This morning I checked out the eBay Ink blog, doing my daily diligence, searching for new information for my readers and myself… Today’s article in eBay Ink is about the eBay Desktop application reaching the milestone of one million downloads… So far, ho hum for me as I am not a big proponent of the eBay desktop tool.
But I read the article further and I am very glad that I did… because within this article it seems Richard Brewer Hay found an eBay Corporate employee with some vision, both for the future and the past.
Richard interviewed Mr. Alan Lewis for this article. Alan is attributed or tasked with writing the eBay Desktop blog and as such he would be the evangelist within the company to speak to for facts and details regarding the application. Alan I am sure is a very knowledgeable person when it comes to the eBay desktop application and my impression is that he believes in the app but I am more interested in his views about other matters at eBay. Continue Reading »
We have given the IMA story a bit of a breather for the last several days. This respite is not due to a lack of information but has been more of a calculated break from the coverage, to allow tempers a chance to cool.
At this time, I would like to ask the readers…
Are you “over” the IMA story?
Or, on the other hand, (especially former members) would you appreciate reading more information about the IMA?
I ask these questions because we have been presented with multiple streams of data since our last article about the IMA (and am also convinced even more information is available) concerning the internal problems at the Internet Merchants Association. Some people are certainly interested “behind the scenes” or we would not be getting this constant stream of data from multiple sources.
Yet, I have asked myself and my colleagues… “is there a valid point in continuing to publicize this open wound at the IMA”?
I just received this email in my inbox, to tell you the truth, the way it was formatted (this is an actual screenshot) I thought it was a spam or spoof or phish or whatever….
On a whim, and with an unlisted (Skype) account, I called the number… What do you know, eBay answered! A real honest to goodness customer service line! With a real recorded voice and everything!
Wow, eBay Wins in court, must be a happy day in San Jose! Today, eBay won a critical ruling in the case of Tiffany & Co. vs eBay Inc. The Court ruled eBay was not responsible for the sale of fake Tiffany on the site.
I tend to agree, eBay is thousands of sellers and each seller is responsible for the items they offer. While eBay should do more to prevent the fraudulent sale of counterfeit goods and knock offs, it can not be ultimately responsible. The real responsibility falls upon the seller who offered the merchandise on the site should bear the legal responsibility for same.
First off, if you have not already done so, please read the first two articles about Cornerstone Supply’s eBay seller account mystery block by following the links above…
OK, back now? I have been sipping some coffee, waiting patiently… Good Coffee
Now that you are “up to speed” on what has transpired previously with our client Cornerstone Commercial Supply… I must apologize, because our last article left you the reader hanging, with Cornerstone blocked from listing on eBay and eBay not returning calls or emails for over 10 days…
EBay Inc. lost an appeals court bid to halt a ruling that ordered it to stop online sales of LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton perfumes. This ruling prevents eBay, or anyone selling on eBay Worldwide from listing any perfume from these manufacturers unless they are an authorized dealer.
This ruling even goes so far as to prevent consumers from selling perfume received as gifts.
A Paris appeals court upheld a 50,000-euro ($80,000) fine for each day that EBay allowed the sales to continue, LVMH said.
The order was part of a 40-million-euro verdict last week over claims that San Jose-based EBay didn’t do enough to block the sale of fake goods
My opinion on this….
The ruling shows the World that eBay is not the only entity to make a few bad decisions. Preventing knock offs and couterfit products from flooding the market is not eBay’s job. eBay does not sell anything listed on their venue. All these things have been argued in court before…
The point I am so confused about is how does a single sale from an end user/consumer effect the bottom line of any of these brands?
In my book, if a perfume or purse or anything is valuable enough for someone to sell on eBay, or to even think they should sell it on eBay if they did not want it as a gift, then this perceived value really increases the brand value. It would be a simple matter for eBay to restrict the quantity sold for a single seller ID to X amount of units per year.
Why in the World would French legal officials see it as piracy to sell a gift purchase of a single bottle of perfume?
Larry Philiips former IMA Board and Ethics Committee member will be live on the eBay & Beyond, Basics to Business Internet Radio Talk show this morning.
Larry is filling in for current President of the Internet Merchants Association - Steve Grossberg, who backed out of the scheduled interview slot.
Larry is expected to tell the members of the IMA and anyone else who is interested and would like to call in, the real story behind the implosion at the IMA last week.
Larry is in a unique position to share with the listening audience what happened behind the scenes at the Internet Merchants Association Board of Directors and Ethics Committee’s closed door sessions. He has promised to share all he can with the people who matter the most to him - the members of the IMA.
Larry Phillips has volunteered to fill in for Steve Grossberg on the eBay and Beyond, Basics to Business Internet Talk Radio Program next Saturday…
Larry Phillips Former IMA Board Member
Larry also will announce a new place for IMA members, former members and anyone else interested in discussing Internet marketing and merchandising to gather and share information.
In a pre-interview email, Larry Phillips gave us the “heads up” on an announcement he will make during the show:
The announcement will be the creation of a discussion forum.
Apparently eBay is listening, or possibly they can’t hear themselves think?
