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Using eBay for more than just wholesale

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#22
LOCATION MATTERS:
Texas is an Ebay hot bed. Can't explain it, never will. You're not in TX, cut your best case projection by at least 20%. BTW, while doing your analysis, try to trace the buyer’s location. For those that you can identify, are they Texans or flying in from long distance?? I want to know the ratio.
 
#23
MISSING PIECES:
Business 101 time. TD has 900+ units with only 100 sales per month, this is just awful financial performance. Drop out the "non-automobile" sales and I count 60 sales. Ebay is mostly telephone sales, let’s assume that for every feedback TD gets, they get FIVE non-feedback sales (phone sales). I am estimating, you should verify this estimation by counting the "auction ended early" results. So if we have a 5:1 ratio, then TD is selling 300 units per month via eBay. This still leaves us 150 to 200 units shy of average used car department’s inventory turning ratio. Add to that TD's low margins and I'd project TD needs to turn its inventory 9 times a year to hit the sweet spot. This puts them in the 650-700 units sold per month class. We see 60 feedbacks per month. We're missing pieces here.
 
#24
WHERE ELSE ARE THEY ADVERTISING?
Go into their market via AutoTrader.com and Cars.com and find their inventory. Are they listed? If so, does the eBay buy-it-now price and the Cars.com asking price match? If so, then that makes sense, they'll sell a lot of units there. If not... we're back to missing pieces in the puzzle. More research is needed.
 
#27
LEGAL RESPONSIBILITIES & RECON
You've used Texas Direct as a benchmark for a sucessfull ebay model. One of the reasons TX dealers MAY have an advantage is reduced recon costs (state vs state). I haven't explored this fully, so I'll need you to examine this in detail.

For example, NY has high reconditioning costs from very strong pro-consumer laws. Look into what TX law is vs. your state. Regardless where the buyer is from, the dealer has to deliver the vehicle according to it's state law. This has been tested in court years ago. This could mean if TX DMV law is easy compared to our state, then TX dealers can enjoy a 300-800-1500$ intra-state recon advantage (domestic 4x4's are recon pigs).

Funny how TD sells a lot of domestic 4x4's Is it the TX recon advantage or is it TX traffic?
 
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#30
JoePistell said:
danoneil,

If I was your GM and you came to me jacked about this opportunity, I'd appreciate your young bright-eyed enthusiasm and after a review of your idea, I'd call you in for a meeting, give you a pen and paper and tell you to take notes. " Dan, It's time for some "after-hours" homework... Let's see... So you think theres money to be made on eBay? OK, here we go.... "
Click to expand...

Well Thank you Joe...I am an eBay power seller. I owned a music store and sold keyboards , guitars , recording equipment. Over 950 transactions ... I know a little about eBay.

It's not just about money to be made, but lead generation. eBay can be a hyrbid-virtual site. You can have customers see a car on eBay and jump to your home website and vice versa.

it cost approximately $128 to list a vehicle in a national campaign and if it sells, no extra charge.
National average for selling a vehicle via the internet is $200 ?? More ?

You can't dispute Texas Direct's #'s . Look at the quality of their pictures, their listings are top notch.

Oh, one other thing. I'm not that young ....:lol:
 
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