Is Amazon.com better than Ebay?

So does having the Marketplace HERE open it's doors to you !!!! Guys I can trust, selling recordings I want, packed like they were shipping their Grandmother's body, at prices lower than anywhere else on the planet...

HEY ! Stop tempting me...I need food...and shelter...and gas to get to WORK !!!

 

My sentiments exactly.

 

Marketplace for me too.

I've only used eBay once in the last two or three years and that was a Jonifan purchase, which is about as safe as it gets.

 

The other problem with used CDs on Amazon Marketplace is that if you are looking for a particular pressing it's sometimes hard to tell which version is for sale. The Amazon product description may be for the pressing you're looking for but that doesn't guarantee that the seller is offering that particular version. You need to look at the seller's description or e-mail them to find out.

 

He is hoping for a sucker, and if it sells at his prices, he will go buy one for 8.99, and send it to you and make a great profit. These sellers will list these items at those prices whenever/wherever they know that they can buy one quickly if they need to.

 

Exactly! You don't like my shipping prices, or my total price - then get out of my gawd damn store and go elsewhere. I have to make money or I will not be selling at all period.

I like how on Amazon the buyer does not get to get nasy with you over shipping. I do not combine shipping unless they are spending $100 or more, just they way I do my business on that site.

Yes of course, much faster loading pages, cleaner interface, AND NO FEES for unsold items. You just lower the cost, and relist if you like. Ebay pages are so loaded up with code, that eventually my broswer locks up completely.

And as a seller on A, I feel that they want my expeience to be smooth, and care that I have enough money left to ship the item. Ebay sometimes has suggested I lose on shipping or just simply ship for free. They must be crazy.

Then they (ebay) offered me .50 discount if I would offer free shipping. Again crazy.

I would not be surprised if seller ignored you the first time, and then tried to cover their @$$.

 

I've bought and sold on both market places and I prefer Amazon on both fronts. Ebay has gotten ridiculous on their fees so I quit selling there. Amazon doesn't charge to list and the fees are pretty straightforward so list away and wait for the sales. If your prices are reasonable the sales should come in. I find better prices when I buy regular type stuff on Amazon, but the searches are more accurate with Ebay so rare items are easier to find there.

 

I like to use Amazon and the Amazon Marketplace for purchases of new, in-print items. On the other hand, I prefer eBay for collectible and out-of-print items. It seems Amazon Marketplace sellers have the old style antique dealer mentality for collectibles with unrealistically high prices on anything remotely close to being rare. The eBay auctions let the market determine what the prices should be.

 

For picking up really good deals Amazon is better as most sellers on ebay now have a grossly inflated idea of the value for their products.

However I spend loads of cash on both each month.

 

agree, Amazon sellers are far more likely to send crappy cd's...and Ebay sellers are quicker to make things right, when they go wrong

 

but think about what you are missing! you: "honey, I need to travel out to Best Buy to pick up the new April Wine cd, be back later today"...then you get the cd, AND slip off to the Strip Club

 

The seller was lying to you or simply missed the email. That's probably an easy thing to do for someone who sells hundreds of CD's a week.

And Amazon really is the best place for older pressings. I've gotten the following from there over the last few years:


