You Really Can Find Anything on eBay

Let me start this post by saying I am not a creep, neither is my brother, I think. He brought this eBay auction to my attention as he is a Jose Rijo fan, not a porn connoisseur.

Auction Listing

I have run the gamut of emotions from thinking this is a great way to market a new business to one of the most idiotic sales I have seen.

Here are the four reasons I feel make this is a good auction listing.

1. Cost Effective Shipping and Overhead
The seller (as from this point forward will be referred to as he, because lets face it, it's a dude) probably took advantage of a free listing day or special from eBay so he had minimal cost for the auction. By offering free shipping on the card it's more enticing to prospective buyers and would bring more people to the listing. Also, with the listing being for a single card, shipping costs are low, thus increasing his profit margin on a sale.

2. No Dejected Purchasers
By offering a card of Jose Rijo, a minor star in baseball terms, if the card was never received, would it really matter? No person would actually buy this card for the card itself, would they?

3. Word of Mouth
This post will be shared, talked about and even blogged about (guilty) by anyone who happens across it. We will remember the name of his "company" and website and debate the merits of what he has done. Word of mouth can be a very good marketing tool especially in his line of work.

4. Filling a Need
Someone may actually need this card to fill a set or player collection void and instead of reading the listing, actually may have bought the card. Then he would probably get a membership, pop-up ads, viruses and calloused hands for his "mistake". "I swear honey, all I wanted was the Jose Rijo baseball card." Good luck selling that one.

Now for why I think he was stupid

1. Name Recognition
He could have chosen a different player or a higher profile card to garner more attention. Not to take anything away from Rijo and the Donruss Highlights set, but there are many more enticing cards out there. He should have given more people a reason to take a peak.

2. Quality
He should learn to focus his camera. The picture of the card is awful and you can't read any information on the front of the card. Is this what one can expect from his business venture? How many people would like to watch two blurry images wrestle and grunt? Not I. It's not a good idea to have the one example of your work be as shoddy as the Rijo picture.

3. Lack of Knowledge
He doesn't even sell the card. No description, no number, no brand. There is no way someone would mistakenly buy this card when they can't read what it is. I have never bought a baseball card/porn subscription without at least a little information about the card I am getting.

4. Mismatched Market
Really, porn and baseball cards? Do some marketing, spend some money and go for it. Don't hide behind a baseball card auction and hope someone sees it and takes a chance. There is no counter on the listing but I am sure not many people saw this one. The porn industry is huge and there are proper outlets to try and make your mark, eBay is not one of them.