eBid open four new sites
27/01/2008 at 22:50
eBay-wannabees eBid are opening four new national sites: members in South Africa, New Zealand, Singapore and India will be able to buy and sell as of next week. Apparently this is in response to “demand from users in other countries”. eBid are also trumpeting successful figures: November 2007 saw an increase in sales on 57% in the UK and 221% in the US… measured against figures from June 2007. If you can’t increase sales in the month before Christmas, you’re doing something really wrong: year on year figures would have been a much truer measure of sales growth. As those have not been given out, the natural assumption is that they weren’t actually all that impressive.
Meanwhile, professional sellers who use eBay as one of their channels, who are frequently told by eBid fans that they should give other auction sites a chance, might like to consider this thread from the eBid forums: 9 sales is a good month on eBid. I’m happy for their happy seller, but frankly that wouldn’t even keep this household in cat food.
I’m often accused of bias against non-eBay auction sites, and it’s true: I don’t think there’s a single one where you can make a decent living. So while I have their attention, I’ll throw a challenge to eBid: find me half a dozen people who make their full-time living on eBid (excluding employees!) and I’ll give it a go myself. And blog it, of course. 
Chris Dawson says
10:54 pm on 27/01/2008
….and out of the seven items the other seller sold “4 items were adult material which isnt allowed on ebay”…. And that’s probably the reason buyers were trawling the Internet instead of shopping on eBay
Whirly says
7:55 am on 28/01/2008
It’s all relative, 9 bathroom suites would keep me in cat food
Sue Bailey says
8:01 am on 28/01/2008
Not if you’d sold the whole lot for £61, Whirly.
Whirly says
8:52 am on 28/01/2008
Regarding eBid, I think I have some baths on there but tbh can’t remember so I guess that proves a point
but I firmly believe eBay doesn’t need changes, it needs competition to improve, good luck to them.
Sue Bailey says
8:57 am on 28/01/2008
good luck to them
They’ve been around nearly ten years and they don’t yet even show on eBay’s radar – they need more than luck!
Moreover, I used to work with an accountant who did some work for them: he said “they’re just waiting for eBay to buy them out”. That was back in 2001, so I hope no one’s holding their breath
Whirly says
9:01 am on 28/01/2008
Well they bought Skype so nothing is impossible
Sue Bailey says
9:02 am on 28/01/2008
They quit buying other auction sites YEARS ago. Why would they bother, they have a pretty successful one of their own
Louise says
9:04 am on 28/01/2008
Ebid is free to list and no fvfs if you use the right selling formula. It uploads regularly to google so it’s presence is definately felt when using google shopping search facillity. There is a good range of products available (category dependant) and prices a little lower than ebay (probably because of low cost of sale). Buyers can click on links that tell them thier rights when shopping with businesses, the payment methods offered are more extensive than ebay. To me it has always looked like a site that can go places, but it never does. It’s a real shame.
Sue Bailey says
9:09 am on 28/01/2008
Just to clarify Louise’s point – it is never QUITE free to sell on eBid. You will always have to pay *something*, whether it’s a listing fee, an FVF or a subscription fee:
http://uk.ebid.net/help_money.php
I must say (and often do!) that I find it quite misleading that they would describe themselves as “fee-free”.
Sue Bailey says
11:11 am on 28/01/2008
http://pheebay.com/?ebid-to-launch-four-more-international-sites-61.html
Well well, it seems Pheebay didn’t approve of this post! I’d comment over there, but it they don’t allow comments… *sigh* whatever.
From the Pheebay post:
I don’t know what revenue resulted from those nine sales reported so can’t judge if they did produce a living income. But so long as the seller was happy with the results then who am I and who is Sue to go sticking pins in people’s balloons?
I’m rather wondering if “GW” read either of the posts they’re talking about.
From my post: I’m happy for their happy seller
Sticking pins? I don’t think so. I remember all too well when nine sales in a day made me happy too. But there are people who are insisting in comments on this blog that eBid is a serious competitor to eBay: and those people are the people who need pins sticking in their ideas.
Secondly, we know exactly what the revenue is from the nine sales because the seller said so.
northumbrian says
2:15 pm on 28/01/2008
its the anti ebay sort of tone that amuses m,e
if its not ebay it must have a value ethos, means nowt to me.
I dont care if ebid pays me to list
I am selling for money ,not glory,
and when ebid manages to provide the footfall and exposure ebay does ,then I will consider it,
Josordoni says
2:34 pm on 28/01/2008
LOL North, I read too quickly… I read “when ebid manages to provide the football “…
I wonder which team…..??
Sue Bailey says
3:02 pm on 28/01/2008
It amuses me too, North, when it’s not annoying me. I appreciate that one might set up an auction site for people who want to *not* sell on eBay: that was a large part of the impetus behind Tazbar, as far as I can see. It makes sense from a management point of view. But the evangelism that then arises amongst the users of those sites, to try to guilt-trip full-time sellers into moving their sales from a site that brings them buyers to a site that doesn’t; it never seems quite grounded in reality.
Still, I’m eagerly awaiting the list of half a dozen full-time eBid sellers. I’ve chosen three dozen of my best selling items which will be my first listings… when I hear back from them…
northumbrian says
3:16 pm on 28/01/2008
thats what I was trying to say sue, but me brains locked up
Owen says
3:24 pm on 28/01/2008
I tried Tazbar for about six months until it was going to cost me money to stay there.
Didn’t sell a thing and only had one enquiry.
hannaholly says
10:43 pm on 08/02/2008
I think people are crazy Not to use ebid. sell on your current venue AND list on ebid, you have nothing to loose.
I have been selling seriously on ebid a bit over 2 years and make around 1000 sales a year there. I’m employed part time and registered self employed as my second income. My self employed profits come from ebid and amazon (in about equal amounts). i am succesful on ebid because i make full use of the FREE listing (yes i paid a subscription once – i bought lifetime top membership for £45 when i joined) and of their excellent free uploads to google products.
I am also an Ebid BUYER and bought most of my xmas presents there.
Sue Bailey says
10:53 pm on 08/02/2008
Nothing to lose but time, Hanna. I can spend an hour listing on eBay and I KNOW what I will make from that. On eBid, that’s an hour I might spend for no gain: my time’s worth more than that.
I’m still waiting for ANYONE who makes a full-time living on eBid. I have to say that I am truly shocked that not one has come forward.
Chris Dawson says
11:23 pm on 08/02/2008
Hanna I would love to think there were alternative sites to sell on other than eBay – would be nice not to have all my eggs in one basket.
However currently on eBid a search for “Laser Printer” brings up a grand total of just three items. A search of just my own eBay shop for “laser printer” brings up seven times that amount, and I’m a small seller. If eBid was a site where laser printers could sell I’d list some, but all the time I personally list more than all the eBid sellers put together I can’t regard it as a serious contender for a site where I could sell my products successfully.