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Message to E-BAY CEO


R Walling

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I can't find any other way to contact you so I hope that you will see this.

<O:p

It has been increasingly difficult to search through all of the listings as retailers are entering so many unrelated items into specific searches.<O:p

<O:p

I give you this for an example; <O:p

"55 Chrysler" over 15000 items for sale.<O:p

<O:p

Although many of them could fit the car or at least be placed in the trunk, Chrysler does not make most of them. It is a complete waste of time reading them all.<O:p

<O:p

I, and many others, would be grateful if you could address this problem.<O:p

<O:p

If this is a problem with others, the more people that reply to this message, the greater results we could expect.

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The only way around this is to go to advanced search for titles only and you will get about 1500 instead of 15000. The problem is the way the sellers list their items. Generic parts fit many years and cars so they list them all in the description to get the hits when you do a search.

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I have been seeing the same thing in Crosley parts. There are many things listed as Crosley that did not, will not, and can not fit on any Crosley. For example, there are a number of 12 volt items, radio antennas, air cleaners etc that are listed as Crosley parts that could only be made to fit a Crosley by extensive modifications if at all. There are parts listed for Crosley models that DO NOT EXIST!!! The only way to fight it is by "reporting" the items as improper listings. I have seen a couple of them disappear, but they continue to clutter up the pages. E-bay's lack of responsiveness on the subject is legendary. If they make their money on the listing...they don't really care.

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I have this annoying problem too, lately I get 2000 items for a 1957 Pontiac and 4500 for an Alfa Spider, mostly the same car cover or radio antenna over and over again. I thought someone here once said that you can filter out certain vendors somehow but I have never figured it out.

You can select "auction only" and cut out a lot of that for a quick search and them go back to the "buy it now" when you have time to dig through. Todd

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I know this isn't what you want, but you can store a search that eliminates all the sellers of peep mirrors, car covers, etc. by building an exclusion list by seller. I have a parts search that I have been running for years that covers 1941-1950 Packard parts. It eliminates (currently) 24 sellers of generic 'stuff'. Results are sent daily via e-mail. Works for me.

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Guest cben09

I think these must be computer generated listings,,,,thousands of antenna listings for 1904--1920 Locomobile is annoying to say the least,,I rarely bother to look now,,The lister probably doesn't know that the radio did not exist at that time AND that nobody with a Loco would install one,,Just carry a portable,,or cell,,I think our buyy-sell collum will expand quickley,,at least with people who know,,,Cheers,,Ben

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Go to the advanced search and exclude those sellers who abuse eBay with all the generic crap-ola that has NO relation to the search (c'mon, how many cars of the 60s use an O2 sensor??) I sent emails to all of the offenders for the marques I search for. Not one gave a damn to reply to my respectful email! So I boycott them and encourage others to do the same. eBay will NEVER do anything about it because all they give a damn about is the big sellers and not any of the little guys who supported eBay and made them a success. Now they just turn thier backs on the little guy in favor of the big sellers.

Thanks for supporting and listening to those who made you what you are, eBay! If eBay is about the customers, why is it so hard to contact them? Find phone numbers or get a clear answer? If they are hiding, there must be something to hide.

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1. Log in to your eBay account.

2. Do whatever it is you normally do to get the list of available items.

3. Look in the column on the left for 'Seller'

4. If the box isn't open, open it.

5. Click on 'Specify Sellers'

6. This opens another window.

7. Click on the box 'Only show items from:'

8. Select 'Exclude' from the dropdown box

9. Put your list of obnoxious sellers in the list box separated by spaces or commas.

10. Save your search with or without e-mail notification.

Hope this helps.

Edited by JD in KC
spelling (see edit history)
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Guest 25erduplex

I found that most of these sites use Buy-it-Now so I started listing just the "Auction" format and went from 8000 or so in Studebaker to just 650. I love the parts available for the 1936 Avanti!Yikes!!

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It is increasingly annoying. This problem didn't exist a few months ago. "drop shipping" is what it's called I believe...these sellers don't even own any inventory, they just list it for sale.

I can't imagine how many people searching for parts for their antique cars would actually buy any of this crap.

Buy it now listings are stupid cheap...like 3 cents each or less for those who have a "store", but still I find it difficult to believe they can make money doing this.

Thanks for the how to on eliminating the sellers!

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I solved the problem by quitting ebay. When they forced everyone to go Paypal, I did not like it one bit and told them so, quite strongly.

I had a 100% positive feedback rating, all done with money order or personal check payment. I saw no need to allow paypal (ebay in disguise) access to my banking or credit accounts, so I just quit buying. I rarely if ever even surf it anymore, and if I do find something I can't live without, I get a friend to bid it and pay it, then I pay him.

