CQout to take on ebay acutions in USA

CQout, the online auction website based in the UK celebrates it's tenth birthday with an announcement that it's set to take on ebay, in America.

CQout managing director, Siamak Bashi said, "We have recently celebrated our 10 year anniversary of providing auction services to UK where our reputation for trust and security is second to none which has helped us to grow to become one of the largest auction service providers. Our plans are now to continue our growth by providing tailored services to our US customers. We believe auction users in the US deserve a better service than they are currently getting from eBay."

This is bold statement by the CQout MD.  Ebay has stood as the unchallenged leadeer in the online auction world now for over a decade.  However, despite seeming bold, and a bit optimistic, there could be a very good market for CQout in the US.  Over the past year or so, ebay has changed its sellers policies, fees and structure in order to provide customers with a more secure, and more trusting buying environment.  These changes, although unpopular with the old fashioned small sellers that used to be ebay's bread and butter, have proved popular with customers who don't want to take the risk of getting an item of dubious quality from an unknown seller.  Ebay's share prices are rising, there are more customers than ever and those customers are spending more, so no-one can argue with the commercial sense and logic of ebay's decision.

So what about the little guys?  Well the logical answer is that they will find a new alternative venue, one that caters more for the smaller seller, the buyer that's looking something that's a bit different, and unique, rather than the discount designer clearance market that ebay seems to be moving into.  And why not CQout?  The only other credible alternative to ebay in the UK is ebid, maybe there will be a new entrant in the market?  Maybe ebay will harness the use of their recently acquired gumtree for small sellers.  It's all up for speculation at the moment.  Either way, there will be changes and who better to maybe raise their game and take on new markets than an auction website that already has 10 years worth of experience.

EU Regulation could threaten Smaller Online Businesses

A recent draft regulation being considered by the EU requires all internet retailers to have a physical bricks and mortar shop.  This is a regulation drafted to protect the owners of luxury branded goods, looking to stamp out illegal copies and brand fraud.  However Ebay and Amazon slam these proposals, saying that it would cut the growth of e-commerce off in it's "teenage" phase, and that the proposals would just let the luxury brands continue with price fixing and discrimination.  The lobby group of the brand owners say that the proposals are also there to stop the "free riders", the businesses that benefit off the back of the corporate and other physical business's advertising and marketing, and who, because they don't have to incur the costs associated with staffing and owning a premises are able to offer the goods at discounted prices.

Here at Boxby, many of our customers are these so called "free riders" and we feel that the legislation proposed is not only discriminative but also anti-competitive.  It seems to me that the luxury brand owners are simply looking to take out a tranche of competitors that they haven't yet learnt how to effectively compete with.  If the issue is simply that of "free riding" then the brand owners have the ultimate ability to control that, or to get the web retailers to contribute to the costs of the global marketing and brand awareness, and it's plain, old fashioned and easy - they simply increase the cost price.

But at Boxby, we are at a bit of loss as to why the brand owners would looking to use anti competitive legislation in order to acheive it.  Our theories are that it has less to do with recovering market costs, and more to do with controlling the distribution and selling of their products to a smaller and more controlled selling venue. 

When someone is buying a luxury item, £700 on a handbag for instance, the thing at the top of their mind isn't that they've just saved £20 by buying it online.  Part of the enjoyment is the purchase itself, the whole retail experience.  And if the brand owners want to get people into bricks and mortar shops then the way to do it isn't be regulation, but by better marketing and presentation.  Maybe making the shop assistants a little less snooty, and pay a bit more attention - particularly to those customers that don't instantly look like "our type of customer".

Eitherway, the Internet is the greatest leveller in retail, and the way for the EU to address this isn't by bringing in legislation that takes business and marketing and retail backwards a couple of decades.

Ebay Changes from 01  April 2010 make Ebay Sellers P&P top priority

Anyone selling on ebay should check out the changes to the ebay selling standards, otherwise known as the DSR's with effect from 1st April 2010.  There is significant increase in the performance targets with the P&P charges and the despatch times low star rating being halfed from 4% tolerance rate to only 2%. 

This is an important aspect to selling on ebay.  Most of the ebay selling process is within the control of the seller, it is them that write the descriptions, take the photos, invoice and deal with communication.  However when it comes to P&P charges, and definitely times, the ebay seller has to hand over to the delivery company or the parcel company and they are to a large degree in their hands.

Choices that ebay sellers can make to protect their DSRs include;

• Careful choice of parcel company.  Using one that delivers on a next day service as opposed to a economy service.
• Thinking carefully about using parcel deliveries where you are reliant upon the customer collecting from a pickup point.
• Always using a company that gives tracking.
• Using a parcel company that gives you customer service.

The key to all of this is communication and customer service.  The emphasis now is on the seller to be proactive to ensure that the buyer receives their items as quickly and efficiently as possible.  Therefore you, as a seller, need to make sure that you deal with a parcel company that answers the phone, and turns around your queries within a satisfactory timeframe.  And if that means not going with the bargain bucket bottom dollar parcel service then it's time to make that move.  Because now your DSR's are being rated even more strictly on the performance of your couriers and delivery companies.

