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Ebay vs Amazon.. In the words of Harry Hill.. "Which one is better?.....FIIIGHT!"
Every day, buyers and sellers log on to the world wide web in the hopes of finding a treasure or earning some big bucks. With the internet being as large as it is, there are plenty of auction sites to consider. In that spirit, this article attempts to compare two of the largest, most well-known auction sites in existence. They are both popular, offer excellent features for both buyers and sellers and are in constant competition with one another. Amazon and eBay are the auction sites of topic and while, in many ways they are alike, there are an equal number of ways in which they differ.
Beginning with similarities, both eBay and Amazon charge their sellers a listing and final value fee. The listing fee, from both auction sites, is non-refundable even if the item does not sell. However, an unsold item may be relisted for free at both Amazon and eBay auction sites. Amazon Auctions charge their sellers a $.10 listing fee with the possibility of having all listing fees waived if the seller signed up for a Pro Merchant Subscription. Where listing fees are concerned with eBay, the minimum fee is $0.25 for a starting bid of $.01 to $0.99. If an eBay seller opens an eBay Store, listing fees may be as low as $.05 each.
An unfortunate aspect of internet auction commerce, but a presence nonetheless, is an uncompleted transaction. This usually occurs when a buyer fails to send payment. In this instance, both eBay and Amazon auctions will refund the final value fee for that particular auction, which is based on the final bid amount. Both auction sites also provide seller tips and a bulk loader program, which allows the seller to upload a number of auctions all at once.
One of the greatest differences that stand out amongst these internet auction powerhouses is their policy on poor seller performance. According to Amazon's website, the company reserves the right to charge sellers a fee for poor seller performance. The amount of this fee is not mentioned and, therefore, sellers have no way to know how much this fee may be. According to Amazon Auctions, reasons for this fee may include excessive refunds, high rates of A-Z Guaranteed claims filed against the seller and/or credit card chargebacks related to Amazon Auction payments. According to Amazon Auctions, they will communicate any charges to the seller prior to assessing them. On the other hand, eBay auctions has an entirely different approach to seller performance. Their 'Item Not Received' complaint process was recently changed to a 'Fraud Alert' system, which allows buyers to file a complaint with eBay if they do not receive their merchandise or if it is not as advertised. Much like the non paying bidder complaint process, the seller has an opportunity to respond to any complaint and communicate with the buyer in order to resolve the dispute. If an amicable resolution cannot be reached, the buyer may close the complaint and request a refund under eBay's Buyer Protection plan. In order for an item to qualify, it must be priced at a minimum of $25.00 (excluding shipping & handling).
In recognition of it's most well-performing sellers, eBay offers it's PowerSeller program. This membership is restricted to sellers who earn a minimum of $1,000.00 in sales each month and maintain a 98% or greater feedback rating. The PowerSeller program is exclusive to eBay and it's members. Few other auction sites can come close to the number of buyers, sellers and merchandise that is offered on eBay every day. Regardless, entrepreneurs are grateful for the competition of other auction sites. It is this competition that inspires greatness, which promotes more customer incentives and lower listing fees for sellers.
Wednesday 2 December 2009
Ebay vs Amazon
Ebay Fined £1.5 Million For LVMH Sales On French Ebay
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From BBC News:
A Parisian court has fined eBay 1.7m euros (£1.5m) after ruling that it had not kept to an injunction banning users from selling on LVMH perfumes.
eBay users in France are blocked from selling certain branded perfumes -including Christian Dior, Givenchy and Kenzo - on the internet auction site.
eBay said the injunction hurt consumers and called it an abuse of "selective distribution".
The company added that it hoped the ruling would be overturned.
"Today's outcome hurts consumers by preventing them from buying and selling authentic items online," said Alex Von Schiermeister, director of eBay Europe.
"The injunction is an abuse of 'selective distribution'. It effectively enforces restrictive distribution contracts, which is anti-competitive.
"We believe that the higher courts will overturn this ruling and ensure that e-commerce companies such as eBay will continue to provide a platform for buyers and sellers to trade authentic goods."
He added that the fine was "disproportionate given that eBay complied with the injunction".
Reselling
Users in France are being blocked from selling on the LVMH products, even if they are genuine and unused.
LVMH has previously accused eBay of brand counterfeiting and of using some of the keywords of LVMH brands in its adverts.
It said that sales on the site violated Christian Dior's distribution network, which only allowed sales through specialist dealers.
French sellers have also been blocked from selling the perfumes on the UK website.
In the UK, 150,000 perfumes in the top 20 brands were sold on eBay in the 12 months to September.
Monday 27 October 2008
Alternatives To Paypal & Ebay + Paypal in The News
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More than one in 10 Canadians who shop online have fallen victim to identity theft, with Ontarians hit the hardest, a survey released yesterday suggests.
The survey, conducted by Ipsos Reid on behalf of PayPal Canada, found that 12 per cent of all online shoppers polled in Ontario claimed they had been victims of identity theft. Albertans were second-hardest hit, with nine per cent reporting their identities stolen.
