| October 29, 2009 |
 eBay Needs to Get Back to Basics |
| By: Ina Steiner |
| Thu Oct 29 2009 21:41:02 |
To the Editor:
I was reading, with interest, your article in today's issue of Auctionbytes concerning Joe Adamson's tete-a-tete with Pro Stores "ProStores Seller Store Closed Due to Expired-Domain Glitch"...it was well written and outlines a long-standing series of events that ebay has gotten themselves into while making the site harder to use, not easier both for the sellers and the buyers.
When I was an owner of our brick and mortar stores in Atlanta, there was always the temptation to expand too quickly before nailing down the "brand" we were trying to present. I have seen businesses expand beyond their initial presence into multiples only to carry down all due to the fact that they didn't address all the variables.
With ebay's multitude of changes the past two years, they didn't foresee in their crystal ball of metrics the fact that the economy would take a downturn, people wouldn't have as much expendable income and the fact that they would save more because of it. They also have chased away many of the good sellers who took their brand-based customers along with them.
To recapture these sellers, they will have to win back trust...something that is particularly hard to do once you've violated it the first time.
I think this happening with Adamson illustrates the fact that ebay is getting too far away from it's original mission and trying to spread out too quickly instead of concentrating of making it's core product effective for all to use. Need I mention Skype and Pro Stores as good examples of this? They stray from the fact that ebay established itself originally as a venue for auctions and was based on the premise that the playing field should be level for all.
We opened a Pro Store 4 years ago when they were first introduced them (only to close it later), only to find their customer service "wanting"...they tried to recapture our business 3 years ago but I resisted the attempt as it wasn't proven to me that they had improved. What didn't help the situation was the fact that Paypal's Gateway system didn't protect us from fraud as it did on the ebay platform...no Trust & Safety.
Ebay needs to go back to it's grass-roots...the one who "brung them to the dance"...I'm very surprised that another auction site has really not risen out of the ashes to give them more of a run for their money that they have had. Perhaps this feeling of invincibility has spurred on their changes.
Clearly their deletion of the community aspect proves the point that actions speak louder than words in that they think they know what's better for us...don't we get enough of that from our politicians?
They seem to be attempting to recapture the grass roots marketplace through their upcoming "On Location" program as well as other future programs...we'll see.
One thing is clear to me...every time I open up my "My Ebay" page and view the line at the top that reads "we're working to make ebay easier to use"...I see red.
Roll back the clock 3 years then...they turned the system into Frankenstein; now they're going to make it easier to use???...thanks alot!
Carl G.
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