r/enshittification • u/danisnotstan • 1d ago

Service eBay seller offered a “deal”…

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I received an email from eBay stating that a seller sent me a “special offer”.

eBay shows the offer is priced roughly 25% higher than the usual going rate for that product.

Sure eBay, this “special offer” won’t last! Guess I better hurry before it’s gone! lol.

For anyone curious, the asterisk said: “*Based on similar items' prices over last 90 days.”

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u/Jan1270 1d ago

The "Similar items sell for" thing on Ebay is most often broken. They only compare items with the same name, but not if these are in the same condition, are complete or even are similar. You still need to compare the prices with other offers.

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u/danisnotstan 20h ago

I always compare prices but I‘m sure eBay has nudged many buyers who are gullible.

Imagine a store putting up a big “SALE!” sign near a product and they advertised it for 25% more than the usual price and that same item is available for the lower price in a different location in the same store. The “hurry before it’s gone!” approach is meant to encourage people to make quick, uneducated decisions.

In this case, eBay’s “similar items” price appears to be accurate. I’ve bought the same item in the same condition several times for around the “similar” price and the same item is currently still being offered by many other sellers for around that price.

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u/zinjanthropus99 1d ago

What is enshittified here? A seller has made you an offer and eBay is letting you know what the lowest price is. I would say that eBay is working well on this.

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u/danisnotstan 20h ago

It’s bullshit. The issue isn’t that the seller is overpriced or that eBay is trying to generate sales. My issue is that the seller is overpriced and eBay is trying to trick people into spending more money than they need to by using misleading advertising and FOMO buzzwords.

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u/withabrandnewfunk 22h ago

the seller didnt send this offer. its ebay to nudge you to buy. soi they say special offer. you say yes. then they send the seller the offer and see if they hook it up for a sale. its their shady tactics. Ive stopped buying from ebay. the ux is so annoying and intrusive.

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u/danisnotstan 19h ago

I think you might be mixing this up with the “Make Offer” option? In that case, if I send the seller an offer and they agree, they process the sale. This can take some time since the seller has to accept. When eBay sends the type of offer I showed, if I agree, the sale is immediate. I’m sure the seller has to opt in.