How to Ebay

[ECOslin]

I was asked tonight how best to utilize Ebay.

Edward Oslin's rules for getting what you want on Ebay.

1. Decide what you want beforehand.
2. Watch two or three other sales(click 'watch this item') on those pages and on your 'I'm buying/watching page' under 'My Ebay' see what price those sales end at.(sometimes this isn't an option for a unique item)
3. You have the option of placing an early bid, if you haven't time to watch an item, this bid has a negative side of letting others know of your interest in the item.
4. Early bids on your behalf, will often be overbid early by someone else.(good for the seller)
5. Set some type of alarm system, software or alarm clock, to go off a couple of minutes before your item comes to an end.
6. Refresh your item's web page till the time is under a minute, place your bid of the max money you'd be willing to spend on the item, it won't necessarily go that high, if it does then someone else wanted it way more than you did and that's just life.

Money orders (postal money orders) are the cheapest way to pay for an item, Paypal takes a large nibble from the sellers side, Bidpay takes a really large nibble from your side. Personal checks are ok, except most sellers will want to wait 10 days for them to clear.

Print this out. ;-)

Edward

check out:
Xcom Alliance poster

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=3606&item=3002924993

Anyone have anything I missed?

Edward

[shawnc]

I would only add that in many instances Paypal takes LONGER than a money order. From a buyers perspective it is easy to assume that the seller receives Paypal funds instantly (since it comes directly out of your bank account). But lately I have found that it takes more time for the seller to receive the funds than if I had simply mailed a MO.

Of course, Paypal is more convenient. Just be aware that it may take longer to receive your merchandise than you expect.

[ECOslin]

I'm heavy into selling for the past month and a half and Paypal has been pretty quick for the transactions I've been doing. All my info is confirmed with them and they offer the moneyback guarantee on my stuff.

The other side of the coin is, I don't point Paypal out as the primary payment option, to the customers. I would prefer to avoid what fees I can. Money orders, Bidpay, Cashier's checks have the service charge on the customer's side. My profit margins are vaporous anyway.

Edward

[shawnc]

I'm heavy into selling for the past month and a half and Paypal has been pretty quick for the transactions I've been doing. All my info is confirmed with them and they offer the moneyback guarantee on my stuff.

That's a little surprising. Initially when I started using Paypal the payments seemed to be confirmed within a day or two. However, with my last few transactions it seems to take between 4 and 5 days before the funds have actually cleared to the seller. I just assumed the delays were related to holiday volume or the Paypal/ebay merger.


The other side of the coin is, I don't point Paypal out as the primary payment option, to the customers. I would prefer to avoid what fees I can. Money orders, Bidpay, Cashier's checks have the service charge on the customer's side. My profit margins are vaporous anyway.

Edward

That's interesting. The main reason I started using Paypal is because I thought it was more convenient for the SELLER. I thought that was their preferred method of payment. Most of the things I have purchased off of ebay are so reasonably priced that I would not want to stop someone from making a reasonable profit because of additional fees.

[ECOslin]

PayPal charges Premier and Business accounts to receive payments. Personal accounts are free, but may not receive credit card payments.

You are currently being charged the Standard Rate. 2.9% + 30¢

Nibble, and credit cards payments add an additional fee.

Item auctioned for $25, Ebay fees $2.66, Paypal fees $1.41(+39¢ credit card), Net $20.93

Edward