eBay InDemand. So is Vanessa Hudgens.

Rated G. Never in my life did I think I’d pay for a non-animated G rated movie, well I did this past Friday. My good friend was taking her two year old daughter to watch High School Musical 3 and asked if I wanted to tag along. They were going at 7:15, so it fit my schedule perfectly: Right after my dinner with my mom and brother and right before my plans with Blue Moon. I went into the movie without any expectations other than some teenage heartthrobs dancing around like they just got their own TV show on the Disney Channel. But was I in for a surprise, I was entertained for a full hour and a half with dancing, singing and a lot of corny acting. It was awesome though, I loved it. At one point, I had to blow my nose because my sinuses were congested from the highly involved story line. I am very glad to see that people are still able to profit from making clean entertainment. I have always thought the days of Milo and Otis were over.

So eBay has released some new info to its buyers, InDemand. This is something worth taking a look at if you are a big seller. It is awesome information that should have been let out to the public years ago. I wonder if this will help eBay increase its number of listings and seller happiness in the near future. This is a good move for eBay.

Change: Word of the Year.

Change. That seems to be the word of the year. Yesterday, the 49er’s showed that change might be the solution. I am not talking about the change at head coach [Thank you Mike Nolan.], but instead the change behind the center. Yes, J.T. O’ Sullivan might be Mike Martz’s little protégé, but his actions have directly lost games this year. Every time he throws a pick in the Red Zone, everyone has to remember he did not just give up 7 points to the other team, he gave up 14. Instead of scoring 7 points [which has to be assumed], he just gave 7 points to the other team, which is a net of -14. No NFL team can win consistently with this kind of play at quarterback. We got a peek at Shaun Hill last season during the end of the season; he gave us what Alex Smith [man, the Ryan Leaf of Northern California?] couldn’t: Touchdowns. When the 49er’s said that the starting job for quarterback was up for grabs this offseason, I was quietly rooting for Shaun Hill. Now that he has another shot at leading a team to winning ways, I truly hope that he takes advantage of this opportunity and proves to us if he has it or not. If he doesn’t that is fine, at least the organization will clearly know what they have to do during this offseason. If he does, that is great; we have been hiding the next Tom Brady.

Change has been heavily present in the online auction/marketplace recently too. Many opportunists have seen eBay’s current debacle as a chance to enter the market. There have been many innovative sites, such as Swoopo. I never had the chance to actually do the math on their site, but it seems like they are making a fortune. I was just thinking if they can control the increments bidding goes up by and they charge per bid, they would only need 200 bids on a Nintendo Wii at $1 per bid and a final auction price of $120. That means if each bid went up by ~50 cents people would be buying Wii’s at $120. The model is cool, but I think people will eventually get fed up with paying for bids and not winning anything.

Wigix Storefronts: Yes . Proposition 8: No.

Laws. Do they really tell us what is right or wrong? I think this is a huge misconception amongst our average citizen. A law does not dictate something that is morally right or wrong as those standards are up to us to come up with. For example, there are a lot of things that against the law but are victimless crimes. Crimes in where no one gets hurt, except the offender and the offender only. These laws are created to protect society according to the government, but does it really prevent one from committing these crimes? Does a law make your moral stance wrong? No.

I will give a little background before moving onto my next thought. I am apolitical. I can be said to be either a Libertarian or a one with a Utilitarian mindset. My end goal is to increase the quality of life. I do not vote in the current electoral system as a Californian, because even if I wanted to vote Democrat [which I did the last time I voted], I would have no choice. I will create another posting sometime down the line before the election on how one single vote does not matter and it never has, thus assuming it never will [please no flames on this yet].

