Wagglepop 2: Deja Vu as Auction Site That Left Sellers Stranded Reopens

[bratpack]

Thought it may have been you Patti, I was too lazy to go back and look.  Now its in there good, I am trying to sing Another One Bites the Dust to drown out Boy George, but the song keeps comming back with a vengeance!    All I can say is thanks a lot Patti!!!!!

[myobeeswax]

[quote author=Sweet Girl 70 link=topic=3775.msg56904#msg56904 date=1181751629]
[quote author=Designers Bargains link=topic=3775.msg33042#msg33042 date=1164201708]
Can we get back to the topic?

I think this is a great opportunity for someone to truly post the 10 reasons (I actually came up with more)  any seller should go to WP, not only for this potential seller, but for everyone else to see. WHY? Because on WP, the truth over there is REALLY stranger than fiction.

WHY SELLERS SHOULD CHOOSE WAG-L-POP

1) Because, as someone here once said, "business is not just about making money." It's about faith and trust.

2) Because I know there will always be someone to pray for me when times are tough or I need help sticking to my diet.

3) Because asking about confidential business matters, like marketing strategy, is grounds for terminating an account. It's not constructive or polite and it's non of our business what WP does with our fees or if it even has a marketing strategy. Ray and Karen know what they're doing and we trust them, unlike that othEr site, where people don't always trust that management knows what's best for them.

4) Because it only costs me $49.95 to have a featured store. It costs the same over thEre, but that's not the point. Here I can list as many items as I want and it doesn't cost me any more. I know thEre gets more traffic, but I'm committed to the long haul, and that's more important than sales or traffic. WP has far exceeded its own expectations and, we have "vision" so I know it will come some day.

5) Because WP is always coming up with great promotions like this new one called AdSmart, where, if I want to advertise to other sellers within the WP site itself, it only costs me $10/mo at 10 cents per click to have a banner ad on my category page. I can get even more clicks if I upgrade to a bonus program for more money. eBay doesn't have that, or maybe they do. I'm not sure.

6) Because spamming is not frowned upon here like it is on some of those other auction sites. Here it's even encouraged and I'm given great tips on how to spam sites without getting caught. Folks here are so friendly and helpful in ways like that. And Karen is so supportive.

7) Because just the name Wag-L-pop makes me feel all "warm and fuzzy inside."

8) Because Karen is "da bomb". She's always there to slap someone's hand, delete posts at will, and keep us in line. It's important that we maintain a squeaky image because you never know you might be lurking.

9) The programs here are great.  Like Red Carpet. Sellers can offer their repeat buyers special discounts as rewards for their loyalty. Only repeat buyers are eligible. This is just FANTASTIC.

10) Because here we're treated as individuals. For example, over thEre, when you want to close your store, all you have to do is go to the help section, find "close your store" and click. Over here a seller has to personally email customer care, pay all accounts, have everything all square. This gives the seller time to think about it and maybe change his/her mind. It's the same with credits of Final Value Fees. Over thEre, if a buyer and seller decide to cancel a transaction, they can easily do so and the seller gets the Final Value Fee back right away. Here, the seller has to be "granted" the credit through personal contact with Customer Care, who investigates the transaction and then decides if the credit is warranted. This eliminates a lot of abuse of the system, don't you think? Customer Care can even contact the buyer, without the seller's knowledge or consent, to investigate the transaction. It's all about TRUST.

11) Because it's so much fun to get up in the morning, turn on the computer and share in a virtual breakfast. I would never leave WP for that alone.

12) Because "potential" is really what it's all about. Nobody here cares about experience, track record, or past history. We only care about potential. You won't even see the name, bio, or image of the owner or any of his/her employees on the site. I doubt few of us know where the business is located. It's not important for the owners to have business experience or for the owner to even communicate with us and we don't care. It's all about US, our vision, our future.

13) Because the feedback system makes every sale count. If I sell 5 items all at once to the same buyer and bundle the items in one shipment, the buyer can leave me feedback for each item. Over at "E", I would have to sell items to 5 DIFFERENT buyers to get the same feedback score. Just because the seller over thEre has to deal with 5 different buyers with 5 different items and worry about 5 different shipments going to 5 different destinations doesn't make him a better seller. And if I sell even MORE to that same buyer, I can get even MORE feedback. Over thEre, it still only counts as one. That's because we value repeat buyers, and over thEre it's about generating NEW business.

14) Because there are no search feature for completed auctions either sold or unsold here. This is good, because buyers don't care what a similar item might have sold for or even if it sold at all, unless, of course, the buyer wants to send a personal message to the seller of an unsold item and try to buy it from them. That's because we're a TRUST BASED community.

