Governor Marley

Ebay live has just finished and I’ve been following events. The disappointing thing is that I’m reading a lot of negative comments. Although I’m mightily disappointed with ebay, it’s clear that many other people are too.

However that aside, the ebay execs just don’t get it and I’m at a loss to understand how they can’t get it. The simple, plain facts are, DSR’s are a joke, the new feedback system is a joke. Auction wreckers have been causing havoc in the UK and all ebay can say is that a means of withdrawing feedback will be available by the holidays. Quite frankly it’s inexcusable that it takes this long to put something right.

I wouldn’t hold your breath awaiting that though, the sellers hub, the much heralded sellers hub, is itself an absolute joke too. How many jokes are ebay going to pull before they realise that their jokes just aren’t funny?

Ebay are supposed to be a venue, they need to get back to realising this as soon as possible. Sellers are supposed to work with ebay, not for ebay.

Simple issues, I’ve raised before:

1. Sellers getting suspended for one or two negs and neutrals, this is ridiculous, the feedback system is a member to member system based on opinion.

2. Lowered visibility, it’s quite frankly unethical to take money from a seller and deliberately lower their visibility. Ebay have no business doing that, it’s shoddy business practice to say the least. If they don’t want sellers, then ban them, but ban them for reasons ebay find objectionable, not based on a few extreme opinions of buyers.

3. A five star DSR system where anyhing less than five is a fail is a fatally flawed system. This simply does not work and to base sanctions or offer discounts based on DSR’s is again shoddy business practice. I work with stats in my day job, DSR’s are not quantifiable because of the much varied opinions.

4. The new search, this is an epic fail.

5. Ebay need to stop tinkering.

Now these really shouldn’t be issues I keep having to raise, the ebay execs need to get their heads out of the sand. Well Brian Burke needs to get his head out of the sand, pack his bags and go. I don’t know why he’s still in a job after the fiasco created by the feedback situation. Epic failure warrants someone taking responsibility.

of course ebay do have a role, they have a role to encourage safety on the site by clamping down on hard on scammers, cheats and charlatans. That’s where ebay should be concentrating, because scammers, cheats and charlatans are the people who cause buyers to leave in droves, not the guy who charges 50p more than the stamp price. Ebay are wasting time by tinkering with feedback and DSR’s, concentrate on the bad guys and I mean the real bad guys.

Ebay live was of course, in this day and age, blogged, taped and shared. The winner of the most popular rant goes to this guy, who lost the plot, although I can totally understand his frustrations:

The bottom line is that ebay are biting way too deep into the hand that feeds them, it’s time to put this right and that should be happening now, not tomorrow, not next week and not by the holidays, the time to act is now.