eBay sent a letter to users on Monday informing them of the end of a pilot program impacting the Best Offer feature in certain categories. “I think is AWESOME news,” wrote one seller who received the notice via email. “Beta Best Offer was not a positive experience for buyers or sellers.” Another seller wrote to EcommerceBytes, “I can’t tell you how excited I am, I hated Best Offer Beta.”
The Best Offer feature, which is optional, allows buyers to haggle with sellers – shoppers offer to purchase a Buy It Now item at a lower price, and sellers can accept, reject, or make a counteroffer.
Under the pilot program, which was available in Computers & Tablets, Jewelry & Watches, and Art categories, if a seller accepted a Best Offer, it was non-binding – the item actually remained for sale until the shopper paid for the item (if the shopper paid for the item).
Since there was no commitment to follow through, some buyers used the opportunity to renegotiate with sellers after they’d accepted an offer.
eBay was hoping it would help sellers garner multiple offers from shoppers. “Since the transaction is not completed until the buyer commits (or pays), you’ll be able to accept multiple offers to increase your chances of selling the item,” eBay had told sellers.
But sellers said that by making the offer non-binding upon the seller’s acceptance, shoppers gained insight into what the seller was willing to accept without having to follow through on the purchase – defeating the concept of Best Offer.
One seller told EcommerceBytes that under the pilot program, “The buyer would submit an offer, we would accept the offer, but the buyer was not obligated to complete the purchase – the buyer then changed their mind in the hopes of renegotiating a lower price.”
He said he stopped using Best Offer, putting a dent in sales, “which is likely the reason eBay is ending the pilot,” he said. “I much prefer the process whereby the item is “sold” once the seller accepts the offer as when we used Best Offer we had preset the price we would accept and decline using the Turbo Lister feature. With the pilot done, we will likely resume using Best Offer on appropriate listings.”
Another seller had previously described her displeasure with the Best Offer pilot program. She had accepted someone’s Best Offer on an expensive item, she explained, but once the buyer knew what amount she would accept, he was free to “think about it” and possibly try to negotiate a better deal with another seller. “I’ve committed to that price (a lower price than I’ve listed the item for) but don’t have a sale. I think this is really unfair and there is no way to opt out.”
eBay spokesperson Ryan Moore said eBay would utilize customer input and results from the pilot to enhance future experiences on eBay. In its letter on Monday, eBay said Best Offer would work the same way as in other categories as of November 12, 2013. “Thank you for your participation in the Best Offer pilot,” eBay wrote. “It was successful in many ways, and we will use the insights we’ve gathered to improve the original Best Offer. As always, we’ll continue working to provide a clear, consistent buying experience to you, our valued member.”
The Best Offer pilot was part of eBay’s change to “Immediate Pay” – see this November 7th EcommerceBytes Blog post.
