no crazy new ideas that ebay has that cost me money and or cause me to change my whole store to suit them!

It was a big decision, we all have to diversify to be effective in our game in this day and age.
Another eBay Seller Expands to His Own Website   Another eBay Seller Expands to His Own Website
by: Janie
       
Thu Aug 11 07:10:08 2011
Heres the comment everytime I open up my ebay:              Your seller performance is below standard under the US seller performance standards program.If you are not meeting minimum performance standards, funds from your sales may show as pending in your PayPal account and not be available for a period of time. Learn more about how to get your funds faster by providing tracking information and marking items as shipped.

We noticed that you've improved your seller performance--that's great news! However, you'll need to continue improving to avoid limitations.

Based on your ratings, we recommend you focus on writing better item descriptions for your listings, and communicating promptly and professionally.


Writing better item descriptions for your listings
Buyers rely on the information in your listing description to decide whether and how much to bid or buy. To better manage their expectations:

- Write simple and clear descriptions, with no misleading or conflicting information.
- Use original rather than stock photos.
- Provide details regarding the condition of the item, fully explaining any defects or flaws.


Learn more about how to improve your ratings with better item descriptions.

Communicating promptly and professionally
By keeping in touch with your buyers and maintaining a positive, professional tone, you can resolve many concerns before they become problems.

- Make sure nothing you say in your listing discourages buyers from contacting you.
- Respond promptly to all questions or concerns.
- Update your buyers on the status of their purchases.


Learn more about improving your ratings with better communication.

go to my ebay.  
I no longer sell since my fees were 1/2 of what I made in the last couple of months before I stopped selling.  There is life after ebay.  Give everything away or donate it to several good oganizations or have a huge garage or estate sale & move on with your life.  My life is so much better & I think even a minimum wage job would pay more than ebay after all the free work you add up & don't get paid for.  
Another eBay Seller Expands to His Own Website   Another eBay Seller Expands to His Own Website
by: Facing the FACTS!
       
Thu Aug 11 07:42:11 2011
ebay has become nothing but a rat chewing it's tail.

The biggest problem corporations have today is that once GREED and CORRUPTION set in, it is almost impossible to get rid of it.

Stockholders do not care how bloody the corporation is as long as they get their MONEY and they keep the bloody secrets buried from the public eye.

Because these corporations OWN our congress and courts they do not fear the law, no what these people FEAR is the LIGHT.  They fear the people waking up and seeing them for who and what they really are and then taking their money elsewhere.

The only smart thing people can and should do is keep working hard to get away from ebay and not becoming dependent on any other venue.  Use them but do not become dependent on them like so many of us have with ebay over the years.

If you notice, some of these other venues that are becoming more popular are starting to take on policies like ebay, and that is because as we feed them they keep getting bigger, and the HUNGRIER they become until they too are eating us for lunch just like ebay is.  Etsy is a perfect example of this.

It appears that as ebay chases Amazons tail, Etsy is chasing ebays.

Remember, when you sell on your OWN site, you pay no one but the merchant to collect the money.  Your policies your YOUR policies and best of all, it becomes YOUR store again, not ebays, amazons, etsy etc.
Another eBay Seller Expands to His Own Website   Another eBay Seller Expands to His Own Website
by: pace306
       
Thu Aug 11 08:47:45 2011
I too am looking into/am building a seperate site - to expand and move away from eBay - and Amazon as well. While I have the same gripes as most everyone here, my 2 biggest eBay issues are 1) non paying buyers and of course 2) Vero - the scum of eBay.

Non paying buyers have become a headache. Chasing after them , readjusting the inventories, having to babysit them each and every time they email with ''im new to eBay I didnt mean to press the buy button'', or ''even thought I bought 3, I really only wanted 1'' .. and ''can I pay you next week, I have a problem with my paypal account''.

As for Vero, they too are the cause of my looking to exit. Ebay gives manufactorers ''rights'' that are not in current US trade law, and gives them VERO as the mussle to remove competition! It then gives those manufactorers special deals on fees, searches, daily deals, and store(s) (for example Skullcandy). How many more BS MC019 unauthorized violations should I get?  First Sale and Lanham laws ''be damned'' because Vero doesnt care. (The best is when they send it saying those are DMCA violations, when they know that issue isnt even in DMCA - its in Lanham!)

