VIDEO: apologies to Todd and MJ

So I had three talks at eBay Live - one was how to scale your backoffice (warehouse and stuff) and another was around 'choosing the right software solution for you' that talked about the difference between eBay's listing tools like seller manager pro, blackthorne,TL vs. CSPs like ChannelAdvisor and finally '12 tips to increase your DSRs'.

The DSR talk is an internal 'best practices' we developed at ChannelAdvisor and use to help our customers work on their DSRs - specifically this usually focuses on the S+H cost DSR.

Due to being under the weather, I couldn't make the DSR talk on Thursday at eBay Live so CA's Michael Jones and eBay's Todd Lutwak (head of seller scalability) were nice enough to fill in for me.

Well turned out I was throwing them to the lions as there was this dude in there that sat in the back of the room and evidently yelled expletives and stuff and then some lady jumped in and kept just telling MJ+TL they were liars.

FUN!

To top it off, someone Flick'ed the guy and put it on YouTube and it's been on Valleywag as well.  So I wanted to thank MJ and Todd for taking the heat on this one.  Had it been me in a feverish state, my strategy would probably have been to try and get as close to both instigators and do a Monty Python-inspired Projectile Vomiting on them.

In any case, if you see this guy in the clap tunnel, trip him for me:

Comments

[eric]

I had the pleasure of sitting in this seminar and watching Todd and MJ take a beating. While I share many of the same concerns about eBay policy changes (Platinum Powerseller w/ 50,000+ feedback @ 99.8%, 4.8, 4.8, 4.8, 4.5 = top-tier seller being DEMOTED in search results!) this guy's tirade only served to make him a laughingstock. As one of the guys waiting patiently for the mic to voice my opinion, nothing pisses me off more than some guy yelling out insults from the back of the room for 5 minutes. I guess he is too important to wait like the rest of us.

I was also stunned when one lady outright called Todd a liar after he related a personal story of his own experience! Kudos to the guy from grapevinehill who called her out on that.

To all of you that are convinced that eBay is out to crush you and ruin your lives and take all your money - you are absolutely right! You should leave the marketplace and its 84 million registered users as soon as you can. Please convince all your friends that are sellers to leave too! Then I won't have to adapt my business because all my competition will be gone.

[Douglas]

I think you are all taking Scott's comments out of context!

'12 Tips to Improve you DSR's' are RECOMENDATIONS that Scott and the guys at CA have came up with to try and HELP sellers improve their DSR scores.

I have had the pleasure to sit in on the class at Catalyst UK and for any seller its valuable advice...

What eBay does policy wise is nothing to do with MJ (Michael Jones) or any representative of Channeladvisor, and being in that room was a truly cringe worthy experience. Giving this kind of abuse to a man trying to help sellers scale their business is just astonishing! I later seen this individual in the powerseller/ebay exec panel talk, and he was not so forth right with his opinions then...This man is just very lucky that MJ was very relaxed and managed to push past his heckling. If it had been a speaker who was less placid that MJ (myself for instance) I would have chased through the streets of Chicago until I got my hands on him!!!

Put you opinions across, but put them in the right place and on the right doorstep! Like I said, this individual had all the chances in the world to give his views at the powerseller/ebay exec panel meeting, but he did not even get of his seat or mutter one word…

[Aaron]

Scot, this entry of yours made me re-think my following of this blog. The guy in the video is not some small wacko seller. This is a $300,000/month seller who is being driven out of business. This is not some nutjob, this is REAL human emotion; people's lives, families, and businesses are at stake here Scot. This isn't a joke. Large powersellers are being put out of business every day sir, and it is affecting everyone involved. At eBay Live I spoke with a few of your company's employees who confirmed that fact. Although there are lots of wackos on the eBay discussion boards, etc.., a lot of people are angry, and rightfully so... In the name of good changes, eBay management is playing with their sellers like a toy.

Your reaction to this gives you an elitist mentality, and says a lot about the direction of this blog. It no longer interests me. I will check back in a few months to see if anything has changed. In the meantime, I will go back to reading Randy Smythe's blog with my morning coffee. At least he has the guts to tell it how it is, and the audacity to try to understand what it's REALLY like to be a seller on the front lines.

- Aaron, former reader of your blog.

