I do think a lot of tack selling has moved over to Facebook, although I did pickup a really nice Skito saddle pad on ebay recently for a good price.
I collect rare books and have found some SCREAMING deals on ebay lately, so I am very happy with it in that respect still.
As a buyer, eBay lost me when they started charging fees on shipping.
I haven’t boycotted them completely–I will still check there if I want something very specific and I can’t find it elsewhere–but I certainly don’t do any sort of impulse browsing/buying there. And if I can find what I want on a FB group, I don’t bother to price check against eBay. I’d rather pay more to a private seller anyway than line eBay’s pockets.
A number of policy and fee changes over the years have driven many of the good independent sellers away from eBay, leaving it a ghost of its former self. It is indeed mostly new merchandise and fixed prices these days (and prices often aren’t even that good) plus plenty of cheap imported junk.
You can still find some used stuff, but nowhere near the variety and amount there used to be. Most of the excitement of a good bidding war and finally winning your coveted item is gone too. I was on it fairly early on (1999) and remember buying almost all of my Christmas gifts there that year. Now I pretty much only hop on if I’m looking for something that is no longer manufactured, in hopes there might be one around.
As for selling tack, I too have moved to FB groups. Despite some of the annoying questions from potential buyers, it is still quickest and easiest to move stuff there and the only fees taken out are from Paypal.
Ebay has tightened up returns and now it’s less scary for people. I’ve been buying and selling for 16 years. I have 2 accounts: one for each.
I thonk ebay is catering to drop shippers and name brand etailers without blushing, so it’s harder for the little guy.
I won’t complain about fees because for me listing is free and I remember when it wasn’t.
Prices aren’t super high anymore and so it’s a bang for the buck proposition: easier to donate/chuck than waste time selling
I have had a lot of luck selling on those Facebook groups. I don’t mind the “lowest price” buyers because money is money and I would rather have some money than none. I know a fair price. Yes some people are unrealistic but then again, I can’t judge because I’m a penny pinching horse girl and I buy all my horses items used, in consignment or on clearance.
Unfortunately for me, no… eBay is not dead. 
I buy Breyer horses on there quite frequently, it’s an awesome place to find that rarer version of what you want, mostly for a decent price.
Of course, the last two auctions I won had issues: one, the horse was broken and repaired and I couldn’t tell until I had the model in hand (seller was awesome and refunded half the price) and the other, the seller just wrapped the horse in one sheet of tissue paper (after I SPECIFICALLY asked for good packaging since the PO likes to smush my boxes) with NO FILLER and it was sliding all around the box, getting some nice new marks. (Seller essentially blew me off- too bad, so sad). Both are very hard to find variations, so not easily replaced.
I sell quite a bit on Ebay. The atmosphere changed drastically a few years ago when sellers could not leave negative feedback for buyers. I always sell without returns, no way, people use your items and then return.
Now?, it’s not fun anymore, I sell high end items for really good prices, there is a lot of greed involved with buyers. I thoroughly understand wanting to get a good deal but buyers remorse, then threatening you is unacceptable. I sold a watch, $1500.00 retail to a woman a few weeks ago for $400.00, I had worn it one time for just a few hours, it looked brand new. She gets the watch, then the next day says it’s not authentic, threatened me with removal from ebay because she didn’t think it was authentic. I just said return it immediately. Jerks.
Good buyers still exist but for the most part IMO the fees are too high and the risk of rude unethical buyers is just not worth it. After this list of items I won’t be selling on Ebay anymore.
The 18 y.o. who has been riding my horse for several years has a nice County dressage saddle to sell. I warned her away from eBay based on comments from COTHers about buyers’ “rights.” Didn’t realize how much they took out in fees. She’s planning on using FB. I got quite a bit of stuff off eBay years ago, but now that I’m reversing my inventory and consigning things, I don’t have a reason to go there anymore.
I used www.kijiji.com for everything from horse equipment to car parts. It’s less hassle, because you can see the item before forking over the money.
The times I’ve listed stuff on eBay- they’ve just sat… I usually use Facebook groups. TackHunter is a nifty lil website too-I’ve only purchased one thing, but it went really well.
My biggest fear with Facebook, especially a larger ticket item like a saddle, is knowing the seller is legit. I don’t want to send the money over and find out later I’m screwed…
I think ebay certainly seems to have lost some popularity. Not even just for horse-related things, but in general. I used to do a fair amount of selling on ebay and I’ve slowed down because it gets tiring to constantly relist things that haven’t sold.
Not sure why, but it does seem to have slowed!
[QUOTE=dappled;8906497]
I think ebay certainly seems to have lost some popularity. Not even just for horse-related things, but in general. I used to do a fair amount of selling on ebay and I’ve slowed down because it gets tiring to constantly relist things that haven’t sold.
Not sure why, but it does seem to have slowed![/QUOTE]
totally agree with this. My items sit for much longer now then they did even 2 years ago. Fortunately I’ve had really good luck w/ transactions, both buying and selling. I’ve sold 2 saddles via eBay with no issue.
eBay used to be better with finding decent quality used items, but I feel like FB groups have taken over. Its not a trend that I like since frankly, FB groups are more chaotic and harder to search for a particular item.
I miss the good ole eBay days
I find things I like, then check ebay and Amazon to see if a better price. I have never contacted a seller about lowering a price, it is what it is.
One thing I found, Walmart has a lot of things too. You can buy caskets if you need one!
Some of the FB groups I’m in, they have a selling page, I list on there. When you “know” someone, they tend to not give you guff and then they know you won’t send them defective items. I only pay and receive money through paypal, even with their fees, want to make sure everything is on the up and up.
On Amazon, if I think the price is too high, I look at the “See All Buying Options” button. Sometimes you get a lower price and still get free shipping, and sometimes the ones with shipping added are actually cheaper than the Prime price. Unless you want something in two days (if you’re a Prime member), you can save by buying from third party sellers on Amazon.
“The buyer is always right” move that ebay made several years ago definitely hurt them, because individual sellers don’t usually have the funds to cover multiple returns like stores do. I still shop there frequently and sell occasionally, but sales are much slower and buyers are much more cautious. Honestly, I believe that’s due as much to the economy as anything. Few of us can afford to be as open-handed as we used to be.
I still use Ebay. I just sold a saddle via Ebay recently and had plenty of bids (saddle was an older English-made Pessoa, thus in demand). The problem with FB groups is that it is challenging to search for what you are looking for because sellers often offer poor or incomplete descriptions, and on FB sellers tend to overprice their merchandise.
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