15) Because ALL, both buyers and sellers, are required to pledge that they will pay their seller fees on time with PayPal, as part of the registration process. This is great, because should a buyer ever want to become a seller, he/she doesn't have to re-register as a seller and we know we can trust him/her.

16) Because we're all happy here. It really doesn't matter if you do or don't make money. It's more important to be happy, have fun and make friends.

17) Because the "Dancing Waggle Bunny" just makes me laugh every time.

18) Because bad language and snide remarks are not tolerated, either on the posts or in listings. One seller's listing for a cook book was pulled because it contained a recipe for beek jerky. That's because the word "jerk" is not allowed on our site, and it doesn't matter in what context it appears. That's part of what makes us so great.

19) Because very little about the buying process is automated. There is a personal touch in everything.

20) Because we love surprises. We are teased by the promise of new features and programs and other stuff we know will be great. The suspense builds because management doesn't divulge any time line or information and we all get so excited. It's like being a kid and counting the days till Christmas, except we don't even know what day Christmas will be, which makes it even more thrilling when we get our treat. It's so refreshing to be part of a business where you never know what to expect.

:turkey4
[/quote]
[/quote]

Please someone tell me this is a joke!?
Nobody could actually think this way!?

I am just sitting here shaking my head 

Oh and Moon I hope your hand is feeling better

[youroverheadbin]

Please someone tell me this is a joke!?
Nobody could actually think this way!?

I am just sitting here shaking my head

Okay, I'll tell you. It's a joke. 
DB wrote that in response to the WP thread started a few months ago that was actually entitled something like The 10 Reasons I Love Wagglepop. It's a spoof.

[FineThings4U]

Great reading and karma to all today!

Maybe Raytard should let Alison be a CC.  She could replace Karen.  She acts just like him oops her.

[Alskling]

[quote author=sherrand link=topic=3775.msg56919#msg56919 date=1181761586]

Please someone tell me this is a joke!?
Nobody could actually think this way!?

I am just sitting here shaking my head

Okay, I'll tell you. It's a joke.  
DB wrote that in response to the WP thread started a few months ago that was actually entitled something like The 10 Reasons I Love Wagglepop. It's a spoof.
[/quote]

It was my post. As I recall, a "potential seller" came on the boards declaring he was considering several venues to set up shop and had narrowed it down to three: WP and two others. He was asking the same question on the boards of each venue -- that question being: What are the 10 best reasons for setting up a store and sell on this venue. Many of the "reasons" I gave in response were taken directly from some of the comments on the boards, such as the inspirational prayer thread, the wonderful "community spirit", and low tolerance for "negativity," helpful marketing "hints" (aka spamming), etc. Others came from my own experiences on WP. I don't recall ever seeing a response that addressed WP as a business -- not one. It was a spoof, but all the reasons were real. If any TT member here would care to own up to posing that question on the WP boards, please step up.

After all that has come to pass since my original post, I could come up with a whole ton more.

[Sweet Girl 70]

[quote author=sherrand link=topic=3775.msg43950#msg43950 date=1171659956]
[quote author=CastleDragon link=topic=3775.msg43948#msg43948 date=1171658162]

BTW, I'm just curious. When your shutters were slammed shut by KaRay, did you receive a wrist-slapping email from Karen?
Wanna compare notes? 

No, in fact I was disappointed in that department. Here is what I received.

Hello,

Effective immediately, your Wagglepop account has been terminated for gross violation of the User Agreement.

Your outstanding balance of $21.35 should be sent by February 19th to:

auction@wagglepop.com

(auction at wagglepop dot com)

Please email me with the PP transaction ID number once completed.

Karen - WP Customer Care


Oh, well. I wonder what catagory my gross violation fell under?




4 U Ray   

the Dragon


[/quote]

Wow, you did get off easy. Here's mine;

Hi Sherry,

We have terminated your Wagglepop account effective immediately.

The following as a Store description is grossly inappropriate:

"We're leaving WP, this "Trust" based Community because we can no longer trust it. The practice of sanitizing inquiring posts, and threatening said posters with suspension for voicing their queries will not be tolerated any longer - by us."

I think we are in agreement that Wagglepop and your company are not a good match, but we wish you the very best in all of your online buying and selling endeavors.

Happiest and healthiest of holiday seasons to you and your family

Karen - WP Customer Care

KaRay must be handling rejection better since that rejection is becoming so commonplace. He was so ticked at my stunt that he didn't bother coming after me for any monies owed. His anger overtook the welfare of his wallet. 
[/quote]

Hey Sherrand,  I found this wonderful letter that was personally sent to you and thought you might like to reminisce 

[BeenThereDoneThat]

I think we are in agreement that Wagglepop and your company are not a good match

Now that's the understatement of the year! 

Not a good match?   Ya think? 

[youroverheadbin]

Sweet you are amazing!!!

