Am I crazy about some of the changes? No. But here’s what I’ve done in response.

Fees
Back in February, eBay made several changes to it’s pricing structure. Essentially, front end fees went down and back end fees went up. I like to call it Amazonification. This was actually a good thing for me, particularly with respect to the free gallery change. I used gallery on everything prior to the changes, so my fees actually decreased monthly.

Rumor has it more fee changes are on the horizon. Insertion fees are expected to be decreased even more as a way to promote fixed price listings. This would also work well for me. I sell only FP and Store Inventory.

Feedback
Now this is the one that irritated me. As of May 19th, sellers were no longer able to leave anything but positive feedback for buyers. Honestly, I agree with the majority here, this was an ill-thought out policy change and creates just as many problems as it purports to fix.

Luckily, I haven’t had any negative or neutral feedback given to me since the change. What I have noticed, however, is a steady increase in the number of UPIs and in requests to return items. Seems eBay buyers suddenly believe that a purchase is actually a “try it before you buy it” trial.

Granted, this change could merely be a coincidence, but I don’t think so. It seems to me that buyers realize there’s nothing I can do if they don’t read my return policy and follow it. Mind you, I’ve always offered a VERY liberal policy - 30 days, Money Back Guarantee - no restocking fee.

I’ve accepted returns for any reason and, up until now, very few buyers have taken advantage of it. The only requirement I have is that the items be returned in like new condition with all original packaging. Pretty simple, eh?

Suddenly, I’m receiving returns for the dumbest of reasons (ie. I purchased a remote trainer and thought it was an electric fence… huh??). A couple of weeks ago, a customer insisted a bark collar I sold him was defective. He wanted to exchange for a new one. OK, send it on back.

What I received back was a muddy, chewed up mess that obviously was used and guess what? It worked perfectly. He flat out told me that if I didn’t exchange it, I could expect negative feedback. Is this the type of buyer eBay is hoping to attract?

In light of this, I’ve made several changes to my return policy. First of all, you open it and use it - it’s yours. If it’s defective? Guess what, there’s a warranty - use it. If you return it to me and your dog used it for a chew toy? You can pay to have it sent back to you, otherwise consider it a donation to my local animal rescue shelter.

I hate to be that way, I really do. I want my customers to be happy and go to great lengths to make sure they are thrilled with their purchase. After all, word of mouth is the best advertising. But, by the same token, I’m not Wal-Mart. I don’t do millions in business per day, and therefore I can’t bend over for people that can’t read or are just plain idjits.

Choice Listings
OK, this one I like. There are no longer restrictions on placing choices in your listing. Say I had a collar in 3 different sizes. I used to have to create three separate listings. No more. I can now list all three sizes, a definite savings in fees. The only trick with this is inventory management, but since I sell all repeatables, I don’t see this as becoming a major issue.

Links Policy
Yeah, this one is a blow. I’ve always included informational links in my listings. They led to more detailed product information on my website. Nothing for sale on the pages, but most buyers could easily browse the site and buy directly if they chose. No more links like that.

I also display Authorized Retailer logos for my products. They link to a statement I’m required to have by the manufacturers. I’ve been told that these will no longer be allowed. This is really stupid, IMHO.

First of all, I’m required by contract to provide this information. Second, isn’t instilling buyer confidence what eBay is aiming for? These logos assure my customers that they are purchasing from an authorized dealer which means their warranty is 100% valid. I really hope eBay revisits this decision.

Finally, a redo of my ME page is going to have to happen. I currently have a link to my website. Not pushy, just says “Visit us on the web”. That’s gotta go now, too. This isn’t a huge deal for me, as my logs show little traffic generated from that link, but all the same, I’m not thrilled. This is MY business and if eBay can post off-site links right on their search pages, I should be able to direct MY customers to MY off-site business.

While I’m not thrilled with all the changes, all in all, it hasn’t affected me too much and the initial shock of some of the change has worn off. I know that many sellers have been affected much more by all of this, and I truly feel for them.

As always, it’s a matter of adapting. If you’re able to adapt your business to remain profitable on eBay, then by all means, do so. I’ll be the first to say, when eBay is no longer profitable for me, I’ll be gone.

Good luck to all!

The rumors have now been confirmed and it’s official: Meg Whitman will be retiring as CEO of eBay effective March 31st. She will stay on as Director. Slated to take Meg’s place is John Donahoe, who currently runs the Marketplace division. Announced in the same article is eBay President Bill Cobb’s retirement which will take place later this year. What remains to be seen is whether this is a positive or negative change.

Also taking place tonight was the Q4 2007 earnings call. Of interest to sellers was the announcement that a new fee structure will be introduced sometime next week that will cut fees on auctions and fixed price listings. It’s assumed that eBay will also begin advantaging sellers with lower shipping and a good customer service record (remember those DSRs!).

Should be interesting…I’m still reserving judgment until I see the new fees. While many sellers are still moaning about the store fee increase of 2005, many of us simply adjusted our business plans to either make it work and/or began venturing to other sales channels. So far, the eBay boards seem pretty upbeat about the news tonight. Nice to see for a change

For a great synopsis of tonight’s call, visit Scot Wingo’s eBay Strategies Blog.

Some interesting things going on in the near future at eBay. Scot Wingo confirmed on his blog the other day that eBay has been “telegraphing some big changes coming to the fee structure“. A couple of the ideas being tossed around are category-specific fees and bulk listing discounts. Scot also reintroduced his “3F” approach to cleaning up eBay, proposing that fraud and finding need to be cleaned up prior to a fee adjustment. I couldn’t agree with him more. My guess is… NOT gonna happen.