[MelMoments]

Harley summed it up for me Scot but I would like to also ask that you pull your head out of the sand. I would not have taken the approach that guy in the seminar did, but so help me I am glad someone did. Obviously you're not listening any more than Ebay. And as far a Projectile Vomiting goes... real mature Scot, real mature.

[BMX]

Sadly I sort of agree with the guy.

You get flustered up until the point where you just can't take it. Ebays ridculous changes can flip your business upside down overnight. Its more like navigating through a jungle with a bunch of traps set and eventually you fall into one.

Ebay better wise up or they will be the next AOL.

The writing is on the wall.

[steve]

I too am surprised at your reaction Scott. A previous poster noted that we sellers do not have a direct line into eBay like you do. In fact, we have no line. Scripted customer service reps don't count. I completely empathize with this guy's frustration.

Any other company who has done what eBay has done to their customers (the sellers) in the past year would not be in existence. Ebay has the advantage of being a monopoly. A good thing does not last forever.

Just like eBay wants sellers to "communicate, communicate, communicate" with their customers, eBay should do the same with theirs.

[j]

hi scot, sorry you were sick and i hope you feel better. really wanted to hear your DSR talk. is there any way to find the CA version/slides on the 12 steps to improve dsrs online? eBay used their slides, so I'd like to see the CA slides.

[greatgadeals]

I've hear this happened at quite a few of the workshops. I am inclined to believe we sellers had it GREAT before last years changes. It's about time sellers take more responsibly for customer satisfaction. DSR's, while not perfect, are a great way to see how you stand with others. Have low DSR's? Adjust your business. The landscape of competition changes all the time. If you can't move quickly you will not survive. That's anywhere, not just eBay.

I buy all the time on eBay. The site is RIFE with unethical sellers and just plain fraud. Just last week I bought a CD set for my wife. 2 days after I sent paypal payment, the seller was NARU. If I hadn't funded it with my CC through paypal, I would have said goodbye to $70.00. If the new standards boot sellers like this, I'm all for the change. I think eBay is headed in the right direction GENERALLY and of course they'll have hiccups along the way.

[Fruity]

If this was open to all ebayers, then you should of expected it to happen. Not everyone has the direct line into Ebay, Scot. You might be too far up in the clouds to see how dismissive ebay is of these people. It's more than reasonable to need answers to make decisions for our businesses. They issue these announcements yet don't make themselves available to clarify the process or answer questions. None of those people have given us answers on how this works. No. They just want us to sit here and comply or get out. Internalize that.

[dave c.]

Sorry for being a news, but what is a DSR?

[Harley]

Scot, "Pissing off the long tail" would be the appropriate term for eBay's latest goofy management mistakes. I guess that's why there won't be an eBay live next year, that or there is a shortage of co-branded eBay/Paypal bullet vests.

Hopefully you'd have been smart enough to say, "I don't work for ebay" if you were there. but then again CSP's have to be the opposite of this seller, they have to take it, smile and regroup without the slightest wimper, no matter what the cost.

Vomit on a paying customer, yep.... that's the Donahue way.

[kimbers]

Scot,

This video has been making the rounds all day. I have seen it on various blogs, discussion boards, even in my own mailbox.

I have to say that your lack of compassion for this guy, who is clearly frustrated beyond the pale and feels the rug has been pulled out from under him is beneath you. I know you are sick, but really.

The sad fact is, he represents the feelings of a whole lot of sellers (not to mention any worker whose livlihood is undergoing a ton of changes at once).

Not to add to eBay's woes these days, but I think that if those of us who still want eBay to succeed do not acknowledge how betrayed (for lack of a better word) these people feel and the sentiment they are tapping into in so many others, eBay will not make it for the long haul.

It is very shortsighted for anyone not to believe that these disgruntled people are also the buyer's eBay needs too, who probably will not be shop there ever again.

Forgetting sellers for a minute, out here in buyer's world, eBay's reputation is taking a huge beating. Inspite of, or because of the increased buying experience, I'm not really sure. What I am sure of though, is that if eBay and the people who count on their platform for part of their own earnings in whatever capacity don't see and mend the hole in the dike really fast, it isn't going to matter.

The internet made eBay the giant is is and the same internet will destroy it.

Thanks for all the blogs, I hope you feel better soon.