How to play safe with competitor?

[steve]

Alright, that's my situation:
I got hold of job lot of a great product for a very good price, lets call the product AAA.
There are currently only two sellers on eby selling AAA, unfortunately both are Powersellers and they have been selling AAA successfully for a while. I think it's actually only one seller with two different powerseller accounts as description, layout etc is similar.
He sells it on average for £50 BIN. Now, I could easily sell AAA for £25 BIN and still make a good profit. If I sell it for £50 I probably won't make that many sales. My eby accounts are unfortunately not powerseller accounts and the competitor has got a better shop and better feedback.
I've got one account with 400+ feedback, and other accounts with around 100, 50 and 10 feedback. (all 99%+)
I'd like to use AAA to boost the sales and feedback on my younger accounts with only 10 or 50 feedback.
But whatever I do, for whichever price I sell it, I fear, that the competitor will report me to ebay for whatever stupid reason and will try to get me suspended...
Any advice maybe how to play safe with this competitor?

[Juicyas]

If he's so busy with sales, he probably has no time to check who his competitors are.

I think probably 50% of ebay sellers never do research..

[Jonas]

And what happens if you sell it at $25 and then he instead of playing dirty, merely has a price war with you and sells it at $15 or something.

Try undercutting him maybe $1 and throw in some other stuff to drive buyers your way like more detailed description, more enticing pictures, some return policy that sounds good.

[highwhey]

Originally Posted by Jonas

And what happens if you sell it at $25 and then he instead of playing dirty, merely has a price war with you and sells it at $15 or something.

Try undercutting him maybe $1 and throw in some other stuff to drive buyers your way like more detailed description, more enticing pictures, some return policy that sounds good.

^^^
Don't try 25 pounds, it's too low. A few pounds will do the trick.

[sacka_man]

Originally Posted by Jonas

Try undercutting him maybe $1 and throw in some other stuff to drive buyers your way like more detailed description, more enticing pictures, some return policy that sounds good.

I was just going to say this. Why undercut him by £25 when you could just undercut him by a lesser amount such as £5 or £1? People will always be looking for the lower price and as long as you make nice clean listings and have good feedback, people will be buying from you and you will maximize your profit margin, even if without Powerseller status.

To answer your question, I don't think there's really a way to play "safe" with a competitor. If product "AAA" is an item that is easily counterfeitable (sports jerseys, designer makeup, etc) and your competitor starts reporting it, chances are it will get pulled even if what you are selling is legit. My recommendation is to sell something else for a while until your own account reaches Powerseller status, and then start selling "AAA" after you are a Powerseller. I think it's less likely to get pulled if you start out as a Powerseller. In the meantime you can start reporting your competitors "AAA" to eBay under your multiple accounts.

[steve]

ok, thanks for the advice.
i'll probably going to list a few items, not too high volume, at £45 or something like that. then i can always increase or lower the price depending on sales....
the product is not easily counterfeitable by the way, it's a name, but there are other names out there...

[GreenBean]

Originally Posted by Juicyas

If he's so busy with sales, he probably has no time to check who his competitors are.
I think probably 50% of ebay sellers never do research..

No way. A powerseller in a niche market will check for their competition.
They will be determined to keep their status. So to play with these guys, you have to attack a different way. Don't rush in to undercut them but increase
your own status & slowly add the item. Don't openly appear to undercut them
with freebies etc: give great customer service to encourage return sales.
It's not a race but a means for you to make money like them.

[JohnnyBoy]

Originally Posted by steve

But whatever I do, for whichever price I sell it, I fear, that the competitor will report me to ebay for whatever stupid reason and will try to get me suspended...

Do onto others what they do onto you.

Have you considered asking them if there's a way you can play ball too, and not get spanked for trying?

Explain that you want in and not make waves. Small volume without price drop, blah blah blah. May be easier than you think.

Failing that, turn up the heat.

[eseller]

dont do $25 thats too low - Most buyers judge more than price when it comes to ebay . . . over 100 feedback is good being a powerseller isn't a must anymore just make sure that you make a killer description and let the buyers know that you are a serious seller in you description - give shipping time, price, shipping service, return policy, ect ...


