But there are still a lot of categories. And although any improvement helps, eBay could perhaps approach things differently. It's intimidating for the first-time buyer. You're thrown into an interface with 5 million things and concepts. Underscoring all of eBay's design issues, however, is the fact that its users are often collectors who will fill out any number of screens or suffer any interface to get what they want.
Collectors are a bizarre bunch.
And they do so fanatically. So designing ways for people to sell their wares more quickly can reduce site stress and even increase revenue. Laura Borns, senior usability engineer at eBay. If a buyer is willing to pay that price and no one has begun the auction by placing a first bid yet, he can buy the item immediately. By not having items listed on its site for as long, eBay saves server power.