So now onto the current topic: Proposition 8 in California. What on earth? I was watching TV and saw some ads for Yes on 8. I honestly do not care much about politics and our government as I feel like the correct decision is rarely made, but this Proposition has caused me to actually put some thought into it. At first, I thought this Proposition was going to be a waste of time and money, as who wouldn’t vote No. Then, I did some research online and realized that Yes was ahead by 4-5 points. That then really got me thinking, who on earth are they people who are so scared of homosexuals that they are paying tons of money to make it illegal for them get married. So I started to narrow it down and concluded it probably was the Religious. This past week, I would bring this up to everyone who I talked to and low and behold every person who wanted to vote Yes on 8 was indeed a church goer. There is nothing wrong with religion at all, but have they been blinded so bad by their sermons to really believe a Proposition will make sure their kids turn out straight? Everyone had the same argument: Do I really want my kids to see two gay guys kissing and think it is right? Don’t you care if your son turns out gay? I reply with the same argument, do you really think a law will make your son not follow his desires? Do you really think seeing two guys kiss will make your son go out and make out with the first guy he sees? Laws won’t stop him from having sex before the age of 18. Laws won’t stop him from smoking marijuana to impress a girl. Laws won’t stop him from playing beer pong when he is a freshman in college. Do you really think a law will prevent him from doing what he wants? Why do we as humans want to police everyone? Honestly, just live your own life as we all are flawed.

I will vote this November: No on 8. And while I’m inside the booth I will mark Obama, not because I am 100% behind his policies, but because I am a product of my environment [Dip Set].
On a lighter note, Wigix just released their Store Fronts today and I applied. I hope I get approved soon so I can better organize my inventory. I will keep everyone updated.

Wigix Update: My item I submitted [Panasonic Cordless Phone] is under conditional approval, I forgot to submit the MSRP so I got that sent back to me. But that took a second and I resubmitted it!

Wigix Update 2: I bought a couple of things to see the nature of the sellers on Wigix. I purchased a Dice-K baseball card, Super Smash Bros for the Wii [order got cancelled with no reason, but seller emailed me], Hannibal Rising the book, a webcam and CSI: Season 4. 2 of them are on the way and I think the rest should be soon. I love it! =)

eBay Suspended Me. Chiefs Suspend Johnson.

Has the quality of the common man gone down? Is a simple gentleman not the status quo anymore? Are we evolving towards a society where men are becoming savages and women are allowing it? From the likes of current events in Larry Johnson’s world, it seems like it. Let’s dissect this situation. Larry makes more money than 99.99% of this country. His new contract has him locked in for $19 million guaranteed. So we have established Larry makes a lot of money and can buy whatever he pleases. Next, he is causing trouble at night clubs more than once a year. Let’s evaluate this situation. Why does one go to a night club? Usually to show off, party with friends and try to meet beautiful [smart] women. But at the end of the night it all revolves around showing off by buying bottles, paying for tables, dancing with the most beautiful women and so on. What does Larry have to prove to this country? His salary is public knowledge, no one on this Earth doubts he is poor. So why does he repeatedly go out to clubs and wreck havoc. Are humans naturally self destructive? Truthfully, I do not know the answer but it seems to be a trend in a lot of wealthy athletes.

Me on the other hand, yes I do go out to night clubs. Have I ever gotten into an altercation? No. Do I buy bottles of Ace of Spades and rent out VIP? No. I know my place and drink Snake Bites and shoot Patron because I know my place and have nothing to prove.

He spat a drink in a woman’s face.
I received a negative feedback from a non-paying bidder.

He told the same woman he was going to kill her boyfriend.
I had a 4.4/5 DSR for shipping.

These very distinct different actions got the both of us suspended by our respective employers [even though I do not receive a W-2 from eBay, I feel as if the majority of my income is generated through them.] But are we the same person? Maybe, just to different extents...

eBay Feedback System: Market Inefficiency?

What would you do with 10 million dollars if you had to spend it in one shot?

This is what I wanted to do since I got my Drive’s License. Give that money to a huge media conglomerate [Time Warner? News Corp? Clear Channel, perhaps?] to buy whatever exposure I can to send out one simple message:

If you are driving the same speed as the car on your right, CHANGE GOD DAMN LANES!