Ebay launches trading platform in Russia

Ebay launches it's Russian language auction site at the End of March 2010, taking on the Russian auction website Molotok.  It will also be enabling buyers to use Paypal.

The US State department is currently undertaking a visit to Russia, the CEO of Ebay, John Donahoe, part of the delegation, to see how the US and Russia can use technology, e-commerce and social networking to improve ties between the two great nataions. 

The use of the internet in Russia is described as being fragmented and around 40 years behind the rest of the world.  Here at boxby we see the move of ebay into Russia as being a key step in helping ordinary people access and use the internet.  Ebay's platform with it's millions of items and users is many people's first venture onto the internet. 

Boxby specialises in delivering all those heavy, bulky and large items that can't be shipped using normal parcel services.  Alistair Patterson, director at Boxby said today "we don't currently have  a large number of couriers covering deliveries in Russia, I guess this is something that i'll have to look into".

Ebay delivery quotes quickly and easily with boxby. 

Our newly re-vamped Boxby homepage makes listing your ebay jobs even quicker and easier.  For exisiting boxby members, listing an ebay job for delivery quotes and and prices from our couriers is such a simple job that you can do it one handed  - copy, paste, click, click!  That's it, and then we send it off to over 1000 registered couriers to quote to delivery prices to you.

And remember that Boxby is totally free, for customers and couriers.  No deposits, no up front fees, no jobs fees, and every penny you pay goes direct to the courier.

Boxby is the perfect deliver tool for ebay sellers

Yesterday was officially ebay's peak selling Sunday, the date that it expect more sales listings that any other day.  And the reason, we've all got round to listing our unwanted Christmas presents, and all the old stuff that we've replaced by shiny new stuff in the January sales.

So, for all ebay sellers selling the large, heavy and bulky items, remember to include the boxby widget in your listings, this means that we will answer all of the enquiries from your customers about delivery costs and charges, and it means that you can sit back, feet up, and sell to anyone, anywhere in the UK. Simply drop our snippet of code into your ebay listing and we'll do the rest;  http://www.boxby-couriers.co.uk/ebay-seller-information.asp

And if you're buying, then don't hang around waiting for delivery quotes, simply come to our website, give us the ebay number and your details, and we'll get the courier prices for you; http://www.boxby-couriers.co.uk/index.asp

And remember, Boxby doesn't charge customers any fees, or even take a job fee off the couriers, no deposits either.  Every penny you pay for the courier job goes directly to the courier.  Which means, that YOU get the cheapest delivery price.

Ebay suspend changes to DSR's to help sellers survive postal strike - but are they really just hurting buyers?

In September this year, Ebay changed the seller Distance Selling Ratings to assess sellers on the speed of despatch and delivery.  Furthermore the changes made the seller responsible for delivery, responsible for the product up to the point of delivery to the customer.  Put simply, posting the item is no longer sufficient, it is sellers responsibility to ensure that the postie, or the parcel carrier deliver.

These changes put ebay sellers on the same level footing as other e-commerce traders, and ensure that ebay sellers comply with the same Distance Selling Regulations that anyone selling off any other website would have too.

Unfortunately for ebay, these changes appear to have co-incided with a Nationwide postal strike, which risks a huge backlash from sellers who feel that they are being unfair negatively assessed becasuse of the Royal Mail's failure to ensure that they posties are out delivering and that the Royal Mail is providing the delivery service it should.

Ebay have therefore decided to suspend the "Speed of Despatch" DSR for the duration of the postal strike.

Does this help customers?  Well, here at boxby we would suggest no, no really.  Because the Royal Mail isn't the only delivery company out there, and that many sellers have already made proper and appropriate arrangements to ensure that their customers get their products come what may through the postal strike.  Sellers that have gone this extra step will now no longer receive any accreditation, and can't be distinguished from the lazier ebay sellers who simply despatch their items with the Royal Mail, during a postal strike, and put the needs of their customers low down the list.

This is the whole point of the Distance Selling Regualtions, and ebay's move towards compliance for sellers through the Distance Selling Ratings.  Other ecommerce websites don't have the chance to "opt-out" of relevant consumer legislation just because the posties go on strike.  So why should ebay sellers? Consumer legistltion isn't voluntary.  The most useful and relevant thing that ebay could be doing during times of a postal strike is by letting customers draw attention through feedback to those higher quality ebay sellers that do take steps to ensure that their customers still receive their products promptly.

Ebay Sellers need to beware, Postal Strike delays could impact your DSRs

All ebay sellers should be aware of one of the new changes brought in as part of the 22nd September changes.  As sellers you are  now responsible for the item all the up to the point of delivery.  This means that if your item gets damaged in transit, goes missing in the post, or sits in a sorting office for a couple of weeks, that you as the seller will be rated on this as part of your P&P DSR. 

It is no longer enough to simply produce a proof of posting, you need proof of delivery.  This means online trackable services, and for the short term, and particularly in the run up to Christmas when customers expected their orders despatched quickly, that ebay sellers make contingency plans for couriers and alternative delivery methods other than the Royal Mail.

Our Parcel partner; Parcels Please does not use and Parcelforce or Royal Mail services, and therefore parcel deliveries booked online will not be subject to any delays caused by the Royal Mail workers strikes.  To book parcels with Parcels Please click here.