eBay sucks

totallyfrozen · Aug 10, 2017

I ONLY buy the on eBay, never sell. I buy on there all the time, but I've never tried to sell on there. I'm not a seller, though. The only things I have to sell is used stuff that I could sell on Craigslist or in a garage sale.

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totallyfrozen · Aug 10, 2017

ProteinNerd said:
I love the low ball offers combined with a sob story and how much they love your jacket but can't afford that much right now.

Another one sent at least 10 questions asking for detailed info about Cafe racers in general after the tenth with no offers or questions around price I asked if they were interested in buying. Turns out they weren't, but just wanted some info on leather jackets in general...

Ugh! That's ridiculous. They'd rather take your time with a wad of emails than spend 30 minutes on Google. That stuff and eBay's highway robbery is why I don't try to sell anything on there.

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casechopper · Aug 10, 2017

Grailed is another site that is focused on clothing. It's been pretty popular in some other forums that I use. You still are stuck with paypal for payments but I think the fees are considerably less than ebay. If getting low ball offers bothers you it might not be the best place to go though as that's quite common there.

Monitor · Aug 10, 2017

I hated it for all the same reasons and I was constantly at a loss 'cause of their idiotic fees, until someone here told me to just ask for 1/3 of the price on top of what I originally planned to sell the item for.

And it works. I mean, it didn't seem to do any harm to my sales. If someone wants something, I dunno, the jacket you're selling, they'll buy it - same as how people who make lowball offers, in 99 out of 100 cases won't buy your stuff (nothing bad about that, I've been there, too). And while I've had my share of laughable offers, so far I've managed to sell everything I listed. Sometimes even making a nice profit.

Absolutely the worst are the people who come in with a joke of an offer ($80 for a brand new Vanson, for example) and then when I refuse, they try to explain why their offer is the best I'll ever get. I've had this nutjob insisting that the badge holder holes on the jacket are damage and that the price should be lowered accordingly.

So I've, so far, had no issues as a seller but I have been very unlucky as a buyer. Like, half of all the jackets I bought were restitched mess.

handymike · Aug 10, 2017

I've been lucky as both buyer and seller.
The only Kerfuffle was when I sold an expensive watch to someone in South America. The shipping was crazy (hundreds in fees on both ends). I had no idea I couldn't send things through the post office like I usually do.
No more sales to certain countries.
If you want the maximum exposure in the quickest time, then eBay is your best option. If you are patient, then I'd go through the boards.
Like they say: "Good, fast, cheap- pick two."

plainsman · Aug 10, 2017

I am not very keen on Ebay. For jackets, I bought through the classifieds of the fedora lounge. To sell stuff, i use a very popular and free site in France, le bon coin)

bn1966 · Aug 10, 2017

Problems as noted but I still find eBay invaluable for selling as well as buying...can't see any viable alternative at present...shifted at least 16 jackets on the Bay over the last two years compared to only one via the classified.

tropicalbob · Aug 10, 2017

ton312 said:
I will say I was burned horribly as a buyer once. Bought a really cool cop coat of a guy, a Passaic NYPD. One sleeve was literally glued on. Of course when I put it on it came unhinged in the back. It literally just peeled off the jacket. When I filed a case with pics to eBay...they sided with the seller and claimed I damaged it. That one shocked me and I had the sleeve sewn back on at my expense but man it pissd me off. I even sent copies of our correspondence where the seller said he's been wearing it that way for years...all to no avail. I sold the jacket after having it repaired. Couldn't get rid of it fast enough as the taste it left was so damn bitter.
Nevertheless my saved searches are checked regularly.

I had a similar experience on Ebay and it was the last time I've had anything to do with them. These days I get most of my stuff from Etsy, where I've never had a problem. Right now I'm thinking of selling a couple of good guitars, in the $3,000-4,000 range, and I'm going to do it through Reverb.com and a friend who has a music shop. There are alternatives.

Doctor Damage · Aug 10, 2017

Americanaaa Mark said:
Just sucks if you have some stuff to offload and you want it gone quickly. It can take months to sell your clothing on here and related sites.

Without e-Bay, selling your gear would take even longer. Just sayin'.

Plumbline · Aug 10, 2017

Most (90%) of my jacket purchases and sales are on ebay .. TBH I've found it to be really good and have only ever had a handful of issues (none with jackets). I do get frustrated with the way ebay has a bias towards buyers when I'm a seller but luckily I've seldom had to use the help function or contact ebay directly.

