OnlineAuction.com: Lower Fees, Fewer Bids

By Jan Perry

A lot of long-time loyal cyber-sellers began
looking for an auction alternative following the
recent controversial fee and policy changes
imposed by the perennial auction mega-site - eBay.
Although it has had competition online for several
years, as of yet, no one site has stepped up to
truly give it a run for its customer base. But the
folks at OnlineAuction.com (or OLA as they call it)
are hoping to do just that.

The biggest advantage OLA offers sellers is a flat
membership fee with no listing or re-listing fees
and no final value fees (that's the percentage of
the highest bid that goes as a commission to the
auction site). Plus OLA offers some important
freedoms that eBay does not allow. Sellers are
welcome to include personal website information
in their listings and communicate directly with
OLA members about the items up for sale. Also,
multiples (say 20 identical hammers intended for
20 separate sales) are listed on one page rather
than the eBay system, which forces sellers to
create 20 individual listings (and pay 20
individual fees).

You do pay for listing upgrades like extra photos
(over four) or prominent placement on the listing
page. But those fees are the same or lower than
most auction sites.

There is another important difference. The set
closing time for items on eBay allows an individual
to grab an item at the last second. (It's called
sniping). On OLA, if multiple buyers are still
actively bidding when an auction reaches its
official closing time, that time is extended
so that, just like at a traditional auction,
bidding continues until only one bidder is left.

Creating a listing is straightforward and will
be extremely easy for anyone that has sold on
other auction sites. (There's a good tutorial
and a Chat Room specifically for anyone that's
new and wants some help.) But sellers that are
used to fancy backgrounds and themed page designs
may be disappointed with the site's "no frills"
appearance. And those that like to have the
auction site step in when there's a problem with
a buyer or seller or item might not be comfortable
with OLA's stance on the subject. All they do is
bring buyer and seller together.
They do not mediate disputes. (Their feedback
system does allow for changes of heart and late
follow-ups, however.)

Joining OLA is a two-minute process and is free
for basic buyers (who then have a maximum bid
total per-day limit of $1,000) or $4 monthly for
verified buyer members. (They have unlimited
bidding/buying privileges.)

Sellers have three options. A "Verified Seller"
($8 monthly) is entitled to bid without
limitations, communicate between buyers and
sellers via a private O-Mail account, use chat
rooms, and view/post feedback. They may list and
sell as many items as they choose with no listing
fees or final value fees using the simple form on
the site or the free downloadable bulk listing
tool, O-Lister.

A "Charter Member" ($96 annually) is entitled to
the same benefits but they also receive $100 worth
of auction enhancements (additional photos,
featured status for selected auctions, activation
of "End-It-Early" feature) at no cost.

Finally, there are "Founding Members" ($196 the
first year and $96 guaranteed each year thereafter
for life). Founding Members receive the same
benefits as Charter Members although the
enhancements package bumps to $200. A special icon
identifies them, and their links are accessible
from the site's home page.
And they can set up a virtual store (called "My
OLA House,") that is linked to their auctions.
The store is free for the first 12 months.

The sight is campaigning heavily for the latter.
In fact, they're actively looking for a million
sellers to take advantage of the "no fee increase"
promise and benefits package and join the Founding
Member movement. (So far they've signed up
approximately 500.)

So it all sounds great.

The tough part for the OnlineAuction crew is
going to be delivering enough buying traffic to
tempt established eBay sellers away from the
security of the auction giant. While I found tons
of items listed, it's much harder finding
listings with bids. As one PowerSeller put it,
"It's all about name recognition. There's eBay
and then there are all of the nameless others.
Everyone knows what eBay is. Very few people
could even name another auction site."

That may be true today. But with discontent among
eBay members, some well-timed national exposure
and an ever-growing groundswell of word-of-mouth
support, OLA just may have what it takes to
overcome anonymity and play David to
eBay's Goliath.

Link to Fee Information:
onlineauction.com