Tomorrow it will have been two weeks since some of the functions of eBay’s Marketplace research have worked.

This is the second time in recent months some of the features of eBay’s Marketplace Research Pro aren’t working properly. The first time this happened the problems lasted about a week and, while some parts of the program didn’t work at all, it still functioned well enough to get most of the information I needed.

This time, the problem is with being able to sort the returned results making Marketplace Research virtually useless.

Both times eBay has handled the problem in a similar professional manner. Inquiries to customer service regarding the problem get a canned response which pretty much says:

Deal with it! We are aware of the problem. We’ll get around to fixing it when we feel like it. You’d like a partial refund you say? LOL - Not likely!.

A lot has been written over the last few months by knowledgeable people such as Randy Smythe and Scot Wingo regarding the problems that eBay is facing. There is no question that eBay has bigger problems than whether the sort function of Marketplace Research is working or not. However, this ‘little’ problem does raise a question.

If eBay is either unable to fix this minor problem, or doesn’t care about fixing it, what in the world would lead anyone to believe they are going to be able to provide workable solutions to any of the much larger problems they face?

Over the last year there is an arrogance and disregard for both buyers and sellers that has permeated eBay management and customer service. While eBay will likely come up with solutions to the problems they face, it will be their arrogance that will eventually be their downfall.

And Meg, John, Jeff, or whoever is in charge next week. You can just keep my $24.99 monthly fee for the privilege of using Marketplace Research Pro. I’m pretty sure eBay needs it a lot more than I do.

Photograph by Doug Murray.

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I want to wish all reader of The Auction Rebel a Happy Holiday season, and ask that whatever your personal beliefs, whereever you are, however you celebrate, you keep others in your thoughts and prayers.

A friend sent the poem below to me a couple of days ago and I would like to share it with you.

A Different Christmas Poem

The embers glowed softly, and in their dim light,
I gazed round the room and I cherished the sight.
My wife was asleep, her head on my chest,
My daughter beside me, angelic in rest.
Outside the snow fell, a blanket of white,
Transforming the yard to a winter delight.
The sparkling lights in the tree I believe,
Completed the magic that was Christmas Eve.
My eyelids were heavy, my breathing was deep,
Secure and surrounded by love I would sleep.
In perfect contentment, or so it would seem,
So I slumbered, perhaps I started to dream.
The sound wasn’t loud, and it wasn’t too near,
But I opened my eyes when it tickled my ear.
Perhaps just a cough, I didn’t quite know,
Then the sure sound of footsteps outside in the snow.
My soul gave a tremble, I struggled to hear,
And I crept to the door just to see who was near.
Standing out in the cold and the dark of the night,
A lone figure stood, his face weary and tight.
A soldier, I puzzled, some twenty years old,
Perhaps a Marine, huddled here in the cold.
Alone in the dark, he looked up and smiled,
Standing watch over me, and my wife and my child.
“What are you doing?” I asked without fear,
“Come in this moment, it’s freezing out here!
Put down your pack, brush the snow from your sleeve,
You should be at home on a cold Christmas Eve!”
For barely a moment I saw his eyes shift,
Away from the cold and the snow blown in drifts..
To the window that danced with a warm fire’s light
Then he sighed and he said “Its really all right,
I’m out here by choice. I’m here every night.”
“It’s my duty to stand at the front of the line,
That separates you from the darkest of times.
No one had to ask or beg or implore me,
I’m proud to stand here like my fathers before me.
My Gramps died at ‘ Pearl on a day in December,”
Then he sighed, “That’s a Christmas ‘Gram always remembers.”
My dad stood his watch in the jungles of ‘ Nam ‘,
And now it is my turn and so, here I am.
I’ve not seen my own son in more than a while,
But my wife sends me pictures, he’s sure got her smile.
Then he bent and he carefully pulled from his bag,
The red, white, and blue… an American flag.
I can live through the cold and the being alone,
Away from my family, my house and my home.
I can stand at my post through the rain and the sleet,
I can sleep in a foxhole with little to eat.
I can carry the weight of killing another,
Or lay down my life with my sister and brother..
Who stand at the front against any and all,
To ensure for all time that this flag will not fall.”
“So go back inside,” he said, “harbor no fright,
Your family is waiting and I’ll be all right.”
“But isn’t there something I can do, at the least,
“Give you money,” I asked, “or prepare you a feast?
It seems all too little for all that you’ve done,
For being away from your wife and your son.”
Then his eye welled a tear that held no regret,
“Just tell us you love us, and never forget.
To fight for our rights back at home while we’re gone,
To stand your own watch, no matter how long.
For when we come home, either standing or dead,
To know you remember we fought and we bled.
Is payment enough, and with that we will trust,
That we mattered to you as you mattered to us.”