The din of complaints about the new, yet vague and undefined linking policy seems to have caused eBay to re-adjust the timetable on implementation and enforcement of the no links edict.
Of course I do not agree with limiting the links from the me pages on eBay. Even though I do not agree, I have removed same from my me page and listings, just to be safe.
Now eBay has decided we need more time to accomplish the task of stripping any traffic generation capabilities from our eBay investment.
And what’s up with removing email addresses? Does eBay really think the eBay “my messages” system is adequate or even passable as a sales or customer service communications interface? Are they really losing that much money to sellers selling off site to justify these restrictions? Or is eBay just blaming the stagnant growth numbers and flat stock price on this mythical problem, in an attempt to convince wall street they are doing something about these sellers stealing fees by talking to buyers outside of eBay?
Personally, I will not buy anything on the Internet from a company I can not communicate with - oops, I pay eBay every month, better revise that statement.
For more of my thoughts on these policies read this
I wonder what the car dealers think of these new policies? Is there really any reason to be on eBay motors if you can not develop leads from the calls dealers get on eBay listings?
I set this up on Ning because they seem to have a lot of features not found on old style bulletin boards and forums. If the Ning thing works, great, if not and we have interest, I will start a real hosted forum on one of my servers.
As many of you know, this site (Trading Assistant Journal) is hosted on the free WordPress.com platform. This is where we started, and frankly I like it here. I think we will stay on WordPress.com as long as we are welcome. Therefore, why not try a free forum to go along with our nice WordPress.com blog?
Ning does place Google adsence on the Trading Assistant Journal Network site, this is the tradeoff for free forums, and I do not see a dime from those adsence ad’s.
I hope the Network will become a place of value to my readers, where they can post interesting and respectful information and share ideas with like minded people without fear of threads being removed for mentioning the wrong company, or for disagreeing with the moderator. The only offences to cause a person or post being plucked, will be outright disrespect, foul language, or personal attacks on other members of the Network. None of us have time for these things.
So, take a look, give it a whirl, post a hello… If you like it, stay, if not… OK
There will never be any dues to join other than participating in the conversation…
According to an unnamed source within eBay, an announcement will be posted today on eBay’s general Announcement board by eBay Marketplaces President Lorrie Norrington.
Lorrie Norrington - eBay
This announcement concerns feedback and neutral feedback calculation as a negative and will read as follows:
Recalculating Feedback percentages without neutrals: Effective in late August, neutrals will no longer be counted as part of the Feedback percentage. This means we will be recalculating Feedback percentages retroactively for users worldwide. In the interim, no one will lose their PowerSeller status as a result of neutrals being included in their Feedback percentage.
Helping you resolve issues and satisfy buyers: By the end of October, we will roll out a new process to help you resolve issues with buyers, even after the buyer has left negative feedback.
Everybody makes mistakes – buyers and sellers alike, and buyers should have a mechanism to change feedback if they make a mistake or if the seller rectifies an issue in a timely manner. Unlike with our previous Mutual Feedback Withdrawal system, our new process will enable buyers to change their feedback of the seller, not just withdraw the rating. We’ll provide more details of this new process in the fall.
This is very good news for sellers within eBay. It is gratifying to learn that eBay, and Lorrie have listened to the continued and consistent complaints about the neutral feedback policy.
Resolving issues with buyers who leave feedback without proper consideration, or by mistake is also a great move. We will of course need to see how effective this new system will be, but this is certainly a move in the right direction.
Thank you eBay for this reversal or alteration of these policies!
Larry Phillips has volunteered to fill in for Steve Grossberg on the eBay and Beyond, Basics to Business Internet Talk Radio Program next Saturday…
Larry Phillips Former IMA Board Member
Guest Blogger and Former Member of the Internet Merchants Association
When asked to to the show, Larry readily agreed with one caveat…
I’ll be happy to do it. When you announce it, I want it to be made clear that I am only agreeing because Steve canceled. The current and former membership still have questions, and deserve answers. Since I am no longer a member through the actions of the existing Board of Directors, I am not bound by confidentiality, and will be happy to answer any questions regarding what happened up until my membership was removed on Monday. I would certainly prefer that Steve participated, and if he changes his mind again and decides to participate, I will then leave it up to him whether I should participate or not.
I think Larry is indeed correct, the membership does deserve answers.
Since Larry was a member of both the Board of Directors and the Ethics Committee, I believe he can shed light on numerous topics which the rank and file members of the IMA have questions about.
Larry knows what happened, and when it happened. I have spoken with Larry at length and find him to be an honest and above board individual who simply devoted a significant amount of time to do his share at the IMA.
Listen Anytime - Live Show on Saturday
His summary dismissal came after he purportedly brokered a deal in which all of the current board members, including himself, would resign and offer the membership a chance to elect a new board. This deal was completely reversed without Larry’s input or knowledge on Sunday, he resigned from the board but not the organization. The next day, Larry was removed without his consent from the organization as a whole, without a grievance or explanation.
It will certainly be interesting to hear what Larry Phillips has to say during next Saturday’s eBay and Beyond Radio Show!
