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Is there any point spending buying the lifetime and listing hundreds or thousands of items on here?
I get making pins and adding your links and posting on twitter and so on but i find it bizarre that hardly any if any items on ebid come up on a google search.
it is really frustrating as it has such a lot going for it but if no one can find your items then what is the point, i am not here to slate but just frustrated that after 24 years the site hasn't grown and cannot justify buying the lifetime.
I'm sure this will be deleted as my other thread was deleted but come on ebid invest some time and money and the buyers and sellers will flock.
AGGgRRRRRR so frustrating

Hello Mark, I thought I'd acknowledge your post as few do comment or reply these days!
You're correct that not many items end up on google shopping from ebid, I've heard various theories put forward by some who have far more expertise in these area's than I.
However when I did have items coming up - I still made no sales from them. There is another poster here who sells comics and they say they do well here - having built up a following. You have around 60 items here and clearly imported feedback from Obey, I never did that - all my feedback has been achieved here. I'm not saying that makes any difference by the way. I use this site as a listing store, I'd transferred over 1400 items from obey when managed payments came in. I've since eat humble pie and goine back! My experience is that there are less sales here now than when I first joined in 2005. In 2005 it had so much going for it (AND NO Social Media to support sales!) but I'm afraid it's a bit of a damp squid - never has gone off and unless something drastic happens never will ! That is not to say that if you have time, keep putting a few up and leave them here as you'll get the odd sale as I do and who knows you might be lucky enough to get a few regular buyers.
As for your post being deleted, seem to think I saw it a short while ago, not surprised that some posts go 'astray' as sometimes the truth hurts!!
I mirror your frustration, Best of Luck.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by mark4740

Is there any point spending buying the lifetime and listing hundreds or thousands of items on here?
I get making pins and adding your links and posting on twitter and so on but i find it bizarre that hardly any if any items on ebid come up on a google search.
it is really frustrating as it has such a lot going for it but if no one can find your items then what is the point, i am not here to slate but just frustrated that after 24 years the site hasn't grown and cannot justify buying the lifetime.
I'm sure this will be deleted as my other thread was deleted but come on ebid invest some time and money and the buyers and sellers will flock.
AGGgRRRRRR so frustrating

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Just had a look at your listings.

Couple of things that put me off:

1: the visible flash detracting from the image of the actual comic/magazine can be rectified by taking the item out of it's polybag and photographing without the flash on your device. Image with a flash puts me off.
2: You have items with a fixed price and auction price, in my experience on here I have yet to have any "Bidding" war on any of my items, so I would recomend getting rid of the "Auction" part and decide on what price you would be happy to sell the item for
3: You have "Free Shipping". Free shipping doesn't exist, if I'm buying multiple items from the same seller I would expect some sort of shipping discount for items being sent in the same package/parcel. I recommend doing away with your "Free Shipping" and using an actual postage price for each item. The plus side of this, for yourself, is that eBid do not charge a Fee on shipping (Unlike ebay)
4: If you're only going to provide 1 picture of the item your selling, then a more detailed desciption would be advantageous, such as mentioning any spine stress marks of creases or tears.

Hope this helps in the meantime.

I have been here since 2013 and agree things have not moved forward, I had my 1st sale in 6 months 2 weeks ago. I used to sell on the other side but stopped when managed payments started and will not go back and now only sell here. I had 100% feedback there and chose not to carry it over but as no one leaves feedback here it looks like no one sells anything. It has been suggested to management that instead of having a feedback tally they have a sales tally (or both). You cannot even earn buddy points on a successful sales transaction if they don't leave feedback. I used to post on Pinterest but not anymore as that site is not what it used to be.

I do not use social media sites and these days unless you are on social media you are treated like a social pariah, and the organisers of social and charity event who only advertise these events on social media wonder why they are badly. supported.

The management seem to have lost interest and rely on everyone being on social media, WRONG!!! Well posted my bit now back to my dark hole😤😤😖😐😐

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Originally Posted by BigKidsAttic

Just had a look at your listings.

Couple of things that put me off:

1: the visible flash detracting from the image of the actual comic/magazine can be rectified by taking the item out of it's polybag and photographing without the flash on your device. Image with a flash puts me off.
2: You have items with a fixed price and auction price, in my experience on here I have yet to have any "Bidding" war on any of my items, so I would recomend getting rid of the "Auction" part and decide on what price you would be happy to sell the item for
3: You have "Free Shipping". Free shipping doesn't exist, if I'm buying multiple items from the same seller I would expect some sort of shipping discount for items being sent in the same package/parcel. I recommend doing away with your "Free Shipping" and using an actual postage price for each item. The plus side of this, for yourself, is that eBid do not charge a Fee on shipping (Unlike ebay)
4: If you're only going to provide 1 picture of the item your selling, then a more detailed desciption would be advantageous, such as mentioning any spine stress marks of creases or tears.

