Ebay could grow their revenue/profits with minimal investment -- what I would call a "reverse Ebay". Right now, Ebay is essentially a set of classified ads or people offering things for sale. How about putting in a "wanted" section where potential buyers could list things they want to buy -- a "reverse Ebay"? Today, Ebay has a certain class of users who want to buy a particular older item (e.g., toys from their childhood) and don't want to waste time looking in a variety of antique stores. These users search Ebay as a time saver, sometimes finding what they want, and sometimes not -- in which case they leave frustrated. But Ebay could open a section where potential buyers could list things they want to buy -- allowing sellers to contact buyers (I suspect there are potential sellers who don't list obscure things because they are not sure they will sell). Ebay could better leverage its existing customer base and search/sorting technology -- increasing revenue at a minimal investment.
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I've always wanted something like this, where I could specify what I want (specifically or generally), how much I'd be willing to pay, and specific terms of purchase.
This is a great idea! ...I'm not sure why Ebay doesn't offer this service.
I've suggested it to Ebay. Presumably, if enough people ask for the feature, they would add it (although they should have thought of it on their own). Attached is the link to Ebay's sugggestion box if you want to put in your vote http://pages.ebay.com/help/welcome/suggest.html.
Ebay told me that they are giving some thought to my suggestion. In the interim, they said that if I wanted a particular item that no one had for sale on Ebay at the moment, I could do Search for that item, then save the search, and then mark the box to receive an email from Ebay if sometime in the future someone offered my desired item for sale. Not a perfect solution, but it helps.
FYI -- there is also a suggestion similar to mine also posted elsewhere on WhyNot -- http://www.whynot.net/view_idea.php?id=982
Check out www.whyabe.com it is an rfp and reverse auction site. They are adding new features daily. It is free to use. You actually categorize your listing so that it invites relevant suppliers.
UPDATE looks like ebay has this now
http://pages.ebay.com/wantitnow/
A Free Reverse Auction Site is already out there. So why would you pay for ebay? Whyabe.com
The name of the site could be
< USAs MOST WANTED> or < INDIAS MOST WANTED> etc.
Has anyone tried this service? overdogg.com
What started out as an idea to group or “swarm” people together to buy health insurance has now become eSwarm.com: a creative internet platform to purchase anything, from health insurance and prescription drugs to IPods. eSwarm is a small Boulder, Colorado based internet company hoping to bring buyers and suppliers together, as well as give back to charities.
Through harnessing the buying power of large, like-minded tightly-knit groups, eSwarm intends to become the world’s pre-eminent demand driven platform. By coordinating individual purchases into bulk orders, eSwarm allows individuals to receive volume discounts without actually having to buy in volume. In addition, eSwarm provides charities and organizations with an innovative fundraising tool. It accomplishes this by allowing creators of swarms to stipulate that a percentage of the total sale is donated to their charity of choice. eSwarm has created a whole new unique way of purchasing online. eSwarm officially went live on Tuesday, July 10 at 10:07am.