OT:Ebay.

Ok, i am a new ebay user and i have a few questions.
Why would someone make their feedback private?
Why would someone offer something for 54.99 then a listing or 2 down have
the same thing for .99 when they have the same description?
man, i know nothing! lol
Piper

On Wed, 30 Nov 2005 15:11:28 –0600, Piper wrote
(in article <Hxojf.44705$6y4.41...@bignews3.bellsouth.net>):
From what I've gathered over the years, eBay is like any other auction.
Don't even try to figure it out because it'll drive you nuts. If you see
something you like, put a bid in and hope for the best...
––
Cheers!
Dennis
Remove 'Elle–Kabong' to reply

Piper wrote:
If feedback is private, they're trying to hide something.
A buyer may be buying embarrassing items, like porn.
A seller is undoubtedly hiding comments from previous buyers.
Personally, I wouldn't buy from a seller who has private feedback.

On Wed, 30 Nov 2005 16:11:28 –0500, "Piper" <jamiekatee...@yahoo.com>
wrote:
eBay claims that users make their feedback private for reasons such as
someone posted profanity or perhaps the seller's home address. I
rather doubt this is the case most of the time.
I've seen plenty of positive feedback which would read "quick shipping
even though it was fake" or some such thing. So you might see someone
with 100% positive feedback but there are damning details. "arrived
covered in cat vomit but seller gave discount!" is not my idea of a
"positive" experience! :)
If I see something I want to bid on but the seller has private
feedback, I write to them and tell them I won't bid until they make it
public again. So far none of them have done so – and I haven't bid,
either. One guy did write me back to say "You can trust me!" Uh huh,
yeah. Right. No explanation of why he made it private or just why I
was supposed to trust him. I've always heard that "trust me" is a
different spelling of F.U., if you get my drift.
I think if someone really DID make feedback private for a legit reason
(personal details posted or some such thing) then they would tell you
when asked.
CHECK THE SHIPPING! Seriously. I've seen MANY times where the seller
will do this:
Item 1: Green widget. $14.99 with $3.00 shipping.
Item 2. Green widget. $1.00 with $22.00 shipping.
My favorite right now is for a Lodis opera wallet I would like to
have. The seller has multiple auctions for the same thing so you're
certain to get it at the minimum bid of $79 with $10 shipping. Or you
can get "free shipping if you Buy It Now in my eBay store!"... for
$99.00.
Um, yeah.
Also read the description very carefully. The $54 item might be new
in the box. The 99c item might be carefully worded to gloss over the
fact that it's "just like new" or is a refurb or a closeout with the
tag slashed or marked in some way. Or they might just be testing to
see if anybody's awake. =)
Some sellers sell the real along with the fake. They could have
authentic Kate Spade they purchased on the cheap from an outlet and
also sell the infamous cherry print "200% authentic Kate Spade Sam
bag!" that came from Chinatown. Or in the case of perfume, one could
be a grotty tester and one in a sealed box.
I'm not saying every eBay seller is sneaky and underhanded, but there
are enough of them that you have to read every word as if it had a
double meaning, even those with only one letter. :)
I've had many positive experiences on eBay and a couple of dreadful
ones but I'm a REALLY cynical shopper when it comes to that site,
probably to the point I passed up some bargains but hey, whatever.
I even bought my last pair of eyeglass frames on eBay. $400 Chanel
frames were $179 from a lady in Spain. I love my optometrist, but
that's too much of a difference to say oh what the heck!
Leigh
––
Consequences, shmonsequences, as long as I'm rich. – D. Duck

Piper wrote:
The feedback question has been answered, but as for the differing prices:
Sellers do this all the time. The higher dollar amount is probably a
"Buy It Now" or store listing to create a perceived value for the item.
The lower amount is a straight auction that will not actually sell for
99 cents. The low starting bid gets attention and draws in potential
buyers who will bid against each other and bid the price up. The plan is
that the buyers will see the higher "buy it now" and say "wow, this item
is worth 54.99, I'll bid 30.00 and maybe get it cheaper."
If it really is worth 54.99, the lower item may have a reserve so it
won't really sell for .99.
mjoann

On Wed, 30 Nov 2005 16:11:28 –0500, "Piper"
<jamiekatee...@yahoo.com> choked out these words:
mjoann and Leigh gave you some great answers.
but if you're interested in learning even more about ebay, visit
the newsgroup: news:alt.marketing.online.ebay .
david
––
http://tinyurl.com/cq76v (ebay sales)
http://www.cafepress.com/derbarbier
http://shops.half.ebay.com/derbarbier

thanks all

Thanks for the tip amanda, that will be useful.
Piper

I went to the group 2 days but didnt read it til last night, it was more
fussing than anything.
Piper

Piper wrote:
In addition to what other posters are saying about private feedback,
perhaps the seller is selling items that he doesn't want his family or
workplace to know what he is selling.
If his private feedback is good, then why not?

Piper wrote:
You might try asking ebay–related questions in alt.marketing.online–ebay
in addition to alt.fashion.

Jean wrote:
You can still find out what he is selling or has sold by doing an
Advanced Search –> Items By Seller. I never buy anything from a seller
who has private feedback or who runs private auctions where you can't
see the other bidders. It just seems shady, and makes me wonder what
they are hiding.
Amanda

izzy wrote:
IMHO, they are pretty ruthless over there.

On Fri, 02 Dec 2005 13:01:52 –0500, Jean
<highs...@suscom–maine.netNOSPAM> choked out these words:
they can be, it's true. but you must admit, that's only when
someone trolls the NG, or posts a link to their own auction, and
says, "OMG! look what i just found, i never knew these
existed!!!!!!1"
david
––
http://tinyurl.com/cq76v (ebay sales)
http://www.cafepress.com/derbarbier
http://shops.half.ebay.com/derbarbier

Jean wrote:
They can be vicious over there, but they're the pros. The questions
Jean is asking have probably been asked and answered multiple times there.

izzy wrote:
Nope, not me asking, Izzy....