eBay Silences Founding 'Voices' Members

by: RicRoe

As I read this, the Voices program is not being eliminated.... Donahoe & Co are only eliminating 30 members from the panel...the oldest 30 members. Those 30 members likely represent small sellers.

The remaining 100 or so members obviously are the ones that march step to Donahoe's wishes and desires. The minute any remaining members oppose what Donahoe wants, they too will be removed from the program.

They may be volunteers, but in order to remain, they must volunteer to say yes.

by: J

Donahoe only seems to surround himself with sycophant drones and I would guess he got rid of anyone not fully agreeing with everything he wants done.

Meanwhile Donahoe keeps hiding from the common rabble like the megalomaniacal dictator he is.

by: SO SO SAD

You lousy sellers did this to ALL of us Good Sellers ! You Sellers who put up pictures of items that were not the same item you shipped, you sellers who took 6 weeks to ship orders, you sellers that charged $15 more than actual shipping. You sellers who gave buyers Negative because they told the truth and gave you a negative ! I am SO SO SAD since Donahoe runs the show, but I do agree somethings needed changed, John Donahoe just went overboard ! - But The sellers that did all of the above are the REAL REASON John Donahoe had to clean house, he just went to far !

by: Patricia

@so so sad:  you really think Donahoe is throwing out the good sellers with the bad?  Wrong!  He is throwing out the SMALL sellers both good and bad.  If you want to see what Ebay will become just go over and look at Amazon with a little bit of Overstock thrown in.  Good seller/bad seller means nothing to Ebay since both pay fees!

@Monster - you're the only one on this thread that personally attacked another poster!

by: Marvin

So So Sad - The lousy sellers had nothing to do with it; oBay refusal to deal with the problems as they came up is the real problem.

I quit selling over a year ago, and now casually follow what is happening. I find it sad that any company would destroy a loyal community in favor of their perverted MBA agenda :(.

by: SO SO SAD

eBay was funner when Meg Whitman ran it, HOWEVER she totally double crossed us, she hand picked her buddy John Donahoe and knew he was going to to that to us, that was her thanks for eBay customers making her filthy rich. John Donahoe is putting the heat on us sellers to live up to standards NOBODY CAN - This is so boring, this site will ONLY grow from the Big Boys like GM - The days of stay at home people making a living are just about done.

by: Linda

My God, they just can't stop their headlong rush to the cliffs, can they?

As RicRoe said:
"As I read this, the Voices program is not being eliminated.... Donahoe & Co are only eliminating 30 members from the panel...the oldest 30 members. Those 30 members likely represent small sellers."

Exactly. Us small sellers. As if we needed any more evidence that we are unwelcome riffraff in Donohoe's eyes.

I want to see him find multiple holes in his golden parachute--as he is plummeting in it. He killed so many of our EBay's businesses, at the time we can least afford it.

by: Linda

@Ming the Merciless:
"Precisely what we should expect from a fascist corporation run by a clinically narcissistic sociopath."

You have a sublime way with words, Ming! Take a bow.

by: Ex-eBay Titanium PowerSeller

Let's face it.... the old eBay is gone and the new eBay is moving to become nothing more than an overstock marketplace for large corporations.  Mom & Pop sellers are welcome, but don't expect eBay to care about you or consider your needs when making rule changes.  They're glad to take your money, though, to subsidize all the freebies given to the large diamond PowerSellers who list free on the site.

I was  Platinum PowerSeller for over 7 years and a Titanium PowerSeller for the last year I was on eBay.  I was an invited member of several eBay User Advisory Groups (similar to Voices) had direct contact with eBay & PayPal senior management.  From conversations with management, it became clear to me that eBay changes would continue to disadvantage the smaller seller as eBay chased a transformation into an Amazon-like entity.

I left and will never return.

by: Don Jonaho

Sounds like Hitler's purge of the SA brownshirts. No dissension is allowed or off to the camps with you. These 30 were probably the only ones telling Jackaho he was ruining Ebay.

by: What Me Worry

Heck this was coming...I saw it when I was in the program.

When Voices was founded, it's members were actually helpful to the employees in forming programs.

