I don't like auctions and rarely ever participate.
The reason is i got ripped off a couple of times when ebay started and it quickly was obvious that you have no recourse but to leave negative feedback on the seller who immediately puts negative feedback on you. Ebay is no help in resolving mis-representation, faulty merchandise or other problems on auctions from private sellers. The auction model is outdated as a the primary driver of ebay's business.
So 99% of the time i use the buy it now option from ebay stores.
I like stores because they are a business and if they wish to stay in business they have an incentive to keep the customer happy. As one Scot noted a long time ago:
I don't mind paying a bit more for the service. If things go wrong, i have found an ebay store is likely to work with you to fix the problem. For example, i purchased a Dell Precison 470 recently from Electronics Cafe on e-bay but it arrived with a dead motherboard. They cheerfully paid for the cost of a replacement system board.
"It is not from the benevolence of the butcher, the brewer, or the baker, that we expect our dinner, but from their regard to their own self-interest." Adam Smith
Anyway, the problem is keeping track of stores. Ebay does a horrible job of it. Sure you can save sellers into a list but finding a particular store is a pain and trying to build up a list of favorite suppliers seems rather difficult.
I also like local suppliers
The shipping is less and why not support people in your area if the prices are competitive? So why can't i find all the local ebay stores that deal in computers or electronics?
Ebay works ok when you are looking for a particular item but as all grocery stores, bookstores and malls know - the longer your keep the customer in the store the more likely they are to buy something. If ebay made it easier for me to browse local suppliers who sell the kinds of stuff i like to buy then i would buy more. Maybe their tag line should be 'Ebay - Saving You Money'...
