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Fee Avoid & eMail Solution

February/March/April 2001
ebaY schemes, tries to control, and sows distrust in the community. Fortunately the individuals in the community are smarter then the ebaY paranoia driven conglomerate mind.

ebaY announced today, 25 Feb, at ebaY University in Dallas that they were going to force ebaY users who currently use an email address as a user ID to change it. So much for sellers who have spent years developing their "brand" - they are out of luck.

In addition, there have been anecdotal reports that ebaY has run 'sting' operations, where an alleged 'buyer' emails a seller on a reserve auction not met situation and asks to purchase. The sellers gives the buyer the info and the buyer turns the seller in - so that the seller gets suspended.

So here is TAG's solution. We are sure there are plenty of folks even brighter than we who will come up with even better ones are. Share your brainpower and ideas. We will welcome suggestions and post them here.

This should protect both seller and buyer from ebaY's accusations of SPAM or fee avoidance. This solution should also help to restore the trust between buyer and seller that we feel is inherently being destroyed by ebaYs actions in this matter.

Every seller should start a mailing list/customer database that buyers can Opt In for. BigStep.Com has very flexible customer database management tools that will facilitate a list such as we are suggesting. Put a link to your mailing list/customer database in EVERY auction.

Any customer who voluntarily signs up, becomes part of YOUR customer database NOT ebaYs.

If a potential buyer emails you with a question about other items you might have for sale, or about an item you no longer have listed on ebaY, inform them that by ebaY's rules you cannot give them that information, BUT if they want, they can sign up to become part of YOUR mailing list/customer database. Once they sign up, they have agreed to enter a direct relationship with you, therefore the seller is protected against reports to ebaY from buyers, for breaking the rules, and the buyer is protected, because they too received no information from you that could jeopardize their ebaY registration, since they did not get any information until you both entered into a direct relationship with each other.

The seller will have written proof of this direct relationship in case it is needed in a court of law to prove that the customer had voluntarily become their customer outside of their relationship with ebaY. As far as TAG can tell, there is currently nothing in the ebaY user agreement that would prohibit this method.

Of course nothing stops ebaY from suspending you, BUT you can make a much more effective protest when you break no rules than when you do. If enough folks get suspended for using this method there will be a good body of written evidence to show ebaY was attempting to enforce an exclusive agency agreement when there was no such contract in force, and probably a valid argument for restraint of trade. It would definitely blow ebaYs venue only status to smithereens.

As to the email problems - put an email link in EVERY auction. Display it PROMINENTLY with a nice graphic right up front. Don't stick it at the end of the auction. Make sure your customers can contact you, so that you can give them the service they deserve. Use a button like the one SmoothSale.Com provides, or sign up with a service like MyBiz.Com. All will provide you with direct contact with your bidder without ebaYs unwarranted interference. -TAG

(Editors note - added 4 March)
At present ebaY is saying that it will NOT force users to change their email address User IDs to something different. Current users may change their User ID to their email address but must use the current address associated with the User ID. A new user must register with a User ID, but may change their User ID to their email address once the registration process is complete.

(Editors Nore - added 9 April_ though ebaY DOES NOT have a rule against having a link to a mailing/customer list in an auction listing, they are nevertheless forcing sellers to end auctions that have such links - both in their auctions AND on their about me pages. TAG STRONGLY suggests sellers include a mailing/customer list link in EVERY email they send out, and that no seller should give a potential buyer ANY information about an auction unless the potential buyer joins the sellers mailing/customer list first. This protects both from ebaYs capriciousness.