E BAY  E BAY  E BAY  HOW TO SHOP E BAY  

By: Dusty Reed

Trying to find that something different for that someone special?

Garage sales or eBay? Driving several miles, wasting time, inclement weather and not finding what one is after can be frustrating. Setting up for a garage sale is time-consuming and a lot of work with no guarantee of good business. If you have had these experiences, eBay is the solution! You can browse oodles of items for sale or zero-in with the Search button at the top of the home page to find a specific item. You can find what you are after within a few minutes time, sitting right where you are now! Or, you can sell any item(s) you choose simply by providing a description and price and posting them in the appropriate category at eBay... and they are available for buyers for 7 days (there are some longer periods available, too).

Someone new to the site might find it too much of a challenge to get through what appears a maze of instructions. A page of links for specific questions are at the Site Map which can be found by clicking that link near the top right of the eBay home page. Registration with eBay is easy, with full instructions. Once you are registered, you are ready to buy or post your item. If you get stuck and need help, there is "Live Chat" link just under the site map link. An eBay expert can help you get your item posted or answer most any question you might have.

Once you have completed registration, which is a requirement, you will have your own home page, "My eBay Summary." This shows the items you are selling and items where you have placed bids. This page offers many resources so it is good to check out the links provided there.

As a friend has said, "Ebay looks like Greek to some of us. I saw a cane bottom chair there… but wasn’t sure if it was really for sale for less than $10 but seemed to be."

When you type the item you are interested into the search box, there may be multiple items in the category of interest. This listing shows the dollar amount of the current bid price. Click on a seller's page of your choice, where the item is found, and read the description. It will give the dollar amount for the required bid. The final sales price normally does not include the shipping cost so check further in the description to see what the shipping rate will be on top of the final cost of the item.

The seller's page has a rating system that shows the satisfaction of previous buyers for items purchased from that seller. This gives potential bidders an indication of the dependability of the seller.

Place your bid (near the bottom of the page). It will ask for the maximum price you are willing to pay. The bids will be handled by increments. If you bid $4.00 for an item, someone else may come along and bid $4.25. You will be notified by email that someone else has bid higher. You can go back and increase the bid. If, however, you put your maximum bid as $10.00, then you will not be notified until someone bids over that amount. Then you can choose whether to increase your bid. Once you have placed a bid, you are committed to pay that price if no one bids higher.

I find it helpful to make note of when the bid is final, the day and hour. That way I can check the item shortly before the bidding is finished to see if I want to increase my bid.

To pay for an item, once you win the bid - you will be notified if you did win the bid - sellers tell on their page how they prefer to be paid. Some will accept personal checks, some only money orders, certified checks or PayPal. The notification of winning the bid will provide a place where one can pay via PayPal.

My friend posed some questions that I will attempt to answer, even though by finding the right place at eBay, through using the site map link or going to the Live Help link, the answers are there. Her questions: Are you aware that some of us folks don’t understand the things we need to know to buy on eBay or similar programs? How do I pay if I don’t have PayPal? Is PayPal necessary for a one time buyer? How do I know when to pay for merchandise? What do I do if I already paid and the merchandise is defective?

PayPal is a go-between so the buyer does not deal directly with the seller's bank. PayPal accepts the funds either through the buyer's existing account there or via credit card. PayPal then places the payment in the seller's account. The seller can leave it there or transfer it to his or her home bank account. If the payment is left in the buyer's account, he can use it to buy items from others. PayPal is an easy, international, and dependable way to handle funding for purchases. There is a small fee for each transaction when using PayPal.

Depending on the cost of the item, it is the buyer's choice if they would like to include insurance in their payment. Some offer a return of merchandise or refund if item is defective upon receipt by the buyer. Over the past four years, I have had two situations where I was given the option of returning the item, getting a refund, or choosing another "Buy it now" item if the seller has any such items posted.

You do not have to be a retail expert to sell anything at eBay. I, as well as many others, enjoy it as a hobby. I can invest as much or as little time as I choose, selling or buying. I mostly sell small items (record albums, books, post cards) on a steady basis and the income has added up considerably over my four years with eBay. I have bought several new pine and spruce trees for our yard, paid for new flooring for several rooms in our home, bought the material for my husband to build our new back porch, plus numerous other projects that I have paid for with my eBay income.

Look around. What is an item that you no longer need that is in good, working condition? Check for similar items at eBay and see what prices are getting bids. Write a good and honest description, using words that people would use to find your item.

There is a small fee for posting, as well as a percentage fee for the seller when the item sells. How this is paid to eBay is described in the registration process. I use PayPal for this transaction so I do not have to use a credit card to pay directly to eBay. I use a credit card anywhere online as little as possible for safety purposes.

At the top of your "My eBay" page, which you are guided to after you register, there is a link to "sell" your item. Simply follow the instructions as given. The item you have for sale will show up in the category where you choose to list it when you are posting it for sale. Example: record album goes into the "music" category and as you do your posting, you choose finer details. Once you travel around eBay for awhile, you will see more of how this works. Your "My eBay" page will show when you have bids on an item. When the bidding is over, you will receive an email that gives the buyer's address.

For anyone who does not prefer going to all the trouble of setting up a yard sale to sell cast-offs or being out in the hot, humid summer weather to find a particular item, remember your trash is someone else's treasure and visa versa. EBay is the place where people can find the treasures.

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