eBay's Long Beach Memo

Subscribe to our 2 FREE Newsletters!

Web AuctionBytes

Home

Subscribe

Blog

Letters to Editor

Podcasts

Forums

AuctionBytes TV

ABU Back Issues

Sponsor

COOL TOOLS

Calendar

eBay Fee Calculator

Collectors' Links

eBay Promo History

Bookshelf

Fraud Resources

Auction Site Fees

Auction Management

Payment Services

Storefronts Chart

Sniping Chart

Consignment Services

Drop-Off Store Laws

Ecommerce Resources

Photo Tips

Marketing Inserts

Yellow Pages

Classifieds

AUCTIONBYTES

Our Writers

Write For Us

Partners

Press

Advertising

About Us

Link To Us

AuctionBytes Blog
News and insight focusing on
ecommerce and the online auction industry
by Ina Steiner, Editor of AuctionBytes.com

February 13, 2009

eBay's Long Beach Memo

By: Ina Steiner

Fri Feb 13 2009 14:35:28

eBay's corporate blogger Richard Brewer-Hay published a letter from eBay's Vice President of Seller Experience about the recent top-secret top-seller meeting in Long Beach, California this week. Dinesh Lathi confirmed eBay was in Long Beach to meet with some of its larger West Coast sellers. He also confirmed that eBay made sellers attending the meeting sign non-disclosure agreements, stating eBay believes the practice "helps keep the meetings a lively exchange of ideas and because people are more likely to tell us the unvarnished truth if they believe they are speaking in confidence."

Dinesh explained the reason for the meeting: for feedback on eBay's conceptual ideas and how to shape them into actual product or policy changes; to ask sellers for their partnership; and to ask sellers for help in eBay's battle to define the future of ecommerce.

Actual news contained in the memo:

eBay is moving to a twice yearly product release cycle. Any product or policy change that will significantly disrupt a seller's business (i.e. a change that could break their templates) will happen in either the spring or fall.

eBay will announce such changes 60 days in advance.

eBay will preview such changes with a cross section of sellers along with their Certified Providers.

eBay will continue to roll out new products and changes to the buyer interface at any time.

eBay will have more of these seller meetings throughout 2009.

Comments (53) | Permalink

Readers Comments

eBay's Long Beach Memo

by: ss

Fri Feb 13 14:48:18 2009

To all you Bonanzle flag wavers.

Does anyone remember Up4Sale about 10 years back. Well they got a little big with their free listing and guess who gobbled them up.

Don't think Bonanzle couldn't be taken over by Ebay. Money talks and Ebay has plenty of it.

eBay's Long Beach Memo

by: getem

Fri Feb 13 14:59:34 2009

@ss

Just because you view everyone as having scummy dollar ambitions, doesn't make it true. There are people with integrity.

@the memo-
They want to win our business - well big bucks sellers, for sure. I don't trust them and I will continue to support other smaller venues. Ebay- You had our business and our loyalty and chucked us all out to find new homes.

Get rid of Donahoe for starters. Then we might take you seriously.

eBay's Long Beach Memo

by: dcsbodyjewelry

Fri Feb 13 15:04:07 2009

It really sucks that ebay's elite are the only opinions that matter. The other 99% of us sellers are completely ignored.

I hope Ebay fails miserable in their quest to reinvent themselve to a fixed price, free ship commodities site catering exclusively to the top 10-12 sellers in each listing category as it appears more and more to be the case looking who gets best match and who doesnt.

My sales continue to worsen as my listings rarely every get better that 3 pages deep in best match when my listings close, and that with 4.9 DSRs, fixed price multiple quantiy listings, offering free shipping on items I typically had an 80 percent or better sell thru rate prior to best match.

Listing on ebay is like flush money down the toilet unless you get a fair ammount of best match exposure. I used to do well when I was a power seller with a store on the site. Now, the best I can hope for is that listings show up at all even in non default searches using the eact same keywords as my larger competitors.

eBay's Long Beach Memo

by: getem

Fri Feb 13 15:04:46 2009

Got to wonder if this is related to Meg's announcement to run for Governor of CA. "John, keep 'em quiet over there."

eBay's Long Beach Memo

by: ss

Fri Feb 13 15:29:15 2009

@getem

Read it again. I never said everyone has scummy dollar ambitions you said that

But now that you mention it Ebay has again and again proven they have scummy dollar ambitions.

eBay's Long Beach Memo

by: Clay

Fri Feb 13 15:33:02 2009

Well I guess it does appear that 50 sellers will be deciding the future of everyone else on eBay. Well the buyers are really in for a trick or treat site now. 2 of those kind of sellers feedbacks are 31 NEGS out of 1700 sales, and 36 NEGs out of 2700 sales. These are now the eBay elite diamond sellers whom eBay has decided are the best sellers for you buyers....Have fun at the Halloween party

eBay's Long Beach Memo

by: 180178

Fri Feb 13 15:45:22 2009

@Getgem:

''Just because you view everyone as having scummy dollar ambitions, doesn't make it true. There are people with integrity.''

There are? Where?

