Website Magazine Consumer Corner - All Comments

re: Consumers Flock to FreeShipping.com - Take Note

AnthonyW — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 23:59:13 GMT

Free shipping will always attract consumers. It's a time honored strategy that will always will!

re: While eBay Freefalls, Consumers Move To Online Classifieds

AnthonyW — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 23:53:18 GMT

eBay dropped the ball when they increased seller fee's and took away the ability for sellers to leave accurate feedback...

re: While eBay Freefalls, Consumers Move To Online Classifieds

Jenna Lloyd — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 22:00:04 GMT

As a former eBay PowerSeller & technical editor/contributor to several books about eBay, I can tell you that part of eBay's problem is a change in business model that is moving it towards an Amazon marketplace model that favors the big sellers. The mom&pops are being pushed out. Although you are right about people tiring of auction-type sales, eBay has had a fixed price listing option for years, so that truly is not the reason.

Craigslist is a great option for buyers and sellers, especially if you realize that Craig's mission with craigslist has always been to have an online resource that brings people together offline.

Follow their terms of use. Understand that Craigslist's fans are absolutely rabid and hate businesses taking trying to spam, getting to html-oriented, or trying to turn the site into a national selling platform.

While I don't follow the other classifieds, I can tell you that for as much scamming as there is on these sites, common sense is the #1 to avoiding them, with the #2 being keep your business local and #3 dole out your personal information very carefully. Following these rules keeps you within terms of service and makes it much harder to get scammed.

My book on craigslist - craigslist 4 Everyone was published by QUE Publishing this month. Craig wrote the forward and I am proud to say that it is filled with useful information - all of which stays within the terms of service.

If anyone has any questions about buying or selling on craigslist, they are welcome to email me at jenna@craigslist4everyone.com.

re: While eBay Freefalls, Consumers Move To Online Classifieds

Mike Phillips — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 21:56:40 GMT

That's a good point, John. Many of these site are "buyer beware," especially Craigslist, who seems to wash their hands of most responsibilities.

re: While eBay Freefalls, Consumers Move To Online Classifieds

John AlanR — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 21:04:24 GMT

One of the things I still like about eBay is the fact that the most common scams and problems on eBay are well documented. I don't know if there are many places to find information about what can go wrong on the other sites.

re: Cyber Threats to Spike This Holiday Season

John AlanR — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 21:01:57 GMT

Thank you. I was wondering what you were referring to.

re: Cyber Threats to Spike This Holiday Season

Mike Phillips — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 13:38:02 GMT

@John - it can be either, or a combination of both. Some URLs are designed to mimic well-known, reputable sites, perhaps with a slight spelling variation, with a dash, etc. Then when you get to that site you see a very similar page, down to the logo and all. Chase had a serious problem with this a year or two ago.

re: Cyber Threats to Spike This Holiday Season

John AlanR — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 21:04:33 GMT

By "malicious URLs," do you mean little-known websites? Imitations of well-known sites? Or some sort of fake versions of well-known sites?

re: Twittering With Consumers

XurxoV — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 15:26:35 GMT

Excellent post - with so much discussion going on lately about whether twitter is good for business or simply a waste of time, this post clearly illustrates the power that twitter offers to businesses that use it properly.

it will definitely be following you on twitter! Not to mention retweeting this post!

Here is my twitter profile:

http://twitter.com/xurxovidal

re: Twittering With Consumers

Multimastery — Sat, 15 Nov 2008 04:44:17 GMT

Twitter seems kinda awkward to me but I'm trying to get a feel for it. Your article gives me some great ideas of how I may be able to implement the Twitter phenomenon into may marketing mix ~ Thanks!

re: Firefox Friday: Split Browser Add-on

Mike Phillips — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 15:41:11 GMT

Horizontal scrolling is definitely a hindrance. However, I still think it's useful mostly for reading/referencing and writing at the same time. I don't see it as something you would use for casual browsing, but more as a tool to accomplish a particular task.

re: Firefox Friday: Split Browser Add-on

John AlanR — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 21:05:42 GMT

Interesting idea, but looking at the example above, I remember an old problem with websites: horizontal scrolling. I've always got the impression that very few people like websites which force a person to scroll to the left or the right. Would anyone welcome this?

re: Real-Time News, Free From Manipulation

John AlanR — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 21:08:06 GMT

I noticed the statement "...Digg is the powerful voice of the few..." From my experiences using it, I feel that Digg caters to a certain demographic. Perhaps that's because only a certain type of people might not only be online more than a few minutes, and only those people might be compelled to share their thoughts on a regular basis.

One typo which should be corrected -- change "populartiy" to "popularity."

re: LinkedIn Opens to Developers - An Early Look at Apps

Mike Phillips — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 13:30:55 GMT

@John - It's an interesting point. I think one of the reasons that people are drawn to LinkedIn is because it's not decorated like MySpace, not filled with photo albums, widgets, music and the like, giving it a professional, not a social feel. I think the addition of apps to LinkedIn might draw some users in, but I think it's a fine line too. The more "social" LinkedIn gets - does that mean it becomes less "professional?"

re: LinkedIn Opens to Developers - An Early Look at Apps

John AlanR — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 20:02:31 GMT

It's been a while -- maybe a year -- since I looked at any part of Linked In. My first impression was that the network was sparse and "business style" formal. Pages seemed much less decorated than any I'd seen on Livejournal, and *far* less decorated than Myspace. But these announcements are making me wonder if Linked In is becoming more than a straightforward network for professionals.