Dear eBay Queen:

I took one of your eBay classes last year. You discussed doing research to see how much an item was worth before listing it on eBay. In doing this, I’ve discovered quite a few people are SO negative when they list their items on eBay.

I recently purchased a large lot of plastic toy animals. They appear to be from a circus or jungle toy set. While researching to see if I should list them all together in a lot, or separately, I came across a toy seller that put the following in their auctions:

NOTE: I will unfortunately not be able to continue offering individual figures at low cost for the collectors looking to fulfill their sets due to forthcoming changes wrought by eBay management and being implemented at the end of March 2010.

Once again their insatiable greed and determination to drive the small sellers out of the market have prevailed and due to significant 666.6% cost increases (Biblical prophetic irony?) in listing fees for store items (from .03cents per listing per month to .20 cents per listing per month.) This will no longer be cost effective as many of the items I sell are $1 – $10.00 each, and this increase is in addition to the basic store charge fee of 15.95/month and 12% final selling fees. Of course we store sellers can keep our 3 cent listing fees – IF we want to pay a $299.95/month store fee. To those loyal patrons whom I have so enjoyed meeting and had hopes of continuing a bright future of service in offering many store listings, for I sincerely regret that the management of eBay has undermined any such hopes for myself and many other eBay store operators who will be forced into facing radical reduction of inventory or closure.

eBay was the place where dreams of finding that treasure from the past for sale by average sellers like myself was possible. But even though many of my patron buyers purchase multiple items and as a collector & seller I use these funds to buy from other eBay sellers, all of which eBay receives a percentage of, though I am willing to devote my time & work in listing such items for the fellow collectors, it is not worth eBay’s time or trouble to maintain such listings for such low dollar amounts. To anyone considering establishing an eBay store I would strongly advise against it. eBay defines the word Anti-Trust by their every action as it has taken a year and half of very hard work to set a store in place just to have them yank the rug from under the feet of all sellers like myself. I wonder what excuse they will give their stockholders should there be a mass exodus / closing of stores like mine. What do you, the buyers, think this will do towards increasing the prices of sellers and the selection of items listed? Talk about kicking a Country in the teeth when it’s already down economically.

Do you know why a seller would do this?

Janelle; Olathe, KS

Dear Janelle:

To me this is VERY unprofessional. I don’t disagree with every point the seller made, but I would never tell my buyers those things. The changes eBay has made over the last 4-5 years have hit some sellers where it hurts. If this seller’s business is taking a hit like he says it is, then why tell his customers? I have found the more willing you are to adapt and modify with these eBay changes, the more successful you will be in the end.

Dear eBay Queen;

I read your article from September 23rd, and I have a problem with what you told J Banks. I don’t understand why you want us, the buyers, to educate the idiot sellers that can’t seem to do anything right. So she’s a new seller, so she had a death in her family, in real life does any of this matter? People expect to receive what they paid for quickly. Is it too much these days for a seller to do what they are paid to do? SEND THE ITEM?

Mad; Gardner, KS

Dear Mad:

I understand as a buyer you want your item as fast as possible without hassle. I think it is important to realize that eBay has created a lot of small business people. Some of which have more knowledge than others on running a successful business. Your opinions will seem callused and pretty offensive to most readers. I hope this was because of a bad day, and not your outlook on life.
In life just like on eBay I feel it’s important to remember the Golden Rule.

Strange eBay item of the week: eBay item 110588160179 (enter this number in the eBay search box in the top right corner of the home page): Like Halloween? Check out this Vintage Child’s Halloween Pumpkin Tea Set SOLD $915.99 http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=110588160179

Suzie Eads is a nationally known eBay marketer and eBay trained Education Specialist. She lives in Rantoul. Do you have a question for the eBay Queen? E-mail: questions@asktheebayqueen.com .