Don't you think for a minute that everyone doesn't have a ''price''. Don't think for a minute that if the operators of Bonanzle, Etsy, iOffer, Blujay, and others were to get a cash offer from eBay that would put them on easy street for the rest of their lives they wouldn't take it.

Don't be so naive.

eBay's Long Beach Memo

by: ebay=penny stock

Fri Feb 13 16:24:18 2009

@getem

Only a idiot could believe that ebay is a up front above board company.

Ebay gives greedy new meaning.

eBay's Long Beach Memo

by: getem

Fri Feb 13 16:28:59 2009

@all of you

I wasn't referring to Ebay having integrity. That would be naive. I meant the creators of Bonanzle. I do believe they are people who don't sell out.

eBay's Long Beach Memo

by: Joe

Fri Feb 13 16:57:06 2009

FALL CHANGES...

JUST IN TIME FOR THE CHRISTMAS SELLING SEASON...SCREW EVERYONE EACH YEAR EBAY.

eBay's Long Beach Memo

by: ebay=penny stock

Fri Feb 13 17:05:02 2009

@getem

Everyone has a price. If you think the people of Bonanzle would turn down a lot of money where they could retire and never worry about anything the rest of their life I have some waterfront property to sell you.

eBay's Long Beach Memo

by: Sell out 4 sure!

Fri Feb 13 17:39:27 2009

Bonanzle will sell if it has a chance for sure. I bet they probably already have legal issues with fraud, big brands, etc. They are just not big enough to be considered relevant, at least not yet. Bring on the lawsuit. But then it is pretty normal to be suit from every single corner when you have an auction site.

eBay's Long Beach Memo

by: 243208

Fri Feb 13 18:07:17 2009

Does it bother anyone else besides me that eBay is now holding secret meetings with only a small fraction of all seller?

AND they had to sign NDA? I find it odd, and am not looking forward to their big announcement. I sure am glad I am not a small or medium sized commodities sellers or I would be #*+$#@!!!!

eBay's Long Beach Memo

by: getem

Fri Feb 13 18:24:46 2009

Craig's List didn't sell out. They stood toe to toe with Ebay and told Meg to take a hike.

eBay's Long Beach Memo

by: Patricia

Fri Feb 13 19:33:41 2009

Where have you folks been? The writing has been on the wall since Norrington stated that 12 month powersellers take presidence over small long time sellers. Hah! Some 12 month powerseller has more weight with Ebay than my 10 year spotless record! Norrington said anybody who is a powerseller for 12 months or more is "trustsworthy". Well...then this 10 year untrustworthy seller will just take her listings and her spotless reputation elsewhere! At this point you don't make many sales on Ebay so there is very little difference between listing there or listing on Bonanzle....oh...except Bonanzle is free to list and gives you a shop ;-)

Any meeting of sellers that has to be held in secret isn't something that will do any of the rest of us a bit of good! Ebay can keep its underhanded dealings to itself - they will weigh them down even more as the ship sinks!

eBay's Long Beach Memo

by: Et tu, Brute!

Fri Feb 13 20:25:20 2009

* * * I wrote a comment, then decided not to post it. I really am beginning not to care what ebay does anymore, what happens with ebay, why sellers are still clinging to it, blah blah blah. Time to get another life, folks * * *

eBay's Long Beach Memo

by: SickOfBonnySpammers

Fri Feb 13 20:52:44 2009

Is anyone else getting a little tired of every thread about eBay or any other auction venue becoming an endless load of keyword spam for Bonanzle? Surprized auctionbytes allows the site to be abused by them.

It's turned me completely off the Bonanzzzzzzzzle site already and I've not even seen it yet. I assume when you join you leave your brain at the door and then have to spam ten websites to get your shiney members pin? I'm sure a gaggle of cheerleaders will correct me if I'm wrong.

As for eBay, because I think that's what this thread was meant to be about, I just can't believe there isn't someone on the staff confident enough about their wedding tackle to look Donahoe in the eye and tell him how the real world works.

Thanks for that. Back to the Bonanzzzzzzle spamcast ;-)

eBay's Long Beach Memo

by: They will sell out one of these days.

Fri Feb 13 20:59:31 2009

Craigslist may not sell to another corporate company however, they are just a facade. It is also a money making making machine for a few exclusive people. Think about it. Earn to pay for only 15-20 employees or earn to pay for over 10,000 employees?

eBay's Long Beach Memo

by: Maybe IT is working.

Fri Feb 13 21:05:33 2009

@Et tu, Brute!

Maybe there are people who are actually making a profit on eBay. Maybe there people that genuine love using it. With over 10 millions registered members, you are saying that not one of them is actually loving it? Give me a big break. People who likes eBay are probably not on any blog or chat board complaining.

eBay's Long Beach Memo

by: Patricia

Fri Feb 13 22:29:16 2009

Small sellers are trying very hard to build alternative sites for themselves....so if they mention BONANZLE.COM OR ESTY.COM or any of the other small up and coming sites just either ignore it or deal with it....its part of the marketing and I'm think Ina may understand that!

Click to view more comments
1 2 3 [Next Page]

Recent Posts

Recent Comments

Archives


Site Index Copyright 1999-2009. Steiner Associates LLC. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy.