EBay closing Half.com
03-13-03 | 01:11 PM
#26
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From: Oswego, IL , U.S.A,
An Alternative?
A possible alternative is www.ioffer.com
However, it is neither a true fixed price NOR a true auction site.
Following the flea market model, buyers and sellers haggle over prices. As a buyer, the seller may or may not accept your offer or may make a counter-offer. And so on and so on back and forth. But meantime someone else can step in and give a better offer.
There is an offering price so if you do not care to haggle you can just pay it. Usually, the deal goes thru in a lot less time than waiting for a 7 to 10 day EBay auction.
You can also place want ads if you are looking for something in particular. But some potential buyers post wants at ridiculous prices that would be pure giveaways if any seller would be dumb enough to accept them. Still you have to admire their chutzpah (spelling?) !
An upside for sellers is that the listing costs nothing. You pay only a final value fee. But a downside is that buyers will try to squeeze you both on the item price AND on the shipping.
I had a deal going with one guy and we quickly settled on the price of the item, but he did not like my shipping charges.
He attempted to tell me how to package and ship the item to lower the shipping cost to his liking. No matter that it was going to pop open like an overloaded water-balloon from the weight once the USPS got to it!
We never did the deal and the whole experience was frustrating and big waste of time.
So I am not sure if I like IOffer or not, but it may be worth a try at least once. But be prepared either as buyer or seller to have your patience tested!
However, it is neither a true fixed price NOR a true auction site.
Following the flea market model, buyers and sellers haggle over prices. As a buyer, the seller may or may not accept your offer or may make a counter-offer. And so on and so on back and forth. But meantime someone else can step in and give a better offer.
There is an offering price so if you do not care to haggle you can just pay it. Usually, the deal goes thru in a lot less time than waiting for a 7 to 10 day EBay auction.
You can also place want ads if you are looking for something in particular. But some potential buyers post wants at ridiculous prices that would be pure giveaways if any seller would be dumb enough to accept them. Still you have to admire their chutzpah (spelling?) !
An upside for sellers is that the listing costs nothing. You pay only a final value fee. But a downside is that buyers will try to squeeze you both on the item price AND on the shipping.
I had a deal going with one guy and we quickly settled on the price of the item, but he did not like my shipping charges.
He attempted to tell me how to package and ship the item to lower the shipping cost to his liking. No matter that it was going to pop open like an overloaded water-balloon from the weight once the USPS got to it!
We never did the deal and the whole experience was frustrating and big waste of time.
So I am not sure if I like IOffer or not, but it may be worth a try at least once. But be prepared either as buyer or seller to have your patience tested!
03-15-03 | 10:16 AM
#27
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From: Vineyard Zippy's
Originally posted by Easy
Exactly. No muss, no fuss. I'm very sure I don't want to mess with auctions. So now where? Amazon?
Exactly. No muss, no fuss. I'm very sure I don't want to mess with auctions. So now where? Amazon?
Sold the following dvds there in 2003;
West Side Story (2 copies)
A Naxos Musical Journey- Mozart
Robin Hood (Allan Dwan, Douglas Fairbanks)
Midnight Run
My general conclusion is that the more "literary" and "academic" titles receive more attention from the buyers at Amazon. Any thoughts?
03-18-03 | 07:36 AM
#28
DVD Talk Legend
Don't forget the "wish list" feature on Half.com. I don't know if Ebay or Amazon has anything like it but it is so easy to use.
You just go to whatever dvd, cd, etc. you want, add it to your wish list for the max price you would pay & minimum condition and boom...you get an email telling you when it has been posted and for what price. I have gotten a dozen of deals this way at better prices than Ebay.
You just go to whatever dvd, cd, etc. you want, add it to your wish list for the max price you would pay & minimum condition and boom...you get an email telling you when it has been posted and for what price. I have gotten a dozen of deals this way at better prices than Ebay.
I just registered for an account yesterday. And I really, really liked the site's set-up....
03-23-03 | 05:01 PM
#31
DVD Talk Special Edition
I, for one, glad it is going. As a seller I lost over 500.00 in fraudulent buyers. And the place is crawling with dishonest sellers too. It is not managed properly like amazon.com.
