Yes, you read that correctly: 12 years. eBay was created in September 1995, by a man called Pierre Omidyar, who was living in San Jose. He wanted his site - then called 'AuctionWeb' - to be an online marketplace, and wrote the first code for it in one weekend. It was one of the first websites of its kind in the world. The name 'eBay' comes from the domain Omidyar used for his site. His company's name was Echo Bay, and the 'eBay AuctionWeb' was originally just one part of Echo Bay's website at ebay.com. The first thing ever sold on the site was Omidyar's broken laser pointer, which he got $14 for.
The site quickly became massively popular, as sellers came to list all sorts of odd things and buyers actually bought them. Relying on trust seemed to work remarkably well, and meant that the site could almost be left alone to run itself. The site had been designed from the start to collect a small fee on each sale, and it was this money that Omidyar used to pay for AuctionWeb's expansion. The fees quickly added up to more than his current salary, and so he decided to quit his job and work on the site full-time. It was at this point, in 1996, that he added the feedback facilities, to let buyers and sellers rate each other and make buying and selling safer.
In 1997, Omidyar changed AuctionWeb's - and his company's - name to 'eBay', which is what people had been calling the site for a long time. He began to spend a lot of money on advertising, and had the eBay logo designed. It was in this year that the one-millionth item was sold (it was a toy version of Big Bird from Sesame Street).
Then, in 1998 - the peak of the dotcom boom - eBay became big business, and the investment in Internet businesses at the time allowed it to bring in senior managers and business strategists, who took in public on the stock market. It started to encourage people to sell more than just collectibles, and quickly became a massive site where you could sell anything, large or small. Unlike other sites, though, eBay survived the end of the boom, and is still going strong today.
1999 saw eBay go worldwide, launching sites in the UK, Australia and Germany. eBay bought half.com, an Amazon-like online retailer, in the year 2000 - the same year it introduced Buy it Now - and bought PayPal, an online payment service, in 2002.
Pierre Omidyar has now earned an estimated $3 billion from eBay, and still serves as Chairman of the Board. Oddly enough, he keeps a personal weblog at http://pierre.typepad.com. There are now literally millions of items bought and sold every day on eBay, all over the world. For every $100 spent online worldwide, it is estimated that $14 is spent on eBay - that's a lot of laser pointers.
Now that you know the history of eBay, perhaps you'd like to know how it could work for you? Our next posting will give you an idea of the possibilities.
Wednesday, July 04, 2007
Saturday, April 14, 2007
The Seller’s Dilemma on eBay
It’s obvious that eBay provides internet users with an online flea market where buyers and sellers from around the world meet to conduct trade.
However, like most traders who are faced with an innovation of this sort, the first question will always be: It is safe?
The answer is yes, but devious scammers seem to be plotting daily to forward their dastardly schemes and take advantage of eBay’s power.
So, what is the user’s recourse? The users of eBay must learn to gather information and take meticulous care in dealing on eBay. Only then can they be less gullible to scammers.
A common consensus is that bidders are often scammed by sellers. But it is possible for things to be the other way around.
Here is a list of the common problems sellers encounter and the means to handle them.
Fake Escrow Services
A winning bidder may request that an escrow service be used to assure both parties of a fair transaction. Unfortunately, the seller is sometimes duped into using a fake escrow system.
To avoid this situation, the seller must always verify the authenticity of an escrow service. eBay recommends the use of escrow.com. If the bidder insists on his or her escrow service, chances are, that person is a scammer.
Victims of this fraud find it difficult to reclaim their items. They may, however, appeal to the legal system afforded by the state they live in. They must also contact eBay regarding the matter for any assistance they may be willing to offer.
Deadbeat Bidders
Deadbeat bidders (a winning bidder who doesn’t pay for an item at the auction’s close) are more common on eBay. If the winner of your auction does not pay, you may leave that person a negative feedback.
As for the listing fees the seller shells out, eBay lays out a four step procedure that sellers can use to potentially recover lost selling fees. If sellers complete the process to eBay’s satisfaction, they will receive a Final Value Fee credit and a re-list credit. Filing out an Unpaid Item dispute is the first step toward eBay reimbursing such fees. A person can report an unpaid item up to 45 days after an auction’s close.
