Changes to eBay Bucks

[sharabob]

I was contacted by eBay concierge team to let me know of an upcoming change to the eBay bucks program starting Jan 1st. This is what I was told:
1. Default rate going down to 1%.
2. Business & Industrial no longer excluded
3. Gift cards STILL excluded for now
4. Will still have occasional promos for higher rates

[cozmohoot]

Stinks if true

[sharabob]

Stinks if true

It's never fun when benifits are reduced but frankly I don't care much about this. I used to mainly buy gift cards and since that went away I don't have much interest. Plus I usually try to time any purchase around a bucks promo so I rarely used to earn at the default rate.

[sharabob]

Dear --------,

Starting on January 1, 2017 some new eBay Bucks changes will be taking effect and we're excited to share them with you. We want to make sure you're always in the know as we continue to improve and expand the program. We think these latest changes will make Bucks even more flexible and beneficial for all of our loyalty members.Here is a list of the upcoming changes and new benefits:

•Base earnings are changing from 2% to 1%, now with more ways than ever to earn eBay Bucks.

•From car parts to copiers & you can now earn rewards for shopping in the Parts & Accessories and Business & Industrial* categories.

•Earn Bucks when you sell. We’ll be adding occasional promotions so you can also get rewarded when your items sell on eBay.**

•No more $5 minimum earn restrictions for redeeming—now you'll receive your rewards, no matter the amount.†

•Sign up for promotional emails and get invites for special bonus offers.

For full terms and conditions of the program, click here.

Sincerely, 
The eBay Bucks team

[lubaby]

I love how companies are "excited to share" and "improving the program" while chopping your earnings in half.

[yuneeq]

I don't think its as bad as it sounds.
The 2% made the promos very confusing.
"4x eBay Bucks!" meant you were getting 8% back not 4%.
I can imagine that many buyers didn't understand how good the promos were because of the confusion.
Having a baseline of 1% makes people appreciate the good promos ("10x ebay bucks!") a lot more and builds better goodwill for ebay.

I also think that ebay wants to make bigger promos so by cutting back on the regular rate they can shift those savings and use it towards ebay bucks promos. This will hurt casual buyers but will attract deal seekers.

My predictions:
Promos will go higher than before.
There will be more promos than before.

[elikay]

I don't think its as bad as it sounds.
The 2% made the promos very confusing.
"4x eBay Bucks!" meant you were getting 8% back not 4%.
I can imagine that many buyers didn't understand how good the promos were because of the confusion.
Having a baseline of 1% makes people appreciate the good promos ("10x ebay bucks!") a lot more and builds better goodwill for ebay.

I also think that ebay wants to make bigger promos so by cutting back on the regular rate they can shift those savings and use it towards ebay bucks promos. This will hurt casual buyers but will attract deal seekers.

My predictions:
Promos will go higher than before.
There will be more promos than before.

I have been getting a steady 2% totaling hundreds I hope this doesn't send me elsewhere.

[yuneeq]

I have been getting a steady 2% totaling hundreds I hope this doesn't send me elsewhere.

It sounds like it will definitely hurt you.
But maybe p*****s will go higher now.