Have any of you used E-bay?

[Harlow]

I have some questions. I'm very nervous because I just bid on my first item. It's a Madonna painting and I have the money for it, but I don't have a credit card or check. The auction said money orders are fine, but I've never gotten a money order before. How fast was the shipping on your order? Did it arrive in good condition? What did you order from E-bay? Is it recommended? Thanks to all who respond.

[DeVena]

I've been ordering from eBay since 1995 - and I have never been disappointed. And I usually send a check or use payPal. The times I have used a money order have gone smoothly.

Always check the seller's references. If they don't have much good feedback, then stay away. What ever you're buying is not worth the risk of not getting anything.

[SanguineSpider]

Have them insure the item, shipping will depend on where it's coming from and such. I've purchased clothing, books, CDs, toys and I've never had a problem. eBay is addictive, though and the best piece of advice I can give is this: you should ALWAYS ask the seller any questions BEFORE you bid.

Like anything else, buyer beware... it's been good to me so far

*crosses her fingers*

[Mama Tiger]

Most eBay sellers are happy to get money orders. If you're in the US, you can get them at any post office for a nominal fee, or a lot of grocery stores or convenience stores. If you need to send money internationally, you can also use an international money order available at the post office.

Shipping time is totally up to the seller. Most try to get things shipped promptly, i.e. within a few days. Some take up to a week or two. And, of course, it depends on where it's being shipped from and to.

Just watch out for exorbitant shipping charges. Some sellers do try to gouge you by charging three or four times normal shipping charge as a way to make an extra profit without paying eBay their cut of the final sales value.

The best way to find out about a seller is to read their feedback. Generally, if a seller has much negative feedback, they should be avoided. It's hard to avoid getting ANY negative feedback (although I've been selling on eBay for a year now and so far have stayed at 100% positive -- but I've had to bend over backwards a couple of times to fix problems with customers), but it's possible. So an occasional negative is okay, but tons of them aren't. And people will comment in the feedback on shipping speed, excessive shipping charges, etc.

[1kBR Kid]

On most (all??) Money Orders, there is a way to contact the company that issues them, to verify that it was cashed. I had to do this one one Ebay transaction. The seller didn't ship my item for 6 weeks. I verified that he had cashed my Money Order and told him about that. The item was at my house within days. That seller has positive feedback in the thousands. I believe it was simply a mistake on his part. Other than that one little mistake, I've had over 200 great transactions* on Ebay. Most people are great, but "Buyer Beware" is a rule to live by.


One other transaction that was not so great was not really on Ebay. A guy had a diecast model car that I couldn't live without. It was a "Buy It Now" auction and I offered him a few bucks less by e-mail. He ended the auction and sold it to me "under the table". It turned out the car was a piece of shit. Since the transaction didn't take place on Ebay, I couldn't turn to them to set things right. I was just screwed to the tune of 133 bucks. NEVER do a transaction like that!!!!

[furlibusea]

If you are in the states use a United States Post Office Money order. It runs over 1/3 the price of other money orders, and is often seen by sellers as really secure.

[Harlow]

These auctions end on Christmas Eve so I'm worrying that I won't be able to go to a post office or place to get a money order. I'd have to wait the 24th and 25th since they are holidays and go o nthe 26th to get a money order. I don't want to delay the sellers nut does anyone know if post office have normal business hours on chritmas or around that holiday?

[Cajun Man]

This thread is better suited for In My Humble Opinion. I'll move it for you.

__________________

Cajun Man ~ SDMB Moderator

[Hanna]

Most sellers understand about the holidays, and won't mind if you have to wait until the 26th to send out a MO.

Now that you've already bid, just be careful you don't get into a bidding war. Set your max price in your mind, if you haven't already bid it yet. DON'T go above your max price. I always wait until the end of an auction to bid, just for that reason. Getting outbid is a bummer, but it is worse if you pay more than you wanted because someone else wants it too.

[amarone]

I've never had much of a problem with eBay. The worst I had was when I won an auction for a new item that was being offered by many suppliers. I didn't notice that the one I won had not posted a cost of shipping. Everyone else was charging $10 - $12. This seller asked for $25. She did come down to $17 on negotiation, which still left me ahead as I'd won the auction at a very good price.

[1010011010]

I've been buying things off eBay since about 1997 or so. I've only had a few occassions where things went less than ideally.

I had one seller rather excessively overestimate the condition of a CD.
Another seller took about 6 weeks to ship (paid within hours of winning the auction through PayPal), never responded to my e-mail, and screwed up the address. Seller had a lot of similar complaints in their neutral/negative feedback, so I wasn't terribly surprised.