ANYONE may call in to ask a question or share their story during or after the scheduled interview with former IMA Board member Larry Phillips: 866-357-7746
As reported here on the Trading Assistant Journal, Steve Grossberg - President of the IMA, had agreed and confirmed with Dave White of the eBay and Beyond Internet Radio Program to an interview. This interview was to occur next Saturday July 12, 2008.
Mr. Steve Grossberg, Internet Merchants Association President and Treasurer, has just informed the eBay and Beyond radio program of his decision to back out of this live radio talk show interview. Dave White was notified of this decision via email and Dave has given the Trading Assistant Journal permission to reprint this short notice.
David
I am going to have to back out of this interview. Right now my time and energies are geared toward #1 my family, #2 my business, and #3 getting IMA moving forward. We already have an open dialouge and interactive dialouge in place for IMA members to voice their opinions and be heard.
Regards,
Steve
1Busyman’s Inc.
As will be commented here and elsewhere, this is not an unexpected development. I will say I think it is a mistake to back away from an opportunity to offer a different side of the story. This is a move which would not have been deemed advisable by any top notch PR firm or advisor.
Mr. Grossberg’s comment in the letter above, stating there is already a place for members to voice opinions seems very empty, especially if Mr. Grossberg himself will remove any members from the Association who dare to voice a differing or dissenting opinion from his own, as has been reported by numerous sources.
Dave White would like to extend an offer for any of the remaining members of the Board of Directors at the IMA to fill in for Mr. Steve Grossberg. Former members of the Board or Ethics Committee are also welcome. The show will still be scheduled and the topics will certainly center around the recent implosion of the IMA governing body.
ANYONE may call in to ask a question or share their story during the show: 866-357-7746
Hi everyone…I’m Ted Fong with eBay’s Buyer Experience team. In the next few days, eBay’s Dispute Console will contain any claims you’ve made through PayPal, as well as PayPal claims filed by your trading partner. You’ll also see the status of the claim or dispute, as well as a notification if you need to take action.
To get to the Dispute Console, go to My eBay and click the link in the left column.
Sincerely,
Ted Fong
Buyer Experience
This seems like a good move…
Anything to allow the seller a chance to respond quickly to any dispute within PayPal or eBay is a good idea in my book.
We recently experienced a PayPal buyer dispute from our allbusinessauctions eBay account sales. The item sold was a used commercial appliance or furniture hand cart which cost more to ship than the buyer bid on the item. The hand cart never arrived at the destination even though we carefully wrapped it and shipped DHL.
DHL has been slow to provide details on our claim yet our buyer has been very patient and has stated that he understands this was not our fault.
Of course it is not our fault but we have also taken the time to stay in contact with the buyer through the PayPal dispute procedure providing regular emails, letting him know what we are doing to try and resolve the situation, either by tracking his item or by processing an insurance claim.
Communication is key to resolving any issue, be it with a buyer, a seller or a supplier.
If you simply expect the other party to know what you know, without telling them directly, the other side will eventually become suspicious or feel slighted, even if the situation works out to their advantage in the end. Keeping in contact shows your professionalism and your attention to detail and this in turn will increase the buyers opinion of you and your business, even if things go wrong.
I have proved this theory to myself on numerous occasions, why not try it yourself…
Now if we could just get eBay to read this article and post it on the Trust & Safety office wall!
This long and interesting piece by Andrew Locke expresses many eBay sellers feel about the changes at ebay in a well produced if somewhat off looking video.
This video is intended to get viewers to go to Andrew’s website and purchase affiliate programs, books, video products and webinars. I am not an affiliate of Andrew Locke or any of the products on his site, you can follow his links if you like, but know that I am not endorsing any of the content on his site. I just think this video is worthy of a few moments of your time.
Dave White, the host of eBay and Beyond, Basics to Business Live Internet Radio Talk Show offered an opportunity to the IMA Board of Directors and/or President. This would allow these IMA managing members to share their side of the growing controversy emanating from inside the Internet Merchants Trade Association.
Any Board Member may clear the air in a live interview on this nationally recognized talk radio show and podcast next Saturday.
The invitation is open for all members of the Internet Merchants Association Board or Ethics Committee. This Internet radio program airs live every Saturday between the hours of 10 and noon EST and can be heard in a 24 hour loop on Live 365 radio. All programs are also converted to podcast MP3’s and offered on iTunes.
Dave has interviewed almost every heavy hitter in the Internet eCommerce trade on the show including people like Scot Wingo of Channel Adviser, Ted Murphy of IZEA, Bjorn Espenes of Infopia and many more. Dave White is a former eBay University instructor and software specialist, his show is highly rated on iTunes.
To read more about this offer to clear the air, on the air… follow this link: ebasicstobusiness
ANYONE may call in to ask a question or share their story during or after the scheduled interview with IMA President Steve Grossberg: 866-357-7746
This morning I checked out the eBay Ink blog, doing my daily diligence, searching for new information for my readers and myself… Today’s article in eBay Ink is about the eBay Desktop application reaching the milestone of one million downloads… So far, ho hum for me as I am not a big proponent of the eBay desktop tool.
EBAY Wins a Case!
