Recently, eBay has begun attempting to condition buyers to expect "free" shipping on eBay listings. They are doing this by appearing to bribe sellers into offering free shipping by doing thing like promising that listings with "free" shipping will be placed higher in search results, highlighting listings offering "free" shipping, and by "giving away" the $.50-valued listing subtitle at no cost.
What, we might ask, is eBay's motivation for doing this? Higher revenues for eBay, of course. "Damn the sellers, full speed ahead!"
eBay has already raised their fees to ridiculous levels (though at least they've loaded them on the back end of the actual sale, rather than their previous un-thought-out policy of "rape, rape, rape the seller" regardless of whether a sale is made.)
The push for free shipping is new and subtle, and probably missed by most sellers. Let's say that I join the "free shipping" herd, and accept the $.50-valued subtitle. What could be my downside? Well, my final value fees may increase more than the $.50 that I allegedly saved!
One of the thorns in eBay's side has always been that they did not charge a final value percentage on the shipping and handling charges for listings - only on the sale price. Thus, sellers were not faced with the absurdity of paying ebay an additional percentage on the money that they were already spending on packing materials and postage. After all, with a 15% final value fee added to postage alone, $10 in USPS Priority Mail charges would become $11.50 in postage costs! Who in their right minds would agree to pay ebay a premium on what they spent at the post office??
Ah, but offer a $.50 bribe on an inconsequential thing like a subtitle as a "reward" for offering "free shipping" and suddenly you can accomplish by misdirection what sane people would never do intentially. Now eBay can get people to voluntarially elect to be fleeced out of paying an added 15% to ebay on the actual costs that they spend on boxes, packing materials, labels, ink, computer supplies, and postage!
Caveat Emptor. Let the Seller beware!
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