Further speculation regarding the new fee structure is that eBay will lower listing fees (and include free or lower cost gallery) and increase the backend (FVF) fees. I guess I’ll reserve my opinion until the adjustments are announced. My guess is that this will be a boon for some sellers and a death toll for others. What I can’t wrap my head around is the whining that is already taking place on the eBay boards. Do these people just like to complain?

Listen folks, if you’re not willing to adapt your business to the changing times, economy, market, etc., etc., then perhaps sales/business isn’t the career for you. By adapt, I don’t even mean adapting to sell on eBay. If eBay has priced themselves out of the market for you, explore your alternatives. Be ready to do some work and research. If you’re not willing to be flexible and change/adapt your business plan to remain competitive (or afloat!), then you really should consider a regular 9-5er with a dependable paycheck.

I realize eBay is no longer the only “show in town”, but if you’ve ever run a B&M and seen the numbers that flow through on a monthly basis, you’d have to agree that it’s still a pretty decent bang for your buck. No matter what, the expected announcement next week should prove to be interesting (if nothing else, entertaining!).

1. What was the last thing you baked? Chocolate Pudding Cake

2. What was the last thing you tried on for size? Sweater

3. What was the last thing you purchased on credit? I rarely use credit… I think it was for one of my computers

4. What was the last thing you put a postage stamp on? eBay shipping

5. What was the last thing you took a photo of? My doggy

On the personal front, I’ve taken on (yet another) new hobby. Umm, did I mention I think I’m ADHD?? A few months ago, I tried using and then started making handmade soap. I did so strictly for personal use - I have super, super sensitive skin and almost every soap/detergent out there gives me red, itchy skin and sometimes hives. Yuck! So… I’ve been using handmade soap exclusively for about 6 months now. I’m telling ya, I swear by it! Not only has my skin been free of itchy flareups, it’s never been softer. I really don’t even need to use lotion anymore. Very, very cool! If you’re looking to try handmade soap, please visit my “net pal” Patty of PixieSoap.com. She has WONDERFULLY scented soaps that just feel good. She’s very reasonably priced and I promise, once you try handmade soap, you won’t go back to any other!

On the business front: WHEN is eBay going to learn that the holiday selling season is not the time to introduce new “glitchancements”? First of all, have you noticed the SYI form has changed? Yup, along with brand spanking new glitches! When trying to list new items yesterday with a custom weight, I received a message that my item weighed more than 150 lbs and I had to list shipping as Freight. HUH? The max weight I tried to list was 25 lbs. After emailing support, I was informed that this is a known issue, but there is a “workaround”. Gee… thanks. Here’s a thought - DON’T fix things that ain’t broke!

Next, we’ve been informed of a new multi-seller checkout system that eBay plans to introduce “by the end of this year”. Now, the checkout system does sound great - a bit more streamlined (read: easier for customers) while allowing payment to multiple sellers. But holy schmoly… why oh why would you attempt to introduce a major feature like this during, what is for many, the busiest shopping season of the year?

UGH… enough rant. I have to admit, while I wouldn’t consider myself an eBay cheerleader, overall I’ve been really happy with having a large portion of my business there. You would just think that a little more common sense (and perhaps a bit more bug-testing before roll outs) would prevail in a company the scale and size of eBay.

That’s all for today! Happy Fall and Happy eBaying!

But, I digress…

I’ve been making web templates for around 10 years now. I used to design blog templates regularly for a site called Blogfrocks.com (don’t bother visiting, it’s now defunct). I started selling auction templates on eBay about a year and a half ago and also here on my site. I got too busy with other things and kinda let it fall by the wayside (sorta like my jewelry which I create regularly but only sell when the mood strikes).

Anyhoo… the name of my blog, Creative Compulsion, pretty much says it all. When you’re an artist, any kind of artist, you have this kind of inner drive or compulsion that just doesn’t let go. This week I suddenly found myself desperately wanting to draw. That led to re-opening some of my archived templates. That led to saying “Hey, why not sell a few”. That led to a new category in my main eBay store.

I doubt I’ll offer them for sale here on CC so if you’re interested in seeing/purchasing, send me an email to sarah [at] creativecompulsion.com and I’ll be happy to provide you with a link to my store. AND… I’ll also give a 10% discount off BIN/Store Inventory Templates if you mention my blog when you purchase

I noticed that the majority of the comments are referring to pharmaceuticals. Interesting. Well, sorry bot-boys, I don’t really have much use for Cialis. Tramadol sounds interesting, but my allergy to codeine is probably going to keep me from trying it any time soon. Viagara, well, same as Cialis - but I promise to visit your site if I change my mind. Ambien - got that already, but I will be visiting you soon to see if you can beat my pharmacy’s rates. Damn insurance company has issues with Ambien all of the sudden. All in all, I truly appreciate the time you took to initiate these bots to offer me several drugs that I can obtain on the DL. Your marketing strategy clearly works and I have actually decided to follow in your footsteps and try a little spamming of my own:

Buy from Creative Compulsion on Etsy. Now. Cheap. Low shipping. Discreet. Buy from Creative Compulsion on Etsy. Now. Cheap. Low shipping. Discreet. Buy from Creative Compulsion on Etsy. Now. Cheap. Low shipping. Discreet. Buy from Creative Compulsion on Etsy. Now. Cheap. Low shipping. Discreet.

Wow… somehow that was bizarrely therapeutic

1. Voices :: Schizophrenia
2. Have to :: Needful
3. Machine :: Cog
4. Seventh grade :: My son
5. Beach :: Cape Cod
6. Roommate :: College
7. Cyclone :: Twister
8. Theater :: Loge
9. Pregnant :: My sister
10. Phoebe :: Cates