Actually, the last few things I've won had had address problem because, thanks to the miltary, I have about 3 extra lines in internal mail routing information. A lot of sellers like to leave off that, and my rank, so it ends up sitting in the mail office for about an extra week. I'll usually note it in feedback, but still rate it as positive.

I agree with Mama Tiger on the USPO Money Orders. They're generally better received and less expensive.

Also, look at sellers' other auctions. It's not uncommon for there to be several auctions for a given product by the same seller, only one of which has been getting a bunch of bids pushing the price up.

Another also, Be wary of auctions where the pictures in the auction are obviously not pictures of the actual item being bid upon.

[Harlow]

Ok I have more questions.

I signed up for ebay a long time ago with an email address I use alot. I never used that anem and forgot it. I tried getting ebay to mail me the password and user name but it doesnt work. So i signed up with a different email name and im on aol so i have to switch over email names to check my mail. The ebay site says i can merge emails so i followed their directions and still couldnt find the meail merger.

When ebay asked if I wanted to bid on a 10 dollar item i thought that i would bid 11 dollars for the time being. I didnt know this was a max bid. So am I screwed if they bid 12 dollars? I really want to be able to change it if they bid higher.

[CanvasShoes]

I've never had any problems, not even with paypal, which is what I use.

[CanvasShoes]

Oops, forgot to mention, as others have stated, I always check the seller's comments section. If they have too many negatives, forget it.

And read the negative comments too, you can usually tell from what they said if the seller was really negligent, or if the buyer was just being fussy.

Good bidding!!

[Hanna]

Originally posted by Harlow

When ebay asked if I wanted to bid on a 10 dollar item i thought that i would bid 11 dollars for the time being. I didnt know this was a max bid. So am I screwed if they bid 12 dollars? I really want to be able to change it if they bid higher.

Yes, you can change your bid upwards (place another bid in a higher amount) anytime before the end of the auction. You cannot change it downwards (well, you can cancel, but that is not good).

Think of the total *maximum* you would pay for this. That should be the most you will bid. Take shipping costs into account, too. I prefer to wait until the end of the auction to place any bids, but if you will be gone or busy you might want to bid this now. Yes, people who bid higher can win it, and you'll lose. But like I said before, I'd much rather lose an auction than pay more than an item is worth.

[Intaglio]

I have found many items (Watches, Sweaters, Barbie's & Barbie Stuff, Toys, Wonder Woman Stuff, Movie Stuff), needless to say I have bought alot of stuff on Ebay, but it is stuff I can not find. It is addictive though. And I always pay with a Money Order - which I have no problem getting, but I do not buy any item that will not take a Money Order. I haven't had a problem with shipping, I always E-mail the seller when I send the Money Order, usually when they recieve, the item is sent the nect day, so I usually get pretty quick. I always check with the Sellers Comments, if it is Negative, I won't bother, even if it is something I want to buy. I always get the item I purchased insured.

One thing I get pissed off about E-bay is, I may be the high bidder for like 6 days and the hours until the auction ends some Dick has to outbid me.

[dabusdriver69]

Originally posted by Intaglio

One thing I get pissed off about E-bay is, I may be the high bidder for like 6 days and the hours until the auction ends some Dick has to outbid me.

There are software programs that do this (snipe) for you. Ideally, proxy bidding should fix sniping, but most people don't know the true value of the item and just bid higher than the highest bidding person.

I think sniping makes good business sense for the buyers since it prevents a price war from occurring until the last minute, literally, so prices are not as high as they could be.

[DeadlyAccurate]

I love sniping an item, and I laugh when I get sniped on something I wanted. If somone sniped your bid, they were just willing to pay more than you were on the item.

[ReBusEniGma]

I both buy and sell on eBay. I've had great experiences for the most part. A couple of times I thought I wasn't going to get my item, but it turned up in the end. Very good experiences overall.

I'm with you [b]DeadlyAccurate[/n], in my opinion, sniping is just smart business in an e-auction.

[Harlow]

Ugh...someone outbid me. I don't know how much I should pay for this painting. It's an original painting and the size o a piece of paper....roughly 8 1/2 x 11in. I bid 10.00 but now this girl nid 15.00. Yikes. This sucks! So I bid 15.50. I don't know how far I should go. Should I just wait until the end of the auction and bid the last 5 minutes? It's frustrating when you think you're going to get something and you don't.

[Silver Serpentine]

I buy all my Body Jewelry on Ebay. Prices are amazing, compared to piercing parlors and the *gag* mall.

