Sunday, December 02, 2007

The largest eBay seller leaves : Bargainland on its own.


This is a great story.


Bargainland.NET has over 1 000 000 positive feedbacks on eBay . Their mascot is a platypus (vogelbekdier): " It was 2001, at the Las Vegas Comdex where we (Bargainland) had our first private meeting with Meg Whitman (CEO of eBay). "Your selling how much a month?" she said in shocked surprise. "How come I have never heard about you before?". The answer was simple, Bargainland sells so many different items in so many different categories that we never appeared as a leader in any specific area. "You're the Duck Billed Platypus of eBay!" Meg said, and the name stuck.

But Bargainland has a feedback rating of 90% ,10% of customers are very unhappy.

This is because they don't spend a lot of time or money on customer service. They don't spend money on fancy photo's, long descriptions or packaging either. By doing so they save money, which makes it possible to keep operating. Caveat Emptor: "Often these items are in perfect or even in new condition but some items may have issues. Because of the diverse nature of our product we often know very little about the items we sell. It is equally difficult for us to know for certain if the merchandise is complete (with all its accessories) or if every option functions perfectly. Bargainland is unable to spend time testing and checking each item beyond a casual observation of the physical condition and, in some cases, whether or not the unit powers on (if it is electrical). Despite any and all observations by our employees, your product may not be what you expected or it may have issues beyond what was observed. Please carefully consider this information and bid accordingly."

The business process is similar to Wepayou . For verKoopwinkel, doing most of our selling offline & locally means that sometimes buyers who come to the store decide not to buy something which seemed more attractive on Internet than it actually is. Usually we have an better alternative in stock. This avoids a lot of after sale dissapointment.

Link to Bargainland/Bidtopia auctions Here.
Link to WHY Bargainland left eBay, Auctionbytes story Here.
Link to Google search results shows how many customers are really angry at Bargainland. Here

On the otherhand, like most businesses Bargainland is dependant on repeat customers to stay in business and grow. Here one Bargainland customer tells about his experiences.

"The truth about >>> BARGAINLAND LIQUIDATION <<<
by: clearanced.com( 7287Feedback score is 5,000 to 9,999) Top 5000 Reviewer

This is an account of our ACTUAL EXPERIENCES with Bargainland after completing over 100 transactions.

SYNOPSIS – Bargainland has lots of great deals. But bid accordingly. Items are often not as they appear and instead scratched, chipped, broken, used, or missing parts. They are also often damaged in shipment or lost. We personally never pay over 25% of retail for Bargainland items. That way if something can’t be used we can still afford to buy another one on eBay. We are not saying to avoid buying from Bargainland. We are just informing you of our own experiences so you have a better idea of what to expect.

BARGAIN REPUTATION – Their current feedback percentage is 90.0%. This number represents the percentage of eBay members that are satisfied doing business with Bargainland. Personally, we strive for nothing less than 100% customer satisfaction. But when it comes to Bargainland we would agree that you will be happy 90% of the time, if you have bid accordingly and take note of our experiences as detailed below.

AUCTION PHOTOS - Photos are unclear. Items are often scratched, broken or incomplete but you can’t see it in the photo. Auctions are often boxes of assorted items. You may see what’s on the top of the box but not underneath. Photos are often mismatched with auction. If photo doesn’t match description/title do not bid.

SHIPPING PRICES – Check shipping rate before you bid. Shipping prices are fair. Heavy items are expensive to ship, that’s just a fact of life. Markup is only $1.95 processing fee, per shipment (not per auction). Minimize shipping by combining auctions from the same warehouse. Combine up to 5 auctions for a combined rate. Try to combine small lightweight items. If you add a heavy item to the shipment discounts are often lost.

PAYMENT – Pay with Paypal for easiest chargeback assistance. Ebay no longer guarantees you unless paid with Paypal. We have also charged back with our credit card but the process takes longer and requires more paperwork.

PACKING MATERIALS – No packaging materials are used. 90% were thrown into a box and taped closed. Boxes are 10 times too large for the items. Items are scratched, broken or even fall out.

ITEMS NEVER SHIPPED – 15% of our items were never shipped. Upon email Bargainland claimed they couldn’t find them and refunded. For us, this was the most frustrating part about dealing with Bargainland. You win. You pay. They send a "ship request" to the warehouse. But if they can’t find the item to ship it they don’t email to tell you. You have to wait and wait and wait and finally beg for a refund or give them another change to send a ship request. This process should be automatic.

DAMAGED SHIPMENTS - 75% of the boxes were crushed, torn, or leaking products. But 95% of the items inside were salvageable.

ITEMS LOST DURING SHIPMENT - 50% were leaking products but only 2% were worth filing a claim. Customer service is un-responsive. Explore all options.

CUSTOMER SERVICE – Bargainland refuses to communicate through eBay. Email directly or call. Customer service is rude and replies are incoherent.

CLAIMS – Depending upon the value of your claim explore all options simultaneously. First email and give them a chance to make it right. Then file a claim on eBay & Paypal at the same time. Email them again. Phone them. Mail them. File a UPS claim. And if all else fails chargeback your credit card. But do that as a last resort, it really pisses off Paypal. UPS claim gets paid to Bargainland, but they will refund upon receipt of the UPS check.


verKoopwinkel Amsterdam: Kijken op Internet, verKopen in de winkel