AC/DC-Back in Black (Diament)
AC/DC-Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap
AC/DC-High Voltage (Diament)
AC/DC-Highway to Hell
Bad Religion-Against the Grain
Bad Religion-Suffer
Black Sabbath-Dehumanizer
Bob Dylan-John Wesley Harding
Bob Marley-Burnin' (Diament)
Bob Marley-Confrontation (Diament)
Bob Marley-Natty Dread (Diament)
Cannibal Corpse-Tomb of the Mutilated (original)
Chicago-Chicago Transit Authority (original)
Cream-Disraeli Gears (Dennis Drake mastering)
Dead Can Dance-Aion
Derek and the Dominos-Layla (2 CD Drake)
Dire Straits-Communique
Dire Straits-Dire Straits (original US Warner)
Elton John-Captain Fantastic and the Brown Shirt Cowboy (MCA)
Elton John-Elton John (WG DJM)
Elton John-Honky Chateau (original Polydor)
Elton John-Madman Across the Water ("plaid back" original MCA)
Frank Sinatra-A Swingin' Affair (Walsh)
Frank Sinatra-Close to You and More (Walsh)
Frank Sinatra-Nice n' Easy (Walsh)
Frank Sinatra-No One Cares (Walsh)
Frank Sinatra-Only the Lonely (Walsh)
Frank Sinatra-Point of No Return (Walsh)
Frank Sinatra-Where Are You? (Walsh)
Frank Sintra-Fly Away With Me (walsh)
Frank Sintra-September of My Years
Iron Maiden-Fear of the Dark
Jesus & Mary Chain-Psychocandy
Jesus and Mary Chain-Honey's Dead
Jimi Hendrix-Are You Experienced?
King Diamond-Abigail
King Diamond-Conspiracy (original)
King Diamond-The Eye
King Diamond-Them
Kraftwerk-Computer World (original)
Kraftwerk-Radio-Activity (original)
Kraftwerk-The Man Machine (original)
Kraftwerk-Trans-Europe Express (original)
Led Zeppelin-Houses of the Holy (Diament)
Led Zeppelin-III (German Diament)
Led Zeppelin-Led Zeppelin (Diament)
Led Zeppelin-Presence (BMG issue of Diament mastering)
Lynyrd Skynyrd-Pronounced
Marvin Gaye-I Heard it Through the Grapevine/I Want You
Marvin Gaye-What's Goin' On/Let's Get it On
Moody Blues-Every Good Boy Deserves Favour (original)
Moody Blues-To Our Children's Children's Children (original)
Pink Floyd-The Wall
Rush-2112
Rush-A Farewell to Kings
Rush-Caress of Steel (WG atomic)
Rush-Fly By Night (original)
Rush-Permanent Waves (original)
Rush-Signals (US Atomic)
Sepultura-Arise
Sepultura-Beneath the Remains (original)
Slayer-South of Heaven (Barry Diament mastering)
Steely Dan-Aja (original Japan for US)
Steely Dan-Can't Buy a Thrill (37XXX mastering)
Steely Dan-Countdown to Ecstasy (37XXX mastering)
Steely Dan-Gaucho (MCAD-37220)
Steely Dan-Pretzel Logic (37042 mastering)
Steely Dan-The Royal Scam (37XXX mastering)
Stevie Wonder-Fulfillingness' First Finale
Stevie Wonder-Innervisions (original)
Stevie Wonder-Music of My Mind
Stevie Wonder-Talking Book
Tears for Fears-The Hurting (WG Atomic)
The Allman Brothers Band-Brothers and Sisters (Dennis Drake mastering)
The Clash-London Calling
The Clash-The Clash (original)
The Cure-Faith (original)
The Cure-Pornography (original)
The Cure-Seventeen Seconds (original)
The Police-Ghost in the Machine
The Police-Outlandos d'Amour
The Police-Regatta De Blanc
The Police-Synchronicity (original)
The Police-Zenyatta Mondatta
U2-Boy (old US version)
U2-War (older Japan pressing)
Yes-90125 (BMG version of original ATCO/Atlantic)
Yes-Close to the Edge (Diament)
Yes-The Yes Album (Diament mastering)

 

I'm an eBay seller myself, and from the point of view of an eBay buyer there are at least two good reasons.

a) if there's a problem with the product and I have to return it, I'm going to be worried that when I return my $3 with $7 shipping product you're going to try to give me $3 back and not $10 because

b) if you're willing to go to lengths like putting what both buyer and seller knows is a ridiculous postage price on to try to screw eBay out of a few pennies, I'm going to get the idea you would be just as happy to screw me.

So, no sale.

 

Amazon might be good place for older pressings, but I'm pretty sure some of these sellers are on the lower end of the IQ spectrum. Is it really that much to expect that a seller listing a CD as collectible to know wtf they are talking about? I have 2 US mfg CDs as we speak from 2 different sellers who stated that the CD was made in Japan.

I could really go on a rant, but I'll stop. I think I'll have to start asking my questions in the way one might treat the average two year old.....

 

AMAZON
Yeah, I emailed FREAKBEAT, an Amazon seller, twice, and they never replied. So I called them up on the phone. They looked up the CD, after I called them and confirmed the information about the CD. (you can google phone #'s)

EBAY
I emailed an Ebay seller, and asked if the CD was made in West Germany. They answered promptly and I later emailed for a picture too. They asked for my email address, so they could send a picture. Nice service, but not all are like that on Ebay.

 

Trying to access certain Amazon pages this afternoon... and I keep getting the following 404 error...