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Boy, I hate to defend Ebay, BUT.....Paypal was THE best electronic payment system by far for a long time before Ebay was smart enough to buy them.

As part of the younger generation, I welcome electronic transactions as much as possible and was glad as a seller to not have to deal with money orders and checks anymore (I do still take them upon request).

What I don't like is Ebay requiring Paypal and only Paypal as electronic payment. You can still use your checking account or credit card, but it must be registered with Paypal.....

I'd rather pay the 3% than make the extra trips to the bank....

But I believe the topic was the spam sellers....I HATE those!

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Please note: eBay requires PayPal for payment on auctions. However ultimately you're not buying anything from them. Many sellers (i.e. me) are perfectly happy to accept money orders in their stead. Do not be afraid to ask a seller (in advance) if that's O.K.

Checks are rarely accepted any more by anyone on eBay, unless you're dealing with someone you've purchased from before.

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Please note: eBay requires PayPal for payment on auctions. However ultimately you're not buying anything from them. Many sellers (i.e. me) are perfectly happy to accept money orders in their stead. Do not be afraid to ask a seller (in advance) if that's O.K.

Checks are rarely accepted any more by anyone on eBay, unless you're dealing with someone you've purchased from before.

You can get around this by specifying that while you will accept credit cards, it is a "pick up item" only, then you can engage in a dialogue for your preferred payment method with the buyer.

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Two things

First, who are you going to listen to? They guy that lists 50 items a week even though it is antennas for a 1908 X, or the owner of a 1908 X that buys 2 items a year. Granted, it is annoying to sift through tons of junk that have nothing to do with your car. But I wouldn't be getting rid of sellers that list a ton of junk every year and pay for the listings if I was Ebay just because a few people complain. Ebay exists to make money on whatever is listed, not to be a specialized parts supplier for your car.

Second, I can't understand why anyone would pay with anything other than Paypal. I would have been robbed a couple of times. Once the seller took my payment, and simply never sent anything. The other time, they sent a fragile item wrapped in one single paper towel. Obviously it was massively damaged when it arrived. If I had paid by check or money order, I would have been robbed out of that money. With Paypal, I simply cancelled my payment, and was out nothing.

Anybody that refuses to use Ebay is only short changing themselves. Ebay will still exist without you. I have gotten a ton of stuff that I never would have found if Ebay did not exist.

Edited by Peter J.Heizmann (see edit history)
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Guest bofusmosby

Just this year, I have spent over $5,000 on stuff off Ebay. I enjoy it. I can relate to what others have said about some of the sellers. Its like going to the flea market and seeing nothing but dime-store stuff.

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Guest Skyking

I find it erotic that people complain about sifting through sellers junk to find what they want, but don't complain about putting up with tons of commercials on paid cable TV.

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Here's what I do. If you search for "Metropolitan", you will get 695 items, half of it nonsense. If you search for

metropolitan -glass -mazda -shirt -cover -honda -belt -muffler -antenna -filter -dog -top -ruckus -vacuum

all the honda ruckus, antennas and other junk is filtered out and you get 308 items, almost all Metropolitan related. I save the search in a text file to my desk top and when I want to do a search I just copy and past it into the search bar.

Works great for me.

Bill

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And the CEO of Ebay who started the slide downward of a people's market (at least I think she started it) is running for Governor of California. Ebay has taken a lot less of my time since junk listings became the norm, and as for paypal only for electronic payment - forget me on that one since they decided that they can hold a sellers money for as long as they want before releasing it.

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Regarding Roger's original point, I agree the new search setup sucks. One thing that helps is isolating categories. For example when I search "Pierce Arrow" and get 1600 listings, I look to the left where the listings are broken down by category. If i select Ebay Motors parts/accessories it cuts it down to maybe 600 listings. This still includes the antenna / lighter guy with his 150 listings but that is what the scroll wheel is for. I totally agree these guys are gaming the system, has anyone tried reporting their listings to Ebay as a scam? I may try that and see what happens.

As far as PayPal, I do not understand all the resistance to it. If you are going to deal with Ebay at all it is the easiest and most efficient way to pay or receive payments. If the objection is the "Big Brother" connection between Ebay and PayPal, get over it, there are a lot worse examples of that everywhere. If your worry is sharing bank account and credit card info then you must be living off the grid, anyone who purchases anything or pays bills online has a lot more personal info already out there. PayPal even offers an E-check option that allows you to pay without full registration or account sharing.