If you take your listings seriously than your buyers will too - I get bids even with zero - 100 feedback because I make it clear that I am not an ebay rookie and I ship quick -

$39.99 seems like a fair price make your money even if your cost price is .99 cents your fees shipping time effort and hard work all have to be taken into consideration - dont sell yourself short - if you have done the research and completed auctions say that others are willing to pay $50 than $39.99 seems like a bargin! ! !

[inverser]

I have to agree, offering the item for a considerable lower amount than current market price could prematurely start a price war. That means less money for everyone.

To peaceably co-exist and not draw attention to yourself I believe one strategy you may want to consider is to flood the niche with your auctions from multiple stealth accounts. Own that niche market with your listings and it's a niche market no more!

I would definitely be sure to keep the listings of each stealth account as unique as possible to bewilder your competition as to where all these people came from. Your accounts will definitely get noticed but what can they really do against multiple sellers?

[GreenBean]

^^^ooh, I like that,inverser. That sneaky

[tripleflip18]

Originally Posted by inverser

I have to agree, offering the item for a considerable lower amount than current market price could prematurely start a price war. That means less money for everyone.

To peaceably co-exist and not draw attention to yourself I believe one strategy you may want to consider is to flood the niche with your auctions from multiple stealth accounts. Own that niche market with your listings and it's a niche market no more!

I would definitely be sure to keep the listings of each stealth account as unique as possible to bewilder your competition as to where all these people came from. Your accounts will definitely get noticed but what can they really do against multiple sellers?

Great Idea! inverser. did you try this for your self?

I suggest not coming on as strong as #11 until you get to level 3 against your competition.

Why lose the profits of level 1 and 2 by skipping right over them? That's the principle that killed P90 for whatsizname. 600 sellers (most multis) and price wars as low as $49 on a $130 potential. They all lost 80 bux on each sale because they jumped the gun.

Typically, if I even touch something like this, I let the low-ballers sell themselves out of a paycheck. They usually have low inventory and will be out of your way quickly. Let the morons fight it out. The ones who don't get VeRO'd will be outta site and outta mind. Then I sell my remaining stock for a price *I* choose.

[inverser]

vicvelcro makes a good point. You definitely don't want to undercut your competition by too much.

I've seen sellers listing items only 99cents in price difference. I don't think too many buyers would make a big deal over pocket change. Perhaps that's when throwing in something extra or maybe offering faster shipping may win you the sale.

Good luck!

[inverser]

Originally Posted by tripleflip18

Great Idea! inverser. did you try this for your self?

I haven't found the right niche product to try it with unfortunately. I think there needs to be enough demand for the product to make flooding the niche a good idea. Who wants to waste all these listing fees! If you're stealth and you don't pay your listing fees (Tsk tsk! Haha) it might be something to consider. If you're smart about pricing your products (different amounts for different accts) it could definitely bring in more money than listing on a single account.

[steve]

by checking out the competitor on goofbay it seem he's selling roughly 75% of this item. with me going into the business his sales will drop to maybe 50%. and with a 10-20% lower price than him i should be able to sell at least 50% of my listings as well. we'll see how it goes....

[nobody999]

i agree with some of what people are saying, don't price it too low, throw in some freebies, and make your listing stand out more.

[n4spd]

dont report other sellers if you don't want the same!! even if you are at a better position to do it.

[mmac900]

As long as we are on the topic, I have a smiliar problem. I noticed a seller buying things from the same site I just found and want to buy from. He marks up the stuff very high though, like he makes $100-200 profit on each item! I was going to list my products for much less, but now I thought that since he is selling it at such a high price, maybe I have a shot too. Do you think I should go way lower or just list for like $10-20 less?

[n4spd]

of course not. the best situation is you and your competitor all making good money and are happy with the status quo, not one trying to knock the other out unless you don't have any other choice. " if you are not the one that makes what you sell, what kind of competitive advantage you have over him? once people starts to point fingers, everyone lose".

[dburnside]

why not start with auctions rather than buy it now that way you will find out what sort of price you need to go to to get good bin sales