If you plan on doing the Ebay thing more often, I'd reccomend a PayPal account. You can have them take money from your checking or savings account, even tho it's kind of a slow process. That way you can pay the seller immediatly (they seem to like that) AND not have to worry about your payment getting lost in the mail. Plus, your item'll get to you faster.

[Harlow]

I have more questions....thanks for all the help so far everyone!

1) What is the percentage of feedback should I trust someone with? I mean how much should I be willing to settle for. Example someone with 95% and higher seller feedback. Should I go with 90% seller feedback and above? I don't know how to trust these percentages.

2) Does anyone have any bidding strategies to get your item? I really want this painting, but this person is outbidding me everyday. We are in a bidding war of some sort, and it irks me because I want this. Should I be sneaky and wait the last 5 minutes of the auction and start bidding? What is strategy to get the item you want?

[Hello Again]

#2). Decide the maximum YOU would be willing to pay for this item. The MAXIMUM. Enter this number in the bidding window.

You sound like you don't understand Ebay's "proxy bidding" system. You enter the highest amount you would be willing to pay, and Ebay offers the minimum winning bid. If someone else bids up, it will bid for you by the smallest amount needed to win, until bidding goes over your maximum, or you win.

Example: Bidding starts at $5.

You enter $20 in the bidding box.
Ebay bids 5.50 on your behalf.
Another person bids $7
Ebay automatically bids $7.50 on your behalf (without you even having to be there)

This will continue until no one else bids, or your limit of $20 is exceeded.

If you entered the maximum you'd be willing to pay and someone else outbids you, walk away. Don't get sucked into a bidding war... that way leads only to pain.

[groo]

I've only bought one thing on e-bay, but it was a computer. Since it involved a notable amount of money ($350), I looked for a seller who lived within driving distance and had good feedback. And since I felt that the bidding process was somehow demeaning, I just swooped in and paid the "buy it now" price. Picked it up that night and have never had a problem.

However, many people have told me that my experience (which I consider to be "wonderful") may have been atypical.

[Sassafras]

I have have nothing but good experiences on Ebay. To repeat what everyone else has said, keep an eye on those shipping costs! I have seen people charging up to $7-8 shipping for a pair of earrings. And don't get suckered into paying more for something you could buy at a store cheaper. Case in point- I bought my niece some of that "Swan Lake Barbie" stuff for Xmas. I bought the Barbie ( $15.63) , the Prince, ($16.00) and the carriage ($22.81) at Target. They were selling on Ebay for up to $50.00 apiece.

[DeadlyAccurate]

Originally posted by Harlow
Ugh...someone outbid me. I don't know how much I should pay for this painting. It's an original painting and the size o a piece of paper....roughly 8 1/2 x 11in. I bid 10.00 but now this girl nid 15.00. Yikes. This sucks! So I bid 15.50. I don't know how far I should go. Should I just wait until the end of the auction and bid the last 5 minutes? It's frustrating when you think you're going to get something and you don't.

The size of the painting doesn't really mean anything. It's who the artist is that determines the worth (well, that and demand). Try looking up the artist in Google and see if you can find any information on him/her.

[The Griffin]

Originally posted by DeVena
I've been ordering from eBay since 1995 - and I have never been disappointed. And I usually send a check or use payPal. The times I have used a money order have gone smoothly.

Always check the seller's references. If they don't have much good feedback, then stay away. What ever you're buying is not worth the risk of not getting anything.

Eh, how do you know if you've never had any bad experiences?

[Boo Boo Foo]

I've purchased some very expensive items via ebay - and I'm happy to report that I've done so without a hitch. One of my hobbies is to collect classic electric guitars from the 1960's - and you can imagine what some of them cost. But as I said, every single time the sale has gone off "smooth as". And that includes shipping via Fedex down here to Australia.

But the most expensive item I've bought thus far was a 1966 Shelby Mustang from Miami, Florida for $46,000 USD - and again, both the sale, and shipping via container ship down here to Australia, well... all of it went absolutely smooth as.

Obviously there are some "dodgy operators" out there. However, I would recommend creating a Pay Pal account straight away, and then do the "next step registration" process so you can spend more than $1000 if you need to, and everything is very nicely protected from therein I reckon. Part of the reason for this is that Pay Pal is a subsidiary of eBay itself, and as such, money payment disputes due to poor quality of items sold etc can be assisted by both Pay Pal and eBay in the Buyer's favour.

[bittersweet]

Personally, I'm a tad miffed. I finally put some jewelry items up for sale on eBay, and haven't received one bid in a week and a half.

Other people could make a killing selling heart-shaped cow patties on there, but I can't sell my friggin' jewelry.

Rat's ass.

