Quote:
Originally Posted by FizzyFish Er... there is no China eB, there is a HK one, but not a China one... (yes HK is part of China, but not really...but that's a different story).
Also pretty much everyone who is on there is a seller, not a buyer.
Ask a Chinese person what eBay is and they will not have a clue. Or they will answer - oh that's that crappy american site that failed and sidled away with its tail between it's big fat bloated american arse.
There is a reason why eB left China - they can't compete with the local selling sites.
See here: How EBay Failed In China - Forbes
If you want to sell in China you want to head over to taobao.com that place is f*ing awesome.
Can't be used by foreigners though the last time I checked.
If you want to sell in China you need some contacts over here |
I'm NOT AT ALL surprised that eBay failed in China.
They would never succeed in China in a million years.
What works in the west does not work in the east.
They have different sets of needs, wants and ATTRACTION FACTORS.
ALL the eBay sites in Asia are pretty much dead or dead.
First dead means pathetic sales.
Second dead means shut down.
It took eBay quite a number of years to figure this out, but (surprise surprise), they did!
Just a few years ago, eBay launched Gmarket in Japan, Korea and Singapore.
Gmarket is as successful in these countries as eBay is in US, UK, Europe, Australia, etc.
I do not know how Gmarket became successful but starting around last year, I seem to be hearing everyone shopping on Gmarket in Singapore.
Gmarket looks totally different and works totally differently from eBay.
It has many features and perks, etc.
It DOES NOT have a set of policies thicker than encyclopedia britannica unlike eBay.
There is much freedom for listing on Gmarket.
And, it DOES NOT have VERO (probably a big factor).
I have never heard of the term restriction or suspension on Gmarket.
I don't think there are listing restrictions too but I'm not 100% sure.
There is feedback but you are never penalized for bad feedback.
Oh, and you are NOT forced to link Paypal!
They have buyer protection but it is enforced in a different way and less sucky than Paypal.
There are MANY payment options.
It is a totally different beast from eBay though owned by eBay.
Unconceivable!
eBay's failure in China is not only about the competition with local sites.
A new selling site can compete with China's local sites if done in the right way.
Gmarket actually looks and works like Taobao.
I think eBay copied Taobao and named it Gmarket and lauched it in Asia.
So, Chinese are not the only copycats! Americans do copy Chinese too!
LOL!!!
I think eBay is still cracking its head to find a way to suck the Chinese people's money.
It can copy Taobao and launch it in other Asian countries.
But it cannot copy Taobao and be successful in China because there's already the original Taobao. LOL!
And they have no idea how to make a new selling site work in China.
Yahoo auctions is also successful in some Asian countries, like Taiwan.
The bottomline is really that different things appeals to the needs, wants, likes of different people groups.
eBay in Asia? Forget it.
The only way eBay is having a significant presence in Asia now, is as a selling machine used by HK sellers to suck money from the west.
Now that I think about it, maybe that's why the HK sellers seem to get away with murder on eBay?
I see them violating at least 5 policies easily but they can happily go on selling thousands each day on eBay with seemingly no trouble from eBay.
I think eBay is studying them to try to understand Chinese culture and how they can make a successful selling site in China...
Hahaha... I am sure thinking too much into this!
By the way, foreigners can buy on Taobao as long as they have a Chinese bank account and Chinese address.
Any foreigner can bring their passport and some cash and open a bank account in China. I have done so.
For the address, you will need to have someone in China who can ship the stuff to you then.
I think it's probably the same for selling.