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Regarding Roger's original point, I agree the new search setup sucks. One thing that helps is isolating categories. For example when I search "Pierce Arrow" and get 1600 listings, I look to the left where the listings are broken down by category. If i select Ebay Motors parts/accessories it cuts it down to maybe 600 listings. This still includes the antenna / lighter guy with his 150 listings but that is what the scroll wheel is for.

The problem with that, is that you miss out on anything "Reginald's" widow is putting up, because she posted all her Pierce-Arrow stuff in the regular area.

Edited by West Peterson (see edit history)
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Guest windjamer

If you want the ceo to listen you must first get his/her attention. The only way to do that is for all of us to stop buying. Dont even bring up the site.

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Guest Skyking
Skyking, I think you mean "Ironic", or at least I hope so...

Well, I'm not the best spell'er, but you know what I meant;)

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I have noticed that (at least for the present time) if I run my search through "eBay" rather than "eBay Motors" the same search will come up with completely different search results, although the eBay search will include the relevant ebay Motors search. For example if I search for parts for my car using the following:

1930 Buick

I get the following results:

eBay ==> 302

eBay Motors ==>1,377

Obviously the search from eBay Motors contains most of the spam while the eBay search is limited although the "real" results I am interested in are contained in the eBay search.

Perhaps this will help you as well.

Thanks,

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Now, they have come up with this dumb statement when you select "New" while listing a part.

New: A brand-new, unused, unopened, undamaged item in its original packaging (where packaging is applicable). Packaging should be the same as what is found in a retail store, unless the item was packaged by the manufacturer in non-retail packaging, such as an unprinted box or plastic bag. See the seller's listing for full details

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Guest jmarsicano

As far as PayPal, I do not understand all the resistance to it. If you are going to deal with Ebay at all it is the easiest and most efficient way to pay or receive payments. If the objection is the "Big Brother" connection between Ebay and PayPal, get over it, there are a lot worse examples of that everywhere. If your worry is sharing bank account and credit card info then you must be living off the grid, anyone who purchases anything or pays bills online has a lot more personal info already out there. PayPal even offers an E-check option that allows you to pay without full registration or account sharing.

No no no... I can do my own banking for free, and not have to worry about being takin by a dishonest buyer. Don't we pay enough in fees already before we then have to pay more paypal fees? Not for me.

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No no no... I can do my own banking for free, and not have to worry about being takin by a dishonest buyer. Don't we pay enough in fees already before we then have to pay more paypal fees? Not for me.

Ages ago when Ebay accepted money orders and checks as well as Paypal, I did some comparisons based on some people complaining about Paypal fees. Items listed where Paypal was not accepted, only money orders and checks, usually sold for 20% - 40% less than the exact same item listed with Paypal as a payment method. So apparently rather than pay the 3% or whatever little fee from Paypal, these sellers would rather get way less for the item. Doesn't seem like a brilliant strategy to me. Plus then you have to make the extra trip to the bank, and pay for the gas to do it to deposit everything.

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LINC, you may not be far off. I have been buying and selling on eBay for a long time. More selling the last 4+ years than the earlier years. I always accepted PayPal, Money Order or Check. I don't think 10% paid by something other than PayPal. Now that the rules have changed and you can not advertise other forms of payment I still take US Postal Money Orders, stop accepting checks or other money orders because I don't want to go to the bank (30 miles round trip). The Post Office will cash their money orders when I mail the item.

I wouldn't pay 20% more to use PayPal but I have paid a bit more, in the past, just because the item will get shipped sooner.

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I would pay extra as a buyer in order to be able to use Paypal. Not that I like paying extra just to use Paypal exactly, but I simply would not bid on an item that couldn't be paid for with Paypal even if it sold for less. If I am buying something for say $200, I certainly do not want to be screwed out of that money by sending a money order and then receiving nothing or a broken or misrepresented item. With Paypal, you can stop the payment. With a money order or check, you are simply screwed out of that money. So I would be willing to pay $240 to know I would be getting the item I expected or my money back. It just isn't worth it to bid $200 and not be sure you won't get screwed. So I would just pass on the item and wait for the next one.

I haven't sold much, but it is certainly worth the little fee Paypal charges to have an instant payment, no trips to the bank, no worries about bounced checks, not have to keep asking and waiting for a check to arrive, and possibly get more money for whatever I'm selling because the buyers feel more confident bidding.

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Guest bofusmosby

I have bought many thing off Ebay, but have never sold anything so far. What kind of charges does Pay-Pay charge? Is it a flat rate, or is it a percentage of what the item(s) sells for? It would be good to know this for the future.

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