One of my worst eBay online auction experiences was ironically when I purchased an Amethyst Carnival Glass Good Luck Plate.

• I read the description carefully.  The plate was advertised as mint
• I looked at the pictures … they looked perfect and the plate had great color
• I paid $450

The Good Luck plate arrived, and the color was great, except for a brown burn spot on the edge of the plate.  I frowned, wondering how I had missed the big brown spot in the description.  I logged into my computer, and looked at the picture.  The seller was holding the plate and his thumb was covering the brown spot.  GRRRRRR!

I sent a note to the seller and asked for a refund.  He promptly sent me a note back that showed that his auctions were “All Sales Final.”  My heart started beating fast and my face flushed with color.  I had been swindled.  It wasn’t a case of misunderstanding, he had purposefully covered a spot on the plate and mislead me.

Fortunately this story has a happy ending.  I contacted PayPal and returned the plate.  After 45 days, they refunded my money.  I left negative feedback and so did he.

My lesson learned - if the seller says, “ALL SALES FINAL” do not buy from them.  A reputable dealer will always give you a refund.  If the piece isn’t as described, they will even refund shipping.

I just read an article about how Skype’s value could grow from an estimated $2.5 B today to $5.0B in 2 years based on the release of Skype for Apple’s iPhone and iPod touch.

That’s nice.  How about instead, eBay sells Skype today to Google or MS and makes a tidy profit.  Then focuses on the online auction business.

I started using eBay in 1997 and it was awesome.  No bells and whistles. Heck, most sellers didn’t even have pictures on their auctions.  But we bought and sold a lot, at fair prices, and built a community.

Now eBay is swamped with ads, and feedback systems that are trying to solve world hunger rather than meet customers’ needs.  Antiques sell at ridiculously reduced rates because of the inherent risk to the buyer. Legitimate antique businesses can’t afford to do business on eBay.  Online auctions should be thriving in this economy as folks hit by the recession look for other ways to make money.  But instead, eBay’s  growth has slowed or declined.  (Based on what I am seeing, the business is declining)

My advice to eBay is that they need a “do-over.”  You made the market for online auctions, then you got greedy or distracted.  Sell off the businesses that don’t make sense and get back to the basics.  Maybe split the business into Antiques/Collectibles, Resale, New.  The buyers for each segment are different and have different needs.   If you want your business to grow, focus on your customers.