Extending its Sell For Me service to mobile devices, eBay on Tuesday has launched a new app for iOS devices called eBay Valet. The service promises to sell items on users’ behalf. The eBay Valet app1.01 for iOS is compatible with all devices running iOS 6.1 or higher.
The eBay Valet app for iOS essentially connects users to eBay experts or valets that will take care of the entire process of selling an item. In order to sell stuff via eBay Valet, users need to take a picture of the item and enter item’s description (by voice, or typing). Within 30 minutes, the user will get a response from the team with a valuation range, which is determined from a 90-day history of the item. If a user then agrees to sell that item, eBay will send across a prepaid box to mail that item to valet team, or a shipping label if a box is available.
Once the item is sold, eBay will make the payment via PayPal with deducted commission of 30 percent of the value, so users get 70 percent. But if the seller decides to cancel its listing before being sold, there is a $10 (approximately Rs. 600) fee per order for returns.
eBay has few product restrictions in place for its eBay Valet service, like the condition of the item, weight and more, which can be read at the Sell For Me page.
The Web-based eBay Sell For Me service has been around for quite some time. Now to gain more traction to the service the e-commerce giant is considering mobile platforms. The company says eBay Valet is a ‘pilot’ program. Speaking to TechCrunch, the company’s Steve Yankovich (Vice President of Innovation and New Ventures) added, “Even though you’re not selling the item, there’s still an experience of selling. You get to experience the listing but do none of the work… We have a person looking at the item, doing research on eBay for condition and our marketplace has good inventory.”