"Looking for something?
We're sorry. The Web address you entered is not a functioning page on our site"

Ebay seems to be working fine...

 

This basically has no bearing on anything. Those are just 2 random sellers. I can cite examples of getting responses from Amazon sellers and times when I didn't from eBay sellers.

 

Did you ask them why they did not respond to your message through amazon?

 

I find it easier to ask questions to Ebay sellers, mostly because of the time involved during the auction. One seller recently listed the DCC Van Halen title. A simple question about the inclusion of the slipcover caused the seller to discover that his item was actually the first Warner release.

Amazon Marketplace is often a good place to find items that aren't so rare, with sellers competing for the lowest price, but keep in mind the $3 shipping charge per item.

When items are rare, with just a few copies listed, Amazon Marketplace sellers tend to inflate their prices well above Ebay auction prices. Compare asking prices of OOP MFSL or DCC titles on Amazon & completed listings on Ebay, and you will find that Ebay is usually the better deal.

Also, on Ebay, a typo on a title can mean the difference between 2 bidders and 20. I've been the lone bidder on several items, and came out with a steal! Just keep in mind that someone who can't spell might not be able to distinguish between releases. Don't tell them to correct their error, just ask a question or two about the item.

Also, it is a good idea to check other retailers who deal in used products. Gohastings.com sometimes offers "Buy 2, get a 3rd for $1" and similar promotions on used music titles. I often find titles on their website below the going rate on Amazon Marketplace or Ebay... and when they screw up, they refund your money and let you keep the incorrect item.

 

I have never bought any thing from eBay and am not a fan of the whole idea. I bid on an out of print soundtrack Cd and went as high as $19 bid on eBay, but got outbid. I went to Amazon Marketplace and got the same CD for $9.99. I won't waste my time on eBay anymore.

 

Amazon's all screwy right now.

 

The reverse is often true as well. One needs to check prices at both sites.

I am always at a loss to price my things when there is not another one at the bay or amazon. Last night I listed another 75 CDs at amazon. When it came to CDs nobody else currently has, I had to come up with a price. Sometimes that price is about $75 to $89 a disc depending on if it is an import, what the condition is, and if it is likely to be desired by collectors. I can always lower that price if someone comes along and lists another copy of it.

 

Amazon offers several advantages to sellers:
1. You item stays listed until it sells, or until you take it down.
2. If your item doesn't sell, you don't have to pay for the listing (unlike Ebay)
3. You can get alerts when you no longer have the lowest priced item.

However, Amazon gets a pretty big cut, especially on expensive titles.

Ebay can benefit a seller if the item is well promoted, and you get a bidding war; however, that doesn't always happen.

If you don't set a reserve, you might end up selling an item for less than you really wanted. If you do set a reserve, you might not get a bidder, and you have to relist at additional cost.

Personally, if an item is worth less than $10, I won't bother listing on Amazon or Ebay. I will list it on Music Boomerang or SwapaCD. Both of these places are excellent for picking up or unloading bargain titles.

 

Amazon gets a big cut even on cheap titles. The fees at amazon are way high. But, they do pass on the shipping fees to the seller, and they do not combine shipping. So I have found that some of the fees are reduced by packing items together.

Bottom line, is that I have about 1,000 CDs to list in the classical genre. 70% are imports, 50% rare titles. ebay would eat me alive trying to have that many titles up. Amazon seems to be doing well for me at the moment. I am pricing my CDs the lowest for the condition. In other words I am pricing 1.00 lower than the lowest at my condition. Sales are steady and seem consistent for now, it has been only 3 weeks since I started there.

I am sending every CD in a brand new jewel case, just for the first month or so to make sure feedback is solid "5". Then I will start to use up the best of the used cases by trading cases around the collection. I have a good name, perfect product and feedback, and we'll see if CDs have any life in them left after burners and downloads did their thing. But so far it appears, I have more action than ebay.

 

Sometimes careless listings on the part of amazon sellers borders on fraud. I just received from 2 separate sellers purported SACDs that were standard CDs. I often send a question to the seller to try to avoid this problem, but in both of these cases, the items were priced at close to $30 each, which suggested to me a) they were really SACDs and b) the sellers had priced them accordingly. Instead, I get 2 BMG record club CDs! The good thing about amazon is sellers are typically forced to refund, but I find the sloppiness of these sellers to border on absurd.