I've been in the electronics industry since 1982, have worked for most large NE retailers so I am NOT a ''fly by night Chinese crap seller'', and I hate dreading opening my email every morning to see what eBay/Vero did to me over night. Its Russian Roulette - and Im tired of playing !

Amazon? more then a few catagories are totaly blocked (watches, clothing, shoes)(you cant sell an item as new - only used) and more then a few brands are blocked (pioneer, boston acoustics, sony, denon) - you cant sell them at all ... Im not in the text book business - so what should I do?!

Yahoo Store is it for me for now, and if it goes well - my own site.

Relying on anyone else for your success will only come back to bite you - on your own - you are much better off!
Another eBay Seller Expands to His Own Website   Another eBay Seller Expands to His Own Website
by: Quicksilver Messenger This user has validated their user name.
       Web Site
Thu Aug 11 11:10:58 2011
Having your own site(s) is the way to go. You don't have the unreasonable, draconian ways of eBay to haunt you and set your heart a-flutter every time you see you have a message to open.

You play by your own rules, set things up as you desire, and you don't have to feed PayPal! You can set up your own site very easily with WordPress.org for free, they take the guesswork out of it. Get yourself a domain through somebody like GoDaddy (just purchase the domain name,about $10 a year, not all the other stuff they try and get you to buy).

I recommend HostGator for hosting. You can get the Baby Plan for about 90 bucks a year. Unlimited domains!

Learn some basic on-page and off-page SEO, and you're good to go! There are many free tutorials on YouTube and Google for you to learn the basics. It's easier than you might think. If I can do it-so can you!

Do yourself a favor and wean yourself off of the egotistic, small business killing monster, eBay. You won't regret it!
Another eBay Seller Expands to His Own Website   Another eBay Seller Expands to His Own Website
by: MyLivelihood
       
Mon Aug 22 21:21:18 2011
to Pace306,

A comment/suggestion about Yahoo stores.  Search "yahoo stores" or any other website or site building tool along with the word "reviews" and read what other users have to say.

I have not encountered anyone with a positive experience from setting up a Yahoo store and selling there.  You will, however, get a lot of emails and phone calls from third party vendors who offer for fee services to make your store better, improve its search visibility, etc.  Don't believe them.

This is not likely to be a successful path for creating your independence from eBay and earning a profitable income.

But read the reviews of others, their stories, etc.

Another eBay Seller Expands to His Own Website   Another eBay Seller Expands to His Own Website
by: Time's Treasures
       
Tue Aug 23 12:00:39 2011
My home base is Ruby Lane, I have been there 11 years and totally happy! Basically they leave you alone to run your own business, providing only the ''umbrella'' venue. No they are not ''free'' but it's one of those ''you get what you pay for''  situations.

I thought about my own website but you can't just set up a domain and expect to be found, you have to ADVERTISE!! How to do the extensive (costly+++) advertising that will get me into search engine RESULTS??  So I joined Ruby Lane which is a seriously effective force doing that.  Ruby Lane seller items show up routinely on Google searches (I check).

Since eBay started banning many types of railroad artifacts, people have been looking for other sites on which to buy/sell railroadiana, and there is a good presence developing on Ruby Lane.

You can maintain your own website, and still sell on Ruby Lane. Another plus is the reputation for better antiques/collectibles, not just ''stuff.''
Another eBay Seller Expands to His Own Website   Another eBay Seller Expands to His Own Website
by: Treasury Antiques
       Web Site
Wed Aug 24 13:09:19 2011
We too closed our ebay store because of all the...nonsense. We moved our items over to Tias.com

We will only use Ebay when we come across a large value item that we know will get more exposure to sell on Ebay.
Another eBay Seller Expands to His Own Website   Another eBay Seller Expands to His Own Website
by: Treasury Antiques
       Web Site
Wed Aug 24 13:09:38 2011
We too closed our ebay store because of all the...nonsense. We moved our items over to Tias.com

We will only use Ebay when we come across a large value item that we know will get more exposure to sell on Ebay.


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