If you have no idea what I am so furious about, I will assume you fall under one of the following categories: You are so rich that you have a chauffeur; you live in a rural area and do not have to deal with more than 3 cars on your way to work; you drive a Prius and think you are exempt from all driving regulation or YOU ARE THAT IDIOT THAT IS GETTING HIGH BEAMED AND TAILGATED. Call me impatient if you want, but no one on this Earth likes to be limited by someone’s ignorance, whether it is in business, education or driving.

There are tons of market inefficiencies and people have been able to make money off of them from day one. The only people monetizing a car plugging up the passing lane [everyone, please read PASSING LANE, this lane is for passing, if you want to pace, do it in the other lane!] are stress ball and horn manufacturers. I do not understand the reasoning of people who think they need to drive in the fast lane once they go over 70 mph. I think because there are really no consequences for their actions. They are so oblivious and think that the car behind him is just rude and intolerant that they continue on their merry way; when in reality they are holding up the flow of traffic and starting what will eventually be TRAFFIC JAM.

It is sad that people do not realize one simple step on the brake pedal can cause a chain reaction that will cause a car 4 miles away to come to a complete stop. Prof. Stemp, who taught me Calculus freshmen year in college, came up with this wonderful proposal: Fine bad drivers! So I furthered that thought and came up with this solution: Install a mechanism in each car that fines the driver for braking when the car in front of them is not braking [something small, 10 cents?]. Then the mechanism will be able to detect how many cars the driver caused to brake due to their bad judgment and then fine them for each car that broke [say a penny for each additional car?]. A system like this will make people accountable and hold them responsible their actions. [I am going to end my rant on driving etiquette now, as I can go on forever and probably publish a New York Times’ Best Seller with the amount of anger and passion I possess.]

Our current driving system is just like eBay’s new feedback policy. Sellers are no longer allowed to leave negative feedback for buyers. What kind of absurd feedback system has been implemented? Ask any eBay seller and they can share with you horror stories of buyers extorting them for free stuff such as shipping in exchange for feedback. There are now no repercussions for buyers on eBay and they can run rampant in sellers’ stores and cause all the havoc they please with no repercussions. It would be equivalent to us running into Wal-Mart and filling hundreds of shopping carts with inventory while telling the employees we are just about to pay but instead play Destruction Derby for an hour and then go home.

[/end rant]

TGIF. I hope everyone has a great and safe weekend.

eBay's True Value: Worth It?

$20. What can it get you nowadays? To be honest, not much. It can almost get you and your date into the movies on Friday night [if you bring your Student ID], it can get half a pair of Chuck Taylor's, it can possibly get you a 4GB USB stick on Black Friday. What ceases to amaze me, is that we live in a country of super capitalism [as of today at least] and you see it everywhere you go. The guy selling fruit on the freeway exit, the man selling roses at 2am and these $20 full body massages popping up everywhere in the Bay Area. That is right. $20. One hour. Full body. Let's be honest, is the masseuse a trained professional? Probably not. Has s/he received any training? Maybe read a 2 fold pamphlet on the way to work. But just having someone pamper you for an hour for a mere Hamilton is totally unheard of. Even at the Holistic Institute, one hour massages run $40. From my experience, eastern and western style massages vary greatly. The Chinese places are always trying to “hurt” me and in return convincing me “no pain no gain.” While the more traditional westernized places place you in a room and make you feel like you are the last soul on this planet. This is when a famous saying comes into mind: “You pay for what you get.”

But is that statement true across all boards?

I paid eBay and Paypal a whole CRAP load of money. In my prime I was a Gold PowerSeller and last month I was a Silver PowerSeller. Their fees are higher than anyone else’s on the internet, but does the service that they provide warrant that? To a certain degree: Yes. They know where they stand in the online marketplace and are abusing their status. They know they can bully sellers around for the time being, but will they realize when they won’t be able to anymore? Will it be too late by the time they realize they are losing the reason why their company’s name is now a verb, noun, adjective and icon.

