AuctionCut

jumble wrote:do you think google, msn or yahoo will ever venture into the auction arena?

Doesn't yahoo already have auctions?

Yahoo auctions are closing down their US services on the 16th June this year.

http://auctions.yahoo.com/show/us/eol_r ... pe=message

jumble wrote:

Like you, I tried it for a while. Never made a dime. I think you need a really high volume site in order to get any click thrus that result in revenue.

Yeah you are probably right. And I guess if you sell the big ticket items like plasma TVs then I guess you could survive on just a small number of sales. I was tempted to setup a website specifically for that purpose but in the end I could not be bothered writing about something that was of little interest to me

I think that is a key. Interest. It is difficult otherwise. I set up a site once. I've still got it. Hobby Wheels Deals. It was Hot Wheels Deals, until I got a letter from the Mattel attourneys. I thought, easy to stock, easy to ship, good money, can't lose on vintage diecast. In the end, I really wasn't interested, and eventually, I changed my blog to automotive as well as the site.

Unfortunately, I have little time to work on that nowadays, so it'll likely end up in the boneyard, but it goes to show you, if you aren't passionate about the subject matter, you really wont' have the drive you need to make it happen.

Mark wrote:Yahoo auctions are closing down their US services on the 16th June this year.

http://auctions.yahoo.com/show/us/eol_r ... pe=message

Man, that is a kick in the teeth to anyone hoping for some real competition.

I think eBay is just going to keep sailing.

Ebay is King right now, for sure.
However, it's predicted that business to consumer sites will see a big rise in the future!

ATABenjamin wrote:Ebay is King right now, for sure.
However, it's predicted that business to consumer sites will see a big rise in the future!

I'll believe it when I see it. Start up is the nail in the coffin. If it could be done, I think Google would be into it. Time will tell I guess.

eBay's only competition is Amazon, which caters to actual professional businesses. I just do not see anyone challenging eBay any time soon. The thing is....it's not easy to run an auction site!!! Yahoo tried to do it, but failed. Google has Froogle but it doesn't do crap either. In order to compete with eBay, you need buyers. All these other sites mentioned here have no buyers. eBay spends a fortune on advertising and little guys such as eBid just don't have the money to compete with that. Yahoo and Google don't specialize in auctions, and they are doomed to fail.

EbayDummies wrote:

jumble wrote:do you think google, msn or yahoo will ever venture into the auction arena?

oh yea! Let's not forget Craigslist...

Problem is, Craigslist is owned 25% by ebay!

Helo everyone,

Here’s a piece that says that people have been looking out for trade sites like silkfair that offer lower costs than eBay. Looks like people are willing to try out new avenues.
http://www.ecommercetimes.com/story/63186.html

jumble wrote:do you think google, msn or yahoo will ever venture into the auction arena?

If anyone can knock Ebay off there pedestle its Google. I'm certain that if Google anounced the opening of they're auction site Ebay would probably lose all there sellers within a year. I mean think about it; Ebay tells Google to get lost when they anounced there competition for Pay Pal; Google Checkout. So I know there working on something big to bring Ebay to its knees and wipe that smile off Meg Whitman's face. Did you know that this heffer has $121,000,000.00 reasons to smile every year. That's $331,500.00 in a day which is more money than most of us will see in a lifetime. This is going to come to an end soon; I mean its just to good to be true. Hell that's $230.00 per minute, and all of it is coming from our pockets. We should feel special... Thanks Meg!

Meg Whitman's not with eBay anymore, am I correct? Good thing.

And I agree that eBay/PayPal are there to make money for themselves, disregarding everyone else, which stinks. I do believe Google has the power, since they pretty much can do anything they want, to compete. Will they?

Anyways, going back to this topic, I've been using iOffer besides eBay.
http://www.ioffer.com

What else have others been using? How are they?

in furthering this topic, iOffer just released their holiday sales numbers:

from AuctionBytes:

eBay Alternatives: iOffer Reports Sales Are Up

iOffer.com reported record dollar sales, units sold, new items listed, and new memberships over the past six weeks from November 1, 2008 to December 15, 2008. The "trading community" marketplace encourages negotiation between buyers and sellers and reported key metrics for the holiday shopping season (November 1 to December 15). Data from 2007 is listed first, followed by the same period in 2008.

- Dollar Sales: $5.5 million vs. $15.1 million (175% growth)
- Unit Sales: 121,323 vs. 275,813 (127% growth)
- New Item Listings: 470,846 vs. 1,213,476 (158% growth)
- Traffic: 3 million visits vs. 9 million visits (198% growth)
- Page Views: 31 million vs. 80 million (158% growth)
- New Member Registration: 44,192 vs. 126,175 (186% growth)

an aussie one is http://www.oztion.com.au/ I do know of a few more but just can't think right now. will post when it comes to my head!

[color=darkblue]It's very difficult to compete with e-bay and amazon, mostly because people do not want to give new sites the time of day. But if you are looking for a good alternative, just do a google search for ebay alternatives or online auctions and you will find many...[/color]

I am sucessfully selling at kidsbid.co.uk , simply could not afford the increasing fees at ebay - tried ebid but didnt get any joy there... kidsbid is new but have had some sucess with selling and as there are no setup or listing fees, I am just keeping fingers crossed that more and more people join. And as their stores are free for 6 months , I may set my own store up!

Oh and it has a great sister site for mum & dads to chat on! www.chatterbug.co.uk

As an aside, anyone know of any new kids toys dropshippers? Im especially looking for outdoor toys, I used to use dash enterprises but they have gone now Any help appreciated