Question about ebay

[missBella]

I am familiar with the notion of ebay. And now finally, I am thinking of selling something on ebay. But I'm a little nervous. Could you please explain any basics that I should know or beware for? I think at first I would only use money order or cheques, and Paypal later once I'm a little more familiar with selling...


I am a little nervous about giving out my credit card when setting up the account. Should I be?

 

[Piel]

I have never sold anything but have bought many things off of eBay and have had nothing but good experiences. I use PayPal.

 

[PrincessLeppard]

While I've never sold anything on eBay, I've bought a lot and they've had my credit card on file since about 1999, I think, and there's never been a problem. I'm thinking of selling some fab purses I have that I never use, so maybe we can try it out together.

I also use Paypal, but I may stick with checks and money orders at first, too.

Good luck!

 

[sk8m8]

Ebay, itself offers and exellent tutorial on their site, if you want to muck thorough it all. Better idea is the book "ebay for dummies" available at most retailers that carry computer 'how to" books. I parses a lot of the verbiage out of the ebay site manual and explains things a fairly simple and straightforwad way.

Let me know how it works for you....your s8m8 ....mark

 

[Dee4707]

I've been selling on Ebay for about 2 years. I was nervous at first too but there is always something to learn and I am still learning. The best advice to offer is don't get frustrated if your stuff doesn't sell the first time you put it up for auction. Also, don't get caught up with all the bells and whistles they offer you to sell your product. Always make sure that you give out lots of information on your product, give measurements, color and anything else you can think of to describe your product. Think of it as a business and how you would treat your customers. I always write my customers a handwritten thank you note and communicate with them even if they don't with me. Also, they have wonderful question and answer boards that help with problems. Here is the site:

Ebay Question & Answer Board Index

I think the longest I waited for an answer to a problem was about an hour. One other thing I wanted to mention is that Paypal charges sellers fees. I use the Personal Account on Paypal so I am not allowed to advertise it with the credit card logos. I just make sure that I put that in my description.....I don't accept credit cards. As said before, you need to make sure if you only want to accept checks or money orders that it is stated in your description.

Good luck selling.

Dee

 

[missBella]

ebay

Thanks everybody for the responses. I really appreciate your information!

 

[PrincessLeppard]

I put two purses up on eBay, and it took me about an hour. Of course, now that I know what I'm doing, next time it will be easier. But if neither of them sell, I may never do this again.

(they are both Nine west bags, if anyone is interested. One zebra print, one cow print..... )

 

[Vash01]

I sold many times on ebay in 2002, but not much since. I found it useful to create the paypal account because it improved the chances of selling. The paypal account uses a secure server, so it is no more risky than using a credit card in a restaurant. I have not had any bad experiences, and in fact it has helped me sell. It is always easier for a buyer to use a credit card on line than to mail a check or worse a money order (that involves a trip to buy one).

I would recommend going through the ebay tutorial before putting something up for sale. You can easily cover it in one evening.

It is helpful to the buyer if you describe your product well. A picture is very helpful. I always described the shipping method and charges, depending on the country (if you are selling outside yours). The most important thing is to respond to customer inquiries quickly and answering their questions honestly. Keeping in touch with the customer (to give them the update) is very important in getting a good rating as a seller.

If you get stuck for any reason, there is plenty of help available on ebay.

I would recommend putting a minimum price on the product, and having a low start bid. Also, the option to buy outright is helpful to the buyer and the seller.

Vash

 

[heyang]

The worst part about selling on Ebay is the bad buyers. The only times I've posted negative feedback is when someone bids and wins, but never pays and never responds to e-mails and never informs the seller that they changed their minds.

My advice... start out slow with only an item or 2. Also, you should try to state a day of the week that you ship. Otherwise, the buyer might expect you to ship as soon as payment is received. For instance, if I'm selling during the holidays, I state that I only ship on Wednesday's (since I usually take those days off to go shopping to avoid the crowds.) If I sell during the summer, I say that I only ship on Friday's since we have summer hours and only work 1/2 a day. That way if someone pays on a Monday during the summer, they know that I won't ship until Friday. If I do have time to ship before then, they just think it's great that I did it earlier.

Also, make sure that you mention that shipmens are held until the check clears the bank. ...and Make sure it clears by going online to your bank account. I've shipped early and had to chase after people for the payment and the bank charges.

 

[PrincessLeppard]

thanks for the advice. I now have three purses on there (since they are offering new sellers the chance to sell three items free), and one seems to be doing well. My current bid leader has no feedback, and the two questions I've gotten are from people with no feedback! However, someone had to sell to me for the first time, so I'm sure it'll be fine. Really. Uh...