[congodwarf]

I love eBay. I've never had any problems. Any seller who expects you to get and mail a money order the day the auction ends is unrealistic. eBay says the seller should send a final total to the buyer within 3 business days and a good idea is to have your money sent within a week after the auction ends. One thing to keep in mind is that banks and post offices are not open during accessable hours so there's usually only one day a week when most people can get there. So, don't worry if you take a few days. If a seller says you have to pay within a unreasonable amount of time, don't bid.
Also, don't be afraid of international sales. My best experience was with a man in England. After I bought a few Harry Potter coins from him through eBay, he told me which other ones he could get. He charged me the amount the store charged plus shipping and his bus fare to the store and he got the rest of the set and the book for me. He was a wonderful seller.
The major thing to be aware of is e-mails that look like they're from eBay. I got a bunch that were very authentic looking. They asked for some information I knew eBay wouldn't ask for. I reported them to Safe Harbor and found out it was a scam. Watch out for stuff like that.
Always check the sellers feedback. I'm very picky about who I buy from. I'm very strict with myself. Even if I really want an item, I will not bid if the seller has more than a reasonable about of negatives or neutrals.
Anyway, enough of that. Have fun and don't get too hooked. A weeks pay only goes so far.

[Kat]

1) What is the percentage of feedback should I trust someone with? I mean how much should I be willing to settle for. Example someone with 95% and higher seller feedback. Should I go with 90% seller feedback and above? I don't know how to trust these percentages.

It really depends on what sort of item you're buying and what the content of the negative feedback is. For example, if it's a small item that you don't need right away, and there are a few negative feedbacks complaining that the seller is a slow shipper, you could probably risk it. If it's a fragile item and the seller has a few negative feedbacks that he doesn't pack well, you might not want to risk it. Use common sensed and, if in doubt, skip it. Unless it's a one-of-a-kind item, there's probably somewhere else you can find it, perhaps even from another seller on eBay who doesn't set off your alarm bells.

[Toddly]

I have not bought a great deal from E-Bay but check out the seller as all have advise. Bookmark the item, check it out each day if you want but be there during the last hour. That is when it usually gets active and you can lose out. Good Luck but don't be to disappointed if someone outbids you, E-Bay gets a lot of traffic and people will pay more than what you think the item is worth.

[iampunha]

A few things:

1. Volume of negative feedback can be important, but so can the time of the feedback and the feedback left. Someone who decided to stop being courteous could have their last five feedback negative, but have a hundred before that as glowing as the sun.

2. There is a service I used when I was buying vintage toys (and am now selling them) that allowed me to snipe auctions without even being online. At the risk of violating the board rule on advertising, the URL for that address (I am in no way affiliated with that site, just in case anyone thinks I could possibly profit) is www dot auctionstealer dot com (and if I am in violation, mods please delete that with my apologies). When I was buying toys, I had about a 90% success rate with that site, and that included the more dangerous (subscriber option) "bid with one second left" vs the free "bid with 5 seconds left" ... at least, I think that's the time we (my father and I) had it set to. I could be wrong.

[Intaglio]

Bittersweet, what kind of Jewelry are you selling?

[Eve]

I hate eBay. Haaaaate it. When I want to buy something, I want to buy it, not arm-wrestle someone for it. The one time I tried to get something on eBay, some jerk outbid me by, like, two dollars, two minutes before the auction closed. That did it for me.

When I go to Lord & Taylor's and see a nice pair of Marc Jacobs shoes, I expect to say, "I'll take them!" and have them wrapped up for me. I do not expect the saleman to say, "Oh, I'm sorry, ma'am, that woman behind you just offered two dollars more for them."

I just don't have the auctioneering spirit.

[medstar]

Eve, I always use the Buy it now option for anything I really want. I'm very much into instant gratification that way. Besides, the Buy it now prices are still quite reasonable. I don't feel like saving the last dollar to risk losing something I really want.

[bittersweet]

Originally posted by Intaglio
Bittersweet, what kind of Jewelry are you selling?

Lookie here.

Not one stinkin' bid. I even lowered my prices.

[Early Out]

Originally posted by furlibusea
If you are in the states use a United States Post Office Money order. It runs over 1/3 the price of other money orders, and is often seen by sellers as really secure.

The reason that sellers love them is that they're damn near impossible to counterfeit. They have the same kind of security features as currency, like subtle coloration, watermarks, etc.

Years ago, cashier's checks and certified checks were considered to be as good as cash. No longer. There are counterfeits all over the place out there, so if you ever accept a cashier's check as payment for something, don't fork over the goods for at least a couple of weeks after you've deposited the check, until you're absolutely, positively sure the check is legit.