Buying FAQ
How to find bargains, use buying software, establish trust, and back out of transactions.
Tags: Buying, FAQs
Questions
There is an item I want to find on eBay. Where do
I begin?
The three most important tasks when buying on eBay are research,
research and more research. Most buyers begin with a basic search from
the eBay home page, which by default searches in the auction titles of
items located in your country (or worldwide on some eBay sites). This
may yield plenty of results but you should consider trying different
keywords, browsing through the category tree, and following the course
of several auctions over the next few days.
Good research will help you find all the relevant results -
for example some sellers may sell wireless networking equipment as "Wi-Fi",
others as "Wireless LAN" or "802.11", and yet others
may use a brand name or model number. By following auctions of similar
items for a few days you will develop an insight into the eBay market
for the item - the typical selling price, who the big sellers are,
which brands or varieties command higher prices, and the overall popularity.
Most importantly, read auction ads carefully and don't be afraid
to ask the seller for more information. Bidding on an eBay auction forms
a contract between you and the seller so you should never do so unless
you intend to pay.
How do I find a bargain?
Identical items tend to fetch very similar prices
at online auctions, and you will usually find that the "eBay price" is
less than high-street or Internet retail prices - but be sure to check.
Typical prices vary widely but a rough guide is that new items fetch
50 - 80% of the retail price, and second-hand items in good condition
make 25 - 50% of the new price. There are
certainly good deals to be found by buying items that
are used, liquidated stock, or unwanted gifts.
If you decide to buy on eBay and have done your initial research,
think about exactly what qualities you are looking for in
an item (brand, price, condition etc.) and a seller (payment methods,
location, feedback level etc). You may discover that certain brands
achieve lower prices than the average, or that a seller with less informative
ads gets fewer bids, or even that auctions ending
at a particular time of day attract less fierce bidding. Try
to look for patterns which are affecting final prices.
Decide what you are willing to pay for the item and take your
time searching and bidding. If you are outbid don't panic and bid
more than you are willing to pay - another chance will come along.
How can software help?
eBay is such a huge marketplace that finding what you want at the right
price can be a daunting task - there is certainly a place for eBay software
in the searching process. Auction
Searching tools can save and automatically repeat your searches,
and Auction
Monitoring software helps you to follow auctions by alerting you
when bids are placed or new items come onto the market.
Much of the appeal of these tools is their ability to automate repetitive
and time-consuming tasks, as well as adding features which are not
possible on the eBay site, such as sorting auctions by the number
of bids, or estimating market prices.
For tips on free software for finding bargains read Harry Potter and the eBay Bargain Hunt.
How can I tell if a seller is trustworthy?
The main source of information about sellers (and buyers) is
the feedback they receive. Analyzing feedback can be frustrating, because
negative feedback cannot be easily filtered from positive. Feedback
Tools include features such as viewing only negative and neutral
feedback, and analysis of feedback and bidding patterns
to detect possible dishonesty.
Do not ignore sources of information such as feedback given,
membership of any "seal" programs such as SquareTrade, and
the "About
Me" page (if the seller has one). Also, try contacting the seller
with any questions you have. Everyone will find different approaches
to evaluating sellers — here is one example:
- Decide on the minimum feedback you expect a seller to have.
This may vary with the value of the item, for example, feedback of
10 may be acceptable to you for a $5 item but you might want to see
feedback of 1,000 or more for a $250 item.
- Decide of the minimum percentage of positive feedback you
want to see. This should be high — 98% positive feedback, for example,
is not exceptional for an eBay seller.
- Take a look at the feedback received by the seller. Is it for buying
or selling? Has the seller been actively selling in the last few
weeks? How does their recent feedback compare to their overall rating?
- If there is recent feedback you will be able to view the items
that were sold. Is the item being sold now in keeping
with those sold in the past, or has the seller jumped from selling
$1 paperbacks to $1,000 laptops?
Above all, if you doubt the trustworthiness of a
seller do not bid on their auctions.
How do I back out of an eBay transaction?
The eBay community is based on trust, so canceling a bid or
backing out of a purchase should be avoided if it all possible. However,
there are some occasions when a buyer feels that they must back out
of a transaction, and the seller is not at fault. The correct procedure
is to some extent a matter of opinion and local law, but the following
guidelines may help a buyer decide on the best course of action:
Retracting a bid:
- Bids are binding, so only bid if you intend
to follow through with the purchase.
- If you must retract a bid then you can apply to do so using the Bid
Retraction form. There are restrictions on this depending on the
timing of your bid and reason for the retraction.
- Bid retractions will appear in your feedback profile so may damage your
overall reputation.
- Misuse of the bid retraction option may result in a warning or suspension
from eBay.
Backing out of a sale:
- Remember that your winning bid is a binding contract and the seller is
not obliged to release you from it.
- Try explaining the problem to the seller. They may be understanding and
agree not to complete the sale, which means they can apply
for a refund of their Final Value Fee (FVF). Be aware that the FVF
refund process is time-consuming and inconvenient for the seller,
and listing fees are not refunded.
- On no account should you ignore the seller's emails, or refuse to pay.
This will almost certainly lead to negative feedback and an Unpaid Item warning being issued. Three warnings will cause
suspension from eBay.
- Consider simply buying and reselling the item to avoid damage to
your reputation and inconvenience for the seller.
Please note that this is only a general guide and is not intended to reflect
all the eBay policy and law applicable to your situation.
Nor does it consider circumstances where the seller misrepresented or
failed to send the item — in this case you should refer
to eBay's
buyer protection help.
Where can I learn more?