Wigix update: I have been scoping out some stuff to buy. I am going to purchase a small ticket item and blog about the experience once it arrives. I have also been so busy and not been able to post my item for sale. Those will both done this week! Thanks for your patience.

Detention? eBay Suspensions based on what?

Disappointment. What does that mean to us? Usually it is when one sets their goals at point X, but the result [Z] ends up being Z = X – Y [where Z is less than X] is how an utilitarian would see the situation. There are two ways to fix this equation so disappointment will never occur. We can decrease X so that there is less of a chance of being less than Z, in result lowering our expectations. Or we can decrease Y to a point where it does not exist, in process making the right decisions every step of the way.

Last night, my basketball team lost our weekly game 88-18. That is a 70 point differential. Our team has never scored 70 points combined in any two games. After the game, the team was really down and frustrated. I would have been a year ago too, but I asked everyone to take a step back and reevaluate the situation. I pointed out that their smallest guy in their starting lineup is the same size as our center and with that stipulation we should have lowered our X [expectations]. Let’s try this utilitarian model out:

X = points we would win or lose by
Y = actual point difference

Before the game started, X would have been a fair number that we would expect to win by [insight: our team has not won a game in 3 seasons], but in our case it was -20. If we only lost by 20 points, it would have been success in my eyes. Y was -70, because we got full court pressed before the first inbound even occurred. So let’s plug and chug:

X = -20
Y = -70
Z < -20 -70
Z = -90
Z [-90] is less than X [-20]

Statement is true. We have a situation where disappointment occurs.

Our two solutions to prevent disappointment are pretty clear in this case. We could expect to lose by more than 20 points thus decreasing X or we could have played better also decreasing Y. This model can be applied to any event in life, not just sports. If frustration and disappointment plagues your life, maybe it is time to lower your expectations, or STEP UP.

With eBay’s new policies attempting to make the marketplace better for buyers, I have had no choice but to lower my expectations AND making better decisions regarding my online sales. eBay has implemented a new DSR [Detailed Seller Rating] system where buyers rate the seller on 4 criteria, if any one of your four ratings are under the eBay “average,” eBay will suspend your account and take away your PowerSeller status without an explanation. Now this might sound fair on paper, because who would want a below average seller on their marketplace. But we need to think about how an average is determined; you take the summation of the whole group and divide it by the number of samples. So, with this simple mathematical formula, HALF of all users are under the average. That is what averages tell us right? Where the middle is.

I know that this cannot be how the new system works, because that would be ludicrous. But I got this information directly from my FORMER PowerSeller rep during one of our heated calls. I know he is literate because he has been reading off of a pdf to me for the past 10 years. I tried repeatedly for him to really think of what he is telling me and how it makes no sense and how he should ask his direct supervisor about the new policies. Every time he came back to the phone, the answer was: Your DSR ratings are under the average.

In reality, eBay has set the acceptable level for DSR’s at 4.4, this in result punishes sellers for getting 4’s, which are said to reflect “good” service and just not “very good” service. Thus for every four times a seller gets a 4, s/he has to make sure they get six 5’s. This is not a very settling feeling to live with when this system really has no check or balance. The buyer now has all of the power in the world as there are no repercussions for their actions. This system is not only a joke, but cannot be a long term solution to eBay’s attempt of improving buying experience; because pretty soon there will be nothing left to buy.

By the way, I submitted my first page to Wigix. I hope it is approved soon and I can have an item for sale!

eBay Alternative: Free Listings at Wigix.com

Why do I love public transportation? Because it reminds me that this world isn't only populated with NFL linemen turned dancers, 16 year old divas having parties twice the net worth of my 401[k] and 15 guys chasing one foxy lady [ok, this exists everywhere]. I love and embrace all of the different characters that I sit next to, run into, wave to, listen to and sometimes walk away from. They help me get a real grasp of life and realize that my double booked Saturday is not a real problem compared to the fact that they are carrying everything they own in the plastic bag issued to them by Elmwood Correction Facility. Yes, I will admit that I hate it when the smoking man sits down next to me as he just doubled my dry cleaning bill for this week. Everyone needs to be in touch with the society they live in, the farther they remove themselves the faster they will fall when chaos comes.