I do look quite closely at who I sell and buy from ( feedback etc.) and am very careful when selling abroad (to certain countries) .... the principles of "caveat emptor" are always built into what I am prepared to pay and I am always on the hunt for a bargain.

The size and scale are what makes them attractive and the alternatives are much more niche.

Guppy · Aug 10, 2017

Doctor Damage said:
Without e-Bay, selling your gear would take even longer. Just sayin'.

You can move things quickly on ebay. List it for a penny, and let it ride for ten days. You may not get what you want for it that way though. It sucks that they charge extra to list things with a reserve price.

rocketeer · Aug 10, 2017

I only sell small, low value items on the dreaded eBay. If I buy something for £1-£2-£5 etc I can usually, after fees, double my initial outlay which is a better return than a banks interest. Usually I will have around 10-20 items on the go, not all sell but then I am only an amateur dealer. Very rarely these days do I put anything of real value on there.
What does bug me is buyers want their items sent the same day despite a notice of 5 days for posting.

Sloan1874 · Aug 11, 2017

A good guide for setting your expectations on a buying price is to look at when the auction ends. If it goes Sunday evening 7.30-ish to 9.30-ish pm, you can reasonably expect it to go for the upper-end of the price range on a sale as you have a lot of people sitting at home trying to avoid the prospect of Monday coming around and willing to spend money to get something. Outside of those times, it's a bit more random. I had the good luck to get a good-as-new Joe McCoy thermal top that went mid-Monday afternoon for £30. Given that it costs £95 I consider that a decent price.

ton312 · Aug 11, 2017

Sloan1874 said:
A good guide for setting your expectations on a buying price is to look at when the auction ends. If it goes Sunday evening 7.30-ish to 9.30-ish pm, you can reasonably expect it to go for the upper-end of the price range on a sale as you have a lot of people sitting at home trying to avoid the prospect of Monday coming around and willing to spend money to get something. Outside of those times, it's a bit more random. I had the good luck to get a good-as-new Joe McCoy thermal top that went mid-Monday afternoon for £30. Given that it costs £95 I consider that a decent price.

This is a very good point. I rarely auction but when I do I use the same time frame Sloan referenced. I once sold a very nice but certainly not all that special Bates jacket with exactly this time frame and was giggling at the last bids coming in. From Japan of course. But still it's very true. Sunday evening auctions bring out the best bidders. Buy it now sales require a bit more patience or realistic resale goals.

bn1966 · Aug 11, 2017

Same here as Ton312 & Sloan with time frames...Sunday evening

for an auction & BIN for items that don't have a popular appeal...

Dumpster Diver · Aug 26, 2017

It's a double edged sword, I got some great stuff for a good deal and vice versa been burned by deadbeats.

I'm selling some things now to make ends meet, We'll see how it goes.

Bern1 · Aug 26, 2017

Yes, ebay sucks for sellers and I keep swearing I will never use it again to sell. At the end of the day though, I have to admit it's that buyer bias that makes it so successful for actually selling things. People feel comfortable buying, so sellers sell!

I've bought and sold, cheap and expensive. I find that, as a seller, if I truly take the time to list properly, take good photos, write a completely accurate description and price realistically after having done price research, it generally works out. Basically, you have to treat the buyer like you would like to be treated as a buyer. It takes a lot of time and effort though. Yes, there are stupid questions but there always are, even in a brick and mortar store.

eugenesque · Aug 26, 2017

This was one of the reasons why eBay didn't succeed in China and Jack Ma's Taobao managed to kick it out.

ProteinNerd · Aug 26, 2017

I always use the buyer restrictions below to weed out the dodgy types. Touch wood but I haven't really had any issues yet.

Anyone who meets any of these criteria cannot bid or buy my items.

Have received 2 unpaid item(s) within 12 month(s)
Have a primary postage address in a location I don't post to
Have a Feedback score of -1 or lower
Have a Feedback score of 5 or lower and haven't gone through phone verification

ButteMT61 · Aug 26, 2017

Bern1 said:
...
I've bought and sold, cheap and expensive. I find that, as a seller, if I truly take the time to list properly, take good photos, write a completely accurate description and price realistically after having done price research, it generally works out. Basically, you have to treat the buyer like you would like to be treated as a buyer. It takes a lot of time and effort though. Yes, there are stupid questions but there always are, even in a brick and mortar store.

I found that the more effort I put in like that, the more I got hosed. Luckily, I took pics of everything - box, label, receipt from USPS, etc. That made the effort more than it was worth, but it paid off when fighting Paypal. The limitations sellers can impose are lame, and that you can't give buyers feedback is an outright scam. Never again.

eBay sucks

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