Hope this helps in the meantime.

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I totally agree with BigKidsAttic.

About the flash in pictures:
I would pick up a large piece of thick, plain cardboard and set it up on a table. Then angle it adjust a wall or something ( couples cans of corn or small pillow ) underneath it to give an angle. Place your comics on that and take pictures. You may have to adjust the angle, but you should be able to get pictures without that flash in it. If possible, take the pictures outside.

I did this on a grouping of items that I got that flash with and finally solved my problem.
At least take more then one picture : front and back, a close up.
Descriptions are very important. Date, volume, any defects and about the comic.

I don't think auctions are really that great on this site except in a few areas.

I look at this site as an inexpensive "website" for my items ( verses paying the monthly fees like the majority of stand alone website) It's up to you to advertise on social media. Get into groups that are into these comics and tell them that you have these items on this site.

I have my items with both auction price and buy now price. It works for me. Some buyers use one: some buyers use the other.

I agree with BidKidsAttic that a postage price is better for the same reasons and also because it shows the actual price of your item.

I do not agree with the comment that no one leaves feedback here. I regularly receive feedback. As soon as a buyer has paid for their purchases I leave them feedback which helps, I think.

I've just checked on Google shopping for a few of my listings and at least 6 of them show up first or second.

Many many many moons ago I used to sell on Obay and it cost me a fortune.
I once had my own website where I sold my items and it cost me a fortune.
I found eBid 1st February 2008 and decided to purchase the lifetime fee (I think it is now called PLATINUM).
This lifetime fee has enabled me to have my own platform with all the bells and whistles included in the fee.
I have been here 15 years now and all I pay is the FVF when my items sell.
For having a platform that cost me little in 2008, it only stands to reason that I do my own advertising on social media platforms especially as I am in the USA and eBid is a UK company where they have more successes with sales (I could do much better, but I have a life to live as well).
Where else on the internet will you ever find such a platform that offers you so much for so little?
Do some research on here to learn how other sellers do their business on eBid.
If you have suggestions, then post them on the website suggestions forum.
Hope this helps. Good luck in your venture!

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Originally Posted by tony41

I have my items with both auction price and buy now price. It works for me. Some buyers use one: some buyers use the other.

I agree with BidKidsAttic that a postage price is better for the same reasons and also because it shows the actual price of your item.

I do not agree with the comment that no one leaves feedback here. I regularly receive feedback. As soon as a buyer has paid for their purchases I leave them feedback which helps, I think.

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I always leave feedback after a sale but it still makes no difference, I did receive an email from the buyer the other week to say she was happy and item had arrived safely but no feedback and I think this applies to others here also. I have had more sales than I have had feedback in the past 9 1/2 years.

@JanetB.

"Where else on the internet will you find such a platform that offers you so much for so little?"

I agree with you and I don't have time or the inclination to use social media to self advertise. Yet last year I made 17 sales in a niche glass category (obay managed only 13). This year I've sold 4 items already, on obay only 1. The big plus for me is on ebid it's hassle-free compared to obay (which is now a disaster area for sales of collectables due to their changes) and even paying 10p to list an item still costs me less than half the fees on sales than obay.

I put my sales down to two reasons.

1) The search here is better, not messed-up like on obay, by the site manipulating visibility for its own profits, rather than using the search to sell sellers goods. I'm careful to use Key-Words that I think my buyers will use when searching. Ebid search is Key-Word based and I can usually find my items using only one or two taken from an ad. title.

2) Exposure on Google Shopping. I've just searched there for "Art Deco Glass" and found 5 of my items on P1 of the results and another 5 on P2.
(I'd be grateful if someone else would verify this please, as I wonder about "Mirroring". I'm also seeing "Ebid - TheElench" in the left-hand side-bar of sites searched. If others are seeing this, Ebids visibility is increased.

RE. Feedback.

I always leave FB when an item has been paid for and I put it in the post. I don't know if it encourages buyers to reciprocate, somehow I doubt it. I leave it as it gives me an accurate count of my sales. I've sold 105 items in total and my FB score stands at 63, so about 60% of my buyers leave FB.

I think google shopping is probably where most of my sales come from although I do have one or two "Followers" who have become repeat buyers. But most of my sales are to buyers with 0 FB and newly opened accounts.

I'd ask anyone with tips on using google shopping or just observations on what you've found when using it, to add them to my thread on the "Website Suggestions" Forum. I think the more we understand about GS and how it influences sales on ebid, the more we can use it to increase sales for many more sellers, if it turns into a useful knowledge base.