"People are doing more and more transactions online and that predisposes them to more chances of a fraudulent transaction happening," said Darrell MacMullin, country manager for PayPal Canada. "Fraud continues to evolve. Don't share information online that you don't want everyone to know."
Only eight per cent of respondents from British Columbia and Quebec were hit, while fewer than six per cent of respondents in Atlantic Canada reported having their identities stolen.
According to data from Phone Busters and the Canadian Anti-Fraud Call Centre, which is operated by the RCMP, Canadians have reported 8,048 cases of identity theft so far this year, totalling $7.3 million in losses.
In 2007, there were 9,971 cases of identity theft reported, totalling only $6.4 million in losses.
Globally, English-speaking countries have been hardest hit by identity theft, according to the study. Around 10 per cent of online shoppers in Canada, the United States and Britain reported having their identities stolen, compared to only five percent of respondents in France, Germany and Spain.
Online banking, Internet-based payment systems and social networks containing vast amounts of personal details are proving to be the newest frontiers where criminals can commit identity theft.
According to the PayPal study, more than 85 per cent of respondents are aware of identity theft. Many actively try to minimize their chances of falling victim.
Bob Spence, a spokesman for the Privacy Commissioner of Ontario said consumers should take several measures to protect themselves from identity theft.
He said consumers should conduct an annual credit check on themselves, as well as immediately report any activity they deem to be suspicious. He also said that consumers should regularly change their online passwords and be stingy when it comes to giving out personal details online.
Sunday 24 February 2008
Ebid Emerging As Serious Competitor To Ebay + No FEES EVER!!
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Okay hands up who has had enough of ebay monopolising the online auction market? Wow! that's quite a few hands! The truth is ebay in the last few months has really started to show it's nasty side. Most sellers now are really struggling to make a profit with their fees having recently just gone up - again. Many small business relied on ebay to sell their wares to a mass market, but now ebay & paypal have stuck the knife in & the fees are just too high to sustain a business let alone a profit! Ebid however has noted all the changes at ebay & have changed their terms accordingly. With so many sellers now leaving ebay in search of newer pastures, Ebid has seen a huge surge in new registered customers & rightly so. For starters they have zero listing fees & zero final value fees. This is where ebay has failed is customers by steadily incresing these fees over the years. Now it has got to a point where the sheer size of the combined fees of listing, final value & paypal fees overshadow any profit. Payment processors that ebid use are: Google Checkout (highly recommended) PPPay, & Paypal (let's not go there -right?!) If you want to start making a profit agian & have no fees ever - FOR LIFE! - I would ditch ebay today for good & switch to the rapidly growing fee-free world of Ebid.
Ebid News Update 2nd june 2008:
"After the announcement of Bidville closing down it's operations, Ebid is glad to offer their users a new home in our great value auction environment.
As part of our offer Bidville users can transfer their feedback AND obtain a free Seller+ lifetime membership with Ebid, saving themselves $49.99. A Seller+ membership gives you auctions with Zero Listing Fees and Zero final value fees for life. Just email to support@ebid.net your Bidville username, a screen shot of your feedback WITHIN the My Bidville area and let us know your new eBid username. Your account will be upgraded to Seller+ and your feedback added to your account.
This is a limited time offer and will not include any other current offers related to Seller+ Lifetime memberships."
Wow! things are just getting better & better at Ebid! - let's hope they can one-day challenge Ebay & stop the monoploization of the online auction indutsry & it's associated payment processor.
Thursday 14 February 2008
VelocityClicks Scam - Do Not Sign Up To This Site
Don't even waste your time with VelocityClicks. Eric Lew the serial scammer has been up to his old tricks again. Not so long ago a PTC website called icashout.net was recently exposed as a scam & Eric Lew was behind this as well. He is also known as theyoungmc@hotmail.com or theyoungmc as one of his referal names. visit:www.payperclickwebsitereview.blogspot.com for much more useful info regarding this scam. If you want to earn money from the PTC industry I seriously recommend visiting my blog mentioned above.
Wednesday 13 February 2008
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Monday 11 February 2008
Ebay Fee Hike Sparks Mass Exodus
Editor's note: This story was originally published Jan. 30 by CNN.Money
"If eBay's fee changes were meant to shore up market share at a time when sellers are increasingly migrating to competitors such as Amazon (AMZN, Fortune 500), initial response suggests it may do the opposite: eBay's veteran sellers are furious, with some forecasting ruin for their businesses.
"Ouch!" said Laura Ricciotti, a seller from Windsor, Ontario, about Tuesday's announcement of a new fee structure for the online auction giant.
Ricciotti said the new fees, set to go into effect Feb. 20, will pinch her already tiny margins selling children's books through her eBay (EBAY, Fortune 500) store, Read With Me Books, which began in 2000 with posts for a few auctions for baby clothes and other finds.
"Sellers need to remain competitive in their pricing to do well in eBay's global marketplace, and it will be very difficult to continue to do so and still see a profit," she said, under the new scenario."
And that was one of the gentler reactions