Photo by soldiersmediacenter

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This Thanksgiving Evening I would like to extend to everyone and their families my warmest thoughts and a Happy Thanksgiving. I hope you take the time to enjoy the day and the time spent with family and friends.

If you live in a country where Thanksgiving isn’t celebrated, tomorrow, or any other day, is still an opportune time to reflect upon the many things each of us have to the thankful for and to enjoy some time with others important to us.

I would also like to take this opportunity to extend a heartfelt ‘Thank You’ to each and every reader of The Auction Rebel.

Every time you take a few minutes to read something I’ve written here, you are giving me a special gift - your time and your attention. I know how precious you time is. I’m grateful.

So, have a wonderful Thanksgiving, and Thank You!

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RSS Feeds

If you subscribe to The Auction Rebel RSS Feed you may have already noticed the change made to the RSS Feed. It is now a full feed rather than a partial feed. This means that you will now be able to read each post, in it’s entirety, right in your RSS reader rather than having to click through to the blog to read the entire post.

Email Notifications

The old option to receive an email notification whenever new material is added to the blog is no longer available to new subscribers.

In it’s place, readers will now be able to have each new post delivered, it it’s entirety, directly to their email in-box. Similar to RSS subscribers, this means you can read each new post right in your email without having to come to The Auction Rebel to read it.

These emails will actually be a daily digest of any new content on The Auction Rebel. By using the digest format I can refrain from cluttering up your email box on days there might be two or more new posts. The digest will be sent each day between 3:00 and 5:00 pm. On days when there is no new content added there will be no digest sent out.

This change has been made because, with the garage sale and auction sale season coming to a close here, I’m going to be spending a lot more time on the road in search of new inventory. When at home, I’ll be pre-writing several new posts and scheduling them to be posted on the days that I’m gone. The old email notifications were sent out manually and this may not always be possible when I’m traveling. With the new system, the digests are sent automatically each day there is new content.

For those who are already receiving email notifications of new content, you will continue to them. However, I encourage you to subscribe to the full feed (you can use the subscription box at the top of the right-hand menu bar). Once you have done so, and verified you are receiving them, you can unsubscribe from the old notification system simply by clicking on the ‘unsubscribe’ link at the bottom of any old email notification you get.

If you have a question about the new full-feed emails, you can use either the comment section of this post or just send me an email.

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Within the last one or two months, I’ve started receiving emails from several readers asking about a book I wrote some time ago about selling books on Half.com and what my thoughts are regarding selling books on Half.com vs Amazon.

Since one, or both, questions are being asked with increasing frequency, I thought it would be worthwhile talking about both here.

Selling Used Books Online - How To Sell Common Everyday Books On Half.Com Like Crazy!

WOW! Until people began asking about it one or two months ago, I hadn’t thought about this book in years. If memory serves me correctly, I wrote this in either 1999 or the very first part of 2000 (this was some time ago, and I’m writing this from memory, so this and subsequent dates may be off by a year or so).

At the time Half.com hadn’t yet been acquired by eBay and there were frequent questions about how to get started selling on Half.com on several book and eBay related forums and news groups. I’d been selling used books on Half.com for some time, and the book was written as a beginner’s guide to getting started on Half.com.

Somewhere around the middle of 2000 eBay purchased Half.com. A year or two later, there were rumblings coming out of eBay that they intended to shut down Half.com as a stand-alone site and incorporate it into eBay. In essence, this would have meant that individuals selling books on Half.com would have two options - either change to the regular eBay auction format or move their book business to one of the other book-selling sites such as Amazon, AbeBooks, etc.

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After what I had originally thought would be a short seven to eight day hiatus from adding any content to the blog, things are pretty much back to normal and I’m finally back. I’ll just say that the month of September quickly turned into what some would refer to as the month from HE double hockey sticks and it’s now time to let it rest in peace.