Trade Dispute
This occurs when the seller and bidder disagree on some terms of the sale. This may also happen if there is a purported violation of any of these agreements.
If communication between both parties does not help, they may consider availing of a third-party dispute resolution outfit to help. SquareTrade.com is one of these outfits that eBay recommends.
An Ounce of Prevention is Worth a Pound of Cure
A seller’s life may be made terrible because of the constant scamming attacks unscrupulous individuals undertake. But, with proper information and care, he or she can continue trading on eBay with relative safety.
However, like most traders who are faced with an innovation of this sort, the first question will always be: It is safe?
The answer is yes, but devious scammers seem to be plotting daily to forward their dastardly schemes and take advantage of eBay’s power.
So, what is the user’s recourse? The users of eBay must learn to gather information and take meticulous care in dealing on eBay. Only then can they be less gullible to scammers.
A common consensus is that bidders are often scammed by sellers. But it is possible for things to be the other way around.
Here is a list of the common problems sellers encounter and the means to handle them.
Fake Escrow Services
A winning bidder may request that an escrow service be used to assure both parties of a fair transaction. Unfortunately, the seller is sometimes duped into using a fake escrow system.
To avoid this situation, the seller must always verify the authenticity of an escrow service. eBay recommends the use of escrow.com. If the bidder insists on his or her escrow service, chances are, that person is a scammer.
Victims of this fraud find it difficult to reclaim their items. They may, however, appeal to the legal system afforded by the state they live in. They must also contact eBay regarding the matter for any assistance they may be willing to offer.
Deadbeat Bidders
Deadbeat bidders (a winning bidder who doesn’t pay for an item at the auction’s close) are more common on eBay. If the winner of your auction does not pay, you may leave that person a negative feedback.
As for the listing fees the seller shells out, eBay lays out a four step procedure that sellers can use to potentially recover lost selling fees. If sellers complete the process to eBay’s satisfaction, they will receive a Final Value Fee credit and a re-list credit. Filing out an Unpaid Item dispute is the first step toward eBay reimbursing such fees. A person can report an unpaid item up to 45 days after an auction’s close.
Trade Dispute
This occurs when the seller and bidder disagree on some terms of the sale. This may also happen if there is a purported violation of any of these agreements.
If communication between both parties does not help, they may consider availing of a third-party dispute resolution outfit to help. SquareTrade.com is one of these outfits that eBay recommends.
An Ounce of Prevention is Worth a Pound of Cure
A seller’s life may be made terrible because of the constant scamming attacks unscrupulous individuals undertake. But, with proper information and care, he or she can continue trading on eBay with relative safety.
Friday, March 30, 2007
Setting-up Your eBay Business to Succeed
Many people do make money with their eBay businesses. You can be one of those people if you take the right steps at the beginning to set up your business. You should approach an eBay business like any other. Do the necessary research first. Don't rush into it with dreams of making a quick fortune.
Take your time and familiarize yourself with the eBay website. Take notes of the type of products you are thinking of selling - check out the competition, pricing and most of all take particular note of actual selling prices and whether the bidding was slow or fast and furious.
There are literally millions (somewhere in the region of 100 million) of eBay members, but this does not mean you are going to reach anywhere near that number. They won't even know you exist unless you prepare your strategy first.
You'll find that a large number of successful eBay sellers have started off as buyers. This is a good idea as you can get a feel for how the whole system works, plus you will know what buyers are looking for and what problems you are likely to encounter. Being a buyer will certainly help you become a proficient seller as you will understand the system from both sides of the fence.
A few things to take note of while you are learning from the buyer's point of view:
* the customer service you received
* the accuracy of the description of the selling item
* the ease and speed of finalizing the transaction
* whether communication was good or not
* was the sales page well set out
* were delivery costs fair and reasonable
If you approach an eBay business like any other online business you will have a much better chance of making a good income. The following points should give you an idea of what you should be thinking about.
