I would like to know if there exists a service auction website. By this I mean a website where individuals or organisations can sell their services to consumers by means of an auction.

Consumers would request a service, and specify a maximum price that they are willing to pay. Sellers would then bid to supply that service, with each bid reducing the consumer's initial asking price.

The website would facilitate processing of the transaction and payment where necessary. I am essentially proposing an ebay for services.

Ebay have a section on their website where people can advertise their services. However these are simply classified ads, and the entire transaction is between the buyer and seller.

Does anyone why ebay have chosen not to apply the auction model to services?

Also, does anyone know of a website that does?

Doesn't sound practical to auction services???? Maybe you want to look at a web site that compare services like gocompare.com and confuse.co.uk etc.

No to both questions. You did not say what type of services you had in mind. Financial, industrial, sales, construction, - (blue collar, white collar) etc?

However I am curious of a working model and how you would propose to implement it.

Maybe not all services will be auction friendly but then not all tangible products are either. Building services is just ONE example, but even this could possibly be adapted.

If you think about "the Appointment" you then can see where the 'bidding' demand for services in an auction may be present.

For example a Plumber can auction his services and where the bidding might have demand is when those services are offered on a appt basis. Ie, a certain plumber is available on a certain day. This is where the demand could possibly create an auction environment especially if its a service which is difficult to fulfill. A daily rate, plus time of availability is what can create the demand.

To the company offering the service the site could be a good vehicle to increase levels of business in times they usually find hard to fill, ie around Bank Holidays, Christmas, August Holidays etc.

Look at another random service. A Piano Teacher for example. Most people if they haven't been recommended to a teacher will simply pick up the yellow pages. But why not have an auction offering a set of lessons over a certain period, ie the summer holiday. This comparison is no different than buying a book in a shop or on Ebay. People use Ebay for the convenience, the fun factor and the chance that they may even pick the item up cheaper. So why can't all these factors apply with services?....

You raise various points

Not all goods are homogenous, namely unbranded goods. To determine the value of unbranded goods (especially when done online) one usually considers the reputation of the seller. e.g. I would buy an iPod from any website as long as its the cheapest, as i know the value of the iPod. However I would not buy plain leather shoes from just any website as they may not be good quality. I would look for a well known shoe shop like Clarkes.

The purpose of "feedback" on ebay is so that sellers can gain a reputation. On a service auction website sellers of services could have feedback from previous customers. They could also list their qualifications and experience, and even pictures or videos of work they have done before. This would mean that buyers could juggle price and quality of service by allowing or rejecting certain bids.

ConMan I hope you don't take the feedback you are getting from members on here personally or negatively. It is necessary to look at your business idea critically and take on board any potential pitfalls you may have overlooked or not considered. I worked in a few banks and time and time again I had business proposals/plans on my desk that I had to throw in the bin. I have met many people that gave me the sense that they were passionate about their business, lovely people to know but when it came to a critical analysis of their business many factors were lacking that confirmed that they had not done their research properly. A business plan should be your first step for your business idea. It will answer the burning questions you have and even highlight ones you never thought of. A business plan is not just about borrowing money for a business it is also a tool for measuring the progression of your business to see how far/near you are on targets and expectations for business performances, market conditions etc. You mentioned some points so let me ask you some more critical questions even though you still haven't said what service(s) in particular you are targeting - suffice to say your business plan would reveal which service(s) if at all are viable.

Again this highlights the burning question of what type of service you're targeting because some services could take weeks some months. The time gap between providing the service and giving feed back to other consumers would take a longer time than a tangible sale & delivery scenario. The internet is perceived to be a click of a button and answers are readily available so look into ways to reduce the potential gaps


By having pictures and qualifications is one thing but that still doesn't verify the claims from bidders. I know of a few web site owners who had pictures of their work hijacked by unscrupulous folks who pretended the pictured work were their own. How would consumers verify that before a bid is accepted that joe bloggs has the qualifications, experiences and the pictures/videos provided are his own. Think of ways to reduce these risks to your consumers.

How would the consumer initially arrive at the maximum price. Through experience/knowledge of the particular service industry? Reading and researching? What if the maximum price falls below what any bidder is prepared to accept? These questions would mean your web site looking into providing guideline of prices for consumers possibly by also encouraging bidders across the board to give an estimated guideline. Again an estimate is exactly what it is even in the bidding process so your web site should also prepare consumers to be flexible when deciding a maximum price. After bids are accepted and work begins other issues not present at the initial stage may arise that effect a price increase. Look at the London Olympic stadium as as example which is true to any trade or construction services including legal services etc; prices at the outset can rise dramatically as work progresses due to unforeseen elements. Another question... What type of consumers are you targeting (apart from the services you are targeting). For example companies, the public or both.

Remember that site like ebay are required to have indemnity guarantee and merchant account which are in themselves under the FSA Financial Services Authority because you will be "processing" transactions. Look into whether your web site will need to satisfy any regulatory requirements. Setting the site up under a limited company is another must.


An idea is only as brilliant as a critical analysis says it is.