I’ll be bringing the results of The Garage Sale Challenge up to date and post them within the next few days. The final items that were purchased during the final week of September are either already live right now, or will be going live later this evening.

The update may not be available until Friday or Saturday however, because tomorrow morning I’m leaving for the Friends Of The Library sale in Minot that starts at 5 Wednesday afternoon. When I’m done there, I’ll be driving to Bismarck where I’ll stay overnight so I can be in line bright and early for their FOL sale starting at 7 on Thursday morning. On the way to Minot and on the return trip from Bismarck, I’ll also be visiting some antique shops. It’s going to feel good to get out of town and on the road for a couple of days.

I would also like to say Thank You to Stephen Banks and James Jones for taking the time to write and ask if everything was okay here. I apologize for not responding by email, but your concern was deeply appreciated.

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Phil Dunn is a co-author of the book “The 7 Essential Steps to Successful eBay Marketing” which was written about two years ago.

He also has a blog titled eBay Marketing Writing and Advertising Tips for PowerSellers and Sellers - Insider Info that bills itself as “Advanced marketing, design and exposure techniques for eBay Sellers. Based on the book “The 7 Essential Steps to Successful eBay Marketing” (McGraw-Hill, July 2005). Tips, tricks and strategies that help you generate eBay sales now. Insider selling knowledge.”

It all sounds pretty impressive doesn’t it?

Today Phil’s blog contains a post titled “Big News For Sellers (and buyers)” in which he links to an article on the Motley Fools investment site dealing with eBay’s “new buyer and seller database mining features.” He then asks:

“Any thoughts? Excitement? Enthusiasm? Let us know what you think of this development, and tell us how you intend to use it (if at all). “

Yup, I’ve got three thoughts Phil …….

My first thought is that Motley Fool didn’t post that article today. They posted it nearly two years ago. On November 11, 2005 to be exact.

My second thought isn’t so much a thought as it is a question. How the hell can someone who provides insider tips for Powersellers not know anything about eBay Marketplace Research?

I’ve been using it just about daily for about as long as your eBay book has been in print.

My third is a question to myself? I wonder if I should rush out and buy a copy of your book? After all, both Amazon and WalMart have discounted it. I wonder why?

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For several years disgruntled sellers have been expounding on the future of eBay. Their forecasts have, for the most part, been somewhat gloomy. I’ve never paid much attention to them, viewing their pontificating as nothing more than the babble of a group of people who probably weren’t going to be successful on eBay anyway.

But within the last months a few things have happened that, when combined, have caused me to give some thought to the direction eBay is headed and to ask - what is the future of eBay? Will it be around five or ten years from now?

The first was a stop on the way home from a fishing trip at a fair-sized flea market that I hadn’t visited in more than two years. The other things were included in several different eBay related newsletters I received over the last couple months.

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A couple days ago Sydney Johnston, in a post titled Stress Management Article: Stress Management Tips For The eBay Seller, said in part:

“Let’s face it … selling on eBay can be a nail-biting experience….“

Reading this, I was left scratching my head. I’ve been making my living selling on eBay since 1998 and I can honestly say I have never felt any stress from eBay. If eBay were to ever become ‘a nail-biting experience’, I’d stop selling there immediately.

If selling on eBay is that stressful for Sydney, my immediate question is - Why in the world is she doing it?

What about you? Is eBay adding stress to your life?

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I would like to say “Thank You” to all the readers who took the time to comment or send emails with your recommendations and ideas in response to the post Help Me Improve The Auction Rebel.

Based upon the ideas you provided, you can expect to see the following in the coming weeks:

• More posts about selling books on Amazon. I guess I don’t talk about this all that much because I view it as more of a “pay for the gas” thing rather than a major part of my business. However quite a few of you expressed interest in Amazon, so there will be information coming soon about setting up an Amazon account, what kind of books I find work best there (this may vary for some of you), and the tools I use.
• More posts covering specific items I buy and why I buy them. I used to do this on a regular basis on a membership site, but have gotten away from it since that site shut down and more emphasis has been placed on this blog.
• A series of posts about bootstrapping an eBay business. This will be written with the beginner in mind, but after the basics are out of the way, there will be some information that should be useful to most readers.

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