Question
Yahoo Auctions Axes Listing Fees: Response to eBay Acquisition?
By Ina Steiner
AuctionBytes.com
June 05, 2005
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link
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I shared the "news coming Monday" information, which I first saw here at here, on the eBay Store Board and at FAS.
The most repeated comment was a hope for Google to get into the marketplace.
It would seem a natural progression for Google to eventually offer some kind of a venue. Maybe not auctions but fixed priced offerings/classified listings and/or Stores.
Google constantly changes elements within it's search process to, as I understand, avoid manipulation of search results by people using KWS or data collection for affiliation purposes of directing traffic without actually offering the specific item for sale.
If they owned and regulated the listing site it would seem that content could be included without the sellers having to constantly adjust to changes in the search criteria and visitors might be more confident shopping Google hosted sellers than just anyone on the Internet.
Seems like there is a potential for buyers, sellers and Google to combine into a mutually satisfying interaction.
On the other hand, the big news that YAHOO was stopping their listing fees is being met with a big yawn.
YAHOO does not have a good reputation for managing their venue, never have found how to expose listings to their traffic and have a reputation for junk listings and NP buyers.
Sellers want results not unproductive "free" listings that always "cost" time.
I guess if some sellers can post a quantity of new inventory using listing programs and don't have too much of a problem with nonpaying customers then there might be a marginal value.
Given the history and reputation of YAHOO among sellers, it will have to do much more before being considered a serious alternative venue.
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The changes and inconsistencies make my head spin.
I feel Yahoo had their chance and blew it. I am not about to spend hours doing listings for another site which is constantly changing the rules and methods.
eBay is more than enough headaches for one lifetime.
Larry
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I think this impacts Overstock and iOffer and LunarBid and BirdBid and all the other small sites a lot more than it impacts eBay.
Yahoo still has eyeballs. Lots of them. Yahoo Shopping is popular among many internet buyers.
It will probably be too much work for the reward if you are listing individual auctions, but if you have an auction service like Andale or AuctionWorks or ChannelAdvisor or Vendio which will send listings you create to Yahoo in bulk with a few clicks... and you have the inventory to support it... for free, why not? You will get some sales. My experience with selling on Yahoo Auctions is that the NPB rate is slightly higher than at eBay, but not to the point that it's a real problem.
But back to the smaller sites... before they were trying to justify having fewer hits than Yahoo Auctions and higher listing fees in many cases. Now there is no legitimate justification for their listing fees at all...
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Yahoo has a fairly easy to use bulk loader,and their Seller's Manager tool ain't bad either. Especially for free. I've got 4,000 items up already this morning.
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over 1000 items up by the time I'm done, if not more, using their Excel spreadsheet bulkloader system. Works very slick, and takes no time at all to update my spreadsheets.
According to the front page of their Auctions site, its no listing fees and no closing fees. I had guessed Yahoo was dropping listing fees was the announcment - but no FVF either was a surprise.
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Hmm.... that means that they will probably scale back attention paid to the site even more, and reintroduce fees at some point again... I'd rather they had continued to charge closing fees...
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I did a keyword search of Yahoo Auctions this morning and was astonished to find that the search results page contained 15 paid advertisements, surrounding the search results on three sides.
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Toy
You, as much as anyone, might have some insights into YAHOO going back to the MAM days.
They have young, progressive management, have been successful in the search and Store market, are strong in Japan, where eBay left the marketplace, and they are making noise about China.
They made a strong run at eBay and then seemed to walk away from that section of the marketplace. I can even remember when there was apparently serious discussions about them buying eBay which only faltered when, accordingly to media reports, Meg felt she and eBay would not have enough independent authority under the proposed agreement.
This happened just before the stock market bubble burst for IT companies and the abandonment of auctions might be blamed on YAHOO attempting to focus on their core business and saving the company.
I've always found the coincidence that eBay pulled out of Japan, leaving that market to YAHOO, and YAHOO all but pulling out of North America and Europe happening at about the same time, of interest. I know it would be illegal for corporations to enter into agreements to divide the marketplace but these changes coming at the approximate same time have always held my attention.
YAHOO has a first rate search and Store component. With the struggling auction subsidary it's like having a well cared for expensive mansion in a great neighborhood and there being a rusted junk car on the front lawn.
With the substantial improvement in their stock price and search income, YAHOO has plenty of money. I would think they would either fix the auction venue to be more compatible with the quality of their other corporate efforts or get rid of it.