The past several years, many members felt that they were nothing more than "lab rats" as ebay measured reactions to already made decisions.

When the administrator of the program, Garnor Morantes, has to remind members to be positive about their comments and admit that he's hesitant about opening up the comments for all employees to view...they do not want to hear what they need to know...they want to hear what they want to hear...

Signed...former Voices member

by: Nancy Leckron

I am one of the effected Voices member's that was retired.  I value the time I spent giving my opinion on a varity of topics.  Remember people, we are real live human beings.  I gave my time for the greater good of the entire eBay Community.  Yes, I am a Proud Former Voices Member!

by: Ming the Merciless

@ Monster

Ming Shrugged and wrote:

If your reading comprehension was just a tad better, then you would have noticed that Ming's Law #2 has the word OR in it.

That is, ebay succeeds in removing speech they don't like which happens frequently on the ebay site OR they attempt to discredit the speech/messenger on other sites like sending you here to do their dirty work for them.

As for Ayn Rand and her "objectivism," this really isn't the proper forum for a discussion of silly philosophies so I'm not going to argue with you again on this subject.

As for posting all over the internet udner different names, that's not at all what I said but then I should have expected such a comment from someone who's obviously reading comprehension challenged who surely must have had to have read the Cliff Notes version of "Atlas Shrugged."

By all means, Monster, please keep posting here. We all need a good laugh from time to time.

Now we can continue on in this dead end vein or we can refrain from personal attacks and discuss issues.

Your choice, Trad Guy.

by: Monster

Thanks for proving my point...

You just keep posting like you live here while I go on with living my life... OK...?

OK...

by: EXV

This is hardly surprising - eBay has it's agenda hard-carved in granite, so right now, Voices members are being kept that will rubber-stamp the changes that are already imminent. Voices is basically a figurehead group and has been for a long time, and orgs like PESA and IMA have no pull with eBay either, (although the founders of those groups would love you to think so).

So I actually think this is a good thing - instead of pretending to care what sellers think, the wolf is out of sheep's clothing now, and can be easily spotted.

by: Steve

Donkey Hole has enough voices in his head I'm sure. Dictators only listen to the sound of their own voices.

No wonder our sales have picked up on eCrater and Bonanzle.  People have had enough and they are going elsewhere.

If you build it they might come but if you ruin what was already built they will flee.

by: radical

I have never before posted to or read much of this site. However,

Ebay is a publicly held company. When Meg was around there was a lot of "wa wa wa" that she was bringing the share price down. I guess now the scape goat is John Donahue.

Ebay is now part of the American and world culture. Its not going away. Will it be the same as when it started  close to 15 years ago. Never. But ask the folks in healthcare or the auto industry if their company is the same. Not bloody likely.

I would like to know how many other companies have programs like this? I have never been asked by my pharmacy or my grocery or warehouse store to provide input for their decisions.

Will the program go on, probably. Will everyone like the results, probably not. Does eBay still care about what users think? From what I see  on their numerous discussion boards, I believe so.

Are big sellers getting bigger. Yes. But can I still sell Aunt Martha's china tea set. Yes to that too.

"why so serious??"
the Joker

by: Still a Voice

I am saddened by this decision, but feel the need to reply to a couple comments made here.  I remain in the program, but have always been a small buyer/seller, and in fact, am currently at my lowest level ever, having only listed less than 10 items in the last six months.  Also, I am definitely not an eBay cheerleader.  I am disappointed in the direction eBay seems to be going.  As long as I am Still a Voice, I will remain an advocate for the small seller!  I don't think the program has the influence it once did, but I DO think it continues to have merit.

Those who are being removed this week will be sorely missed.  Those who were involuntarily removed in the past (or resigned under obvious pressure to do so), not so much.

by: Jim

At some point this will pass...and ebay will be passe.

by: J

''From what I see  on their numerous discussion boards, I believe so.''

You have got to be kidding! eBay with the help of many brown shirts and lieworld are constantly purging the boards of any who question eBay policies or employees. eBay could care less what the common seller thinks and proves it daily with censorship and silence from the executives.  

It's amazing what lies are propagated in the name of eBay.