[Sweet Girl 70]

[quote author=sherrand link=topic=3775.msg32763#msg32763 date=1164073498]
Race dream should not be so modest.

Here's the history of the thread he is talking about. You could say the dissenters have hi-jacked it.

http://www.wagglepop.com/community/viewt...2798#52798

  21 Nov 2006 00:16     


Well, I don't sell here anymore because I didn't agree with their timelines on advertising (and other issues but that's another post). However, I still care about the people here and feel that they deserve a fair shake. They have put their blood, sweat and tears into WP. I just think that as time goes by and the closer they get to "mid-2007" the shelves will have less items rather than more simply because the sellers got impatient and tired of paying a monthly fee for lesser sales and then they leave and find another venue.

Right now WP has the most stores it's going to have by Karen's own predictions. NOW is the time to do SOMETHING... ANYthing... not in 6-7 months.

You guys can slam me if you want but I mean nothing malicious, just my thoughts.  

Next:

I concur!!!

Market logistics can and do play a big part in the statistics they generate. Slow periods, rich periods and everything in between. But please examine why, with the crest of online Christmas shopping drawing closer and closer, are sales stats declining here in particular? Sellers have bent over backward, dedicated hours and hours of their lives revamping their stores, listing at a feverish speed and personally advertising themselves through various venues. But all their sincere and dedicated efforts are not bearing fruit. The stats are not rewarding them for their selfless efforts. From a clinical business perspective, what is wrong with this picture? IMHO, no outside advertising, no news interviews sharing your vision, no permission for sellers to use supplied promotional material. No... well no support from WP on the www. Not all advertising involves spending money - ask any one of your dedicated sellers nested right here on WP.

Two months ago today the store count was 939. Presently it is 701. Some new ones have arrived in the meantime, making the number that have left actually higher. Ask yourself, why would established stores close at such a critical time of year - a sellers gravy period? 20% of the total stores in 8 weeks? Indeed, I recognize that some closures were due to the culling of the non-committed by WP staff but I'm now questioning - why did so many of those in good standing voluntarily take down their shingle? What is wrong with this picture? What is being evidenced as broken?

Disclaimer for Customer Service: This post is courteous and constructive as per the board participation rules. Courteous in that no offensive language was used, no personal slurs given nor personal names exposed. It is constructive - containing constructive criticism (to encourage positive dialogue in response), which last I heard is considered a persons right to express and welcomed by the owner(s) of a company. It contains accurate information as gleaned from the WP site. So if this post gets pulled, I challenge the reason why.

KaRay's damage control response:

wagglepopCC1  21 Nov 2006 00:49     


Hello Members,

There are some general misconceptions in this thread, and I thought it would be helpful to clarify a couple of points.

We never said, or meant to give the impression that there would be no marketing until mid-2007, just that the most visible and substantial marketing would be in mid-2007, to support the major feature introductions and migrations.

Both the marketing campaign and feature/functionality integrations have a lead time of about six months, give or take a month or two.

For both, this includes discovery, planning, design and or wireframing, testing, deployment, and support.

Aside from the timeframe being a part of the natural process overall, it also allows us as a company the extra time to gather the substantial funds necessary for this extremely large and expensive commitment.

This is a true six figure commitment on the part of ownership/management.

Between now and mid-2007 when the major "thrust" will occur, we'll be doing some already scheduled marketing on a smaller level, and adding a few features as already designed or required through operational experience.

As noted above, there is no practical way to accelerate these plans from a logistical standpoint.

In reality, this mid-2007 introduction timeframe represents an acceleration of plans loosely scheduled or projected as necessary on or about the July 2009, based on projected activity.

So what we have here is a two-year acceleration of schedule, and we certainly would hope that all membership recognizes that for what it is:

Our commitment and dedication and desire to make Wagglepop everything it can be, as quickly as it can be.

Thanks for your support

Karen - WP Customer Care

And RD himself in response:

This was posted by Karen Yesterday:

There are numerous scheduled releases which have been delayed due primarily to the increase site activity:

Among them include:

Seller "Central"
We The People Program
Resources Center
WP Merchandising Center

In some instances, we have transferred the funds available for those projects over to design/engineering to pay for features and functionality upgrades.

We expect overall that we'll be able to make the implementations above only slightly behind the general schedule, however
Karen - WP Customer Care


Store Owners/Sellers are listing large numbers of items and doing their own advertising.
Sales are down, store numbers are down, but because of increased site activity the above has been delayed?

Gag a maggot!! Is there a smilie for that? 

Edited for perfection - because I'm a goofus.




[/quote]

[Sweet Girl 70]

Sherry,
Glad I could bring back the good times for you.  I cannot believe how much STUFF we have written about WP (wankerpoop)!!!