John Donahoe, you can have my high value Bart EZ Rider Card and see what the world outside of eBay looks like.

Can all this hype be true? I Google eBay killer, eBay competitor, eBay alternative and such. What do I find? 5 letters that keep on showing up: Wigix. Either they are doing a great job with their SEO or this might be the next legit attempt to dethrone a king. I guess the only way to find out is to try it first hand. I noticed that there are no fees at Wigix for all transactions under $25, so that is where I am going to start. There are also no fees to list anything. I will post a couple of items up and keep everyone updated.

Left in the Dark: Alternatives to eBay.

Things have a fun way of working themselves out.

I had to leave work a bit early today to get in a $20 massage [more on this to come] with my dad before our dinner. So I decided to wake up at 6am and jump on an earlier train to Oakland. I make it to Bart and miss the train as I am walking through the ticket gate...no big deal. I stand there and listen to Lil' Wayne tell me about how he is a Duffel Bag Boy. I get to my office and do what I do every morning: boot up my laptop [which has 1GB of ram and is slow, thus explaining why I do this first], empty my pockets [phone/keys/mp3 player], get my morning protein [1 part Cocoa Kashi, 3 parts Heart to Heart Kashi and 4 parts non fat milk]. But since I got up earlier than usual, my body wasn't up to speed with my day and I felt a sudden urge to use the bathroom.

As I walk out of the office I notice all of the lights going out and my laptop shutting off, but I thought nothing of it because there was tons of light from the window [which is directly in front of my desk btw]. I walk down the hall and see people opening their doors and complaining about a power outage and I continued to ignore this as my main goal was to get to the Men's room. As I open the door to the bathroom, the facilities gentlemen mentioned to me that it was going to be dark as night in there. Again, I ignored that fact and made my way to the handicap stall [it is the biggest and most comfortable]. Now I have a problem, I emptied my pockets and do not have my cell phone to use as an emergency flash light and it really is PITCH DARK. I decide at this point to pick a couple of senses to use...I decide "smell" and "taste" are definitely out the door, so I am now relying on touch and my sixth sense: memory. I also decide it is probably smarter to use my Rockports than my hands to feel around the bathroom. I finally make it to the porcelain seat, wipe it down and all my immediate problems become solved.

This morning felt like my career as an online merchant. I have always sold on eBay, but this past month when my account got "suspended" due to their new policies, I went out and searched for new avenues to push my product. It made me realize sight wasn't the only powerful sense I had. I will be 100% honest and admit that I do continue to sell on eBay, but am actively trying to figure out the perfect marketplace.

I have come across these alternatives:

Amazon.com: Seems to be the leader of the pack right now. Most people have reported a larger margin on Amazon as the buyers are not in the same position as most eBayers, who are trying to find a steal. People coming to Amazon are expecting more of a retail experience, thus some of their return policies are heavily favor the buyer.

UBid.com: Have pushed their site via TV ads and gained some traction this past year. They have NO listing fees, which is awesome for a seller who wants to try a new site out. All of the payments go through UBid, which does make things safer for the seller, but at the same time might take up to 2 weeks to clear.

eBid.com: Have distinctly position themselves as the 2nd largest auction site in the UK. They are also present in other countries, such as: US, Canada, Australia and more. Their site has been a little slow in the past, but seems to be picking up. Their biggest selling point: NO FEES. So it never hurts to have your items listed here.

Wigix.com: This is by far the newest concept, it seems to be a hybrid of a couple Web 1.0 sites. Once the catalog is loaded and running properly, it will function as a Price Grabber-esque site and provide the market clearing price for all SKU-able items. It will also act as a Wiki for products. Last but not least, it will be a marketplace for people to shop. I am going to give them a shot.