1. Decide whether you will set up an eBay Store Whilst checking out the eBay website, you would have noticed a number of sellers have their own eBay Store. The advantages of this are many and you would be wise to check out the details of setting up your own eBay Store. Information is readily available on the eBay site.
2. Setting up your own Website For many reasons, it is advisable to have your own independent website. Look at it as your "Head Office" with your eBay store as a subsidiary. If at some time in the future you decide to discontinue your eBay store, you will still have your business website. Another good reason for setting up a website is that it gives you the ability to diversify your business. This can mean the difference between success and failure. It will also give you the ability to build a subscriber list that will be beneficial for both your eBay business and your own website business.
3. What Products are in high demand? Take particular note of products that sell well and what the competition is. Also check the availability of the products as well as the cost. Armed with this information you can determine whether or not a product is a viable proposition.
4. eBay Learning Center and University
Before you think of buying tutorials on eBay trading, check out the resources provided by eBay. The Learning Center will provide you with tutorials and guides relative to the different areas of eBay. In addition, you will find many free resources on the internet in the form of reports, tutorials and e-books. So have a good look around before paying for this type of information. Of course if you do purchase training products they will more than likely be a taxable deduction.
The eBay University runs offline and online courses covering every aspect of an eBay business. This is where you can learn tried and true methods from the experts.
Running your own eBay business can be a rewarding experience. To ensure you succeed, research your market and your product before undertaking your first Auction.
Remember you will receive queries from prospective bidders, so you must be extremely knowledgeable about your product.
Take your time and familiarize yourself with the eBay website. Take notes of the type of products you are thinking of selling - check out the competition, pricing and most of all take particular note of actual selling prices and whether the bidding was slow or fast and furious.
There are literally millions (somewhere in the region of 100 million) of eBay members, but this does not mean you are going to reach anywhere near that number. They won't even know you exist unless you prepare your strategy first.
You'll find that a large number of successful eBay sellers have started off as buyers. This is a good idea as you can get a feel for how the whole system works, plus you will know what buyers are looking for and what problems you are likely to encounter. Being a buyer will certainly help you become a proficient seller as you will understand the system from both sides of the fence.
A few things to take note of while you are learning from the buyer's point of view:
* the customer service you received
* the accuracy of the description of the selling item
* the ease and speed of finalizing the transaction
* whether communication was good or not
* was the sales page well set out
* were delivery costs fair and reasonable
If you approach an eBay business like any other online business you will have a much better chance of making a good income. The following points should give you an idea of what you should be thinking about.
1. Decide whether you will set up an eBay Store Whilst checking out the eBay website, you would have noticed a number of sellers have their own eBay Store. The advantages of this are many and you would be wise to check out the details of setting up your own eBay Store. Information is readily available on the eBay site.
2. Setting up your own Website For many reasons, it is advisable to have your own independent website. Look at it as your "Head Office" with your eBay store as a subsidiary. If at some time in the future you decide to discontinue your eBay store, you will still have your business website. Another good reason for setting up a website is that it gives you the ability to diversify your business. This can mean the difference between success and failure. It will also give you the ability to build a subscriber list that will be beneficial for both your eBay business and your own website business.
3. What Products are in high demand? Take particular note of products that sell well and what the competition is. Also check the availability of the products as well as the cost. Armed with this information you can determine whether or not a product is a viable proposition.
4. eBay Learning Center and University
Before you think of buying tutorials on eBay trading, check out the resources provided by eBay. The Learning Center will provide you with tutorials and guides relative to the different areas of eBay. In addition, you will find many free resources on the internet in the form of reports, tutorials and e-books. So have a good look around before paying for this type of information. Of course if you do purchase training products they will more than likely be a taxable deduction.
The eBay University runs offline and online courses covering every aspect of an eBay business. This is where you can learn tried and true methods from the experts.
Running your own eBay business can be a rewarding experience. To ensure you succeed, research your market and your product before undertaking your first Auction.
Remember you will receive queries from prospective bidders, so you must be extremely knowledgeable about your product.
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