eBay or JustBeads.com...do you have an opionion?

lynn's lampwork · #1 2006-07-22, 9:51am

Do you have a preference? Is eBay getting too crazy/costly? Is JustBeads cheaper to list on? Have any of you tried the auction on The Annealer Magazine site?

Just curious as to your thoughts....
Thanks,
~Lynn

yeepers · #2 2006-07-22, 11:43am

The fees on JB are virtually the same as Ebay except for the fact that you do not have to pay fees to relist if your item does not sell.

Customer support is stellar on JB but there is no invoicing feature and it can sometimes take forever for buyers to pay up.

For me they're both about the same. For some others JB is much better to them than Ebay. I think with both it depends on how long you've been listing and how consistent you are.

I list on both.

Lara · #3 2006-07-22, 3:47pm

I list on both too and find I do better on eBay. I think it is because I have repeat customers there.

eklecticmoose · #4 2006-07-23, 1:00pm

As a buyer, I prefer Justbeads - even though more artists list on ebay. I have had problems in the past with ebay (stolen ID, misuse of credit card info - long story) so I do not list or buy off "the bay" any more. This is unfortunate because I had good customer relations and traded things other than beads.

Justbeads started out with very limited number of artists, but I am thrilled to see more are giving it a try. I haven't had any problems with Justbeads yet and when I finally feel my beads are worth listing, that is the place I will go to.

~ Tru

LavenderCreek · #5 2006-07-24, 3:51am

I list on Ebay because most of my beads aren't something that is sought after by the masses. If I want to get the money that my pieces are worth, I need the larger audience that Ebay provides. I like JB, I like the atmosphere and also the customer support, Bob is great. It just doesn't work for me. Same thing for the Auction Boutique.

magpiedreams · #6 2006-07-24, 4:37am

I don't know about JB but I'll say that any activity you do on Ebay is going to get you lots of those spoof e-mails asking you to provide information on your account, etc. Between Ebay and PayPal spoofs both my wife and I delete lots of them. We never click on any links, if we need to use either we are sure to use only the legitimate web site addresses. These spoofs, etc. are annoying and, if not stopped, are going to add to the downfall of the use of these sites as more and more people get sucked into using them, especially newbies. Sometimes I doubt either of these co.'s aggressively go after the spoofers.

lynn's lampwork · #7 2006-07-24, 11:19am

I do the same thing, I NEVER read anything from eBay on email. Someone from eBay Customer Service told me that anything they send to us will also be on your "Messages" box on your eBay account, so, like you , I just delete anything that says eBay when I get an email....I think that's good advice. One morning, I woke up to find that someone had gotten into my eBay account and listed 4 bass fishing boats and 2 farming trackers! (I know, isn't that odd!) It was just a hoax as they were asking thousands of dollars for them, from the UK, and they would ship them! Of course, it could have been a LOT worse, but I felt violated, so since then, I NEVER open ANYTHING from eBay via email!!!

Has anyone checked out the Auction Boutique on The Annealer Magazine website???? Maybe that's another avenue everyone could try...? Just a thought....

~Lynn

lavendar420 · #8 2006-07-24, 5:05pm

its not so much the opening of email that's the problem, its when you click a link in one of those emails to "log in" or whatever. its safest to never ever do that, from any sensitive account. bank, credit card, ebay, whatever.

daisydog7 · #9 2006-07-24, 7:26pm

I think for the newbie just starting out, like me, who isn't a high dollar seller (okay, not a medium dollar seller either) the fees are pretty high on eBay. There is the listing fee and the photo fee and the gallery fee and the final value fee and the Paypal fee. Plus, there are so many other auctions going on you are really most of the time just buried in a pile. I won't even mention AH. Of course there is featured plus ($19.95), but that sure is alot of money unless your beads are selling for big bucks.
I haven't tried Just Beads yet but am looking into it.

Lisi · #10 2006-07-25, 4:45am

My sales on ebay are pretty slow right now but I haven't been listing in almost two months. Gosh, I hope they find me again! I had some regular customers.

Meanwhile, I had one set of beads on JB that closed at 5 bids, so I decided to take a chance and list 4 auctions. (fingers and toes crossed)

magpiedreams · #11 2006-07-25, 5:30am

Quote:

Originally Posted by lynn's lampwork

I do the same thing, I NEVER read anything from eBay on email. Someone from eBay Customer Service told me that anything they send to us will also be on your "Messages" box on your eBay account, so, like you , I just delete anything that says eBay when I get an email....I think that's good advice. ~Lynn

Lynn,

Yes, I'd seen that, too. I wonder how many people have been burned, though. It seems that so many of these spoof e-mails come purporting to be Ebay or Paypal; it seems that on a daily basis we are deleting at least one, sometimes 2 or more, of these, some go directly to the junk box, some the inbox, hard to block each and every one. Since so many people buying or selling craft related items use Ebay, Paypal, etc. it's good to spread the warning once in a while since the problems seem to be worse, not better. Ken

DesertDreamer · #12 2006-07-25, 7:00am

I've been listing on Ebay nearly-regularly since 1998. I was on/off with Justbeads from their start, and also used Amazon Auctions for a few years, which was my favorite overall. This year, in January, I started a "trial separation" from Ebay. I haven't listed a thing there since, and I don't miss it at all. I've been exclusively selling with Justbeads and it's been very good for me. I'm happy with the efforts Bob has made with improving useability, I think their fees are reasonable ($2 for a featured auction vs Ebay's $20 is GREAT!), and they're far more attentive to issues with problem bidders, sellers listing in the wrong category, etc. Bob CARES, Ebay doesn't give a damn. That means the world to me.

Lisi · #13 2006-07-25, 7:42am

Quote:

Originally Posted by DesertDreamer

I think their fees are reasonable ($2 for a featured auction vs Ebay's $20 is GREAT!), and they're far more attentive to issues with problem bidders, sellers listing in the wrong category, etc. Bob CARES, Ebay doesn't give a damn. That means the world to me.

I've been thinking about putting up a huge auction for a collection of my "faux turquoise" beads (not orphans, a mix and match big bunch) and doing the featured listing to see what happens. Do $300 auctions sell well on Justbeads??