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Would it be a waste of time trying to start a auction site
 

Hi, all been thinking of starting an auction site for months but is worth it really? i'm looking to start of with 18k to advertise to bring in buyers but not sure if the whole thing will be a waste of time. what do you think?

18k? More like 1,800,00 then raise another 18,000,000 and then raise another 180,000,000 and you'll be close.

I'm with JJGold. Much better things to do with 18K. That little bit in advertising won't make any waves.

A REALISTIC alternative to Amazon/eBay, would require a ton of cash and expertise to pull off. There are probably only 2 or 3 companies in the world capable of pulling it off, and even then it would be a question mark.

eBay was the right idea at the right time and it just really took off.

Amazon started as a book store, but they also had the luxury of investor money and spent heavily on advertising for many years before becoming profitable.

Look at the auction site graveyard... Auctions.com, Yahoo, Lycos, Excite, MSN, Amazon (they once had auctions), etc.

And the reality is, eBay isn't much of an auction site anymore. Now, it is mostly a fixed price venue.

So, there was a time that you might have stood a chance of success by starting an auction site with $18k, but that time has passed.

+100 to jeffweico and JJgold. eBay has somethings that WOULD take hundreds of millions in advertising and marketing to overcome: huge name recognition (biggest plus for eBay), and a colossal user base that has no particular reason to move elsewhere, for the most part.

And I agree that it is becoming a fixed price venue. I don't necessarily dislike this. Most items I purchase on there are fixed price. I don't usually have the time or patience to deal with some auction that might be run up past a fixed price by some newbie, and fixed price listings are more likely to be run by people who know what they're doing.

You need to think outside the box and come up with something new that has not been done.

thanks for your replys everyone. i and going to start it off as a small niche.
the 18k was just an idea i bring in a lot more than that. and im good at seo so think i could get it high in search results on google which could help a bit.

Capital ventures.

well if you are good at seo then why not create an a site such as magazine, blog, product reviews or anything else as they are all good revenue sources. If you want to take a risk then look into starting something like maxbounty, shareasale, or clickbank. Think of something you are good at and go from there.

Nothing is a waste of time, but your success depends mainly on you and your abilities. For 1000 (or more) that attempt something, only 1 will achieve it. Had he never tried, though, he wouldn't have.

If all cavemen hundreds of thousands of years ago said "let's not leave the cave!" I probably most likely wouldn't be online right now.

depends on money.

In my opinion, it depends 10% on money, 90% on tactics and especially a "cult" following. Of course you need money but growth can be achieved with spending only a minimum amount on advertising.

Several years ago I built a company in the internet technology industry with pretty much a zero advertising budget. My competitors were spending millions on advertising and my customers came from left and right, most of them through word of mouth. We had a "cult" following of users who thought we were "cooler" than the huge companies spending millions on advertising.

I ended up selling it at the right moment.

Think if Pinterest or Facebook or AirBnb. They did very little advertising in the beginning and Pinterest for example doesn't even advertise right now. They grew because people spread it through word of mouth because they thought it was "cool".

True. But whoever creates the business first usually has a HUGE advantage.

Thanks for all your comments. i have started a site won't list it here.it's a probid one. i know what your thinking not another probid site but im also paying for a custom made look in a couple of weeks. anyway i don't think it's all about how a site looks the main thing is making sales. im good at seo so think i will be able to get a good place in google for a few keywords.also plan on doing a few radio ads, and a lot more advertising in other places.
i know it will be a waste of time at first but would anyone be willing to support by joining ?

I would give it ago.

Count me in

thanks everyone. just sorting a few things out on the site then will post the link.

18k investment can bring you 200k if everything is goes well.

Just do it if you find out the good way to do it.Nobody know what is really right or wrong.

If you done much more searching and give much more effort,the result will be good sooner or later.

Support will be given from me.

Not doubting your statement in any way, but curious as to how you got to 200k exactly?

A 18k investment can bring you billions if you create the next Facebook, or nothing if you do it wrong, so why exactly 200k?

:confused:

You can say any number will bring any other bigger number. That statement is pointless. No need to start a discussion about it.

Everyone has their own opinions and I'll have my say.

When ever someone wants to do something big, there will be a lot of people to pull you away from it and say ' IT IS IMPOSSIBLE '

If you want to start an auction site, do not make it like all common websites. Many started and closed down within days. You have to come up with something so unique that pulls people towards the website without much need for advertisement. The concepts ( product ) must be right, if your concepts are right and your website is not the ordinary - You will not fail.

But again, eBay has a monopoly and is a common household name. It might be difficult to get close to them but it's do-able, it's not like its impossible.

Not impossible, but it is very rare to have the complete package, skills, knowledge, and resources to be able to accomplish such a revolutionizing site.